Moments In Time: A Collection of Short Fiction (4 page)

“If that is the way it is to be, then I shall understand the life of the man I love,” I said calmly.

Brennan looked away. “One hundred fourteen,” he said softly after several long minutes passed.

“Come again?”

“One hundred fourteen souls have perished under my watch. One hundred fourteen soldiers gave their lives to follow your husband, and protect people like you, and you make it worth nothing by coming here to die.”

“Make it worth nothing? Tell me, what will it be worth now that there is no England? Our fight is over, and we lost. At least I can say I stood with those who fought for England.”

“And will likely die for England. The Italians leave no survivors.”

“It comes as quite the surprise to see a man like you give up so easily.”

“I’m not giving up, I’m facing reality.”

“You claim to have looked up to my husband as some great figure, and yet you betray his memory by waiting for death.”

Anger flashed across his face and he glared at me. Before he could reply, a branch snapped from a few yards off. Brennan stood quickly, gun drawn, and looking for the source of the noise.

As he shifted to look around the wall, the hand of an Italian soldier grabbed him by the wrist and forced him off-balance. The soldier brought his arm down hard, hitting Brennan and forcing the gun to the ground. Brennan replied with brute force and grabbed the man with both of his hands, then threw him into the metal wall, sending them both to the ground.

The soldier rolled out of the fall and got back to his feet. As I tried to stand, my wound reopened, sending a flame of pain shooting through my side, so I dropped back to the ground. Brennan and the soldier glared at each other, fists raised like boxers. The man said something calmly in Italian, looking at me, which I didn’t understand.

In response, Brennan swung his fist, quickly hit the man, and knocked him back. He shook his head slightly, then advanced on Brennan. The Italian was every bit as fast and strong, sending punch after punch at Brennan, then finally landed one hard against the cheek, knocking him forcefully against the wall. Brennan yelled with rage, then ran forward and landed a hit square on the man’s jaw. The Italian went down hard and didn’t get back up.

Blood dripped from a long wound on Brennan’s arm, where he had caught a jagged piece of metal during the fight. Anger ran across his face and he picked up the gun, pointing it at the soldier’s head.

“No!” I screamed.

“He wouldn’t think twice about killing one of us.”

“This is why you must not kill him. We are more civilized than they are. They can take our country, but will never be able to take what is inside of us.”

Brennan looked at me with a defeated expression, then shook his head and put the gun away.

“We need to leave, now.” He grabbed a small pack of gear, tossed me a shirt, and began scanning the area. “I’m pretty sure he wasn’t alone.”

I slowly put on the shirt, cringing as I moved. My wound bled slightly, but the bandages weren’t overly saturated so I didn’t worry about it. We snuffed out the fire and crept through the dark woods, unsure of where we were headed.

It was quiet in the woods as daylight broke through the trees. The farther we walked, the more confident we were that there were no more soldiers in the area. Birds began to chirp again as the wildlife came to life all around us. The only other sound was the burbling that came from a small stream we followed to avoid walking in a circle.

I glanced at Brennan, noting that his shirt was coated in blood, and he slouched as he walked. “We should take a break,” I said, “and fill up on water.”

Brennan didn’t reply. He simply moved toward the stream and collapsed. Not knowing how long he had been awake or the extent of his wounds made me unsure which caused him to pass out. Although I knew a little first aid from the books Thomas brought home that gave me some confidence in helping him, it would have been better to have a medic. But there was little choice in the matter; something had to be done quickly.

The wound on his arm wasn’t that deep, but it wouldn’t stop bleeding. I pulled his shirt off and tore it into long strips for bandages, though anything too bloody was used to start a fire. After tying his arm off, I ran to the stream, soaked some of the cloth, then cleaned the wound to the best of my abilities.

Finding a small medical kit in the supplies he recovered from the crash, I stitched the wound roughly and hoped he would be all right. Using long branches as leverage, I painstakingly dragged him, having to stop every few feet to rest and check my wound, to a tree where I covered him with shrubbery. I then took the gun and went into the woods to keep watch for our pursuers.

Over the next couple of days Brennan’s wound started to heal, but the bandages needed to be changed often. Even after being washed in the river, they were too dirty for further use. The only cloth left for bandages was what covered me. Having no choice, I relinquished my shirt and made several more bandages from it, leaving me bare to anyone we might come across.

There had been no sign of a search party, and it was clear no one thought survivors had made it this far into the forest. My body ached and needed to be soothed. The cold water of the river called to my aches and pains. After removing the rest of my dirty clothing, I waded into the stream and sank into the water, letting the cold water run over my body and wash away any dirt and blood. The small wound on my abdomen was not much more than a scratch, and the coldness numbed my lingering ache. Finally being able to relax, my dreams took me.

• • •

My legs moved as fast as they could. The branches of the trees smacked my bare body, stinging with every touch, but the Italians were close. The river water that had wet my skin had been replaced with sweat. There had to be somewhere to hide and escape. A shadow stood in the distance and waved for me to follow. Was it a trap? There was no choice; my pursuers were getting too close.

The path the shadowed figure had me follow was smoother, and the trees stopped their constant assaults. My legs ached and exhaustion began to take me. The shadow moved in and out of my vision, keeping a steady distance from me. When my body was finally about to give out, the shadow stood before me at the entrance of a large cave.

I cautiously moved toward him, barely able to breathe. The man stepped backward into the cave, still watching me. As I entered, there was a fire burning at the center that illuminated the cave and my savior. To my amazement, Thomas stood looking at me with his upturned smile. I froze in place and could only stare.

“Don’t be afraid,” he said calmly. “Come to me. I want you with me.”

