Chapter Nineteen

Tristan was hauntingly still when Garrett was gone. It was just like Cherise had imagined it... maybe even worse. There was absolutely nothing to look forward to now. She was stuck in her house drawing all day, or playing dolls with Katie, or at Gabrielle's house playing cards. During her spare time she wished she had more homework to do so it would distract her, but that never happened. She was in desperate need of something to do.

She was aware that only a day had passed since he had left. She already missed him terribly. Her best friend had gone, and she didn't know where he was. Or if she would ever see him again.

She was huddled on her bed now, with a worn book in her hands, gazing softly out the window. How come time never flies when you want it to? Cherise wondered sadly, leafing absentmindedly through the pages. It's not fair.

Her gaze dropped to the book she was holding. Now there was the issue of what would happen if he came back. Surely her parents would eventually ask her where she went so repeatedly. Why she stayed out so late. And she'd have to tell them about Garrett. No doubt that they'd then be shocked and demanding of her how she could possibly waste so much time with a stranger. That was how much they cared for her happiness.

You're being ungrateful, Cherise thought, somewhat ashamed. You know how much they care for you.

Yes, but they won't be thrilled to know how much time I spend with him... and especially because I hardly know anything about him at all.

You could do something to earn more time with him. After all, it is the first time you're happy here in a long time. They can't punish you for being happy, and they can't take away your only source of happiness.

Do more than I already have?

You haven't done much in the first place.

It's not my fault that this town is so small there are barely any chores to do in your own home, Cherise reminded her conscience irritatedly.

Well, come up with something to do. It's not that hard. It's as easy as learning to make dinner on your own.

But if I tried to make dinner I'd probably burn down the house... and possibly bring down the entire town with it. Cherise lost patience and threw the book on the floor, laying back on the bed and allowing a few of the daily tears to escape.

Don't lose your temper. It's only the first day.

Still!

He'll be back soon.

That doesn't make it any easier! Why did he even have to leave in the first place!

He left because of you, your town, and your entire family. What would you rather endure – a month without him, or death?

I don't care for my own death, Cherise admitted, opening her eyes to stare at the ceiling. But for my family's.

Exactly. And that's why he left for you. He knows you love your family; that's why he saved them.

Cherise stopped arguing with the little voice in her head and allowed her mind to go blank. She closed her eyes and drifted off for a few minutes, beginning to calm down. It was partly boredom that was making her have this temper tantrum. But it was mostly because he was gone. She couldn't help but panic at how she would explain to her parents that she was so restless because she wanted a complete stranger to return. They might even forbid her from seeing him again...

No, that couldn't happen. It depended on how she told the story. It depended on what their first impression of him was. She'd tell them that he had just been lonely and needed a friend, and now that she had finally earned his trust she didn't want to let go of it. If that didn't work, she'd lie... she'd do absolutely anything to go see him when – if – he returned. Even if it meant continuously sneaking out to meet him against their will.

But hopefully it wouldn't come to that. Hopefully they would understand that she just needed to see him, no arguments... hopefully they'd do her this one favor. After all, she'd done enough to deserve it. Right?

There are no real chores to do in Tristan, she reminded herself, to do anything. Unless you offer to work at one of the shops.

Cherise opened her eyes, suddenly interested in the thought of getting a job and earning the right to meet him. What job would it be? Simple tasks like helping out with the gardens?

“I wouldn't care about the money,” she breathed, sitting up a little and resting her head against the wall. “Just so long as I earn the right to see him.”

She continued to stare out at the window sleepily. She could almost hear the seconds tick by. One, two, three, four, five...

Eventually she forced herself back to sleep, giving up. One day down... that didn't make the rest of the month exactly much shorter.

Beth hated herself the next morning... at least, she hated herself more than she normally did.

She had agreed the night before to lead two innocent people to their deaths. Poor Garrett. And his friend. She had never met that girl, but she didn't deserve to die Her feet. She shouldn't have to. She didn't really know what was at stake in the first place, anyway.

But now she was teaming up with this Stephen to hunt them both down and bring them to Her. It was still a vague plan. They didn't know exactly what they were going to do. It had been late the night before and Beth had taken a few hours to get over the scare completely, of having been scared to death in the middle of the night. They would come up with a plan today...

Beth's greatest wish had been to die with a clean conscience. It looked like she would not manage that, either. Because she was going to lead them to their fates anyway...

She woke up, eyes still swollen from having spent a whole night crying. Stephen hadn't reassured her, but then again, he hadn't tried. To tell her that it would all be 'all right' would be a lie. It wouldn't be all right. Even if they achieved their goal and took the two unfortunate teenagers to be killed by Her, it might still go wrong for them. Especially for Beth. Beth was in troubles. Beth had tried to be a good person. Beth would have to pay a price for it sometime sooner or later. Knowing Her, it would definitely be sooner...

