Chapter Sixteen
Abey stared in horror as her husband slumped on the ground, the hand clutching his side slowly turning red as the dark blood seeped through his fingers, Jameson simply laughing over him.
"WILLIAM!" She cried, using every bit of strength she had to crawl towards him. Jameson grinned and took a menacing step towards her, when his laughter suddenly turned to a grunt and shout of pain, as a third arrow whistled through the air and planted itself into his shoulder. He staggered back, crying in pain and anger - but he was no longer Abey's concern, nor was the mystery archer intent at firing arrows at them - the only thing she could focus on now was William, and she pulled his limp and spiritless form into her arms, cradling his upper body as he panted heavily.
"It's alright. Sh, it's fine. You're going to be fine." She whispered into his hair, tears streaming down her face as she tried to convince herself she was telling the truth.
She suddenly felt a presence next to her, and looked up to see four dark figures had emerged from the forest. They all wore dark cloaks over mismatched clothes, and thin, black masks covered the top half of their faces, their eyes all glinting with the reflection of the small fire still burning in the centre of the clearing.
They didn't seem to notice Abey on the ground as they advanced forward, their energies completely focused on the now cowering Jameson - partly out of pain, partly out of fear.
"I thought we told you to leave." The Bandit at the front of the group said with commanding authority, despite their petite stature compared to the other men. They were carrying a Bow and Abey assumed this was the mystery archer from the shadows.
"I don't take commands from the like of you. Filthy Tracorians." Jameson spat, but while also taking a small step backwards, not wanting to be too near to the menacing group.
"We could say the same to you, filthy Angrokorian." The leader spat back, taking another step forward and further into the light. Abey was surprised to see that this Bandit was a young woman, she looked no more than nineteen or twenty, yet seemed to exude the power of a man twice her age and size.
"We have already taken your possessions, stripped you of your sword, and asked you kindly to leave this Kingdom." The Bandit continued, Abey only just noticing the fact Jameson was in nothing but his shirt, trousers and boots. "And yet here you are, still in our Forest, having stolen our weapons from us, and attacking one of our own." She suddenly motioned down to Abey knelt to the side of her, still cradling William and stroking his hair, but staring between Jameson and the Bandits in a mixture of confusion and fear.
The Bandit passed the Bow to one of her colleagues, before drawing a heavy and lethal sword from under her cloak, pointing it at Jameson and taking another step forward, making him physically shrink away from her.
"We warned you what would happen if we ever saw you again." She said menacingly quiet. "So I suggest you run." She whispered at him, and Jameson quickly scurried away into the trees, throwing one last fearful look over his shoulder at the Bandits, ignoring his victims wounded and dying on the floor.
There was a pause as the Bandits continued to stare into the trees where Jameson had disappeared, the leader still holding her sword aloft, the only sound William's ragged breathing and the crackling of the fire.
The female Bandit lowered her sword and looked down at Abey, her face turning from grim frown to concerned smile.
"Are you alright?" She asked softly. Abey didn't say anything but crawled backwards slightly, her eyes wide. "Don't worry, we're not going to hurt you." She said panicking, dropping her sword to the ground and holding up her hands.
"W-why?" Abey stuttered, wincing slightly as she started to feel the pain in her face and body.
"You're one of us, we weren't going to let some bastard from Angrokor attack you. We help our kind. Rob them too," she added with a small chuckle, "but when faced with them smug bastards from across the border we always stick together."
"Thank you," Abey breathed in relief, too exhausted to be worried about the trustworthiness of a bunch of Tracorian Bandits, who only five minutes before had been shooting arrows at them. "We don't have much time, he had a knife and I think he must have-"
She stopped as she was interrupted by the gruff voice of one of the other Bandits, this one definitely male.
"Elise?" The woman Bandit - Elise, he had called her - turned to look up at the voice. "Look at the man." He said simply, a warning edge to his voice.
She turned back and studied William's slowly fading form for the first time, Abey pulling him tighter to her as the woman jumped up, grabbing her sword and pointing it at William, the rest the Bandits following suit.
"What...?" Abey cried in confusion, not understanding the sudden change in the Bandits.
"We will help you, but not him." Elise sneered at William. "He's one of them. We don't assist their kind." She spat, before softening as she looked back at Abey, holding out a hand to her. "Come with us, we'll make sure you're alright-"
"Don't you understand? He's DYING!" Abey yelled, anger giving her a renewed strength. "And if you don't assist 'his kind' then you can't assist me either." She said, turning to look at William's unconscious face, stroking his cheek wishing she could relieve the pained look infused onto his features.
"What do you mean?" Elise questioned warily.
"He's my husband." She answered with a small smile, still stroking his cheek. "Besides, I grew up in Angrokor, it's the only home I've ever known. The only connection I have with you is that I was possibly born here, and even then I can't be sure." She looked back up at the Bandits, all staring warily back at her, their swords still raised. "We came here for a fresh start, away from our past, but now that might never happen, unless we act fast." She swallowed and tried to stop the sobs that were threatening to overcome her as she stared out the woman in front of her. "So please. Will you help us or not?" She said firmly.
