Chapter Seventy-Four

Sharon said thank you to Jesus, lifting her hands, with the palms to the sky. As she stood up, a dark shadow fell over her, and the river. It puzzled her because the sky was blue with not a cloud in sight. She noticed something moving out of the corner of eyes, but before Sharon could turn to look, she felt a heavy blow to the side of her head, and everything went black.

When Sharon stirred and tried to raise her head, she became aware that her hands and ankles were bound. Further, as she moved her head, she saw the wooden cross that showed Jesus impaled, at the moment of his death.

Sharon's brain was foggy, but there was something familiar about the cross, and the roof of the church. It came to her that she was in the church where she had married – and buried – her husband, as well as baptizing her children. What she did not understand was why she was splayed out on the altar with no clothes on – was it a bad dream?

She then became aware of a male voice chanting and praying in Latin, even as the smell of incense, and the heat of all the candles overwhelmed her senses. The voice became more strident, and she was only able to turn her head in the direction of the voice. Father McGuire was holding a cross and dressed in black vestments.

"Why are you doing this? You are an evil man and will happily let people die to protect your power." Sharon remembered her earlier thought and gave the priest a direct look. "Just so you know the only one who will burn in hell is you!" Sharon was not going to give the man the satisfaction of thinking he had bested her.

"You are the Devil's agent and spawn – I need to cleanse the settlement, so they know the power of the Holy Mother Church." The priest replied, going on "I know your husband beat you, and I can see why! He was a good catholic man, and you were a disobedient wife. He should have beat your harder." After the priest made the announcement, he went over and slapped her hard against the side of the head, hitting the altar. For Sharon everything went black,

Father McGuire, after slapping the devils spawn felt desire, as he looked at the woman splayed out on the altar. He felt a stirring in his loins, even as he knew it was a sin. It came to him that he needed to get on with the ceremony so he could cleanse the settlement.

An hour earlier..

Heath knocked at the door of Jimmy's house, and it was opened by the man, along with a young woman who was dressed simply, with a black armband tied around her left arm. Further he noted the thin gold band on the third finger of her right hand – it all indicated a widow, even as she looked too young to be out of the school room.

"Heath, there is something you need to know." After greeting him, Jimmy sighed, not liking what he would have to say next. His dealings with Heath had so far shown that he did not share Nick's explosive temper, but where the man's wife was concerned that might not be the case. He spent the next several minutes talking about everything in the settlement with river fever, the doctor, and the mad priest.

"You are telling me that Father McGuire has publicly threatened my wife!" Heath exploded with fury, worried about Sharon's safety. He knew he should have come down with her – none of this would be happening.

"I am Eimear Keegan, and I work for your wife." She curtseyed to the handsome, kind looking man. "She brought Eileen and I up tea, and then said she wanted some fresh air." Eimear left out how sad Mrs. Sharon's eyes had looked.

"I have looked all over the settlement, and the outskirts, but there is no sign of her." Patrick came into the house, and his announcement distracted Heath. He noted the man who he took to be in early to mid-thirties. He had reddish blonde hair, blue eyes, and was tall with a broad chest.

"Heath this is Patrick Regan, who is the settlement's medical provider." Jimmy did the introductions, going on "Patrick, this is Heath Barkley, Sharon's husband."

"Mr. Barkley, it is a pleasure to meet you, but I wish it was under better circumstances." Patrick extended his hand, while studying the man in front of him. "Just so you know Sharon has been such a help to me. Your wife and I have worked hard to take care of the sick, as well as trying to implement policies to stop the spread of the fever. No thanks to Father."

"Are you a doctor?" Heath was puzzled about the man's statements. Sharon was supposed to be taking care of Jimmy's family, not providing nursing help to the settlement. Further, even as he was worried about Sharon, he did not like the idea that she had been spending time with this man.

"I was a medical corpsman with the English army. I was fortunate enough that the doctor I served under taught me a great deal about medicine. Once I arrived at the settlement, I have continued my education by spending time with the doctor in Modesto." Patrick explained, not understanding why Mr. Barkley looked so confused. It came to him that Sharon had never once said anything about her husband, only her children.

"Let me get this straight – my wife has been missing for over an hour? And Father McGuire has made public threats against her? And you all are just now looking for her?" Heath forced himself to speak calmly, realizing his jealousy would accomplish nothing.

Heath detailed out a plan for Jimmy, Patrick, and him to search the settlement. They would then meet back in the town square. Eimear offered to help but Jimmy said that she should stay with Eileen and Gavin.

It was half an hour later when they met in the town square, with no results. Heath was frustrated, worried, and scared – where was Sharon? He recalled the priest at the wedding, and how everyone referred to him as the mad priest! What was so upsetting was that everyone was willing to go along with the madman because he was clergy.

"Mr. Callahan, what is going on in the chapel? Did I miss a service?" A young boy – maybe twelve years old - came up to the group, looking very worried.

"John, what are you talking about?" Jimmy asked, going on to introduce the young man as an altar server. Heath was trying to come up with another search plan and did not appreciate the boy interrupting his thoughts. The fact that he was probably a priest in training did nothing to help Heath's anger. What the boy said next changed Heath's mind.