I took a cautious step forward, then heat from his body warmed my chilled skin as he moved close. My fears dissolved, bringing a calm long forgotten. Overwhelmed, I fell to my knees, crying uncontrollably. Thomas was finally here and wasn’t going anywhere.

He squatted in front of me and wrapped his solid arms around my body.

“Please don’t leave me,” I said through my sobs.

“Never, my love,” he replied before he placed his soft lips against mine. The anguish faded as he made love to me with just his mouth. His touch, his kiss was a feeling I missed more than any other. He pulled back and stood, pulling me up with him, then kissed my neck. He ran his hands lovingly over my body as he moved slowly behind me and kissed the back of my neck and shoulders.

He pulled me close, his chest to my back, then bent me over slightly, holding my hands against the rock wall and kissing gently down my back. His smooth hands ran down my arms and back before gliding up and down my thighs, and I felt myself grow wet with anticipation. The sound of his buckle being undone made my legs quiver with excitement. He gripped my hips and thrust deep into me, hard. It was a sensation I wasn’t used to when we made love, but I was excited by it.

Thomas placed his rough hands over mine and thrust over and over. The slaps of our skin meeting echoed off the wall in quick succession. I couldn’t hold in my moans of pleasure and screamed as he took me. His hands released mine and he gripped my breasts tightly, driving himself even deeper into me.

Suddenly he pulled away and before I could protest, he spun me around and grasped my hips, pushing my back to the wall. With a quick lift, he spread my legs and entered me again and I gasped. I closed my eyes and panted, reveling in the intensity of our passion. As my muscles tensed and my body buzzed with joy, I opened my eyes to look into his while I came.

Brennan’s solid green eyes looked back at me.

• • •

The dream faded fast and my breaths were heavy. Panic ran through me when I looked around, trying to figure out where I was and what had just happened. Betrayal of Thomas’s memory brought guilt with it that wouldn’t subside. I sat in the cold water with tears running down my face, then washed them away and climbed out of the stream.

I gave up on clearing my head and put on the little clothing I had, then walked back to camp to check on Brennan. He sat against the tree, finally awake, examining the stitch work I had done on his arm. As I came closer, he looked up me and blushed when he saw my nakedness, then averted his eyes.

“My apologies, I hadn’t realized you weren’t clothed,” he said quietly. My face flushed red as I remembered his roughness from the dream. His having manners now slightly cracked the fantasy of him.

“You are going to have to get used to it. I used my shirt for bandages,” I said.

He smiled and pulled a roll of cloth from his back pocket before handing it over. It was the cloth previously wrapped around my bust. It once again wrapped nicely against me, more loosely now since there was no longer a need to hide my identity.

“It would have been nice to know you had that the whole time; it would have made a better bandage,” I told him, but he simply smiled at me.

“How long was I out?” He looked up at my now-covered chest, then away again. The fantasy took another hit.

“You were out for three days,” I said. “I gave you water and kept your wound clean. You really need to get used to me without a shirt. We have a long trip, and if you can’t stop looking at the ground, I’m afraid you may knock yourself out by walking into a tree, which would make all the work I did to keep you alive pointless.”

He chuckled and looked up, unable to keep his gaze from my covered breasts.

“Maybe you can take a bath in the stream and cool off while I scavenge for food. You’ll need to clean the wound anyway.”

Without a word, he averted his eyes again and stood to head down to the stream. My gaze followed him as he went and my guilt multiplied, threatening to choke me.

It didn’t take long to find enough nuts and berries to help take the edge off our hunger. Brennan returned to camp a short time after I did. His bear-like body dripped with water from the river. Thomas had been toned from his military training and workouts, but Brennan was different. The muscles running over his body were the product of rigorous labor from working on ships. His veins showed with jagged cords threading through his massive arms and legs. I couldn’t take my eyes off him, and was sure he could have been a contender against my friend’s stable boy. If he noticed my stares, he didn’t mention it, and for that I was grateful.

“The fight was to take place close to the Italian border,” he said, coming close, grabbing a pair of pants, and pulling them up. “If we fell there, we should be somewhere in France, possibly close to Lyon. I think finding shelter there will be our best bet. We can head out at first light.”

“Hadn’t the French sided with Italy?” I asked. “Won’t they just take us prisoner?”

He shook his head. “Actually, the French are trying to stay out of it, which is why we’re able to fly through their airspace. Though, you’re right, they will probably try to turn us over, but we don’t have any other options. We are half-clothed and berries aren’t going to get us far. If we can at least find some supplies, we may be able to buy some time. Remember, I am but a humble Irishman,” he said with a smile and a bow.

I giggled and handed some berries and a mixture of small nuts to him. “Yes, you are quite the humble little lamb,” I said with an arched eyebrow and he laughed. For the first time, we simply talked like normal people. He was quite funny, which helped calm my nerves. He probably never knew how much fear was running through me.

Sleep came quickly and my dreams set in even faster. Brennan’s hard body pressed against mine as he took me passionately. I closed my eyes and arched my head back in the throes of passion. When looking back to my lover, Thomas stared back, pressing his lips against mine, never stopping the rhythmic thrusts inside me.

I woke from my dream in a cold sweat. My stomach sickened at the thought of the scandalous dream that I just had. It was a betrayal of my marriage, my vows, and my very soul, and yet, it felt right. The dream made the pain subside, if only for a minute. Though Brennan wasn’t a proper gentleman, and treated me like a pack mule while we were on the
Queen Victoria
, I couldn’t help but think he only did it to save me. Even before he knew who I was, he had tried to help me. Wasn’t that what love was all about?

I looked over at Brennan and he stared back, concern etched on his features, then he looked away.

“It’s almost time to go,” he said. “You should wash up before we leave.”