by Jenni James
“The baby. Her name is Verity.”
The little girl ran to Rachel and wrapped her arms around her legs. She stopped crying immediately. “How do you know that?” she asked.
“The witch who helped me get to you claims the baby is hers and wants her back.”
“Oh, dear. You bargained with a witch?”
“I had no choice.” He knelt down and held out his arms. “Can I hold her? Will she come to me?”
“You could try.” Rachel gently pushed against the baby’s shoulder. “Do you want to see Jack?”
“Verity,” he called. “Come here.”
She clung to Rachel’s dress, but peeked over at him when she heard her name.
“Call her again.”
“Verity, come here. I will not hurt you. May I hold you, please?”
She turned around more fully and giggled before tucking her head back into Rachel’s dress. “Is that your name?” Rachel grinned down at the little darling below her. “Did Jack say your name?”
Verity giggled again and nodded.
“Would you like to go see him?”
Verity turned around and this time got a bit braver and let go of the dress to walk up to Jack.
“Come on,” he said. “Let me give you a hug.”
Slowly, while glancing back at Rachel for support, she walked into Jack’s arms. Her little frame being folded into his chest as he stood up with her nearly caused Rachel’s heart to burst. “You are a sweetheart,” she whispered.
“She certainly is.” He rubbed his chin upon her bouncy curls.
Rachel chuckled softly, a warm glow spreading all through her. “I meant you, Jack. You are a sweetheart to care about such a little one. It makes me happy to see you this way.”
“Enough!” Gleeflak cried into the cage from where he had been watching them.
Verity snuggled in closer to Jack, who whispered to her.
Rachel watched as the giant locked them in and then lifted the whole thing up. It tilted wildly to the right.
“Sit down!” Jack called out as he did so himself. “And hold on to the golden bars. I believe this is not going to be a pleasant ride.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
ONCE GLEEFLAK HAD GONE, carrying Jack and Rachel and the baby in the cage, Jill came in from outside and snuck into the great living area, hiding herself within a tall bookshelf. She assumed the giant would be back with them all eventually, and she did not want to be too far away—or on the other side of a closed door—when it was time to rescue them. Having overheard most of the conversation from behind the pillar in the courtyard, she was amazed at Jack’s quick thinking and his interactions with the large man.
Gleeflak even believed they were friends!
She grinned as she climbed up and sat atop a grouping of books that were nearly as tall as she was within the shadows of the shelf. Pulling off her pack, she rummaged for some food and began to eat dried meat and a bit of an apple. Her eyes roamed around the elegant room as she marveled at its sumptuous décor. Honestly, the giant was quite a simpleton—how could anyone of such a small mind even think of such luxuries? It did not make sense that he would be so picky or refined in his tastes.
Huh. She wondered a bit more, trying to piece together the oddity of it all, when commotion from a room down the hall made her pause. Gleeflak was shouting at someone. He was angry. Goodness. She glanced around the room, realizing he might be coming back any moment now. Was there something, anything she could use to defend herself or Jack and Rachel if need be?
Upon a carved end table across the room sat a letter opener which would serve as a very nice sword, if somewhat heavy, but she was too far away from it now. On her left was a long, tasseled curtain tieback that looked like a thick rope. That might do!
The shouting grew louder as she jumped from the bookshelf and ran to the dangling lanyard. Climbing up the rope, she quickly unhooked it from its gold catch attached to the wall and allowed it to fall to the ground as she slid down the length of the blue velvet curtain.
She heard steps right outside the door. Gleeflak was here!
Jill did not have to time to collect the tieback or hide it. Instead, she left it right upon the floor and climbed up the shelf, tucking herself into the spot above the books. She made sure the pack was hidden within the shadows as well and peered out toward the door just as the giant walked in, swinging the large cage.
