Page 19 of Saved By the Headless Horseman
And her end has come at last.
After she witnesses her atrocities and confesses to her treachery, she will beg for his forgiveness.He will not give it.The only salvation he will offer her in the end is death.May her soul be tormented for eternity for what she has done.
It is only fair after all.She brought about his end, and now he will bring about hers.
Scarlett’s struggling ceases as the fog around them swirls.The dense mist ripples in the dark dungeon, expanding farther than should be possible.There in the darkness, it finally recedes.From inside the fog, the red-haired man, Krane, appears.
Dirt streaks his clothing and hair as he navigates through the dark woods.He gracefully jumps over large boulders and dodges behind sturdy trees.Krane hunts for the pumpkin head.His quest is as futile as it is earnest.All of this to win his lover’s hand, what a fool he had been.
Krane was so absorbed in his task that he didn’t hear them approach.Not until it was too late, his fate sealed in theWhispering Woods.The harbingers of his death linger for a moment, watching his useless search with thin-veiled amusement.
The Headless Horseman swallows his growl.There is no use in trying to change the past.What’s done is done.
Earl Richard Crest, Duke Marc of Greenbrooke, and his son Bram linger at the treeline.Krane finally realizes there is an audience behind him.Setting down a large rock, he wipes his filthy palm on the threadbare material of his pants.
“What are you doing here?”he asks.“I thought I had until dawn.”
The Headless Horseman grinds his teeth together.The earnestness in the man’s green eyes is unparalleled.There is no apprehension—no distrust.His kind nature had been his undoing.If only he had been wary of this family—of her—fled when he had the chance, everything would’ve been different.He was a fool to think himself special.No one goes against the Crest family and lives to tell about it.
Richard Crest steps forward, the other two men tight behind him, gloved hands resting on their sword hilts.Only then does Krane pause and narrow his eyes.Run,the horseman urges,leave while you still can.Krane does nothing but stare at the man he once considered a father.The patriarch of the only family he had ever known—the man he wished to call his father-in-law someday.
Scarlett’s breathing picks up.Soft tendrils of her hair tickle his face.She’s gone whiter than a sheet.Finally, she realizes what’s about to happen and understands the sins she will have to answer for.
“I thought so, too.”Richard’s eyes harden.“Until I received an alarming update.”
Krane’s red brows pull low.The three men stand just before him.Their eyes glow like serpents ready to strike.They’ll end an innocent man in pursuit of their greed.He should’ve known she was just like them, had only been kidding himself that she was somehow different.One cannot be raised in cruelty and expected to become a saint.Her soul is just as twisted as theirs, no matter how perfectly it fits with his own.
“My daughter was informed of your offer of marriage.When I told her of our bargain to gain her hand, she was…disturbed.”
A broken sob cracks from Scarlett’s lips.The Headless Horseman tries not to grin in satisfaction at her despair.
“She lamented that while she possessed some form of childhood affection towards you, it had come to an end.Whatever was once between the two of you, she wishes to be over.Her desire now, above all else, is to be united with Earl Bram.”
“No,” Scarlett whispers.
He gazes down at her pale face.Tears stain her cheeks.A pretty convincing performance, though now he recognizes that she was always a compelling actress.So much so that Krane is stunned at her father’s words.He blinks a few times as if not registering what the other man has declared.
“You see, she wants someone who can provide her with the life she is accustomed to.Wealth and comfort—something you wouldn’t understand, my boy.”
Color splashes across Krane’s freckled cheeks.He shakes his head, even as he stumbles back as if in a daze.
“No—no, that can't be.She loves me.She told me?—”
Earl Richard digs deep into his pocket and produces a carefully folded note.The sight of it makes the Headless Horseman snarl.He extends the parchment to Krane, who takes it in his trembling hand.
“It is all right here if you don’t believe me.Signed by her and everything.”
A weak protest slips from Scarlett’s lips.She has gone completely limp in his arms.Now that her treachery has been revealed, there is nothing left to do but succumb to her own betrayal.
Green eyes roam over the delicate parchment.Tears collect on Krane’s lower lashline, but he blinks them away, not wishing to show weakness.The letter has its intended effect.From here, the Headless Horseman watches the young man’s heart shatter in his chest.He can still feel the jagged edges of it puncturing through his skin.
“I still don’t understand.”Krane’s voice is barely above a whisper.
“Women are fickle, my dear boy.Surely you recognize her handwriting.This is no trick.”
And recognize her handwriting, he does.With trembling hands, Krane refolds the parchment paper, tucking it into his pocket.Why he kept it, he still doesn’t know.One last keepsake from her, he supposes.
“If this is what she wants, then I will go at once.”
