Shades of Gray Read Free Page B

against the frame.  At some point, she must
have turned to face him.  His features had contorted into crazed lines, and he
raised his hands.  She flinched as a vague recollection of the marbled-tipped
riding crop struck her hairline.  It was easy to not recognize a new pain when
all of the previous ones hurt so badly.  Her back and shoulders had bore the
brunt of the initial attack, and the welts, which she knew were there, burned
like thunder.
    She shook her
head, and tears spilled down her cheeks.  Common sense had warned her not to
board the ship in England, but the church bishop had assured her that the
arrangement was completely respectable.  He promised her a good life in
Virginia and then pointed out that a woman with no family or money had very few
options.  Her passage had been secured before she could reconsider the offer. 
By the time she arrived in Hampton, she had convinced herself that she could
learn to care for a man who provided for her well being.  She glimpsed her
hands, covered in her own blood, and laughed.  Someone forgot to share this
part of the bargain with Mr. Mullins.
    Her tears fell
harder, and her left arm tingled.  She didn’t dare check to see if it was
broken.  She needed for her body to stay as whole as possible.  Once safe, she
could inventory the seriousness of her wounds.  Two and a half days was long
enough to know that Reece Mullins had no desire to marry as he indicated in his
agreement, or to be concerned for her well being. 
    Numbness
radiated upward from her fingertips, and she pulled her hand up for a quick
inspection.  A blue line banded her wrist.  She flexed her fingers to keep the
blood flowing through them.  If she planned to find help, she had to end her
respite while she could still travel.  She edged closer to the mouth of the
cave, tilted her head, and listened for Reece.  Rustling leaves were the only
audible sounds.  
    She would find
a place in town where she could hide until her wounds healed.  She hoped she
was headed in the right direction.  When she recovered, she could work as a
maid to pay for passage back to…back to where?  There was nothing for her in
England.  Vision in her right eye dimmed and she touched the surrounding
tissue.  It was just as she thought.  It was swollen shut.  She balled her fist
and banged it against the rock wall.  The bishop was wrong.  There was nothing
for her here.  She slumped to the cave floor and lolled her head backward. 
Maybe it would be best if she lie on the ground and let her wounds overcome
her.  Wild animals could decide her fate.  That would be a better decision than
allowing Reece Mullins to do it.
    A horse
snorted and dogs whined in the distance.  Although Reece wasn’t a wild animal,
he was equally dangerous.  She pulled herself to her feet and winced.  Her heel
had caught the porch edge on her way out of the house, and her ankle wouldn’t
be able to support her weight much longer.  She leaned against the cave wall
and lifted her leg to rest on a flattened rock.  Numb, she could barely wiggle
her toes.  She slipped the limb back to the ground and touched her hand to her
forehead.  It was impossible to think she could outrun Reece in her condition. 
If she waited for him to pass by, he would have her pinned between himself and
his house.  There would be no escape then.  Regardless of her pain, she had to
continue on the same path. 
    She inched her
way into the opening of her hiding place and stepped from the cave.  Moonlight
spotted the ground, revealing several paths throughout the dense forest.  Thick
with moss and leaves, one trail stood apart from the others.  The soft covering
would hide the sounds of her footsteps.  She retraced her steps over the log
and hurried toward the carpeted trail.  Low branches swung against her face,
and she held her hand up to protect her eye. 
    She limped
along, favoring her right leg, but pressed onward.  If she had to crawl to