The Unforeseen
Chapter Twenty-Two

After leaving the tavern, they continued through the city. Each time Timena glanced at Barinon, his smile only grew more sinister, he was not going to let her words go and she wasn't planning to stay around to receive punishment for it. It was a risk to try to escape now, but if not now, when? Without even thinking, Timena took off into a sprint. Reevus yelled after her as Barinon followed in her direction.

Timena pushed past people, trying to get through, not even certain of which direction she was going in, but she couldn't stop now. Glancing back, she spotted Barinon close behind and her panic began to creep upon her. Peering out above the crowd, the sign to Makar's shop seemed to be within close distance and that same feeling of hope overshadowed the panic in Timena's chest.

As the crowd began to look as though it were opening up, time began to move slowly as a searing pain pain caused Timena to clutch at her abdomen. Looking down, she removed her hand only to replace fresh blood covering her palm. She had been stabbed. A large hand grabbed a hold of her tunic, yanking her backwards before she felt herself fall.

"I warned you." Timena looked up to see Barinon's catlike eyes.

She sighed, defeated. "Well fuck me."

A few members of the staff had been locked away in various rooms of the castle and Vassar was furious. Both Silas and his men worked together to comb through Mororcin with no luck, they moved quickly to begin the process of scouring the forest. Upon replaceing out that Reevus had been the missing soldier from his men, he tried to understand why he might have been in collusion with Barinon.

"They were comrades Silas, did you forget? You should have killed them when you had the chance." Miro said as they left the armory.

Silas had forgotten that small detail, that Reevus and Barinon had been close from before the time they had become a part of his army. When he had had no other choice but to kill Barinon's wife, he wasn't aware that Reevus would help plot against him as well. Silas was aware that it had been cruel to kill her in front of her husband, but she would have to have been stopped in the end. He should have killed Barinon then, along with Reevus apparently. Now Timena's life was in danger because of his failure to eliminate a threat that could have been avoided entirely.

It appeared timing was not their strong suit— when it appeared as though the universe was beginning to work in his favor, yet another obstacle had been put in the way. Silas was growing angrier at the thought of it, because when he came face to face with Barinon and Reevus, he would spare no mercy on either of their lives the second time around.

"There was a bloodied rock out by the kitchen entrance King Silas." Norman said hesitantly.

Silas felt his chest sink slightly at the thought that it might be Timena's blood on that rock. He was enraged now, mounting the horse's body, he pulled at the reins and squeezed its' sides, immediately taking off into the forest.

Barinon angrily led her back to where Reevus stood with the horses, if it hadn't been for the large crowd of people passing by, he might have killed her right there. Timena held onto her side as they continued to walk along the street, Barinon had cut a piece of cloth before throwing it to her which she used to stop the bleeding. The wound was not very deep thankfully, but she worried that it would get infected. She realized that it had been stupid to run off like that, but she'd had to at least try.

"You'll wish you were dead if you try that again." Reevus warned. Timena remained quiet.

They had made it through without any more trouble, and it was not long before they were back on their horses. Timena wondered how far Silas was from replaceing them, it hadn't taken him long to replace her the last time, she thought.

"Where are we going now?" She whispered so that only Reevus would hear.

He sighed. "Quenevell, once we're there we'll make a detour to the water."

"What happens after? Where do we go then?" She asked, a tinge of fear in her voice.

"Anywhere but here."

Timena shivered, afraid now that she might be shipped away before having the chance to escape again or be rescued. A feeling of weakness took over her body— it was the most unpleasant feeling, it was something she was becoming too familiar with.

They traveled only for a little longer before stopping under the cover of the woods, like the night before Timena's hands were tied to a tree and she was watched in shifts before falling into an uncomfortable sleep.

Silas, Vassar and a herd of men traveled through the forest and into Vitabesk, reaching the city as the sun had begun to set. They raided the area inside and out, determined to replace the missing princess but with no luck. It seemed impossible to both kings that not a single person had seen her in the city, and they had both began to panic.

"This is your fault; my daughter is missing because of you." Vassar said angrily.

Silas turned to him immediately. "Now is not the time to do this Vassar." He warned. "We'll replace her."

Vassar threw his hands up. "And what if we don't, what if he has already killed her. That rock might have already answered our unspoken question boy."

Silas' hands had clenched into fists, he tried to keep a cool head, knowing that arguing wouldn't solve anything. "Vassar we will replace her, and I will kill Barinon and Reevus with my bare hands." He uttered the last few words.

Timena woke in a sweat, her body trembling. Trying to sit up just a bit, her eyes flew down to her side as she felt an awful pain. She tried to move her hands, realizing they were still tied to the tree, she began to look around frantically, seeing Reevus near a small fire only a few feet away.

"R-Reevus please untie my hands, my si-"

"No, Barinon will be back soon." He ignored her easily.

She groaned. "My side Reevus, I need to see if it's infected. Please." She begged. "Just look, please."

He contemplated for a moment before walking over to her, kneeling down he moved to untie the cloth, only to confirm Timena's suspicions. Upon removing it, he had revealed the midsized cut that had now begun to swell and ooze a bit of pus, her head fell back at the realization that she'd been correct.

Reevus' body sagged. "You are a fool."

Her head shot up quickly. "What was I supposed to do, happily follow you two to my possible death?" She spat out angrily.

Before Reevus could answer, footsteps could be heard close by. He retied the cloth around her waist before going back over to the fire.

"Don't say anything about it, it will give him more of a reason to kill you."

Timena had no other choice but to listen, wiping the sweat from her forehead and trying to make herself seem as normal as possible in that moment.

"Let's move. Now." Barinon spoke sternly.

