31. A betrayal more painful than death itself

Crystal Allen

Eventually, my father and his guards quickly approached the carriage that had fallen in the middle of the street after the horses couldn't handle it and skidded wildly on the rough ground of the poorly maintained road. Everything was in a chaotic state as they approached the carriage: the horses were weakly rearing as they lay injured on the ground; the carriage wheel was still hot and spinning rapidly; they raised their lamps and focused on the interior of the carriage lying in the middle of the road; the door was wide open; there were even traces of blood inside, but the carriage was completely empty.

Ansel and I ran quickly through the night's thicket, knowing that my father would not give up on finding us. My shoulder hurt from having hit the wall of the carriage so violently that it almost dislocated it, and there was a sharp wound on my head that was escaping a trickle of blood across my forehead. I wanted to stop and rest because my whole body hurt, and I was barely able to move my legs, but I knew Ansel wasn't going to give up; he was going to fight until the end to get away.

For a moment after the accident in the carriage, I even thought it would be that moment that Ansel would surrender to my father. I mean, if we sincerely asked for forgiveness, there was a chance that my father would forgive us; Ansel could only serve some time in prison, but then he would get out and be able to resume with his life; and if I could explain the whole situation to my father and beg him to forgive Ansel, then everything would be fine. After all, any destiny other than the one I was in was better; I was almost dying, and on top of that, I was pregnant, so I really wasn't in a position to continue. But Ansel kept insisting that we run to escape.

"Ansel, please, I can't take it anymore", I was crying while breathing heavily; his hand in mine was tight, the bag of money was on his back, and he was holding on for dear life. "We have to stop; everything is hurting me." I pulled my arm out of his hand and fell on all fours to the ground in the bush, breathing heavily. There were leafy trees everywhere.

"Holy shit, they're coming!" He exclaimed, having to stop, and it was true that my father and his guards were coming after us. The light from the lamps could be seen from afar in the pitch-black night. I cried, shaking my head, as I was completely desperate.

"I can't take it anymore; I feel like I'm going to faint at any moment... I'm so sorry...!" I cried to him, my words broken.

Ansel's action surprised me when he bent down and violently pulled my hair back from the back of my head, making me lift my head. "You lazy ass, you're no good at all, aren't you!?" He was thick and crude in his words. "Do you want your father to catch me and kill me?"

"Ansel, I'm pregnant, and I'm hurt; I can't take the pain anymore. Please, I need to stop…" I begged through tears. Why didn't he understand me?

"Holy shit, you won't come with me even if you're dragged!" Then he grabbed me by the shoulder and dragged me carelessly while I couldn't even place my feet on the ground.

"Please, Ansel. I beg you…" I cried, screaming at his attitude.

"Shut up, trash!" He turned me around with a slap to the face that knocked me to the ground, then he pulled my hair again, his eyes completely black with evil. "Do you really want your father to catch me, you piece of shit?" He hissed at me, being totally aggressive.

"No, please. What are you doing…?" I sobbed, unable to recognize him anymore. This Ansel was very different from the gentlemanly Ansel I knew. Was he acting this way because of the stress of the moment? After all, I understood why he was blaming me because I hadn't done the job right and ended up compromising the entire mission, but he was acting like he didn't love me. "Stop treating me like that; I'm your wife, and I'm expecting your child…"

He laughed sarcastically at that moment. "My wife? You're more like my pot of gold." He had a cynical smile on his face now.

"What…?" I weakened, still feeling the pain of his slap on my face. "What are you talking about?"

"You want to know something? That was my plan; I was going to take you home, leave you to sleep, and disappear while you slept, but you managed to fuck up my patience. I'm already tired of acting. I'm fed up. Furthermore, I can't stand you anymore; I can't even stand your fucking voice!" He hissed at me, leaving me speechless. "I already have my wealth now, so I don't need you anymore. I don't have to put up with such a spoiled whore anymore. How much you can't even give me pleasure in bed!"

"Are you crazy...? After everything I've done for you?" How could he say such things about me? On top of that, I'm pregnant with his child. Has he been deceiving me all this time? Because of my family's money? "You bastard!" Overcome with anger and anguish, I pulled his shirt by the glue, really wanting him to take back everything he said to me, but he was stronger than me and pushed me, kicking me in the process, making me fall sprawling on the floor, screaming in pain. And anger.

"Let her go now!" We heard the voice of a third person; it belonged to one of my father's guards who was pointing a gun at Ansel who raised his hands in surrender. For the first time that night, I was happy to see something that reminded me of my father, so I cried with relief. "What do you think you're doing to her, you fucking thug?" He hissed, still pointing the gun at Ansel. So he had seen Ansel hitting me? "What about you, Miss Crystal? Shouldn't you be a long way from here in Northumberland, married to the powerful earl's son?" Why are you stealing from your father?" At that moment, I didn't even care about the guard's boldness; I was consumed by guilt and pain.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry..." I cried like never before, but the guard had let his guard down when he was talking to me, long enough for the quick-witted Ansel to throw himself at him, dribbling him to the ground. Then I watched them both roll on the ground, exchanging punches and pulls, and a shot was heard. The guard's body relaxed, indicating that he had been hit; his head lolled to the side, and his dull, lifeless eyes were looking at me. I was terrified, feeling so much guilt at that look. I wanted to scream, but I had no voice. Ansel stood up, laughing, with the gun in his hand. He looked devilish, with his face and clothes all stained with the guard's blood that had splashed him at the time of the shot.

"What a scoundrel!" He exclaimed, reaching back for the money bag.

"Ansel…"

"Be quiet, or I'll kill you too!" He threatened me by pointing the gun and then ran alone through the woods. I weakly dragged my body towards the dead guard, still not believing that Ansel had actually killed him, and then he ran away from me.

"No, please wake up…" I cried with my eyes blurred by tears and blood.

"The sound of the gunshot went from there, sir!" I heard the screams of the other guards who were coming with my father, and then I panicked. I couldn't stay here; if I stayed, they would think I was the one who killed the guard, and they would kill me too. Then, overcome by madness, I ran as if I were running away from the devil, staggering on my own feet and going deeper into the forest. I ran, feeling my lungs burning and my senses fading, but I didn't stop running. I needed to escape.