Author's Notes: Sorry this is another very short chapter! I meant to make this part of the last chapter, but it didn't work out the way I planned. I will try and put a longer chapter up soon!
Chapter Twenty-Six: A Shot in the Darkness
I took a deep breath of harsh, cold air and held it. I was suddenly aware of everything in the world, which had been so easy to ignore during my conversations with Nathan. There was cold water from the snow seeping through my skirts, making my skin numb. My nose was moistening in the cold, and I could see tiny puffs in the air as Nathan breathed.
Captain Williams stood, alone in the snow, staring at the ground, studying. The snake had followed me. And now he was staring down at the remnants of my footsteps. My only hope was that my skirts brushing along on the fresh powder had made my steps difficult enough to trace that the captain would not find us.
It seemed as though we sat there for hours, not breathing, not speaking. And the entire time, the captain simply stood there with his lantern, looking around, no doubt hoping that we would do something foolish and reveal our location to him.
Suddenly, he moved. He took a single step towards us, and I did my best not to gasp, because I knew that in the stillness of the night, a single intake of breath into one's lungs could be the same as calling out. Unfortunately, the captain continued forward. He knew where we were, and probably had the entire time.
Nathan stood, his pistol drawn, aiming straight at the captain, who did the same. At this point, there was no more reason for me to hide in the snow on the ground, so I stood as well.
"Go, Nathan!" I cried, terrified as I stared at the two men, who were in an obvious stalemate.
"Don't be daft, woman!" Captain Williams said, laughing. His eyes glinted eerily in the moonlight, and his voice echoed through the trees. "You know as well as your brother that if he runs I will shoot him."
Nathan did not speak. Instead, he cocked his pistol in preparation to fire. Again, the captain did the same. And then he turned his pistol on me.
I heard the shot before I felt it. A loud crack, a moment of confusion, and then a sharp, piercing pain in my side. I gasped for breath and fell to the ground, watching my own blood pour from me, staining the pure white snow.
"You bastard!" I heard my brother scream. Then I heard another shot. I strained my neck, forcing my head upwards so that I could see what had happened. The captain was now lying on the ground, much like myself.
I saw a crack of light form in the snow, and suddenly, soldiers were pouring from the mansion, rushing towards us. Someone yelled to get Dr. Stanton. I scanned the chaos for my brother, and saw him, his hands being bound tightly by one of the soldiers I had passed so many times in the hall. I tried to tell him that my brother had done nothing wrong, that he had shot the captain for a reason, but by that time everything was fading. And then my world went black.
