Hugo laughed, “I already have. Your death will be blamed on the rebels, and since I am away at war, no one can tie me to your death. Now shall we get started,” He asked with a devious smile.
For hours Hugo and his men took turns torturing Caleb. They started off by standing in line to punch him, then punching turned into kicking, then using weapons including bats, swords and maces to stab him with while mocking him the entire time, but Caleb never once screamed. He was in so much pain that speaking was impossible, as well as seeing. Then the whole world went dark, and the last thing he heard was Hugo saying, “Enjoy the swim,” before feeling the coldness of the river.
17
The sun beamed intensely on the back of Rico’s neck as he and the group made their way deeper into the forest, but he ignored it. For hours they had been riding almost nonstop, trying to avoid the soldiers and get to THE TUNNEL, the one place where Rico, Will and Sam knew they could lose their pursuers for good. The only problem was the spy. He had hoped that maybe Jenny or Jackie was the spy; at least then he’d feel better about leaving them behind like that; however, what they had said really got to him. Here he was being a nice guy by bringing them along with him and his group after their beloved king ordered his men to steal their daughters and kill the people, but instead of thanking him, they accused him of being responsible—for what? Because he and his men were rebels? At least they had morals and they tried to make the kingdom a better place to live.
At least two good things had come out of all of it; they had gotten rid of a couple of thrones and the girls had finally woken up. After such a great display of power, he was afraid that they would never open their eyes again, but they surprised him, and kept surprising him, so much so that he was hoping that soldiers would attack again. Then again, he didn’t know how he would face Elizabeth’s father--assuming he was still alive--if she passed out again. Nor could he forgive himself if something happened to her while she was in his care. He didn’t know why or how it happened, but somehow, she had crept into his heart and he had become fearful of losing her—a feeling he knew was wrong but couldn’t shake no matter how hard he tried. If only he had met her sooner. He thought to himself, at least then he wouldn’t have to worry about Ethan gawking at her like some love sick puppy—something everyone but Elizabeth seemed to be aware of. Then again—he thought—maybe it was a good thing that she didn’t notice; at least that was one less thing to worry about. Rico shook his head no.
What am I saying?
“This is the place,” Sam announced once they reached a sea of bushes and trees. From a normal prospective, it looked like a dead-end, but for those who knew better, it was the road to a new world.
As Rico, Will and Sam demounted their horses, they couldn’t help but smile. Finally, after everything that they had been through those past couple of days, they could actually see the end; home was just over the horizon. Only three more obstacles stood in their way; the tunnel, the valley and the spy, and once those were taken care of, they would be home free.
The tunnel and the valley were cake walks to the young rebels, but the spy was a different story. For the last two days, Rico had been setting traps in order to catch this person; however, all of his efforts had proven to be in vein. This was his last chance because the moment they entered the tunnel, he knew they would be too late.
“What’s this place?” Mark asked after he and everyone else demounted.
“This is the way to the camp,” Will said, taking it all in and smiling uncontrollably at their circumstance.
Everyone looked around with puzzled looks on their faces, each trying to find where the dead-end became a gateway.
“Um . . .?” Kaylin asked confused.
Sam laughed and then kneeled down in front of her. “Don’t worry, we’ll show you,” he assured her.
She smiled up brightly at him, and Rico shook his head. All children loved Sam. There was something about his child-like personality that made them trust him.
“For now everyone rest; we’ll go make sure there is no one following us, and if the coast is clear; then tomorrow, we’ll continue our journey,” Will explained. He was just as happy, if not, happier than Sam, almost bouncing off the wall.
“Wait,” Jasmine said, stopping the men from leaving. “I saw a lake nearby. Is it okay to head towards it?” she asked, as if it were an afterthought.
“Right, because I haven’t had a bath in two days, and I think I kind of need it,” Renee added comically, but they all knew she was serious.
“If we come back and the coast is clear, then you girls can go freshen up.”
All of the girls squealed. They were excited that they could rid themselves of two days’ grime from traveling.
“Only, if you go with the rest of the women,” Rico added. He knew the girls could take care of themselves; he saw that a couple of days ago on their birthday; it was enough to convince him of their powers; however, he was still worried for their safety. Although they were powerful, they didn’t know that, and because of their ignorance, they were sitting ducks.
Elizabeth shrugged, “That’s fine. I’d feel much safer that way,” Elizabeth assured him with that beautiful smile of hers. He had to force himself to stop staring. “Okay, we’ll be back in a few minutes,” he said as he turned his back toward her.
18
“Sam take the right, Will the left, and I’ll go up the middle,” Rico ordered, once they were further away from the group.
“Sure thing, but first, we were wondering; have you lost your mind?” Sam asked, in a way that seemed like he had been rehearsing how to ask that question for days; a habit that Sam had, since they were kids. This time wasn’t any different.
In fact, Rico had been wondering the same thing himself ever since he met her; however, he wasn’t ready to admit it; nor did he want to hear their snotty remarks; so instead of giving them the answer they wanted, he said, “What are you talking about, and what kind of question is that?” His goal was to sound as offended as possible; however, he could tell by his friends’ faces that neither one of them was buying it.
