Beatrice and the Beast, page 40
She gasped and acting on impulse, slapped his face. Even as she swung her arm, she knew it was a terrible mistake and she quickly paid for it. He placed his hand to his cheek momentarily while she stared with an apologetic look in her eyes. Then he suddenly, punched her very hard in the stomach and she gasped loudly as she doubled up and staggered back unable to get her breath.
She remained that way holding her stomach while he spoke to her.
‘The only reason I don’t beat you half to death, is because I don’t want Mervin to see you damaged. You need to look your best for him. I will return to my guests now while you take a few minutes to recover. Then you will return and take your place beside Mervin and when you do, you will be a good girl and allow him to place his hands anywhere he damned well wants to, understand?’
She was unable to answer him as she remained bent over clutching her stomach with tears streaming from her eyes.
‘Do you understand?’ he repeated.
Unable to speak, she merely nodded her head.
‘If there are any more embarrassing incidents involving your foolish morals, I will beat you to within an inch of your life and turn you over to my men and that is not an idle threat. I have promised Mervin you will be nice to him so don’t you dare make a liar out of me. Believe me, allowing Mervin to have his way with you will be far more preferable than the alternative. Do I make myself clear?’
She nodded again.
‘I will give you fifteen minutes to compose yourself and make your face pretty again for Mervin. If you do not return to him after that time, you will suffer dire consequences. Do not jeopardise my career because of your dubious morality and don’t you dare make an enemy of me.’
With that, he spun on his heel and returned to the dining room leaving the bewildered young woman alone still clutching her aching stomach. She had fifteen minutes to decide what to do and she decided, the instance Jacob left. She would flee rather than give herself to that horrible lecherous man. Jacob had made it painfully clear what was expected of her and she decided, perishing in the wilderness would be preferable to complying with Jacob’s plans.
FORTY-FIVE
Beatrice found her way outside where there was little light to penetrate the darkness, and made her way to where the outhouses and bunk houses were situated. There was nobody around and by the light coming from the windows, she was able to find her way past the buildings and into the open meadow land where she stopped to remove her shoes. Then she ran as fast as her feet and aching stomach would allow in the almost, total darkness.
She lost track of time or for how long she ran, she was simply spurred on by the total fear of being caught. She didn’t even have an inkling of the direction her legs were taking her. She simply felt utter desperation to get as far away from the ranch as she possibly could and just as she began to feel the heaviness in her legs and her laboured breathing, she made out the dark shapes of many trees within touching distance and she slowed her pace as she realised, she had reached the woods she had noticed earlier in the day.
In the dark, the trees, many of them gnarled and twisted into odd shapes, seemed like huge monsters waiting to grab her in their enormous arms and she began to wonder if fleeing the ranch with no plan or sense of direction, had been the sensible thing to do. But then she thought of that horrible man and Jacob who was even worse and what would have happened to her had she stayed.
She felt weary from running and her bare feet hurt where she had trodden on stones during her flight and she felt sure they were cut. Her stomach still ached from the blow Jacob had dealt her and she desperately, wanted to stop and rest, but feared she would be found if his men came looking. So, she laboured on and slowly, found her way between the trees. But with the undergrowth snagging her dress and thorns from bushes scratching her arms, she concluded it would be better to rest and wait until morning when she would have a better idea of where she was going. So, completely exhausted and aching all over, she slumped to the ground by a large tree and once again, began to cry.
Eventually, her chin slumped onto her chest and she fell into a fitful sleep, only to awaken when she heard the sound of something moving through the trees and felt certain Jacob’s men had come looking for her. Her breath caught in her throat as the sound approached her position and she realised, it was a large animal for occasionally it blew hard as it sniffed the ground and wondered through the trees. She was terrified it might be a bear or some other predator and hoped it was nothing more than a deer.
She had no idea of how long the animal lingered close to her position, but it couldn’t have been long because she had held her breath the whole time. So, when it wondered off, she allowed her breath to leave her lungs in a huge exhale and she was able to start breathing again.
Thankfully, it was a mild night, so although she felt some coldness, it wasn’t enough to make her start shivering. But to add comfort, she took the hem, of the top layer of her dress skirt and lifted it up to her neck to cover her arms and chest and then, settled down again to see the night out.
The animal had unnerved her and she constantly imagined sounds and movement all around, so, much as she tried, she could not stop her vivid imagination from keeping her awake. Until she decided to try remembering nice episodes in her young life and her thoughts immediately turned to Frank Zelletta.
In her mind’s eye, she saw him getting ready to turn in by his camp fire after eating supper. She guessed, he would be somewhere on the prairie on his way back to Kansas and she wished with all her heart, she could be with him. It was only now that she recognized how good they were together and though it would never happen now, she longed for the chance to tell him how much she loved him and wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. She now realised, looking back, despite the perils they’d faced, she’d actually enjoyed the journey here and the diverse mix of characters, some good, some bad, she met along the way.
