(A/N: CONTENT WARNING- this chapter contains physical abuse.)

Thirteen years ago

A young teenage boy stood before his father. His father scowled in disapproval.

"What do you have to say for yourself?"

The teenager fidgeted. "She started it. She took the book I was reading. It wasn't meant to harm her."

The father sighed. "Whether or not she started it, it was no reason to dump a bucket of worm infested mud on your sister's head. And right before she had her friends come over."

"She always is doing stuff to me and she never gets in trouble for it. Why do I always get in trouble when I do something to her?"

"Son, women are more delicate than men are. They are easier to hurt. They need good men to take care of them."

"Hmph." The boy folded his arms indignantly.

"Now listen here boy! You'll learn to treat women right and you'll do it soon. They may be the weaker sex but they are the fairer one too. Men are nothing without women. If I ever hear that you hurt a woman of any age or rank, or you let harm befall them at another's hand, I will make you regret ever living. Understood?"

The boy nodded. "Yes Father."

"Good."

oOo

Sofia hummed as she walked through the marketplace. She'd been at the orphanage that morning to play with the children there and now she was on her way to a local cafe for lunch.

In the distance, thunder sounded. It wasn't raining at the moment but it had been during the night. And it looked like it was going to start raining again very soon.

"I guess lunch will have to be very fast, huh Minimus?"

From her side, Minimus snorted. Sofia smiled. She would have been on him but for whatever reason, the light steed had been acting strange since they left the orphanage. If whatever was causing him to act so odd was a precursor to him spooking, Sofia wanted to be holding his reins from the ground. She had a better chance of calming him from the ground and wouldn't have to worry about being thrown.

Just as Sofia was about to arrive at the cafe, a rock flew from a nearby shadow and hit Minimus in the rump. The steed bucked, neighing in fear.

"Whoa Minimus!"

Sofia tried to calm her skittish horse to no avail. Another rock flew from the shadow, that time coming far too close to Minimus' eyes. Minimus jerked hard and ran off, pulling Sofia down to her knees as the reins were pulled from her hands.

"Minimus!" Sofia called after her horse, but he was long gone.

Frustrated, the young lady turned towards the shadow to confront whoever had spooked and possibly injured Minimus. Her words died in her throat and she paled when she saw just who was there. It had been a long time since she'd seen him and it appeared as if time hadn't been kind to him. But she still recognized him.

"Poor Sofia. You've just lost your ride home."

"G-go away Graham," Sofia stuttered. "Unless y-you want to h-have your nose broken again."

Alexander Graham stepped out of the shadows, a cold expression on his face. Sofia took a couple steps back, trembling.

"Your brother isn't here to protect you this time. You're here by yourself. You don't scare me."

Sofia gritted her teeth. As much as she didn't want to admit it, Alexander was right. She was alone. And the roads were unusually empty, most likely compliments of the weather that day.

"L-leave me alone."

Alexander's expression darkened further. "My good name and standing is ruined because of you. I used to be welcomed fondly in any household. Now, I can't go anywhere without having to worry about the constable."

"You ruined your own name by yourself. I did nothing to your name. And as I recall, you were already hiding from the law before we ever met!"

"It is still your fault!"

Sofia clenched her hands into fists. "I'm not the one who shoved a young lady down so hard her arm got broken. I'm not the one who made several inappropriate advances towards multiple women. You have no one to blame but yourself. Now go away."

Sofia tried backing away but a hand shot out and grabbed her arm. Alexander gripped her tightly and jerked her towards him.

Think Sofia! James didn't show you a thing or two about fighting for no reason!

"You think I'm scared of a common born step daughter to some swanky gentleman? Mayor Cyning may claim you as a real daughter but you're just as fake as a harlot. I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Your mother had to be some sort of tramp if she managed to snare the most honorable mayor our village has ever seen."

"Don't talk about my mother like that!"

Alexander snickered. "Poor little peasant. Does the truth hurt? Too bad. I wasn't satisfied that morning. You weren't supposed to get away."

Sofia gritted her teeth and launched her knee up between his legs. Graham's grip loosened as he groaned in pain. Sofia pushed her assailant away from her and took off running.

Hoping to lose him, she went into the forest. It didn't take long for Sofia to hear another set of footsteps. She didn't dare look back. She knew she was being followed.

What was I thinking? I should have gone to the town hall! Dad will be there. Or at least he will be soon.

Sofia turned sharply around a tree hoping to make it back into the village. If she could get to the town hall, she knew of some very good hiding spots there. Not only that, there would be people there who would help her.

Her luck ran out. Sofia's feet flew out from underneath her as she ran into a mud puddle. An exclamation of surprise and pain escaped her lips as she landed. She hurried to get back up and keep running but it was too late. Graham grabbed his target tightly by her arm.

"Do you think a couple petty tricks will keep me from getting what I want? You will regret ever denying me."

Sofia tried to hide her fear but she was completely alone with him and far away from any possible help.

Sofia tried to push Graham away but he caught her hand. He slammed her against a tree before throwing her to the ground. Sofia groaned in pain. With her temporarily winded, Graham pinned her down. He leaned closely to her and pressed his mouth against her, forcing his tongue inside. Sofia brought her teeth down as hard as she could on the offending tongue. Graham recoiled as blood dropped from his mouth, some of it landing on Sofia.

Despite the taste of blood in her mouth, it gave Sofia some satisfaction to know she had gotten him but it was short lived. Graham wiped his mouth and wrapped a hand around Sofia's neck.