"I tried to enter the church, to set up for service tomorrow, but the door was locked. I tried to look in the windows but was too short. However, I did see reflections of candles."

Heath heard the words and rushed over to the church. The double doors were solid wood, and Heath could not budge them. He hurled expletives, as Jimmy and Patrick came up next to him.

"We need to go around to the back – the priest's entrance." Jimmy forcibly shoved Heath, as Patrick went ahead. The back door was unlocked, and the group burst into the church, where they were behind the altar. What the men saw caused them horror.

Sharon was on the altar, naked and bound. Father McGuire was standing on the other side, holding a large knife whose silver blade gleamed in the candlelight in his hands. He had it above Sharon, slowly lowering it to her chest.

Heath had worn his gun for the trip, and now without hesitation he pulled it from the holster. He positioned and shot the gun, so the bullet went through the priest's arm that was holding the knife. The man dropped the knife, which made a loud noise as it hit the floor. Heath rushed over to Sharon, noting that Jimmy and Patrick were dealing with Father McGuire who had fallen to his knees.

He heard a moan from the altar, which caused Heath to forget about everything except for Sharon. Heath wished he had a jacket that he could use to cover her but was only wearing a vest. He untied the ropes and was all set to pick up her when Patrick stopped him.

"She could have a serious head injury – I am sure that Father hit her very hard." Patrick had come up to the altar, and started to examine Sharon's head, looking for bruising.

Heath looked at the man who was touching his wife way too freely and wanted to push him away. Patrick's next words made him realize that his jealousy was misplaced.

"I am going to go get a gurney and a blanket. I need you to stay with her but keep her as still as possible. It is possible that she will start remembering what happened, and it will scare her, and cause her to thrash around." Patrick had seen the emotion in Heath Barkley's eyes and could not fault the man. Sharon was beautiful, and he was secretly in love with her, even as he would never admit it. In fact, he had been willing pursue her after Paul Flynn had passed, but she had always been so busy with her children, and her uncle.

Heath was left alone in the church – thank goodness because he wanted to shield her body. Heath was working hard not to notice the creamy smooth skin, the rosy tipped breasts, and the dark red curly hair that covered her privates. She was his wife, and he wanted to explore, touch, and tease all of her. Even as he had that thought, he remembered that she hated him.

"I want to apologize for how I have messed up your life, in pursuit of my selfish goals." Heath reached over and laid a light kiss on her forehead, before declaring "I love you so much." He was scared that she was going to die, and he would never be able to make it right.

Sharon was struggling – she felt like she was underwater and needed to get to the top to breathe. In the midst of her struggle, she heard Heath's voice, it sounded like he was saying he loved her, which made so no sense. Heath hated her – and why did her head hurt so much? That was her last thought before it all went black again.

It was several hours later, and Heath was sitting beside the bed Sharon was resting in. She had been transported by gurney to the house, and taken to the room she had been staying in. Eimear had wanted to dress her, but Patrick had insisted that she needed to stay still. They carefully put her to bed and pulled the covers over her.

Heath was sitting in a chair by the bed, lightly dozing when he heard a gasp coming from Sharon. He was horrified to see her sit straight up, with an incoherent look in her eyes. Patrick's admonishment about keeping her still weighed on his mind.

"Sharon, please you need to lay down." Heath moved to the bed and took her in his arms. Moving slowly, he helped her to rest her head on the pillow before he joined her. His arms encircled her shoulders, as he pulled her close against him. Heath could feel her body, in spite of the sheet and comforter; he was glad of that.

"Heath I am so confused! And my head hurts!" Sharon struggled to move, remembering being tied up. Suddenly she saw Father with the knife, as the heat of the candles and smell of incense made it hard to breathe. Instinctively Sharon kicked hard, as her arms started to shove against his chest.

"Sharon, take a deep breath." Heath pulled Sharon closer to him, wanting her to calm down. "You have a head injury and need to stay as calm and still as possible. I am here to protect you against Father, and anyone else." He was relieved when he felt her breathing calming down and matching his. A good night's sleep was needed in Heath's opinion, and he pulled her close, knowing that this night would be heaven and hell.

Sharon felt so warm and secure, with Heath holding her tight. Her brain was so scrambled – why was Heath holding her when he hated her? Eamonn should be holding her even as she knew it could never be. Suddenly there was a flash of bright light in her mind, and everything came clear.

"How dare you say you love me? You hate me!" Sharon tried to push Heath away, but he held her tight. He was so scared, and for a moment panicked, until he remembered Patrick's warning about the head trauma.

"No, I love you so much! But we will have this conversation tomorrow." He pulled her back against him and positioned her underneath him. "Please you need to stay calm."

Sharon heard Heath's voice, and the words I love you. She also sensed that he was very afraid. In spite of the way her mind was mush, fear and Heath was nothing that she could see together. His presence, and the feel of his body made her feel safe. Yes, there would be tomorrow, she thought as she moved against him.

For Heath, while he was glad that she would stay still, the way her body moved and molded to his made him want to groan. In his mind he saw her on the altar, naked and beautiful, and could not believe he had been so wrapped up in his own agenda, stubbornness, and jealousy he had not appreciated the gift he had. Sharon's words you hate me rang in his ears; he wondered if he could ever make it right.

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