Her mind went to the last night they had together and the impulsive way she went to his room and climbed beneath the blanket to join him in his bed. The next morning, she felt it had been a wanton act and totally out of character for her, especially as, until that night, she had been a virgin. But the whole episode had been one of tenderness and love and she didn’t regret one moment of it. However, initially, she had been frightened, not knowing what to expect and her inexperience showed as she lay beside him, her body trembling and stiff with the tension of her fear. He felt her tension and voiced his concern.
‘You don’t have to do this,’ he’d whispered. ‘I don’t think you are ready.’
‘I will have to do it with Jacob and I don’t love him, so I want my first time to be with you.’
He’d looked into her face in the soft glow from the lamp and saw the sincerity written in her pretty eyes. Then he took her in his arms and tenderly, embraced her.
‘Just relax,’ he whispered. ‘Nothing is going to happen until you’re ready and only then if you really want it to.’
‘I want it to happen tonight. I need to remember that you were my first and I will be so proud that it was you who took my virginity.’
He gently stroked her hair and massaged her back with his big hands and his touch was so light and tender, she found herself relaxing and the tenseness began to leave her muscles as she pressed herself even closer to him. Then as he continued to delicately, caress her, progressively, moving his hands almost imperceptibly, to other parts of her body, she began to experience strange feelings unlike anything she had ever felt before and furthermore, the feelings were in her nether regions and were making her feel quite hot and bothered. But not in an uncomfortable way, not exactly anyhow. She was beginning to experience feelings of desire and a tender aching in her groin.
She lifted her head from his shoulder and pressed her lips to his neck, then whispered in his ear.
‘I want you to do it now Mister Zelletta. I am ready.’
She had expected it to be painful when it finally happened, but for a man who had lived with violence most of his life, he had been surprisingly, gentle and tender and apart from a slight, initial pain, the entire act had been the most wonderful event she’d ever experienced in her entire life.
Now, as she lay on her side beneath the trees, she was filled with remorse that she didn’t go with him when he wanted her to and regretted that she would never experience another wonderful night in his embrace, like the last night they spent together.
…
At some stage during the night, she fell asleep and though she briefly, woke on occasions, she managed to get a few hours of slumber and at dawn, she opened her eyes and sat up to survey her surroundings. She looked around at the trees and undergrowth and found it impossible to determine from which direction she had come or which direction she needed to go to find safety.
All the trees and bushes were shrouded in mist which gave the woods an eerie look and Beatrice felt more fear at that time, than she had when it had been dark. However, she didn’t have time to sit and ponder. Because Jacob would want revenge for his humiliation and would want her severely punished, his men would almost certainly be searching these woods pretty soon and she doubted they would treat her gently if she was found. The problem now, was which direction would take her farther away from the ranch and not toward it.
She turned around several times, becoming more frustrated with her own indecision, until she spied a tiny piece of white thread clinging to a thorn on a bush. It was a few feet away and she recognized it must be from her dress. She stepped closer and saw the faint outline of a footprint in the soft soil and when she investigated further, she found another one farther back. She quickly turned and headed off in the direction her own footprints pointed, walking as quickly as the trees and bushes would allow, not to mention the long flowing dress she wore which constantly, snagged on the bushes and undergrowth.
She lost all track of time as she hurried through the woods and because she often needed to change direction due to particularly dense thickets in her way, wasn’t even sure she was heading on the same course she had started out to follow. There was a distinct possibility she may be heading in an entirely different direction all together.
There appeared to be no end to the woods and she began to panic as the thought she may well have come full circle began to enter her mind. For all she knew, she could be heading back toward the ranch and would soon fall prey to his men who may by now, be hunting her. No doubt she would have left easily read signs of her passing as she fled across the meadow and they would soon realise she’d been heading toward the woods and because they would be on horseback, it wouldn’t take them long to catch up to her.
She was tiring fast and because she had only eaten less than a mouthful of food and a little jerky in two days, was becoming weak with hunger as well as increasing, thirst.
Behind her and far away, came the faint sound of shouting voices and the realisation she may soon be caught hit her hard and out of pure fear, she managed to increase her pace. Beatrice ran whenever the way was clear, but needed to slow down whenever she was confronted by dense undergrowth. However, despite her efforts, the sounds of men’s voices were getting closer and she occasionally recognized the sound of her own name as some of them called out to her.
By that time, the temporary boost to her endurance she had received through fear, began to abate and Beatrice once again, found herself tiring with feelings of nausea and weakness threatening to completely, overwhelm her. Her breath was coming in ragged gasps as the only thing that kept her tired legs moving, was pure doggedness. However, even her assiduousness was no match for exhaustion and her debility, therefore, she slowed considerably as her unstable and weakened legs turned to rubber. After that, she managed to stumble on for a few yards before, unable to find the will to command her legs to keep moving, the wretched and exhausted girl, collapsed beside a large tree.
