Chained To Him [Editing]

Chapter Twelve

8 years ago

"We don't have to go, Jayde."

She turned to smile briefly at him, knowing full well that he didn't mean it. Luc had wanted to leave for a long while, and she'd resisted. And now, when it was her idea, he pushed back. She didn't have words for him that could somehow communicate her willingness to leave despite the massive ache in her chest at the thought of saying goodbye to the city that she once knew, the city where her family once lived. And so she leaned back into his chest and tucked his arms around her, staring out the window of their home for the last time.

She would have stayed here, suffered under the Empire for eternity, until the opportunity was right to take back the city. Jayde had decided long ago that she would endure any misery for her home, and she truly had endured more misery than she could have expected. But then, there were stories whispered in low voices, never more than a couple seconds to add another name to the list of boys who hadn't returned home from the fields at night, seemingly having disappeared without a trace. No one dared to speak openly of it, or even acknowledge it as truth over rumor. But Jayde didn't care to speculate, couldn't imagine losing Luc to whatever nefarious cause was disappearing boys across the city.

Luc and Luther had agreed immediately, and as Jayde set about carefully choosing a few possessions to take with her, she realized that they had never wanted to stay here, had only ever stay because of her, and the guilt that she felt for forcing them to endure misery with her nearly crushed her. What good would it do to honor dead family and dead legacy when the two warm, living people she cared about in this world were suffering on her account?

Of course, escape at any point would have been dangerous, and any attempt could have resulted in their immediate deaths. But perhaps it was better to gamble for freedom than to wait for a slow, inevitable demise. And if they took Luc from her...Jayde wasn't sure that she could continue living anyway.

As dusk settled across the fields, the new autumn air chase away the heat of the sun, and Jayde began to walk toward home. They agreed to skip collecting today's rations and meet after sunset where the houses began to dwindle and the burned husks of homes from the initial invasion still lingered like sentinels on the road away from town. Jayde had worked among the potato plants all day, but Aragon wanted new fields cleared east of town, so Luc and Luther would have to travel from the exact opposite place as her. She hated to have them out of her sight, but there was no helping their being apart for the first portion of their escape. After workers left the fields, it became easier to travel freely in the city with everyone walking back to their homes. But once night fell, they would be breaking curfew and any movement would be suspect. There would be no time to return home and regroup before making their escape.

Jayde did her best to ignore the unsettled feeling in her stomach as she walked through town, past her home and toward the part of the city where she never went anymore, having no reason to go elsewhere during the day when she was working, and no ability to travel anywhere past dark. The city had become isolated, and she soon found that she barely recognized anyone anymore, until she came to a place in town where she had not been for years, a place that was foreign now. She was aware of the strange looks she received from other workers returning to their homes. Surely they knew she didn't belong here, knew that she was about to do what no one had done before successfully. She brushed off the watchful gazes of soldiers as she strode by, trying to act as if she had no reason to be terrified as their eyes followed her down the street.

As the last bit of daylight receded from the sky, Jayde slipped off the main road and traveled between houses, ducking beneath windows and doing her best to remain unseen. She couldn't afford to be questioned by a villager or soldier this late at night; the streets were mostly empty, and she was alone. She was suspicious, and she was vulnerable. As she walked, Jayde's skin prickled with the sensation of being watched everywhere she went, but all she could do was continue forward. She couldn't turn back, even as the unknown loomed before her.