“Follow me then,” Jules said. “The village we are headed to isn’t a pretty sight. Just to warn you, the people living there will beg you for money, food, and anything they can get their hands on. They are starving, for their cattle have died in the drought, and the ground is too dry for their crops to grow.”
Sarah let out a slow breath. “That’s awful. My heart goes out to them,” she said, and it truly did. She’d been supporting charities since the second she’d received her very first paycheck, clear back when she was sixteen. In spite of the fact that some of her pursuers thought her evil, Sarah had a heart of gold and wanted to help the less fortunate.
Hours later, they arrived. Within minutes, a little boy ran up to her with dirty cheeks and greasy hair. “A visitor!” he shouted. “Can you spare me anything to eat?”
Sarah knelt down, her heart melting at the sight of his big brown eyes. “What’s your name?”
“Edward.”
She handed him a gold coin and whispered, “Use this to put something in your tummy, Edward.” She watched him as he scurried away, smiling, then turned back to Jules. Edward didn’t strike her as a boy from a poor country with a swollen head and belly, eating from trash piles, yet she couldn’t help but offer some token of support. “Jules, what does the face of hunger look like?”
“You just hugged it,” whispered Jules.
Tears welled up in Sarah’s eyes. She vowed to somehow help this village, even it meant giving away all her gold.
A red and orange sunset glowed in the sky. Sarah took a deep breath, hoping they had made it in time. Her friends were to be executed at sunset, and she still blamed herself for their predicament. Why did I have to pick the Sabrino Cave area to hold those stupid expeditions? Liz had disappeared from that same place, yet she risked the lives of her team by dragging them there. Waves of guilt washed through her as she watched peasants with sunken cheeks walk around the village square in simple robes and cloaks. Jules wasn’t kidding: The villagers were absolutely starving. She noticed that small stone buildings lined the streets, and she wondered if her friends were meant to be executed in a jail cell or put on display.
She noticed a red-haired woman squinting in the dust, rocking a crying baby. Her frightened blue eyes glistened with desperation. A little barefoot girl with the same long, red hair clung to her mother’s side. Her bony arms and legs stuck out from baggy clothes. A shabby dress covered in patches of dirt hung from her shoulders.
“Jules, is there any milk for the babies?” Sarah asked.
He shook his head, wearing a grave expression. “Without cattle to give it, no.”
The woman pulled on her sleeve. “Please help me and my little ones. Do you have anything to eat? Anything? I cannot bear to watch my children die.”
Sarah’s heart sank. She had never witnessed world hunger in person, and suddenly all those infomercials and commercials had a whole new meaning for her. “I don’t have any food, but I have money.” With shaking fingers, she reached inside her bag and pulled out a few gold coins.
“Oh, thank you for your kindness, miss! You have given my children a few more days to live!” Tears streaked the woman’s face as she bowed at Sarah’s feet, kissing the tattered hem of her robe.
“Please,” Sarah said, helping her up, meeting the surprised expression in the woman’s gaze. “Go with God…and feed your children and yourself.”
The woman nodded and darted off down the cobbled street, pulling her daughter along.
“I see a crowd gathered over there.” Frank pointed. “We better check it out.”
Weaving through the crowd, Sarah peered closer. Adam, Steven, and Beth were all bound to long wooden stakes in the ground. A group of townspeople surrounded them, shouting obscenities and waving torches. Sarah’s mouth dropped; it was medieval torture at its finest, being burned at the stake. “This is outrageous! I cannot let them roast my friends.”
“Better hurry up then,” Jules said. “Do you have a plan to save them?”
Frank craned his neck. “It’s hard to see with all these people. We’re just going to have to wing it. Maybe you can use those powers of yours, Sarah.”
Sarah took a closer look. A pile of wood was arranged by their feet, along with small bundles of sticks and straw. One spark, and her friends would be doomed. She shook her head. “I’m not sure, Frank. I don’t know how to control it yet. What if I accidentally ignite them? I already feel awful enough about this. I could never live with that.”
Jules touched Sarah’s arm. “Tell them you’re Princess Gloria.”
She nodded, even though she knew she was about to sign her death sentence. Making her way through the sea of people, Sarah hoped it would work, or else she’d be burning right along with her team. She wondered if fire would kill her, but even if it didn’t she was sure it’d hurt like crazy.
As Sarah pushed past a stick-thin woman to the front, Beth spotted her and screamed out her name.
Sarah gazed up into her pale face and terrified green eyes. Her long blonde hair was a dirty mess. “Shh! Beth, I’m going to get you out of here.”
“Hurry!” Adam said, struggling against his bindings.
“The roast’s about to start any minute,” Steven hissed. “Since we’re the main course, this is one dinner I’d rather miss.”
“I’m doing all I can.” Sarah’s gaze fell on a man with long black hair and a matching beard. Somehow, he stood out from the cheering crowd as he stood by her friends. Maybe it was the glint in his eyes or the serious expression, as though he didn’t quite enjoy the display like all the others. She straightened her back and marched over to him, regarding the guards as she whispered, “Please, sir, I beg you to stop this execution.”
The man glared at her. “Get back with the others, miss, or we’ll have another fire to light.”