FORTY-SIX
As the voices approached her position from just a few hundred yards away, she found the strength to drag herself around the other side of the tree in the faint hope they would pass her by without spotting her cowering close to the wide trunk. That would at least give her a little respite and allow her to regain enough strength to enable her to head away in a different direction. She knew it was a vain hope, but it was all she had and she clung to it out of sheer desperation.
If only I had a gun, she thought. I would be able to shoot myself and release me from this horrible terror I’m experiencing. Death would be far more preferable than what I’m going to face when they take me back.
Fortunately, the approaching men, were having to slow their pace because of the same problems with dense thickets and bushes, that she had experienced which delayed the inevitable and gave her a little more time to recuperate a little.
Soon she was able to detect the sound of many horses as some of them blew hard and occasionally snorted, as well as the sounds of men’s voices and she prepared herself to take flight. However, circumstances dictated another turn of events as she heard the sound of another horse or more, approaching from the side and realising they had spread out and were closing in from different directions, which would effectively trap her like a fish in a net, she instinctively scooted round the trunk of the tree away from the approaching riders in the hope she hadn’t been spotted. But her hopes were in vain as a rider suddenly spurred his horse into a gallop and approached her position fast. She, had plainly, been spotted and absolute panic caused her to clamber to her feet and start running away from the approaching rider. It was clear she wouldn’t be able to outrun him but she had to try. There was always a slight chance she could make it to some thick undergrowth and crawl into it where a horse would be unable to follow.
Her legs were weakening again rapidly as she wildly looked around for somewhere to hide. The horseman was almost upon her when she saw a thicket off to her left and she changed direction to head toward it. If she could only reach the bushes before he was upon her, she may be able to crawl in there and he would have to dismount to follow her, which would at least, give her a fighting chance.
She was within just a few yards of the bushes when her legs began to give way and she found herself staggering on limbs that no longer had any feeling in them. She valiantly, tried to keep going the few remaining yards as her laboured breathing came in ragged gasps, but too late, the horseman was upon her. He brought his horse alongside of her and with a strong arm around her waist, scooped her up in one swift movement. She struggled weakly against him as he easily lifted her and threw her face down across the saddle before spurring the horse into a faster gallop.
…
Beatrice felt very uncomfortable as she bounced under the pace of the galloping horse, especially as her hip rubbed against the saddle horn and her stomach took most of the weight of her undignified position. But her discomfort would never compare to the utter dread she felt now she had been caught and would be returned to Jacob and god only knew what he had in store for her.
Before long, the horse slowed down to a trot which caused her to bounce on the saddle, even more. She soon realised the reason he’d slowed his pace as another horse came alongside. Then she heard a man close by speak loudly.
‘You got her.’
‘Yeah,’ growled the rider who had captured Beatrice. ‘Let’s get the hell outa here.’
She was suddenly, startled and her heart missed a beat. She knew that deep, gravelly, voice very well, in fact intimately. But it couldn’t be could it?
Before she was able to speak, they were galloping again at high speed and she felt sure the horse would slip and tumble over as they rounded trees and bushes without noticeably slowing. However, she no longer felt afraid and her heart was beating rapidly because she knew now for certain, Frank Zelletta had saved her. Nobody had a voice like his and though she could not see his face, she would know those powerful thighs anywhere and had she had time to think about it, she would also have recognized his strong arms as he scooped her up onto the horse.
She no longer cared about the pain and discomfort, or the reason he hadn’t told her who he was before rescuing her. She even had a smile on her face as her heart was lifted high with jubilation. The man she loved more than life itself had come for her and if he wanted her to, she would travel to the ends of the earth with him and face any hardship life tossed their way.
They kept up the pace for over twenty minutes and the girl was tossed around like a sack of flour as she lay across the saddle. But she did not care. Her jubilation cancelled out any pain or discomfort she felt, even though she was sure her limbs and muscles would be useless when she was finally, allowed to get down.
Finally, they came to a halt and before she had a chance to gather her breath, she was struck with the palm of a heavy hand on her backside. Luckily, the material of her dress cushioned most of the blow, but the suddenness of it still caused her to yelp loudly. Then she was dragged from the saddle and gently, set down on the ground by another man who somehow, she felt a familiarity for. However, she only had eyes for Zelletta as he dismounted and came around to stand before her. He handed her his canteen and she gratefully, took a long drink from it and handed it back. Then, she took one look at his grim face and threw herself at him enfolding her arms around his neck and reaching up to kiss him all over his face. When she finally stopped and stepped back, his face was wet all over, but he was grinning from ear to ear.
‘I’m sorry Mister Zelletta,’ she cried. ‘I didn’t mean to be so forward, but I was so surprised and elated to see you, I couldn’t help myself.’
She heard a chuckle behind her and turned to face, unsurprisingly, Charlie.
‘Oh Charlie,’ she cried. ‘I feel as though I’m dreaming. I’ve been rescued by my favourite person in the whole world aided by my second favourite.’
