Inheritance

Part 2 Chapter 39: Enshadowed

"I'm sorry... I'm sorry..." Pollyanna said through tears in her eyes as they rested in the shade of a rocky mountain. "This is all my fault."

Rory, whose face was sunburnt, shook his head and whispered as he offered Pollyanna the canteen, "stop apologizing. We're going to be fine, and this is no one's fault. This is a blessing. They haven't found us yet, and I don't think they're going to. I think we should be able to get to Brined in another day or so and then we can get some proper rest and have a good meal. Now, have you thought of any baby names?"

Pollyanna calmed down as he soothed her woes, and she took deep breaths. I have to have faith... Faith like he does.

Pollyanna forced a smile. "I don't know... Rory?"

Rory's face scrunched up in a smile and he nudged her with an elbow. "What an ugly name! I like Pollyanna much better. Doesn't it sound sweet and resilient?"

Pollyanna wiped the tears from her eyes with a wobbly smile. "No, no! It sounds weak and cowardly! Rory sound strong! It sounds like a lion's roar!"

Somehow, he cheered her up like he always did and made her remember that the world had more than misery to offer.

They found a cave to sleep in before sundown which Pollyanna was grateful for.

It was hard to sleep in the sweltering heat, but Pollyanna was so exhausted that she managed it.

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She slowly opened her eyes the next morning.

She blinked once and moaned as she felt sweat in her eyes and dripping down her back. She blinked twice and a black, pointed shoe appeared in her eyes.

A gasp struggled out of her throat. She bolted upright.

She scooted away like a cowering dog from the furious Kline whose long shadow was cloaking her in darkness.

To his left stood one soldier who Kline had brought with him

She was so afraid that no words escaped her mouth—she merely panted and kept backing away from Kline as he, step-by-step, came closer to her. Her back collided with the back of the cave—preventing her from moving any farther.

Rory's eyes flew open.

He wasted no time in lurching for the knife in the sheath at his hip. He scrambled to his feet--ready to lunge at Kline with the knife in hand.

The knight deterred him by blocking his way with his spear at-the-ready.

Everyone within the cave were still as statues.

Sunlight was seeping in through the cave; Kline and the soldier were outlined in golden light, but their faces were encased in darkness.

"You whore. Did you sleep with this imp?" Kline demanded with cold fury. "Is the baby even mine?"

"I never slept with him, I promise! Please just—"

Kline slammed a fist into the side of her head. She was silenced.

Rory cursed. His grip tightened around the knife until his knuckles turned white.

The guard pointed his spearhead at Rory's neck. "Drop your weapon. You do know this girl is married, correct?"

"I do." Rory admitted, refusing to drop his weapon.

"He's just a friend! He was only escorting me!" Pollyanna spluttered hysterically.

"Is that true?" The guard demanded, bringing the spearhead closer to Rory's neck.

Rory glanced over at Pollyanna, and then back at the guard. "It's true."

Kline laughed. "You truly expect us to believe that? Why else would you be travelling with her?"

"She's a good friend of mine—a childhood friend—she asked me for my help in getting her away from town, and I gave it." Rory said it so convincingly that even Pollyanna, who was rubbing the side of her head, nearly believed it.

"Coming to think of it..." Kline murmured. "You're the only man in town who is not courting a woman..."

Pollyanna's eyes were imprisoned behind the curtain of her merciful eyelids. A lump formed in her throat.

There was a solid moment of silence but for Pollyanna's weeping. Rory stared the soldier and Kline down with bold confidence.

Kline said without an ounce of pity, "kill him. He's guilty."

"No!" Pollyanna screamed.

The guard planted his spearhead in the ground. "He's entitled to a trial, sir."

"He is entitled to nothing." Kline replied. "Kill him."

Kline tossed three pieces of gold at the knight's feet and then shook a heavy sack of coins to entice the knight further. "You'll get the rest once you've killed him."

Pollyanna's heart was in her ears as she looked at the conflicted knight with wide, unblinking eyes. Her eyelids refused to shield them.

Bump... Bump... Bump...

Her head split with white terror.

The knight lifted his spear.

Rory lowered his eyes with pained acceptance. He dropped the knife.

Time seemed to freeze.

Pollyanna would never in her life be able to forget the look of regret on his face.

The spear plunged into his stomach with quick precision and dripped with blood when the knight pulled it back through.

The body thudded to the ground, lifeless.

Pollyanna was in such pain that she thought she had been stabbed as well.

She let out a guttural sob of pain and clutched her stomach.

Thee knight greedily picked up the gold coins.

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Pollyanna finally cried for the first time while relating the story. They were emotionless tears—her face was still vacant—but...

She gave herself away.

She was not entirely made of iron

She was a woman who had fallen in love once, long ago, and that love had become an open wound—her only mental vulnerability.

Rory was innocent. Eory was innocent. And once, long ago, Pollyanna was innocent, too.

She has a deep-seated love for the innocents she slaughtered deep down... Eory thought to himself as he looked upon the woman who was helping him understand the world because, in many ways, he thought the world resembled her perfectly.

She was contradictory, complex, and enigmatic....

And so was the world.