“But—”
He turned his back on her as he addressed the crowd. “These thieves were caught stealing a loaf of bread that’d just been dropped off by a friend from the next village. Now they must pay for their crimes. What do we do with thieves?”
“Hang ‘em!” the crowd cheered.
“Nobody steals from us. NOBODY!” a man yelled.
“We don’t have enough to feed our own children, yet they steal bread for themselves!” a woman screeched. “Kill them now! That will teach them and other would-be thieves a thing or two about greed!”
Sarah groaned inwardly. Her ability to read people was awfully off track, as she had thought the man might have something remotely gracious within him. Like the rest, his smile likely only meant he was already imagining the gruesome details of the execution about to take place before his eyes.
“My baby hasn’t eaten in two days!” someone yelled.
Sarah had to stop the madness, even if it meant sacrificing her own life. Slowly, she rose from her cowering position. Her gaze met Frank’s somewhere in the distance, but she ignored his questioning frown. Her voice came low, then increased in volume as she gathered more courage. “I’m Princess Gloria, and I demand you stop this nonsense now.” To prove her point, she lifted her hand to flash her ring.
The bearded guy bowed, deeply muttering, “Your Highness.”
The crowd fell silent and followed suit.
Now that she had their respect, she demanded, “Release these prisoners.”
“With all due respect, milady, our orders come straight from your father, who despises thievery more than anything,” the bearded guy said.
She watched in horror as he retrieved what looked like an axe from behind his cloak. Not only did she suck at reading people, but she gathered that her sixth sense and ability to pick up any dangerous undercurrents must suck too.
The man continued, “Please step aside.”
Taking a deep breath, she thought back to what Jules had said. She was an Immortal now, and immortality did come with a few perks. She had no idea how it all worked, but she had to give it a try. “I demand that you stop this execution righ
t now!” A pang of heat burst through her head, making her wobble on her feet for a second. Maybe the ability of influencing someone’s mind is connected to emotion. It had surely worked when the knight had planned on executing her.
The executioner laughed, his eyes glinting with malice. “Trying your parlor tricks on me? I know how to block you out. You Immortals are really something, and you? You’re not even that strong. Stick to the weak-minded, young one.”
She smirked. Great. Even strong-willed humans can block me out. Irritated, she blew out a breath and walked back over to Frank and Jules. “It’s not working! We need a Plan B…pronto. You two got any more bright ideas?”
Chapter 13
Sarah stared at her three friends tied to long poles, awaiting their fiery fate. Her heart lurched. “So? What’s the plan?”
“We could try creating a riot,” Frank said.
Jules cocked a brow. “That may work. We could force a fight in the crowd. It might be enough of a distraction to pass through without further incident.”
“It’s worth a shot.” Sarah tilted her head, considering his suggestion. For once, Frank’s idea wasn’t such a bad one, particularly since pretending to be Princess Gloria didn’t work. “Look over there by that wood pile. See Steven’s black camera bag in the straw?”
Frank nodded.
Sarah continued, “Maybe you should show them some of our technology. We could pretend it wields great and dangerous magic.”
“Why me?”
She rolled her eyes. “Obviously because Jules has no idea how to use the stuff, and everyone knows my face.”
Frank groaned. “Do you remember what used to happen to anyone who dared to brew tea from some herbs?”
She shook her head, grinning.
“Think pyre and lots of fire…and surely not for roast beef.”
“You got any other brilliant ideas then?”
He sighed and pushed his hood further down his face. “All right. I get it. We could film me commanding them to let the others go, threatening to send down hail and brimstone if they don’t cooperate. Then we could play it back to them.”
The crowd cheered, excited again at the prospect of murder and suffering. How can they be so excited about killing people? “I’ll sneak over and grab the bag,” Sarah said.
Without waiting for Frank’s answer, she took a few steps forward, bumping into a broad guy. She glanced at the executioner, who now held up a torch as a priest gave last rights. She’d never seen Beth so freaked out. Tears were streaming down her cheeks as she pleaded for them to change their minds.
“Hurry!” Frank hissed.
“No!” Jules said, grabbing the edge of Sarah’s cloak. “Come to think of it, Frank’s plan is a better idea. We should go with a distraction. We don’t need them trying Frank and me as witches. I’d rather not leave it to you to save us all.”
She turned to Frank. “So which is better? Distraction or magic?”
Before he could answer, Beth let out a wailing shriek. The executioner lit the straw beneath them.
Sarah gasped as her stomach lurched. Without another thought, her Immortal reflexes took over, and she blew at the tiny flames, extinguishing them with one single breath.
“Powers like that can only come from an immortal being.” The executioner’s gaze shot straight to the crowd, focusing on Sarah. “You can’t stop this, Highness.” He nodded at a monster-sized muscular man. “Seize her!”
Pain shot through her as he grabbed her arms from behind and dragged her on her heels through the crowd. “No!” she shouted. Without her, her friends didn’t stand a chance. They were all as good as dead.
