Page 1 of A Curse On Black Lake
Prologue
June 17th, 1859
Black Lake, Texas
Cassandra Jameson
“No! Please, Papa! Please! I’m begging you, don’t take him from me, please!”
“How could you do this to me? You’ve whored yourself out to this … thispeasantboy. You will ruin this family!” Father spits.
I drop to my knees and grab the tails of my father’s jacket. My skirts bunch up, getting in the way, but I’ll crawl if I have to.
Jasper Radcliffe is the love of my life, and I don’t care about his lack of status, or who his family is. I love him, and that’s all that should matter.
“Take your hands off of me, Cassandra. I will deal with you when I am finished with this,” he says.
My friend Lily comes up behind me, helping me to my feet. “Come on, Cassie, let him calm down, and maybe he will see clearly later. They are just going to put him in the jail,” Lily says.
My father chuckles and gestures to the Sheriff and his men to bind Jasper’s hands behind his back.
“No, Lily, Jasper will not be put in jail. I will not have my daughter defiled by this poor boy,” Father says.
I lock eyes with Jasper, and concern paints his expression before he glances down at my stomach.
A tear falls down my cheek, and I quickly wipe it away. If I tell my father I’m pregnant, he might kill us both. But if I say nothing, Jasper will most certainly die. If my father cares anything for me, he will leave Jasper alone. We will get married and leave this godforsaken town in the dust. They say there’s work out West. We could start over. We could be happy.
“Daddy, please. I love him, and…” I trail off, choking on the words, unable to meet his eyes. I rest my hand over my stomach and take a deep breath and look at Jasper, gaining the courage to look my father in the eye. “I’m pregnant. He is the father of this child. We will get married and leave. You’ll never see us again. Please, I beg you, let him live.”
My father stares at me in shock and then suddenly my cheek stings. I hear gasps around me, and I try to force the tears back, but I can’t.
Jasper yells, trying to pull out of the grip they have on him. “I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you for putting your hands on her, you bastard! We’ve done nothing wrong!”
“Nothing wrong?” Father yells. “You have made my daughter awhore.That child is a bastard!”
“They aremine,” Jasper spits.
I finally get my frozen feet to move over to Jasper. One man tries to stop me, so I backhand him as hard as I can.
Jasper growls, and I fall to my knees before him in the dirt, leaning my forehead against his, the tears are in free fall now. My heart feels like it’s being torn to shreds. This is all because my father’s pride is worth more than his daughter’s happiness. He cuts down anyone who gets in his way, and now, I understand I am no different from those he left in open graves. Nor is Jasper.
“I won’t leave you,” I whisper to Jasper.
“You need to, my love. If they have to kill me so I can protect you, then so be it.”
“No,” I sob. “I can’t survive without you. I don’t want to.”
“You may have to, little rebel. You will be a wonderful mother. Take care of our boy, build him up to be a respectable man,” Jasper says.
“You don’t know if it’s a boy or girl,” I whisper.
He smiles. “I do. Have I ever lied to you?” he asks.
“No,” I rasp.
“Then trust me,” he says with defeat in his eyes.
I startle at his reaction. He needs to fight.Weneed to run.
