The Fourth Ceremony: The Sacrifice Trilogy (13 page)

              Camden was a block from Mars' house when he heard what sounded like a scuffle in the next alley. He knew that he was not going to get involved in some street brawl, he had more important things to do with his combat training, but curiosity got the best of him and he peered around the corner of the building that masked him from view.

              Camden crouched to get a better look. What he saw made his stomach turn. Three men were pinning down a girl and she looked as if she were hurt. Camden's mind raced ahead. He knew that he would be in deep trouble if he wound up hurt. He was supposed to be Alessa's guard and that took priority over any other person in the Empire, but he knew that he could not sit by and watch this poor girl be abused or worse. Camden analyzed the men. Two of them were small and of little threat. One of the smaller ones looked like he didn't even want to be there as he held the girl's left arm to the ground. The man on the other arm looked excited, but weak. The girl had almost gotten her right arm loose a couple of times. The man sitting on top of the girl posed the biggest threat. Camden saw his strength in the way he pinned the girl with little effort. Camden was also sickened to notice how much the beefy punk was enjoying this assault. Camden turned his attention to the girl. He wasn't sure if she'd be of any help once freed. She would run, see him as a threat as well and try to fight him, or fight with him against the assailants. Victims could be wildly unpredictable and Camden did
n’
t like unpredictable situations. He was banking on the skittish smaller man to run away and was fairly certain he could handle to other two men, but if the girl tried to fight him the sales might tip against him and h
e’
d be subject to Khi's already short fuse. Camden saw the man sitting on the girl run his hand down her face and onto her chest. The girl let out a frustrated shout and managed to kick him in the back of the head with a bent leg. The man cried out and Camden stifled a laugh. Surely the girl would fight with him once freed. Then, the man drew back his hand and punched the girl in the face. Her head whipped to the side from the impact and Camden sat frozen in horror. It couldn't be real. This was not happening. It was her.

              White hot fire burned through Camden as rage fueled him into impulsive action. In an instant, he had tackled the gang leader and had pinned him to the ground himself. Camden began to unleash his fury by pounding his fist into the face of the man who had hurt Alessa. With the crack of skin and the grunts of pain, Camden continued his assault. Then, he remembered Alessa and turned to look for her. He saw her just in time to watch her foot connect with the nose of the weaker man who had held her arm. Camden turned back to his victim as the other man grabbed his face and ran from Alessa. The leader of the group was unconscious, but Camden knew he would soon wake. Camden stood and stomped repeatedly on his right hand, the one he had used to punch Alessa. The man would either lose the use of his hand or would have to seek medical care, which would enable Camden to find him later.

              After he was sure the threat was over, Camden ran to Alessa's side. He arrived there just as she began to sink to the ground. He guided her down and knelt in front of her.

              "What in the Gods' name are you doing here?" Camden was barely keeping his fury and worry in check.

              "I, um, I went for a walk, and, um, I wanted to see Uncle Marston, and um, they just came out of nowhere." Camden could see that Alessa was disoriented. His concern grew. He wasn't sure what had happened to her before he came along.

              "Alessa, look at me," her eyes looked glassy. He needed to assess her before he could move her. Then, a thought came to his mind. Evan should have trained her for this. "Alessa, injuries. inventory, begin." He used a gentle commanding voice. For a moment she blinked at him questioningly. Then, her eyes took on a look of recognition and she began to speak mechanically.

            
 “
Hit head on the ground, blows to the face, twisted shoulder, injured ribs
.”
Her concise list reassured Camden slightly. She was coherent and aware. She would be fine. Camden remained concerned about a concussion or broken bones he could
n’
t see.

              "You listed nothing with your legs, can you walk?" Camden maintained his command. It always helped him keep a level head in difficult situations.

              "Yes, sort of. Wait, I can't go back to the manor. Not like this, not now, please don't make me go back." Alessa's eyes were more focused now and they pierced straight into his. He couldn't stand to see the weakness shimmering with tears in her eyes.

              "Alright, look, I have an apartment not far from here. Can you make it two blocks?"

              "Apartment? Why do you have a separate apartment?"

              "Why does everyone keep asking me that? Come on, let's get you out of here." Camden stood and reached his hands down to help Alessa up. She ignored his hands and instead used her good right arm to cradle her injured left from movement.

              "That bad, huh?" He asked quietly.

              "Only when it moves." She smiled tightly at him.

              "Alessa, what happened?" Camden couldn't understand how she had wound up alone. He wasn't sure if she was abducted because of who she was or if it was a crime of opportunity.

              "I told you, I needed to get out of the manor. I decided to go to Uncle Marston's house and I heard someone behind me. By the time I turned around to see what the noise was, the other two were in front of me and I was trapped. I tried to fight them off, but they over-powered me. When I tried to twist out of their grip, my shoulder popped and was basically useless, which left me almost defenseless." Camden's hands were shaking with anger. "They didn't know who I was, they thought I was just some girl. Then, the littlest one realized who I am. I think he thought that telling them that would make them leave me alone, but it just excited the big one. He said-" Alessa stopped speaking and turned her face away from his. Camden moved to face her and saw that she had tears in her eyes.

              "He said what Alessa?" Camden spoke softly, but the menace in his voice was thinly veiled. Alessa flinched. He tried to calm himself. He didn't want to frighten Alessa more. "My apartment is right here. Let's get you warmed up and then we'll continue the story, okay?" She nodded and allowed him to steer her inside. 