Quenevell, like Vitabesk was a crowded city. People went about their daily tasks, selling and buying their goods— children played along the streets, ignoring the annoyed faces of the vendors around them.

Timena giggled at the few shopkeepers that chased them away with their brooms as they walked along the cobbled streets. Her side bothered her slightly, but the pain seemed manageable for the time being, making eye contact with Reevus, his jaw tensed before he looked away. Barinon continued in front of them, ignoring the local vendors and pushing people out of his path.

Clara stood in front of burnt wood, there was no doubt in her mind that Timena had been there, she could feel her presence like the passing wind. However, something hung in the air, like frailty and the possibility of impending death. It had been a gift and a curse of Clara's, sensing not only the aura of a person but possessing an ability of clairvoyance pertaining to them. She did not have a strong feeling when it came to Timena and she knew that something was not right.

"I need to sit, please." Timena pleaded before sitting on a nearby rock.

"Get up now before I kill you." Barinon threatened her.

She let out a dry laugh. "Go ahead. What are you waiting for?" She taunted.

Reevus looked down her, shocked at her boldness. Timena had been shocked herself— she did not know if it was the fact that she was growing increasingly tired of Barinon's attitude or just that her infected wound was becoming more painful, but she'd had enough for the time being.

"You think I won't?" He asked through his teeth.

Timena looked up through hooded eyes, smiling cheekily. "Not in broad daylight."

"Clearly it's just the heat and lack of food Bari," Reevus surprisingly came to her defense.

Barinon glared at Reevus before turning away. Reevus lifted her up forcefully, pushing her back onto the path.

By nightfall, they had almost made it out of the city. Timena was past the point of worrying about whether or not she was going to be saved. Her body had begun to sweat and tremble slightly, but for some reason she continued on. Making a detour right as they exited Quenevell, Timena found herself back in the woods with only the hazy light of oil lamps. Everything seemed heightened, except for her sight but she could feel every breeze that passed and hear every footstep around her. Suddenly her body fell to the ground, Reevus bent down, trying to pick her up but she could no longer stand. While he and Barinon had ridden comfortably on their horses, she had been forced to walk the entire way— a little bit of punishment for her earlier comment.

"What is the matter with her?"

Reevus had to confess. "Her side, where you stabbed her, it's infected."

Undoing the cloth, he removed it to reveal the hideous wound that was leaking yellowish fluid.

"Well that's it. I had hoped to meet Silas face to face and kill him, but I will settle on killing you instead." Barinon came towards her slowly then.

"No, Bari, we just need to get help to clean it. We can take her back into Quenevell." Reevus had once again come to her defense.

"So, we risk possibly being found by Silas, no." Pulling out a blade, he moved towards her again. Reevus moved to shield her.

"This wasn't exactly the plan Barinon, it was always to kill Silas not her."

"Reevus move, or I will be forced to move you." He warned. Reevus stayed still.

Smiling angrily, Barinon charged at him, and they fought against one another. Reevus only tried to disarm him, but he was too weak against him. The blade sliced his arm and he groaned loudly, then punching Barinon in his face. Timena regained her consciousness momentarily only to see the two men fighting, she began trying to crawl away.

From the corner of his eye, Barinon saw the young girl trying to escape. Landing a sturdy punch to Reevus jaw, he turned around, beginning to approach Timena now.

A hard blow landed in her stomach, knocking the air from her lungs. Timena groaned loudly as another kick landed to her chest. Laying on her back now, she looked up to see Barinon's face as his foot stomped directly on the open wound, and a bone chilling scream left Timena's lips. Tears trailed down the sides of her face as she wept in pain.

"It wasn't supposed to be like this, we should have already been on the shore by now." Barinon began rambling. "This was supposed to be simple."

Timena felt bile producing in her throat, she gagged. The pain was unbearable as she felt another kick land into her stomach. Her body flew back a bit as she laid on her side now, she was so weak, barely able to move her hand to cover her infected wound.

Reevus fought to get up, only to be knocked out cold again. Timena shivered as she heard Barinon's footsteps approaching her. He bent down, pushing her hand away from her side.

"This is going to be painful." His smiled, sinisterly.

She screamed almost immediately as the sharp knife began to dig into her side, cutting her open even wider. Her lungs gave up as it seemed that her throat could no longer make a sound, and it was right then and there that Timena was prepared to die. She couldn't say a prayer for herself, for her family or even Silas, death would have been mercy at a time like this.

And like a miracle sent from God himself, an arrow shot straight into Barinon's shoulder. He looked back to see a herd of men approaching. He gasped loudly before pushing himself off the ground and taking off through the trees.

At the sight of what looked like a lifeless body on the ground, Silas took off in a sprint to reach Timena. Aldus, Miro and their army took off after Barinon.

"Timena, my love can you hear me?" He spoke gently, lifting her head from the cold ground.

"Have, I died?" She asked weakly.

"No, no. You're still with me. Stay with me." Silas begged.

Looking at her limp body, his jaw clenched to the point of breaking. His heart ached for her, if he could take away every ounce of pain she was feeling at that moment, he would have gladly done so. Reevus stood in the custody of two of his guards and he waited for the rest of his men to catch the enemy he wanted most— when he was through with him, Barinon would be begging for death.

Silas kissed her forehead lightly, brushing away the dirt. "I'll never let anything happen to you again, I promise."

Timena could barely hear a word, but she smiled faintly at the familiar warmth of his body before drifting off into a dreamless sleep.

Clara stood nearby, behind the cover of the trees. She had located them just in time to lead Silas and Vassar in Barinon's direction. Smiling to herself, she watched as Silas held her body so gently before carrying her in his arms. It was however worse than she had initially thought, Timena's body had appeared to be mangled, and she would need time to heal from what Barinon had done.