She sighed weakly and blinked dizzily up at the trees above. It was a pale sky. It was depressing. Normally when she had to come here, she could stay at her own house, but now Garrett was there and she dared not take from him that shelter. He deserved it. She didn't...

Stephen still slept a few feet away from her. She still didn't know if she could trust him. Was he a friend? She was just judging off of what she had to do, and she had to team up with him to get what She wanted. It didn't matter whether she trusted him or not. But he was going through pretty much the same thing she had. She had to be nice to him. Only he could really understand the pain that stabbed at her heart...

She didn't bother to get a better look at him in the sunlight. It didn't really matter what he looked like, as long as he was good at coming up with schemes...

She allowed herself to drift off for a bit longer until he awoke up and... well... something happened.

When he finally did, she remained laying there, still exhausted, until he sat up and spoke to her.

“You all right?”

“No,” Beth mumbled. “Neither are you.”

She heard him sigh. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw that he was just sitting there, watching her. Obviously her own depressingness must affect people. How stupid she was, to not have figured that out sooner.

“Well... we do have to get to work. We have no choice...” He trailed off uncertainly, aware that this was not helping.

“Can we make it quick?” Beth mumbled tiredly. “Nothing too complicated.”

“That's not up to me. How easy do you think it'll be to get her out of her house?”

“Not easy at all...” Beth smiled cheerlessly. “She has a tightly-knit family, I've noticed.”

“That's not good.” She thought she caught a bit of jealousy in his voice. Obviously he wished that his family was still tightly-knit.

“What's your story, anyway?” she mumbled, keeping her eyes closed against the unpleasantly bright sky.

He didn't speak immediately; she didn't really care. She wasn't that interested. But he did speak after a few moments.

“I don't really know what my story is... I don't know how it happened... but She seems to be fond of destroying people's homes and their lives.”

Beth opened her eyes a little. “Where'd you live?”

“Near the border south. I guess that's why she decided to pick on my town.”

Beth shrugged. “Obviously. She's mad that her wrath is being... contained... that her evil darkness can't spread any farther...” She smiled cheerlessly. “But it's a good thing that it can't. I like it... sunny.”

“Did you ever live in that darkness?”

“Yes, actually, I've been there many times. Thankfully, most of the time I can stay out here... until I'm summoned  again, of course.”

“Where do you stay?”

“Usually at my old house... or what's left of it... right now The Shadow's taking shelter there, though, and I haven't the heart to throw him out.” She shut her eyes tightly again. “I don't know how I'll be able to lead him to his death...”

“That's kind of you,” whispered Stephen, ignoring her comment about leading Garrett to his death.

“It's one of the few kind things I can really do. If I try to do anything else that isn't evil...” She smiled cheerlessly again. “I'll probably die two weeks or so sooner...”

“I'm sorry,” he whispered.

“Sorry about what? You're in the exact same situation,” Beth mumbled, sitting up sleepily.

“Well... I'm sure you don't deserve it.”

“I'm sure you don't either,” she replied quietly, resting her head against the tree behind her. “But there's nothing we can do about it.” And with a weak smile, she shrugged... almost apologetically.

His gaze on her remained firm for several seconds. “Who are you?” he asked at last. He wanted to know her story.

Beth frowned thoughtfully at the ground. He wanted to know her story. The problem was that there wasn't really much of a story to tell him. “Well... up until I was nine, my family and I lived in a house nearby. We preferred to be far from the town. My parents preferred the quiet life.” She huddled up, paused for a second to think, then continued. “It's an old house... they'd lived there for several years before I was born. I remained an only child, so my life was... very... quiet. But I didn't mind. I was used to it; thinking back now, I daresay that it would have been difficult for me to move somewhere else when I wasn't an orphan yet.” She sighed a little and added, “Now, though, I wish I lived somewhere busy... at least so I could have somewhere to hide.”

He remained silent, not forcing the story out of her, but allowing her to tell him only what she wanted to. She liked this. Solely because of this, she decided that she trusted him enough to tell him everything.

“When I was nine... almost ten... well, it seems like – before She found me – She had soldiers from her... hidden army... come here to spy on him. The Shadow. I'd seen them come and go. They didn't bother us... until, apparently, she switched to a new pair of soldiers. These soldiers were more on the...” Beth trailed off, trying to find the right word. “The merciless side. They'd grown up under her influence, and now they didn't think twice about killing someone... even after they've died. They didn't want to sleep on the wet ground that night. It was spring,” she added, as if that detail really mattered. “So... they found that there was a nice little house, a fair distance away from the town of Tristan...” She chuckled once before finishing. “And decided to take over. They believed that it'd be able to be used by the... the next ones sent to spy on Gar–The Shadow.” Pausing a little, she finally added, “Too bad they did too good a job destroying it. Soon enough it wasn't really homely anymore; the only reason anyone ever stayed in there from then on was because it had a roof. Just the sight of it, however, sent chills up their spine... it's not hard to tell that people have died in there–” Beth broke off when she felt that, should she continue, more tears would come. No more crying today. Yet.