She watched as the Bandit stared back at her for a moment, frowning slightly, musing things over. She sighed resignedly and lowered her sword, motioning to the others behind her, silencing their protests with the palm of her hand.
Abey kept a watchful eye as two of the other Bandits, also men, approached the pair, bending down and carefully lifting William between them. They carried him a short way through the Forest, Abey never leaving his side as the woman and other Bandit led in front, deep in hushed conversation.
Eventually, they reached their destination, and Abey was surprised to see the Bandit's camp looking so homely.
Several tents were pitched in a large clearing, a roaring fire surrounded by logs and upturned buckets crackled in the centre, bathing everything in a welcoming glow. A wonderful smell of cooked stew filtered through the air, and somehow the wind itself felt warmer in this tiny hand-made hamlet.
As they entered the camp, Abey could see another two men sat by the fire, neither wearing the cloaks or masks. The younger of the men was polishing a sword, his huge arms casting shadows on the ground as he worked. The other man looked older, though still young, as if just about to hit his middle age, and sat gazing at the stars on one of the buckets. A woman was also stood nearby, looking the same age as the older man, stirring a pot she had hung over the fire.
She looked up as she heard the strange procession approach, and gasped in shock, causing the other two men to look up also, the younger man jumping to his feet, sword in hand.
"It's alright. They're with us." The man leading with Elise called out, the younger man lowering his sword.
"Who are they, Sam?" The older man asked, getting to his feet and striding over, as the woman came over and led the two men carrying William over to one of the logs by the fire, setting him down carefully.
"Some girl that was attacked and her Angrokorian husband, that's who." The shorter of the two men carrying William grumbled.
"What?!" The older man exclaimed in disbelief. "Sam, you know the rules. We don't-"
"Look, it was 'Lise's decision. Let her explain." The man said, holding up his hands and turning to Elise stood next to him.
"Well?" The older man questioned, expecting a good answer.
"The girl was attacked by that sick bastard from before, we'd told him to leave but he came back and found them. Luckily we got there in time to stop him doing anything to the girl but he managed to stab or do something to the man. We managed to get rid of the first one, but then she says she's married to this one and wouldn't leave him; and she's some poor girl that just got attacked we couldn't leave her so we had to bring them both." Elise explained quickly.
Abey was kneeling by William's head, the older woman now examining and cleaning the wound. Abey didn't try to interfere, the woman obviously knew what she was doing, and so instead carried on trying to understand what the rest of the Bandits were arguing about.
"But you can see where he's from!" The older man said, gesturing over to where William lay. "Just because he's married to one of ours doesn't automatically make him-"
"Well neither is Sam!" The woman retaliated. "He's part Shan and yet he's practically you're son."
"That's different, Elise, and you know it." The short grumbling man interjected.
"The point still stands!" She practically shouted, her eyes blazing.
"And whether we like it or not, he's here, we can't just sit back and let him die." The man - Sam - said, putting an arm around Elise's shoulders. The older man paused for a moment and rubbed his bearded chin, thinking things through.
"He can stay. But only until he is recovered then they can both do as they please, as long as it isn't near us." He announced with finality, throwing his hands in the air and making his way back to his seat by the fire, rubbing a supportive hand on the woman's back as she tended William's wounds as he passed her.
Abey still didn't move, but now sat nervously chewing her thumbnail as she watched William's breathing become slower and more regular. A few moments later, Elise came and sat next to her, her knees brought up to her chest and her arms wrapped around her legs.
"How's he doing?" She asked, genuine concern in her voice.
"I don't know." Abey replied honestly, never taking her eyes off him.
"He should be fine." The woman said as she started to carefully wrap a length of linen around his middle, bandaging the wound. "He needs some rest, it might take a few days for him to be fully recovered, but he was very lucky. The blade seems to have missed anything important, all it did was cause him a great amount of pain, but nothing life threatening." She smiled reassuringly at Abey, who gave a weak smile back.
"Thank you" She said, feeling the optimism rising in her chest for the first time.
"What's his name?" Elise asked, her head on one side as she studied the man lying before her.
"William." Abey replied, reaching out a hand and stroking the hair away from his forehead as the Bandit nodded.
"I'm Elise, by the way." She added.
"And I'm Susannah. But just call me Sue. Or Susie, I don't mind." The woman said brightly, finishing tying the bandage and kneeling back to admire her handiwork. "Yes, he should be fine now, all he needs is rest and recuperation. So it looks like we'll be stuck with you for the next day or two." She smiled warmly at the nervous girl across from her.
"So what's your name? I never asked." Elise said, turning to her as well.
"Abey."
"Abey?" Elise repeated as she nodded her head. "Well it's very nice to meet you, Abey."
Abey couldn't help but smile, thinking back to the first conversation she had ever had with the Prince, and how he had said those exact words to her.
'Please wake up soon' She prayed, stroking William's face once more. 'Please...'