Suddenly, a man charged into the crowd, yelling, “She’s dead! Mella’s drowned. I need a healer! Only a healer can save her.” The crowd turned toward him as he laid down a woman on the ground, her face blue and swollen, her brown hair dripping wet. Cries and shrieks echoed through the crowd. For a moment, the attention was drawn away from the execution to the crying man cradling the woman’s head.
“But…but she’s dead already!” shouted a man.
Sarah jerked out of the man’s grasp. When he grabbed her arm again, she flung him into the crowd as if he weighed nothing more than a fly. Somehow, emotion was connected to her powers, but she wasn’t sure how to use it just yet. She inched closer when she noticed the woman’s finger twitching, indicating that there might be some life still lingering in her. Without giving it another thought, she rushed over and knelt down, placing her ear over the woman’s mouth to hear or feel for air. Nothing. Putting two fingers on her neck, she felt for a pulse. None. “Frank!”
He nodded and positioned himself at the woman’s chest. “Two-person CPR? What’s the ratio?”
Sarah looked up at Beth, still tied to the pole. “It’s been years. I don’t remember. How many?”
“Thirty to two,” she answered.
Sarah titled the woman’s head back and pinched her nostrils closed. Bending forward, she blew two breaths into her blue-lipped mouth.
Frank started chest compressions. “One and two and three and…”
“Gentle CPR won’t save her life!” yelled Beth. “Pump hard and fast. Push on her chest hard enough to compress the heart. Depress the chest wall about the width of an 800-page book. We need uninterrupted chest compressions of about 100 a minute.”
The man grabbed Frank’s shoulders, his face a mask of fury. “Get off of my wife, you freak of nature!”
“We’re only trying to help,” Sarah whispered.
“Listen, mister,” Beth yelled, “give them a chance. It might look strange, but they’ll bring her back to life.”
“Why would anyone kiss the dead, unless they’re dead themselves?” the husband hissed.
“Untie me,” Beth said. “I’m a nurse…a healer. I can save your wife.”
“It’s a trick!” a woman yelled. “The dead are beyond healing.”
Sarah gazed into the man’s eyes. “Do it! She isn’t dead yet, but we’re losing her. You’re wasting precious seconds that we need to save your wife’s life.”
He looked down at his wife and then up at the executioner, nodding. “Release the healer!”
Sarah’s attention focused back on the CPR. There was no way she was going to let the poor woman die.
An instant later, Beth appeared beside her and took Frank’s position, starting chest compressions. Sarah shot her a bitter smile, then focused on her breathing again.
The crowd fell silent, countless eyes peering at them. Sarah could feel beads of sweat gathering above her brows as she tried to ignore their probing gazes.
After several minutes passed, Beth finally said, “Got a pulse.”
The frail woman coughed, and water gushed out of her mouth. Her color went from blue to pink.
Her husband scooped her up in his arms, stroking her hair. “Oh, Mella!” He looked up at Sarah, then Frank and Beth. “Thank you! I cannot allow my wife’s saviors to be harmed, let alone killed. You saved my precious Mella. As magistrate of this village, I offer you pardon.” Glancing at the executioner, he ordered, “Untie the others. These people are free to go.”
Tears welled up in Sarah’s eyes as she met the magistrate’s eyes. “Thank you.” Sarah reached for her bag of gold and untied it. The villagers needed food, and she was going to do whatever she could to help. People surrounded her and started to shove and bump her as she tried to hand out coins. Getting trampled wasn’t in her plan, so she threw the gold up in the air and watched it fall like rain over the villagers’ heads. The crowd screamed with delight and scrambled for the coins, like children searching for candy from a broken piñata.
Beth pulled Sarah to her chest, tears shimmering in her eyes as she whispered, “That was so generous. I’m so happy to see you, girl.”
Sarah hugged her back tight. “Think I was going to let you guys fry?” From the corner of her eye, she noticed Frank helping to untie the others.
As soon as his hands were free, Steve
n hurried over and grabbed his camera bag, checking it over as if it was his child.
“Yes, your camera’s lovely. You won’t even find a scratch. We’re all great, too, just in case you were wondering,” Beth said.
“Let’s cruise out of here before these medieval nutcases change their minds,” Steven said to Beth once he realized his camera was, in fact, fine.
Adam scooped Sarah up and swung her around. “I owe you dinner, big time. You know what I’ve been thinking?”
“What?” Sarah loved his sparkling blue-green eyes and his laugh too. She looked up to him like a big brother.
“We’re not in California anymore.”
“Gee, really? I didn’t even notice.” Sarah rolled her eyes, smiling.
Adam’s eyes grew wide. “I saw…all of us saw the creatures for the very first time. It was mind-blowing! Did you see them?”
“I did! It was spectacular. I even managed to snap a few pics.”
“I knew they were real! I searched all over the world for them. Native Americans have been talking about mythical giant apes for centuries, and in legends handed down through the ages from Europe and Asia. And I saw them firsthand!” Adam could barely contain his excitement.
Sarah smiled. “It’s an amazing discovery!”
“I must be on my way now,” Jules announced. “Walk two hours north toward your destination. There, you will find a cave that should be safe for you to camp in for the night. It’s used all the time to escape immortal beings or hide things from them.”
Suspending Reality (Five Fantasy Stories) Page 40