DAWSON EVERLASTING
Chapter Eight
"Jack!" Rose screamed,
witnessing him falling to the ground, his body becoming still. Obviously, the
spring didn’t work against bullets. Her wonderful Jack was dead. Rose bowed her
head in grief…until she heard a groan. She looked back up and gasped. Jack had
gotten back up on his feet and stood straight and tall. It was as if he had
never been shot. Rose sighed in relief, thankful that the secret of the spring
was indeed real.
"Ah…I see. The spring is
real. Now, tell me where it is, or I’ll blow her head off." Lovejoy
pressed the gun into Rose’s neck, causing her to gasp in pain.
"Rose!" Jack made a
move towards the man. He knew that Lovejoy couldn’t kill Rose, but he could
hurt her. Plus, she was scared. Jack could tell that just by looking at her.
Angus grabbed his son’s arm, not
wanting to provoke the man. Who knew how long it would take before the spring
took effect? "Go ahead, son. Tell the man what he wants to know."
Jack stared at Angus in
disbelief. "Pa…are you serious? W-what about all those precautions?
Keeping Rose here until we knew if she had drunk the water or not…was that all
for nothing?"
"He already knows that the
spring is real. There’s no use in denying it now." Angus sighed in defeat.
"Jack." Rose whimpered
as Lovejoy pressed the gun against her neck even more. He was hurting her and
couldn’t care less. In fact, he hoped Hockley would give him approval to
dispose of the girl. Killing them young like this was a secret joy to Lovejoy.
"Let her go! You’re hurting
her!" Jack glared at the man, wanting to wring Lovejoy’s neck for even
touching Rose.
"Come and get her,
boy!" Lovejoy laughed.
"Argh!" Mae screamed,
swinging a board that she had found on the truck directly at the back of
Lovejoy’s head. Jack immediately caught Rose as Lovejoy fell to the ground in a
dead heap.
"Oh, God, I’ve killed
him." Mae sank to the ground, covering her face in shock.
Concerned over his wife’s state
of mind, Angus gathered her into his arms and whispered comforting words.
"It’s okay, Mae, honey. You was protecting Rose."
"That’s right, Ma. You
stopped him from hurting her." Jack turned to his mother, still tightly
holding Rose, not wanting to let her go. "You’re a hero."
"B-but I took a life."
Mae shook with her sobs. "I’ve robbed someone of their life when I have
more life than I deserve."
Jack opened his mouth to protest,
when Miles returned with the voices of men and the barking of hounds following
him.
"The police…they’re looking
for Rose." Miles stopped to catch his breath. "And maybe a man by the
name of Lovejoy, too."
"Shit." Jack cursed. He
was hoping that it’d be a couple of days before the townspeople caught up with
them, but it seemed that that wasn’t the case.
"What are we going to do,
Pa?" Miles asked anxiously.
Angus frowned. Things were not
looking good for the Dawsons right now. The police were on their way, and not
only did they have the girl, who’d been missing for a day or two, but a dead
body, as well. "Miles, take your brother and get as far away from here as
possible. Your ma and I will remain here with Rose."
"What? No. I’m not leaving
Rose." Jack tightened his hold on her hand, seeing their hopes and dreams
washing down the drain.
"Jack, please. Don’t be
difficult." Angus sighed, knowing that he would have a fight on his hands.
"You have no choice here. They won’t stop looking for her until they find
her. It’s too dangerous."
"I don’t care! I’m not
leaving her! Nothing you say will change my mind!"
Miles rolled his eyes. He had
seen this coming. He had seen it coming from a mile away. His little brother
had always been overemotional. "Pa, if he wants to stay and probably be
thrown in jail, let him. Maybe that will knock some sense into him."
Jail? Rose frowned. She couldn’t
let Jack go to jail. He was a free spirit. To have that freedom taken away…it’d
kill him. She couldn’t let that happen. "Jack, go with Miles. I’ll be
fine. Besides, someone needs to stay behind and explain what happened. It’s
doubtful that they’ll believe Mae and Angus." Rose faced him, holding back
her tears. She hated this. She wished that she could leave with Jack and follow
through with their plans to marry. But she couldn’t. Not right away, anyway.
"She’s right, Jack."
Miles nodded in agreement. "Besides, you can come back for her later. When
it’s safe."
"He’s right, Jack. Come back
when it’s safe. I’ll be waiting. But right now, go. Go before the police get
here."
Sighing in defeat, Jack did as he
was told. After hugging and kissing Rose good-bye, he followed Miles to one of
the horses the Dawsons owned and hopped on behind his brother. Meeting Rose’s
eyes one last time, Miles and Jack galloped off, away from the cabin and the
sounds of the police and dogs, leaving Mae, Angus, and Rose to face the
approaching police.