“Lord
Andrew! Come quick! We’re being attacked! There is a regiment of Bishopites on Blakeley
soil. Up on the hill! They’re burning our crops. They’re chopping down our fruit trees,” Jacob
cried out.
“Aleese,
listen to me very carefully. Go to the
wine cellar and lock yourself in. You’ll
be safe there. I’ll be back as soon as
possible. Stay in there and do not come
out until I come down and get you. This
is very important. Do you understand
me?”
Aleese
nodded and Andrew ran out and mounted, riding out in front of his army to find
and do battle with the Bishopites.
“Carmine!”
called Andrew, “Are you SURE they are the Bishopites? How the hell did they get here? We dismantled and buried the transport
dock. They have no way to get back
here! They cannot possibly be the
Bishopites.”
“One
in uniform came down and announced to us that he was a Bishopite and they were
here to steal our food, chop down our trees, and burn the rest of our
farmlands. That’s all we know.”
“Men,
fall back. Something’s not right
here.” The men stopped and Andrew rode
ahead to the hilltop facing the Bishopite army alone, behind them the fruit
trees and the farmlands of Blakeley safe and unharmed.
“Bishopites,”
he shouted, “we are not your enemy. We
will not take part in this war of brother against brother. Take your fight elsewhere and leave the
peaceful province of Blakeley at once!”
Just
then a man jumped on Andrew out of nowhere and they both were blown up in a
cloud of dust and flame with a thunderous crash. Bodily debris flew in the air. Immediately all of the Bishopite army at the
top of the hill disappeared.
The
stunned Blakeley army was in shock over the loss of their beloved leader. They searched the area for any sign of Lord
Andrew, but found nothing. Sad and
dejected, they returned to the village in silence.
“He
blew them all up! Our Andrew, our Lord
of Blakeley, managed to somehow blow up all the Bishopites. To save our land. To save our food, our crops, our trees. To save us.
He is a hero. The bravest man in
all of Blakeley, the bravest man I have ever known,” said Carmine crying. “And who among us had more to lose than
Andrew? No one.”
“Jared,
somebody has to tell her. I don’t want
to do it.”
“Carmine,
you have to do it. She likes you. You’re closer to her than any of the rest of
us.”
“Yes,
I am! And that’s why I don’t want to be
the one to tell her! She’ll hate me for
the rest of my life if I bring her the news of his death.”
“No! She won’t.
She’ll be broken-hearted because she truly loves him. She’ll sob and cry. And then, she’ll probably go back to
Havenhill. She only stayed here with us
because of Andrew, to be with him.”
Carmine
dismounted and walked into the Manor House.
“Lord
Andrew has been killed in battle. He
died saving the rest of us. He… He was
the bravest man we have ever seen in all our lives. Where is Lady Aleese?”
“She
has locked herself in the wine cellar, as Lord Andrew instructed her to do.”
Carmine
turned and went down to the cellar. He
knocked on the door.
“Lady
Aleese, it’s Carmine. Come out.”
“Where
is Drew?”
“Lady
Aleese? Please, come out,” he
begged. “I need to talk to you. It’s about Andrew. He… he’s been…”
She
unlocked the door and looked at him. She
saw the look on his sad tear-stained face.
He didn’t have to say another word.
She knew.
“NO! NO!” she cried, falling on the floor. “NO!
Do not tell me he is dead! NO!”
“I’m
so sorry, Lady Aleese. He died saving
all of us, our land, our crops, and our food.
Oh, he was so incredibly brave, My Lady!
He was majestic, even! He managed
to blow them all up. Unfortunately he
was in the middle of that explosion.”
“NO!” She pulled herself up. “I feel in my heart that my beloved Drew is
not dead!”
“I
saw it with my own eyes. I saw him… get
blown up.”
“No. It cannot be.
Go away, Carmine. I wish to be
alone.”
“I
understand you want to be alone. But,
please, let me help you up to your room.
Your ladies can take care of you upstairs. You don’t want to stay down here in this
cold, dark cellar by yourself.”
“Drew
told me to stay here and wait for him to come and get me. And I’m staying right here. I’m waiting for him to come and get me. Go away.”
“But
Lady Aleese…”
“GO
THE HELL AWAY!!!” She threw a wine
bottle at him. It crashed to the floor
and broke into pieces.
Carmine
nodded and backed away from her. She
slumped back against the wall, slowly sinking to the floor, screaming and
sobbing.
“Come
for me, Drew! Please, My Love, come for
me. I don’t want to go on without
you. You told me to stay here and wait
until you came for me. I’ll wait for
you, Drew. I’ll wait right here. Come for me, My Love. Please, come for me.” She cried some more and soon cried herself to
asleep on the cold, damp cellar floor.
She
heard something, someone walking on the broken glass from the wine bottle on
the floor. A shadowy figure approached
her.
“Drew? Drew, My Darling! I knew you would come for me! I knew you wouldn’t desert me. Drew!”
She reached for him. The shadowy
figure reached out and grabbed her tightly.
The light caught a silvery glint from his wristband. They both disappeared.
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