by Bre Faucheux
She opened her mouth to speak, but then hesitated. She was not sure whether or not Jamison would believe her being that there had been no sign of others on this land for months. Nevertheless, Madison felt certain that they were being watched on a consistent basis. On more than one occasion she could swear that she heard the footsteps of horses walking nearby. She dared not look outside their quarters to see for herself and argued in her own mind that she was just hearing noises of the night. But it was happening more and more. She told him merely of slight movements she had seen in the woods and Jamison insisted it was probably wild animals. If anything, they were a good sign because they would have food consistently throughout the seasons. The animals seemed to like the flowers and grasses that grew in the valley, and they were not afraid of people. Madison thought this odd, and a sure sign that others resided nearby. For the most part, she kept her suspicions to herself.
She felt a slight sense of guilt for doubting her brother’s resolve at times. These new lands were still mysterious to them, and yet he was very self-assured that this decision was for the best. Their group of ships had been so small that the other villagers and people from local townships thought their mission to seek new lands was beyond any practical sense. And yet Jamison accepted that the current circumstances of warfare were too overwhelming to protect Madison. They had been lucky once, and it would not happen again.
She hoped that his assertion of what was best for her would not soon translate into deciding whether or not she should marry upon arrival in this new land. Her sole desire now was to make the best of this land as she could.
Madison’s skin grew tan alongside her brother’s from the warmth of the sun. The stream continuously provided fresh water and animals were brought back from the forests and on an almost daily basis. Her faith began to grow in her brother’s choice. If they had not been near starving and without a home when Jamison met these voyeurs, she would have thought his actions completely irrational, if not irresponsible. Yet her frame had grown slightly in appearance already in a few short months and her health greatly improved.
Now well-fed, properly nourished, warm, dry and in good company, she felt no immediate need to tell Jamison of the young boy she had seen or her feelings of watchful eyes grazing nearby.
***
Madison sat up sharply on the pad of bedding that lay beneath her. For the first time in months since the boat journey, her long auburn hair was soaked at the roots and her body began to shake. Whether from fear or the cool night air, she was uncertain. But she knew that a loud noise had awoken her.
She leapt from her bed to Jamison across the small room.
“Wake up, Jamie. Wake up,” she said as she shook him. He stirred and grabbed for her arm. He tried to sit up, but she stopped him, bringing her finger to his mouth to silence his protest. “No, listen,” she whispered. His eyes wondered away from her. And there it was again, a cracking and then the sound of hooves. A horse whined nearby and a loud crash followed. Jamison sat up quickly and stood towards their small door to peer outside. Then the sound of a man grunting as he fell back to the earth, clearly thrown from the startled creature.
Jamison reached for the closest thing he could, a mere rake by the door and ran outside. A horse bucked yards from him and a man leapt onto its back. It was difficult to see anything except for his back, but there was long blackened hair. The feathers of a white bird draped his backside and his slacks looked similar to the ones Jamison wore; only they were a pale yellow made of skins. His skin was darker than any Jamison or Madison had ever seen. Even with darkness all around, they could see that he was not of their people. And before either Jamison or Madison could witness another feature to his garb or his appearance, he and his horse rode off into the distance. Others in the trees joined him, appearing as no more than shadows in the expanse as they forged ahead into the woods away from them before disappearing.
Madison stared into the distance along with Jamison, her thin night gown swaying with the quiet breeze. Jamison turned to her with a remorseful look in his eyes. He could not look at her directly.
“This is the first time they have ventured this close,” he said solemnly.
“What do you mean? You knew of this?”
“Of course I knew. I did not wish to frighten you,” he hollered.
“But you lead me to believe that we were the only ones here. You said -,”
“I lied,” he answered quickly. “I knew it naïve to believe that we were the only ones here.”
Madison took a step forward, forcing him to look at her now. “Where have you seen them? They have been near before?” she asked him.
“We have been finding horse tracks and human ones close by from the moment we arrived. But they are discrete. We thought they would not bother us. At best, I was hoping they would not find us of any interest.”
Madison shook her head. “I have felt their intrusive eyes upon us before,” she said.
“I know. I saw you staring into the woods. We have all felt their presence. But if we were meant to meet them before, God would have willed it. Perhaps they are merely curious. I hardly think they will consider us a threat of any kind.”
“You don’t know that, Jamie,” she said, her voice now rising. “This could be happening all over again.”
Jamison quickly placed his hand atop her mouth and hushed her as others began to come out from their own quarters. They were clearly not the only ones to hear the commotion as others had daggers and weapons in their hands as well.
“This is not like before, Madison. We are not in a state of war. God wanted us to have this land. He brought us here. These people are merely curious. This land had once been theirs and now they are accompanied by strangers. They want to know of us, that is all.”
Jamison ushered Madison inside. “You are indecent in your gown, go inside this instant.”
Madison stepped away staring at him. “I want to know what is going on, Jamie,” she said eagerly.