              Camden busied himself turning on lamps and lighting a fire for Alessa to warm herself. When he was done, he sat back on his heels in front of the fire and turned to Alessa. She still stood just inside the door, her right arm supporting her left, and an uncomfortable stiffness to her body. Camden stood immediately, pulled a blanket off of the back of the sofa, and approached Alessa slowly. Camden knew that Alessa had been uncomfortable around him recently, but he hoped that she knew that he would be there for her now, that this changed things.

              "Alessa," Camden almost whispered her name as he walked to stand in front of her, "are you sure that you're okay?" He took the blanket and slowly draped it around her shoulders. As he did so, he rested his hands lightly on the tops of her arms and looked intently into her eyes.

              Alessa opened her mouth as if to answer but closed it again without a word. Then, she sighed deeply and leaned into him. Camden's breath caught in his throat as she pressed against him. After she turned her head to lie against his chest and nestled against him, he wrapped his arms around her carefully so as not to bother her injuries, and let out a breath he didn't realize he had been holding since she crossed the threshold of his home.

              "Do you want to sit down?" Camden cleared his throat trying to put power back into his voice.

              "Yes, I think I do," Alessa's voice was as quiet as a shy child's.

              Camden guided Alessa to the sofa keeping a steadying arm around her back as she walked. He felt an uncontrollable urge to maintain contact with her. They sat side by side on the couch and he was undeniably satisfied when she leaned into him again after they were seated. Camden hugged her close, tucked her head under his chin, and stroked her hair. He wasn't sure how long they sat like that. He thought he could have stayed with his arms around her forever, and that thought disturbed him deeply. When did he decide that anything close to forever was in his and Alessa's future? She was supposed to die in a few months. He tensed at the thought, and that move broke the magic between them. Alessa straightened and he let the contact severe but for the hand he left on the small of her back.

              "Cam, where have you been?" He realized as she asked that was the source of some of her discomfort.

              "I had to go out for some training. I told Khi I would be gone. Didn't he tell you?"

              "I thought you would have told me, but of course I don't know what to expect from you anymore. You're all over the place." She looked at him accusingly.

              "I know, I know," Camden sighed deeply. He knew that it was time to try to make it right with her, "I know that I've been a class-act jerk lately and I'm sorry."

              "Why?" Alessa asked that single word question and it resonated with him in an unexpected way. He decided to go with honesty. As much honesty as he could risk at this juncture.

              "I think I was confused by my feelings for you and I decided on the childish way out. I'm sorry, Alessa." He looked into the fire burning in front of them.

              "Feelings for me?" Alessa prodded on.

              "You're making this really hard," Camden complained as he ran a hand through his hair.

              "Good, you deserve it." Camden laughed softly and turned to look at Alessa. She held mirth in her eyes and he knew he was forgiven, at least for that moment. He leaned in and placed a chaste kiss on her forehead.

              "Let me make something to secure your arm so that you don't have to hold it like that. Then I'll get you some tea. Do you want anything to eat?"

              "I don't think I could eat, thank you though," Alessa replied politely.

              "I'll be right back," Camden rubbed a small circle on her back before leaving the sofa to walk to his bedroom. At the dresser, he pulled an old shirt out and found a pair of scissors in the kitchen. As he sat back beside Alessa, he cut the shirt into a makeshift sling and tied it around her neck. He adjusted the length until it allowed Alessa's arm to hang in a comfortable position, tying and retying until it was just right for her.

              "I don't have any medication here, but as soon as we return to the Manor I am sure they will give you something for the pain."

              "I'm okay, really, it's getting better," Alessa said halfheartedly.

              "I don't believe you," Camden eyed her suspiciously and was mildly surprised to see her stifle a smile.

              "Why so serious, Mr. Camden?" She toyed with him.

              "You're infuriating, did you know that?"

              "Ditto, sir."

              "Tea is in the kitchen, this way." Camden led her into the kitchen and opened his tea cabinet. He looked for her reaction and was not disappointed when he saw her eyes widen at the sight.

              "What is this?" She said in shock. Camden laughed lightly.

              "It's my tea stash."

              "It's every kind of tea there is," she looked at him expectantly, certainly waiting for an explanation.

              Camden turned and looked at the cabinet. The three shelves were filled with canisters of tea. Each canister brimmed with herbal, flavored, naturally medicinal, and root teas. He smiled to himself.

              "What can I say, I have a tea thing," Camden placed an innocent look on his face.  

              "I'll say," Alessa looked amused. "Well mister connoisseur, what do you recommend?"

              "Well this one is supposed to be comforting and calming."

              "Sounds perfect," she said immediately.

              "I thought you were fine," Camden teased.

              "Oh, shut up," she retorted.

              Camden laughed again as he set about boiling water and steeping the tea. They stood in the kitchen in comfortable silence as the tea sat. Camden resisted the urge to pull Alessa back into his arms. He decided that she would place herself there if it's where she wanted to be.

              After the tea was ready, Camden and Alessa walked back into the den and sat together on the sofa. Camden turned his body towards her and sat closely, hoping the invitation to come close was obvious to her, but Alessa sat huddled in a ball holding her tea.

              "So are you going to finish telling me what happened?" Camden kept his voice soft, trying not to push her too hard.

              "They attacked me on the way to Uncle Marston's. I tried to fight back, but there were three of them and they overpowered me. Then, they realized who I was. The bigger one, the leader, he wanted to make good use of that." Her voice was steady but her gaze was distant as she looked into the fire.