“You know what we’re talking about; you are too close to her,” Will argued. His face was full of concern for his friend, and he had every right to be.
He was right and Rico knew it; he was too close, only he couldn’t afford to admit it because admitting it meant another problem that he wasn’t ready for—at least not yet. So he shook his head and gave them his most confident smile and said, “You’re seeing things.”
His friends gave him this look that told him they didn’t believe him, but they said nothing.
“Seriously,” he continued, “I’m only doing my job,” he said, though he knew they didn’t believe him; hell, he didn’t believe himself.
“Remember that,” Sam warned.
“Duly noted; now can we get back to the matter at hand?” Rico asked, trying to change the subject.
“Of course,” Sam replied, in a tone that told Rico that the conversation was not over.
“Anything?” Rico asked his men after they thoroughly searched the area. Everyone shook their heads no.
“Maybe we finally lost them,” Will replied optimistically. He was tired and it showed in his face, so the thought of no one chasing them had given him the hope that he needed.
Rico placed his finger on his chin and thought about what Will had just said. It would have been nice if there was no one behind them; at least they could rest for the evening; however, something didn’t feel right. Rico, didn’t know if it was because of all the running they had been doing for the past three days, or his gut feeling? Either way, he knew things were not as great as they appeared. The soldiers were out there, only he had no idea where or when they would attack. One thing was for sure; he wasn’t getting any sleep that night.
“Rico,” Will said, interrupting his thoughts.
“Huh,” Rico replied, looking up at his friends as if they were a new creature that he wanted to learn more a
bout.
“We were saying that we should tell the others. Where was your head at?” Sam asked, quizzically.
Rico removed his finger from his chin, then shook his head, “Just thinking that we shouldn’t let our guards down; something doesn’t feel right,” he warned.
Sam laughed, “Nothing ever feels right to you,” he teased.
“But I’m never wrong,” Rico reminded him. Which was true; whenever he felt strongly about something not being right, it always turned out to be the case.
Sam sighed, and then firmly placed one of his hands on Rico’s shoulder while opening up the other hand as if to show him something from miles away. “You worry too much. We are almost home; come tomorrow, we will be welcomed back as heroes, and this whole thing will be another of our tales of victory,” he said, trying to paint the picture.
Rico shrugged Sam off of him, and then started to head back toward the rest of the group. “I guess,” he said, not meaning it. “Let’s just go back so the girls can bathe.”
“You need to loosen up, man,” Will said as he and Sam followed Rico back toward the group.
“I will, once the girls are safe at the camp,” Rico replied.
When the men made it back to the group, everyone was sitting in a circle, discussing what had happened earlier that day, and giving their thoughts on the subject. Justin was the first to notice the rebels’ return and smiled when he saw them. “Is everything okay,” he asked loud enough for everyone to hear him. The girls turned their heads and looked at the rebels with longing in their eyes—wanting them to say that everything was okay, and they could finally rest for a while.
Not wanting to disappoint, Will spoke first, “We didn’t see anyone, so for now, it is safe for us to stay here for the night.”
Upon hearing those words, all of the women hopped up and ran to their horses, grabbing clothes, soap, and towels so they could have a proper bath.
Rico shook his head, amazed at how excited they were to get to take a bath. Granted he enjoyed them just as much as the next guy--maybe more--but still the excitement that came from them was pretty funny and enough for him to let his guard down a little.
“What?” Renee asked playfully. “I haven’t had a bath in days; do not judge me, sir,” she snorted.
Rico laughed, “I didn’t say anything,” he said, putting his hands up in a defensive stance, but still he found it amusing.
“You didn’t have to,” Jasmine replied.
“It’s in your eyes,” Elizabeth offered.
“Come along girls, let’s leave these men to talk,” Caroline ordered as she lead the way toward the lake.
Once the women were gone, Rico, Sam and Will joined the rest of the men on the ground.
“So how much longer until we reach the camp?” Mark asked, jumping right to it.
“We’re actually not that far; we should reach it by sunset tomorrow,” Sam informed them.
All the men looked at the rebels with confusion. They all had the same look on their faces that screamed why rest if we are this close.
“What if we were to leave right now?” asked one of the men who was clothed in a robe. He sounded panicked as if he were in a hurry to do something, and on his lap was this weird blue and gold book that Rico had caught him reading and holding close to his heart while he slept as if he were afraid that someone would take it.
“Then we’d get there a little after nightfall,” Will said, nonchalantly.
Ethan hopped up as if his pants had suddenly caught fire. “Then, we should keep going. What’s the point of staying here if we are near our destination?” Ethan demanded. Rico could tell that Ethan was only saying that because he wanted Rico as far away from Elizabeth as possible.
“No,” Will said sharply.
Everyone looked at him puzzled. It was as if the entire group had decided that they would make the three young rebels take them to the camp, even if it meant killing them.