“I will tell you all that ensues, but now you must go inside. Go now.” He pointed to the door and would not let his eyes leave her until she was inside. Madison closed the door only enough so that she could still hear all that was happening. She knelt to the ground and waited for the voices outside to tell her everything that Jamison had been keeping from her.
“Jayden, come forth,” Jamison yelled.
Jayden was holding a lit torch in his hand. “They may not have gone far,” he said. “If we leave now, there is a chance that we can find were they keep for the night.”
“There is no reason to go after them now,” said Jamison. “It is dark, we are still unfamiliar with this land, and they have the advantage. There is no moon tonight and we cannot go into these woods with fire in our hands. We will make ourselves known immediately.”
“We can manage if they can,” said Jayden, his powerful voice making it clear that he was ready to leave instantly.
“Do you not hear me? There is far too much risk and we cannot leave our loved ones behind without protection of any sort.”
“You are the only one here with cargo of any value. Thus you can stay behind.” Jayden now stared him down and Jamison knew that he was attempting to prove his dominance. Jamison had gained too many allies whilst attempting to help others, therefore making their self-proclaimed leader nervous as to his intentions.
“I have no doubt that you are capable of finding them, Jayden. But what would we be left to do if we did find them or their lodgings? We have not a single hint as to how equipped they are or what could be awaiting us. And our tracking them may be seen as a threat to any cargo as you call them that they may have. And they will seek to defend it.”
Lyndon, the captain of their voyage chimed in. “He is right, Jayden. Nothing can be done until morning,” he said. “Their tracks will still be fresh when the sun rises. And even then we must tread softly so as not to alarm them.”
Jayden may have seen himself as the leader of the expedition, but Lynd
on’s word of action was the one everyone listened to. He never led the crew astray and kept the previously lengthy journey safe from anything malicious that could come upon them. And although stern and forcible in tone and features, he was the only one within the group that had treated Madison with as much kindness as her brother had. He was respected, and his words would last them all until dawn.
“There is little point to this. Back to your quarters now, everyone. A few of us will set out as soon as we are able,” said Lyndon. He threw his lit torch into a bucket of water lying a foot from him and walked back to his lodgings.
Jayden was left there to stare about within his protesting thoughts as Jamison came through the door. Madison hardly had time to stand and back away as he did not make a sound walking to the door.
“How long have you known of this? I was left to believe that my mind was seeing things and you knew all along.” She stood there staring him down. Madison was the only soul who could humble Jamison with her eyes. He closed the door and looked upon her almost shamefully.
“I knew there was a chance of this, but they have done nothing to…”
“Tell me when you noticed them, Jamie,” her voice now nearly as firm as Lyndon’s had been.
“Since the day we arrived.”
Madison fell back to her bed clutching her stomach. “And you thought it best to say nothing?”
“No, I thought it best to search the area before we plotted our home here. We scouted the woods and did not find anyone for miles before making for the shore again. There were tracks and signs of life here all around us. But then we found an arrow with blood on it. We figured it was from their recent hunts.”
“So they have weapons?”
“Of course they have weapons, Madison. What people do not have weapons of some sort?” He stepped closer to her. “If they meant us harm, they would have done so already. They would never permit us to begin to build if we were so unwelcome.”
“Or perhaps they saw fit to simply watch and know of us before coming with force.” Madison stared at the ground. She could visualize the home they had built coming down upon itself as her previous home had.
Jamison sighed and sat upon his bed. “I will not give into such thinking before knowing more about them. They are beings without our God and they can conceivably be taught of our ways. If we welcome them with open arms the way our lord intends for us to, then we have nothing to fear.”
“The men who took our people with swords and fire were men who knew God.”
Jamison scoffed. “Not our god! They worshipped nothing but a vengeful being who they thought sanctioned all their evil doings and encouraged their pillaging of the innocent. These people have not been exposed to such evil and we must not judge them lest we judge ourselves. Do you understand?”
Madison simply covered herself with her blanket and lay down. She nearly turned away from him in frustration, but she didn’t want to anger him further. She yearned for the faith in mankind of all features and cultures as Jamison possessed. But she always found herself in doubt. And recently, in a consistent state of distress and anxiousness. She told herself time and time again that it was simply memories of that fateful night coming back to intrude upon her mind. Now she wasn’t so convinced.
4
A few men set out at dawn as expected. Jamison tried to argue for Jayden staying behind to tend to the hunting for the day, but he would not hear of it. Jamison feared what he might do, but knew that his skills in tracking animals would be useful. There was no man better for the hunt or for the maintenance of their lives in the community they had built when it came to their food source. Jayden had successfully conditioned everyone for any circumstances they could encounter, proving he was quite valuable. Yet his presence demanded the attention of everyone without his having to speak a word. He was almost feared. Not for aggression, but his features and disposition. He was tall but not overbearing, strong but not overpowering. Madison knew when he stared at her, that he saw straight through her. He saw through everyone. It made him one of the strongest of the group, and still one of the most frightening in Madison’s eyes. It seemed as though he never looked at anyone. He saw only what use they had.
Madison feared Jamison being out in the wilderness with him. She knew that Jayden had nothing of a violent resolve, but she was still unaware of how capable he could be persuaded to it.
