Page 91 of The Lovers
SIXTY-NINE
Elise opened her eyes, but even after a few moments she couldn’t make out anything. The darkness was complete. She tried to move, but a terrible pain ripped through her shoulder, making her cry out. She must have been lying on it this whole time. She tried to sit up and banged her head on something hard. Elise carefully felt around with her hand. There was something just above her head and behind her back. Her fingers found the contours of a face right in front of hers, and she ran her hand over a shoulder and arm.
James groaned as he came to. “My leg,” he whispered. “I think it’s broken.”
“James, where are we?” Elise asked, her panic rising with every passing second.
James tried to raise his head, with the same result as Elise. He yelped as he hit his head against the hard wooden surface. Elise heard a sharp intake of breath as James felt around their prison. He tried to push against the top, but it didn’t budge. They were squashed against each other, their limbs at unnatural angles. Elise tried to take the weight off her shoulder but only succeeded in causing herself more pain. James remained silent, which worried Elise even more than the discomfort. He usually had a plan, or at least an idea.
“James, what is this place?” Elise asked again. Her voice shook, and she grabbed his hand in the darkness. It felt warm and reassuring, and James clasped her hand and brought it to his lips, planting a kiss in her palm.
“He knows about us,” James said. His voice was unsteady, and Elise felt a jolt of fear pass through her cramped body when James failed to say anything more.
“Surely, he’ll let us out once his anger cools,” Elise whispered.
James didn’t reply, and his silence sent a chill down Elise’s spine.
“He’ll let us out. He only means to punish us.”
“Yes, I’m sure you’re right,” James replied, but there was no conviction in his voice.
“I need to feed Charlie,” Elise cried, her voice shrill. “He needs me.” But he didn’t. Edward had already engaged a wet nurse, who was sleeping in the room with their son. She would feed him when he awoke; she would take care of him in Elise’s stead.
“Are you hurt?” James asked.
“My shoulder and ankle hurt, but I don’t believe anything is broken.”
“A shame,” Edward’s muffled voice came from somewhere just above. “I was hoping you’d suffer before you die.”
“Edward, please, let us out,” Elise implored. “I beg you. I will never set a foot wrong again. Please, Edward. I need to be with my son.”
“When Charles is old enough, I will tell him that his mother was a whore. Until then, he’ll believe that his loving mother was carried off by the plague. Shame, that.” Edward chuckled bitterly.
“Edward, surely you’re not this cruel,” Elise cried, terrified by the calm in Edward’s voice. “Even if you won’t think of us, think of yourself. You will be accused of murder. You’ll hang.”
“No, my darling, I won’t. I’ve thought this through, you see. When morning comes, I will make a big fuss looking for you. I will turn the house upside down, and then I will discover that James’s horse is gone and so are some of your possessions. I will be heartbroken, and everyone will feel sympathy for me, knowing that my young wife deserted me and our son and ran off with her lover. I will grieve for you, and then I will move on and forget you ever existed. No one will come for you. You will remain down here until you either die of hunger and thirst or suffocate. It will be a long and torturous death either way, and it will give you plenty of time to pray and repent for your sins. But even if the Lord forgives you, I won’t. You will never receive a Christian burial or even have a few words said by a priest over your graves. You will simply vanish from this earth and from the hearts of anyone who ever cared for you. You’ve served your purpose, and I have no further use for you.”
“Edward, please, I beg you,” Elise cried. “Charlie needs his mother. James, say something,” she implored James, who remained resolutely silent.
“He’s got nothing to say. He betrayed his flesh and blood, and now he’ll pay the price. I thank you both for my beautiful son.”
“Edward, I’m with child,” Elise called out and felt James stiffen next to her. His hand shook as he reached for her, clasping her hand in his in a gesture of love and support. “I will give you another son, another heir.”
Elise felt cold with dread as Edward laughed merrily somewhere above her head. “Oh, I know you’re with child, my sweet. Peg has been informing me of your activities and keeping track of your monthly flow. It would be nice to have another son, I admit, but I can’t allow you to go unpunished. Charlie will have to do. I will send him back to Suffolk with his nurse, where he canremain safe from the pestilence of the city. That’s my parting gift to you. You can die knowing that your son will be cared for.”
Elise sobbed as she heard Edward’s footsteps fade into nothingness. “James, why didn’t you talk to him? Why didn’t you beg him to spare us?” she cried.
“Because he wouldn’t have. He’s a cruel man, Elise. Even if we hadn’t betrayed him, he might have done this anyway. He can’t bear the thought that anyone might know that the child isn’t his. Had the child been a girl, he would have us try until we produced a son, but he has his heir now, and he is content. He will keep Charlie safe, don’t you worry about him.”
“My son will grow up believing that I deserted him. He’ll have nothing but bitterness in his heart.”
James said nothing. He shifted his weight in an effort to ease the pain in his leg. As the minutes ticked by, the reality of what was happening finally sank in, and Elise began to shake, her teeth chattering loudly. They were buried alive. If Edward didn’t come to his senses, they would die a slow and horrible death. Elise began to cry again, and James held her in his arms, pressing her head against his chest. Elise could hear the erratic beat of his heart. He wouldn’t say it out loud, but he was terrified as well. He kissed her hair and murmured words of comfort, but nothing he said could soothe her. Her heart galloped in her chest as images of what would happen to them flashed in her mind. Was her life to end so abruptly and her baby’s with her? Was God really this cruel?
The minutes stretched into hours, but no one came. No one would. Everyone believed her to have run away with James. There was no hope.
SEVENTY
The darkness was absolute. James lost track of time days ago. His throat was parched, and he was disoriented and weak. He could barely move. His leg hurt like the devil, but he hardly noticed anymore. He reached out and touched Elise’s face. It was already cold. She was gone. He was grateful that she was finally out of her misery. The past few days had been harrowing, emotionally and physically. Edward had chosen their punishment well. No easy death for them. He’d inflicted as much suffering as he could manage to punish them for a few stolen hours of happiness. And now it was James’s turn to go. He could feel life slipping from him, its grip on his heart loosening as the beating grew faint, and his mind seemed to produce phantom flashes of light. He inched his way closer to Elise and pressed his lips against hers in a final kiss.