“I'm sorry,” mumbled Stephen after a few seconds of silence.

Beth shrugged. “There isn't anything you'd have been able to do about it.”

“I know... but I'm sorry.”

Beth wanted to tell him that she didn't need anyone's sympathy... that seven years of solitude had hardened her heart enough that she could put up with this horrible memory... but that was not the case. She didn't say anything. It was a long time since anybody had felt any sympathy for her. Instead of responding to his condolences, she continued on with her story.

“And so it was a violent struggle. I was hiding in the basement; the basement is – was – pretty much hidden beneath some wooden floorboards. I heard my father fight for the home he had spent so much time building. I heard my mother c–cry.” The memory made her stumble a little before she pulled herself together enough to continue. “But they lost... I heard my home be destroyed.”

Before he could even speak, she was finishing her story.

“They didn't find me until the next morning. They might have destroyed the house, but the hidden basement was hard to see. They didn't discover it till the next day.” She made sure that her voice held no sort of relief or gratitude when she continued. “Since I was only nine, they decided not to kill me, but they didn't know what to do with me. I don't know what would have caused them such a charitable decision. Instead of killing me, they decided to take me to Her... She would make the decision on what to do with me.” Once more she fought back tears before continuing. “I wish She could have decided to kill me instead of make me work for her. Ironically, as soon as I was old enough to travel alone, I became the one who spied on The Shadow... I became the 'soldier' who had the privilege to sleep in that house every time I went...” She broke off, unable to continue any further.

For a moment she remained still, trying to overcome the dizzy spell that overcame her when she thought of having to sleep in what remained of her home every time she came here. She was almost grateful that now Garrett was staying there instead of her now.

Stephen didn't ask any questions. He sighed softly. She knew that he must have a story as depressing as hers, but since she could barely even think, she didn't ask him to tell her his. Finally, he rose to his feet and yawned a little, staring out into the distance.

A few moments passed. Finally, he reached down and helped her to her feet. “You know, you didn't have to tell me all that,” he whispered, with a sympathetic little smile.

Beth shrugged shakily. “Need to tell it to someone,” she told him shakily, still shoving away pain that stabbed at her at these memories. “Now only you know.”

Stephen sighed softly and gave her a little hug. “I'm sorry,” he whispered. “I thought I had it bad. I was wrong.”

This didn't really comfort her; she just remained silent.

“But thank you for trusting me that way,” he continued as he slowly let go of her. “Now... we need to come up with a way to get this over with.”

Beth forced a smile and nodded once, not meeting his gaze. The mere thought of finally putting an end to the life of the Shadow – just when he had begun to live again – made her want to burst into tears. It made her more sad than the memories of that terrible event from her childhood.

“Now... what will we do?” he asked her quietly, taking a step back.

Beth took a few steady breaths before she was able to speak to him calmly. “Now, tell me... where will we be taking them?”

“She will be coming wherever we can get the two together,” he replied quietly. She could hear in his voice that he wanted this even less than she. “Near or far... it's your choice.”

“This is the farthest I want to get,” Beth admitted. “If we survive this... I need somewhere to stay.” Although, she added silently, I think I'll be too guilty to look those townspeople in the eye. I killed one of their citizens...

It was unwillingly! Beth's defensive side argued hotly.

But still. You'd best be cautious, Elizabeth, if they ever find out that you killed that girl, because they just might return the favor... or send you away.

“If that's what you want,” Stephen agreed quietly, unaware of the argument Beth was having with her conscience. “If we survive, I just want to get them to let my sister go...” He trailed off and began a slow walk towards the town.

“Where is your sister?” Beth mumbled, following him.

“In one of Her... houses.” He said the last word almost painfully, because they both knew that the various places She went to check on those surrounding her were not homes. Many people lost their lives in those houses.

“Is it far?”

“It's quite far. I had troubles finding my way here.”

“Oh,” Beth whispered, and then she looked away, still distraught.

He suddenly took her hand encouragingly. Slowly, she looked up at him. He had sad eyes. He was thinking the same things that she was. “I don't want to do this either,” he told her quietly. “But we have no other choice. I can see that there's no way out for us. But... if we try hard... together... we might make it.” When she continued to hesitate, he added, “Please... help me.”

Beth shut her eyes tight and nodded once. “I will... I have to. But I... it'll be hard...”

“I know it will be... but...” He trailed off, thinking hard. “When we finally do this... when we've given them to Her... we'll run. Even if it gets nowhere. I feel like it's my fault you have to do this, and I will try to get you away.”

This didn't reassure her as much as she knew he hoped it would; nevertheless, she smiled weakly and nodded one more time.

Deal done, they found a hidden spot in the trees and began to make a plan together.