“Why?” Ethan asked sharply.
“Because, if we were to leave right now, there is no guarantee that all of us would make it there alive,” Rico informed them. A tiny smile had crossed his face as he watched Ethan’s anger simmer and change to fear.
“What do you mean? What are you not telling us?” Justin demanded.
Will stood up and began to walk around the group in a circle. This was one of his annoying habits that he claimed was a way for him to explain things better, but both Rico and Sam knew it was just a way for him to make himself feel important. “In order to get to the camp, we must go through a tunnel that leads to a field; then, once we cross that field, we will have reached the camp; however, both the tunnel and the field are unlike anything you have ever seen,” Will warned.
“How so?” the second man--also in a robe--asked as if he were reconsidering finishing the rest of the journey, which Rico was okay with because they all creeped him out. They were too codependent and rarely showed their faces, not to mention the way they kept looking at Elizabeth and her friends, which was extremely disturbing.
“There are creatures that live in the tunnel and if they see you . . .” Rico lifted his hand and moved it to his throat, then drew an imaginary line across it as if to indicate death.
Ethan sat down next to his father and looked at Rico whose eyes were full of fear, and although he knew it was wrong, Rico was enjoying it. “How do we get through the tunnel without being seen?” Ethan stuttered.
“The inside of the tunnel is dark with the only light coming from the entrance and exit, and as long as you keep your eyes on the light and stay close to the wall and try not to make a sound, you will be fine,” Rico explained while secretly enjoying the fearful expressions Ethan was displaying. It was fun to watch him squirm like a little girl after trying to act so macho in front of Elizabeth.
“Okay, so that’s all doable, and the moonlight can serve as our guide,” Mark said, shaking his head yes.
“It could; however, the moonlight will not help you get through the field; if anything, going in that field after sunset is a bad idea, and it normally takes at least two hours for a group this size to get through the tunnel,” Will explained.
The third man in a robe swallowed hard and then spoke. “What’s wrong with the field,” he asked fearfully. His palms were sweating and he kept rubbing the book as if that book were the only thing that gave him any confidence.
“Let’s just say it’s a pretty dangerous place for people who don’t know anything about it,” Will explained.
“Okay,” Justin said, completely scared out of his mind.
“Don’t worry; as long as everyone stays together and does what we say, you will all be fine and we will make it out of there alive,” Sam assured them although it was clear to everyone that they did not feel assured.
“Is there another way?” the second man asked. He was also clothed in a robe.
“There is, but it will take four extra days, and there is a higher probability that only a few of us will make it there alive,” Rico said, nonchalantly. His goal was to frighten them so badly that they’d change their minds about going because if they weren’t the spies, they were up to something, or at least Rico thought they were.
“So tunnel of hell and field of death it is,” Mark replied baffled.
Rico dusted his hands off, and then stood up. “Now that we all understand, let’s set up camp; the sun is setting and the girls should be back soon. With that he walked away from them and into the woods to gather branches, leaving everyone but his friends confused and scared out their minds.
19
That evening, Rico found himself sitting and staring at the lake deep in thought. Everyone was asleep except for the creepy men in robes and Sam, who he had left in charge, while he did another round of scouting. His men had told him that it was pointless, that they had already gotten rid of their pursuers, but Rico wasn’t convinced. Something kept nagging at him, telling him that there were more people out thereonly they were hiding and waiting for
the perfect time to grab the girls and kill everyone else. Then, there were the creepy men in robes. Rico had no idea what it was about them, but he couldn’t trust them. For one thing, any man that keeps his hood up the entire time could not be up to any good; however, there was no way of telling if they were working with the king or for themselves, and if they were working for themselves, how could they know about the girls, if the girls didn’t know about themselves. Their parents never told them or anyone in the village about them, so how would they know. Frustrated, Rico scratched his head and let out a quiet scream, “AAAAHHH, this is getting me nowhere,” he said to himself. He then looked up at the sky,
The sun should be out in a few hours; I should get back. With that he stood up and made his way back to the camp, but before heading straight back, he decided to take another look around the area just to make sure that all was safe. He hadn’t traveled far when he noticed something peculiar; a woman wearing a long blue hood was cautiously walking through the woods by herself in the direction that they had come from earlier that day.
Curious, Rico decided to follow her, making sure that he was not seen. They hadn’t walked far when she suddenly stopped and stood there. She looked like she was waiting for someone. Finally, after a few minutes, she was joined by what looked like a solider, who was smiling brightly at her, and once he approached her, she removed her hood, revealing herself to be Martha. Rico felt his jaw drop when he saw her face.
How could it be her?
“Martha, it’s good to see you again,” the soldier replied. He then pulled her close and kissed her, rubbing his hands up and down her body.
Disgusted, Rico turned his head away for just a moment, and then turned back when he heard Martha speak. “You guys were cutting it kind of close; he says we are almost to the camp,” she whispered.
“We kind of got held up with those other five you left at the cave,” the soldier replied.
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