Graham raised a fist and slammed it down repeatedly. Sofia felt the world around her grow foggy. She tried struggling against Graham to no avail. Suddenly, the punching stopped. Very quickly though, Sofia wished he would continue punching. She had no desire to have his hand under her skirt and snaking its way up her leg.

A loud bang sounded. Graham yelled in pain and let go of Sofia to grab his arm. He stood up and turned to see who'd shot him. As curious as Sofia was about who had intervened, she could hardly focus enough. Letting out a small grunt of pain, she rolled onto her side, curling into a ball.

"That was a warning shot! Step away from Miss Sofia right now!"

Sofia's eyes widened. She knew that voice very well. No amount of haze from pain, fear, and lack of oxygen could change that.

Graham snorted. "I think not. I have an old score to settle with the little tramp."

Sofia flinched as another shot rang through the air. Graham yelped in pain as blood started to drip from his hip. He nearly fell down but was able to balance himself on his uninjured leg.

Cedric started to close the distance between them, keeping his pistol aimed directly at Graham. Sofia wondered if Graham was insane. No sane person would ignore the demands of someone who had shot them and was keeping the gun aimed at them.

"I don't care what score you think you need to settle with her," Cedric said as he got close enough to press the pistol against Graham's chest. "She is with me, under my protection. Now step away."

Graham chuckled darkly. "You're lying. She's not here with anyone. I bet you just want the filthy little harlot in your bed."

The response Alexander got to that was a bullet in his knee. Blood spurted as Graham landed on the ground.

"You don't play fairly do you?" Graham winced.

Cedric grabbed Graham's necktie and landed a solid hit to his nose.

"I find that bastards like you who prey on innocent people don't deserve a chance to play fairly," Cedric seethed. "And I'll have you know that I, Cedric Sebara, am not one to be messed with nor those who are under my protection."

Alexander paled. "Sebara?" he gulped before asking something softly enough Sofia didn't catch it.

"Yes. Sebara!"

Alexander paled even further.

"There a problem here?"

Sofia looked towards the newest voice as she slowly sat up.

"Yes, Constable Miles," she said, keeping the left side of her face covered. "Graham attacked me again. Cedric saved me."

Cedric glanced at Sofia, a look of horror crossing his face.

"Again?" he mouthed.

Constable Miles looked at Graham with great disapproval. "You're a hard man to find."

A look of irritation crossed Cedric's face and he whispered something into the constable's ear. Constable Miles looked stunned.

"Of course Sir."

"Good. Now get rid of him."

A boom of thunder sounded, giving an extra measure of effect to Cedric's warnings. Constable Miles glanced at Sofia.

"Do you need help to get back home, Miss Sofia? I can send-"

"No," Sofia interrupted. "I will be fine with Cedric."

Constable Miles nodded and turned his attention to the newly caught criminal. Graham was dragged away, blood still dripping profusely from his various injuries. With him gone, Cedric turned his attention to Sofia. She was starting to stand up but was too wobbly. Quickly, Cedric lifted her up into his arms. As he did, Sofia's hand shifted and he got a glimpse as to why she had been covering her face. Her left eye was black and swollen shut and her cheek was as puffy and discolored as her eye. Cedric felt rage building up as he wondered what other injuries the young lady had.

And it wasn't the first time?

"I got you, Sofia," Cedric spoke softly. "You're safe."

Sofia relaxed a bit, resting her head against Cedric's shoulder. A sob gripped her as she seemed to realize it was all over.

Cedric felt his heart break as Sofia's tears were soaked up by his cloak. He suddenly wished he had beat Graham up even more than he had. And he knew exactly what he was going to see done with Graham. Something, he didn't think Mayor Cyning could even do. If the sobs from Sofia were any indication, she had suffered greatly at Graham's hands.

Thunder boomed and lightning lit up the sky, reminding the duo of their surroundings. Rain started pouring.

"Sofia, we need to get out of this weather," Cedric spoke softly as he set her down. "Can you ride?"

Sofia nodded mutely.

"Taika, come!" Cedric called.

His dark steed obediently trotted over. Cedric gave Sofia a hand to mount before mounting behind her. He set the steed into motion.

Sofia held on tightly to Cedric as his horse trotted down the pathway. A breeze blew through the trees. Sofia shivered. She wasn't certain it was from the cold or residual fear from the incident. Cedric gave his horse a gentle nudge to get her moving a little faster.

Minutes later the two arrived at his cabin. Cedric dismounted and tethered his horse. He gave Sofia a hand to bring her down. As she set her feet down, she swayed. She was only vaguely aware of Cedric saying her name as her world dimmed.

oOo

Elsewhere, Roland was about to mount his horse and leave on official business. Just as he was about to saddle up, a familiar neigh caught his attention. Minimus burst through the stable doors, rearing and startling a couple of stable hands. Roland quickly grabbed the reins.

"Whoa Minimus."

Roland patted the nervous horse's head, trying to calm him. He glanced towards the saddle and felt his heart drop. Once again, Minimus had returned home without Sofia.

"Not again."

"Sir, look!"

One of the stable hands pointed to something on Minimus. Roland took a look and saw it. A bloody scrape near the rump. Roland felt his heart drop even further. Last time, the horse had returned spooked but unscathed. This time, there was an actual injury to the horse.

"Get Minimus taken care of. And go let Baileywick know to keep an eye out for Sofia. I'm going out to the village. If she happens to return before I do, have Baileywick send a messenger out."

"Of course, Sir."

Roland mounted his horse. As he set the steed into motion, one thought came to mind.

That girl is going to find herself with a permanent escort if this keeps up! Whether she likes it or not!