She heard shouting and looked in the golden cage to find Rachel and Jack holding on to the bars while it swung wildly back and forth, the furniture in the cage careening into them. As the giant came closer to her shelf, she held her breath and scrunched in tighter. The cage drew closer into view and just before it was lifted to perch somewhere above her, she saw that Jack was holding the witch’s baby with one arm and the bar with the other.
Jill heard a great slamming noise as Gleeflak shouted, “There! This is where bad people stay. You stay here and think about how bad you are all night.”
She watched his legs as they stepped back before the sound of Rachel’s voice caused him to pause. “Do we get supper?” she asked.
The giant knees began to quake before he announced, “No! No supper for anyone! And not for you either, Jack! You are bad!”
“I am sorry you feel that way,” he answered above her.
“No, you aren’t. But you will be sorry. Tomorrow I’ll drop you off the edge of this land and you can go back to your village.” He laughed. “You’ll be dead and smushed! It will teach you to come here to my castle and like my singing girl! She is mine! Mine! No one likes her but me!”
Silence followed as the giant remained there. Jill had no idea what was happening, but wished he would leave so she could help Jack and Rachel. Gleeflak stayed there for some time. It was more than likely just a few minutes, but being scrunched up and desperate not to breathe too loudly, it seemed to Jill to be an age at least. What was he doing?
Just when she thought he would never leave, the giant turned to her left and walked toward the long curtain tieback upon the ground.
No!
But he must not have seen the rope because in the next instant, he was walking through it—which was much worse! His front foot got caught in the loops of the cord while the back foot stepped directly on the thing, tightening the rope around his front ankle as he lifted it, making the large man shift and teeter and lose his balance. He crashed with a loud thump, sprawled across the ground.
“WHHHAAAATTTTT?” roared the giant as Jill cringed and covered her ears.
The baby began to cry.
“Who did this? Who left this on the ground so I would fall and get hurt?”
Sitting up, Gleeflak rubbed his knees and removed the offending cords. When he was free, he grunted and groaned and stood back up. His loud, clomping footsteps brought him up to the bookshelf again. “Who did that? Who?”
When they did not answer, Jill saw his hand rise and then lower, carrying the cage. Inside she could see Jack frantically placing the baby within what looked to be a big music box. He stuffed blankets and the like in with her, and then clicked the lid in place. The last thing she saw was him reaching for Rachel before the giant carried them out of her vision as he turned away, giving her a view of his rather large backside.
“You are not my friends!” he suddenly shouted before swinging the cage around in a wide circle.
No! Jill wanted to scream. No!
The giant let go and the cage flew across the room, slamming into a wall and then tumbling down to the floor behind a large settee.
“Oh, my word! Jack! Rachel!” she whispered behind her hands, covering her mouth. Shock and horror raced through her whole body. What had he done? What had he done?
Then the door slammed shut behind Gleeflak as he walked out.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
AS RAPIDLY AS POSSIBLE, Jill made her way off the shelf and over to the fallen cage. It was bent and damaged significantly on the outside. “Hello?” she whispered as she crept closer to the
dented bottom. She could hear the faint sound of the baby crying. “Jack? Rachel?”
She walked around the underside of the cage, her heart beating frantically at the sight of the insides in such disarray. There looked to be a bed of some sort tossed on its side with blankets and pillows everywhere. The music box was upside down and the cries of the baby sounded muffled.
Jill swiftly made her way to the broken door of the cage and climbed inside. She could tell the baby was frantic. Hurrying over to the pretty box, she tugged against it, trying to flip it over. At least the baby was still alive.
“Urgh,” she grunted. It was too heavy. She needed her brother’s help.
“Jack?” she called. Glancing around the ruined place, she began tossing pillows and blankets aside. “Jack? Rachel?”
She heard a soft moan behind her and whipped around to see who it was. “Rachel?” she asked as she approached the doubled-over form, Rachel’s long pale hair streaming down her back. There was a mattress over her head and arms that Jill quickly pulled off to reveal a beaten-up Jack, his hands still clasping Rachel’s. “Jack!” she called, but he did not move an inch. He was lying on his side, flush against the bars of the cage. It looked as though he had tried to absorb as much of the impact as he could to protect Rachel.