They did not return until nightfall, when Madison had just finished preparing the evening meal. Their late hour had her wondering if they were to make camp elsewhere in their quest to find these people.
Jamison dismounted his horse. It was one of the few they had brought with them across the seas. She obediently stood in place as he walked toward her, rubbing his chin in dismay and looking to the ground as he walked. He did not meet her gaze until he was a foot or two before her.
“What did you find?” she asked.
“Nothing but tracks and traces of their hunting grounds, a little animal blood from their recent kills for food, and droppings of feathers like we saw from their garments. That was all.”
“Jayden used the entire day for tracking and truly found nothing? Did he ever get separated?”
“Of course not, why would you think that?” he inquired.
Madison spoke in a hushed tone. “Are you sure he would tell you even if he did see something of note? He seems as though he would want to observe them on his own. He clearly does not think anyone else here capable.”
Jamison knew that it was likely. No one knew for certain where Jayden went for his hunts and rarely did he require the assistance of others until he came close to their camp with his kill in tow.
“He may know more than he has led on, but he was the one who first brought the attention of others to the fact that we are not alone here.”
“But you said that you noticed our first day here,” she said.
“Yes. But others were not aware. Jayden spoke of it quietly to Lyndon, and then Lyndon to me. Our suspicions were confirmed when we regarded one another’s sightings.”
Madison turned and took to the meal again, watching it over the fire Jamison had carefully taught her to build. Jamison sat on the log beside her as she prodded at the meat over the flames.
“So we wait until they make an appearance yet closer whilst we sleep?” she said.
Jamison had no response.
“There is nothing that can be done just yet,” said Lyndon coming up from behind Jamison. He looked at her in the eyes as he spoke. “Until they decide whether we are of gentle means, we cannot make a move against them. The least we can do is make ourselves more familiar with the area and know these woods as best we can should they approach us in an untoward manner.”
Jayden sat with them and started to carve at the meat before Madison had given her blessing that it was prepared. He had little regard for manners or Madison’s territory over the meals. She thought it best in fact to not enquire further as to what they found. Each seemed to be lost in their thoughts. Jamison appeared nearly bleak in his prolonged staring at the burning fire. She took their lengthened silence as exhaustion from an entire day of riding and continued to serve, and then clean from the meal.
Over time Madison had grown quite comfortable with taking their cooking tools and cutlery to the sea for cleansing on her own. Each day she ventured just slightly farther away from their shelter to make herself more at ease. The men ventured out together and occasionally she went with one of the few other women who treaded the great journey with their husbands. She had grown weary of them always asking why she came by passage with only her brother and not a husband. She responded that she intended to find one amongst the group, but she had not yet the time to know anyone as they had been working hard to build a new home. This seemed to satisfy them, although she knew not how she could have been expected to grow an acquaintance with anyone. She only managed to get on the decks of the ship when accompanied by her brother as the women were often scolded whenever they left their quarter
s. Their presence was made to feel like a sort of intrusion of a male world.
Madison drew the hem of her skirt to her knees and held it between them as she dipped the cutlery into the waters to soak them properly. Her hands burned from having been so close to the heat of the open flames from the cooking meat and then making contact with the salty water.
Above her, she heard a flock of birds urgently making way to land. Their cries echoed between the pillared crags on either side of her. A strong breeze came from overhead and drifted down towards the sea. With violent strength it blew her hair from the cloth she had meticulously wrapped it in and threw it behind her head. It came with such force that she nearly lost her footing, but she could still see the movement of the wind before her as it sent water rocking back and forth. She took one hand to the ground allowing her hem to fall and dropping half her cutlery in the water. What had just been warm water turned to ice within seconds and sent a sharp chill throughout her body. A pain in her back erupted from the drastic change in temperature and she let out a gasp.
Gathering herself together, she forgot the cutlery as she saw the wind push behind her to the trees. The forest bent and curled so dramatically that the timbers looked as though they could snap. Her hair blew in front of her face now covering her view. She took her hands to grab for it to see what was happening. The trees had begun to break apart and were crashing to the ground. Shards of wood flew into every direction as if each branch and log had been struck with the power of lightening. Madison threw herself down and into the water. She knew it would not protect her, but it was the only defense she could think of. The debris fell about in needles of wood wafted through the air. Debris was everywhere and what had once looked like a patch of trees down a wooden path to her valley was now nearly destroyed. An enormous crack sounded from the trees and crashes of thunder rang sharply in her ears.
Jamison.
Her thoughts immediately ran to her brother, who no doubt was still by the fire. What was left of the thick wooden trees had gone flying in the direction of their lodgings. She knew they were not built nearly strong enough to withstand these kinds of winds. This gust put all the English winds to shame. It almost didn’t even feel like a wind. Rather an explosive force. The earth felt as though it was shaking beneath her and the waters were slapping her face as she tried to stand. She faltered several times before managing to get on all fours and forcing her way up to her feet. With each step she took she felt as though she was being pulled back. She yanked up her hem and ran as hard as she could, determined to stay level.