Rachel groaned again. She slowly pulled her hands out of his and pushed her way to a sitting position. Rubbing her face, she brushed aside the hair that was covering it, exposing a large welt running down her forehead, cheek, and neck.
The baby’s howls were becoming desperate.
She looked at her brother. Please do not let him be dead. Please do not let him be dead! “Jack!” Jill cried as she rushed forward and pressed her hands against his chest. “Jack! Wake up!” It was then that she noticed one of his legs was bent awkwardly.
“What is that sound?” Rachel muttered. “And Jill! How long have you been here?”
Jill decided now was not the time to answer useless questions. “The sound is the baby. She needs help. Right now.”
“Verity?” Rachel sat up more fully. “Where is she?”
Jill pointed. “In the box, but I cannot lift it. Jack! Jack!”
“Goodness!” Rachel looked around and, seeing the music box, pulled herself all the way up, clinging to the bars. “Help me,” she called.
Jill left her brother and hurried over. Together they heaved and pushed with all their might until they were able to lift the box on its side, with the latch at the top.
The baby screamed in fright at the movement, her muffled cries growing in intensity.
“Hush, Verity,” Rachel cooed as she unlocked the thing. “I am coming. It is almost over, baby.”
The lid sprang open and a very red-faced, sweaty Verity, along with several pillows, came toppling out. Jill leaped forward and caught the baby up in her arms. For such a little thing, she could surely cry. After a few moments of the girl’s tears, Rachel held out her arms and Jill gratefully passed the child on before hastening back to her brother.
“Jack!” she called. “Jack!” This time she yanked on his broad shoulders to try to wake him.
“No.” Rachel fell to her knees, the baby cradled against her. She gasped. “No. Do not tell me he is gone. He cannot die while I yet live. He cannot. He saved me—he saved me and the baby.”
Jill took a deep breath. “We do not know if he is dead. There is not time for theatrics until we know he is truly gone.” She hovered her hand over his mouth and nose to see if any air was coming out. She could feel nothing. Looking around the area, she found a thin piece of gold about the size of her palm that had come off the door. Placing that just above his mouth and nose, she watched while Rachel sniffled, calming her tears.
Please let him live.
Please let him live.
Please let him live.
Just as she was about to give up, a small cloud of steam from his breath formed itself upon the gold. Yes. He was alive. “He is just stunned!” She smiled at Rachel. “He is alive.”
“Thank the heavens!” Rachel collapsed against the mattress that was tossed aside and leaning upright against the cage. “What do we do now?”
“I do not know, but I imagine whatever we decide, we better make it quick before the giant comes back.”
Rachel grimaced. “Who knows what he will do to us then!” She looked down at the child in her arms. Verity had stopped crying and was down to a few fast-paced whimpers now that she was safe again.
“The poor baby,” Jill whispered. “What a rough time of it she has had.”
Rachel shook her head. “You have no idea. I cannot imagine what would have become of her if I had not been captured too. It breaks my heart just thinking of the fear she has experienced already.”
“Well, there is no need for any more suffering. We have to get out of here.” Jill glanced over at Jack, seeing again that his leg was twisted. She leaned over and positioned it better. “It would be wise for us to think of a way to get him out of this castle on our own, in case he does not wake up.”
“He has to wake up. We cannot do it without him. He has to.”
Jill saw the golden cage door and walked over to it. “What if we dragged him on something like this?” Tugging on it, she saw that it weighed too much to pull on her own. “Never mind. I had forgotten how heavy gold is until this moment.” She walked around the settee to see what else could be of use in the room. When her eyes alighted on the curtain tieback still lying upon the floor, she quickly snatched it up and dragged the whole thing behind the sofa. “What about this? I was hoping to hide it earlier, but he came back too soon.”
“So it was you who caused Gleeflak to fall!” Rachel gasped. “We had no clue what he was even speaking about.”
“I did not plan it. I merely wanted to use the rope to escape, but did not have enough time to conceal it with me.” Jill lugged it up to Jack. “Here, help me entwine these together in a series of knots to make a suitable mesh to drag him.”
“You mean to leave sometime tonight, before Gleeflak wakes up in the morning?”
“No.” Jill shook her head. “I mean to leave this instant. We do not know if he will come back again to check on you once he realizes what he has done. Hopefully we will be long gone if he does.”
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
THE GIRLS SCURRIED TO intertwine the long tieback into netting. It took just over a quarter of an hour to accomplish the chore, and then the tricky part was figuring how best to get Jack on it. After another good ten minutes, Jack was on the mesh with little Verity giggling upon his chest. Jill’s pack was used to block off the lower end so the child would not tumble out without them aware.
Rachel pulled one corner while Jill took the other. Once they were able to get the net moving, it was quite simple to keep up a fast-paced movement due to the silky ropes, and ended up being an easier challenge than either expected. They were through the crack in the door and out the of the palace courtyard, sliding through the castle gates, before even a full five minutes had passed.
“This is perfect!” Jill exclaimed as they went on the path leading to the beanstalk.
Jack groaned.
What was happening to him?
It felt as though he were traveling under a carriage instead of in it.
Oomph! He winced as his back hit another stone and risked opening his eyes. The late-afternoon sunshine was blocked by slowly passing treetops. Indeed, he was traveling, but not as fast as it felt like, and certainly not as fast as a carriage.
He heard giggles and glanced down. There perched happily on his chest was sweet little Verity in all her brown curls. “Well, hello there,” he croaked in barely a whisper.
Making out the chattering of Jill and Rachel above him, he looked up to see what was going on. They both seemed to be pulling on a blue net of some kind and merrily babbling away.
“Hello?” he croaked again, but they did not hear him.
Just then they went over another rock, and this time it jabbed
him directly in his shoulder. “Ahhh!” he cried out. Something must be wrong with his arm. That should not have hurt so badly.
“Jack!”
The moving stopped, and Rachel was hovering over him when he opened his eyes. “You are awake! Finally!”
He grinned and brought a hand up to run his fingers through the long blonde hair spilling upon him. “Yes.” Tugging softly on a section of her locks, he brought her head forward, eager to taste her lips after so long.
“Jack!” She laughed and mockingly scolded him. “We cannot kiss now—the baby will be flattened.”
“Jill, help a man out,” he called, his eyes never leaving Rachel’s. “I have not been able to kiss my fiancée properly this whole day.”
His sister chuckled as she removed Verity from his chest, and Jack wasted no time in bringing his beautiful Rachel to his lips.
“I love you,” he murmured against her mouth. “I love you more each time I see you.”
“Hmm…” She sighed and kissed him back before raising her head and saying, “I love you as well. Though, if you scare me like that again and pretend to be dead when you are merely asleep, I shall kill you.”
“What?” He smirked. “Come here, you.” He pulled her down and kissed that delicious mouth once more.
“This is good, but perhaps heading home would be better,” Jill interrupted.
Rachel smiled and pulled back. “She does have a point.”
Jack struggled to sit up. “How long have I been unconscious?”
“About an hour or so, I imagine,” Jill answered. “How are you feeling? Your leg was pretty crooked; do you think you could walk?”
“My leg?” He moved them both with ease. “What are you talking about?”
“Truly? Perhaps the angle you were lying in made it seem worse than it was.” Jill held out her hand. “Here, allow us to assist you and we will see if you can stand.”
Rachel held her arm out as well and he grasped both hands as they hauled him to a standing position. He winced as fire ripped through his shoulder, but did not cry out again—no reason to alarm the girls. But he knew his left shoulder was painfully wrenched.