Behind Blue Eyes by Sparrow
Title: Behind Blue Eyes
Author: Sparrow aka sparrowwritings
Fandom: Highlander
Characters: Hugh Fitzcairn
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I do not own Highlander. It belongs to its owner.
Author Note: This is for the hl_flashfic comm. And my prompt is Hugh and lost love, I am also adding alcohol because I am allowed! *cackles* I’ve never written Hugh before, so I hope I do him justice. I would like to thank strangevisitor7 for the beta and ithildyn for the history lesson in religion.
Spoilers: Just a basic understanding of Highlander and who Hugh Fitzcairn is.
Summary: Fitz reminisces with a bottle of whisky about a lost love.
Hugh took another mouthful of whiskey from the bottle. He had already half consumed it and he could feel himself getting slightly tipsy. If it wasn’t for his Immortal constitution, he probably would’ve been drunk by now.
Lightly laughing, Hugh looked over the landscape; high sweeping plains with a forest in the background. It was almost picture perfect. He sat upon a cropping of rocks, contemplating the view. All of this was his land; even if it ‘changed hands’ from time to time.
Taking another large gulp of the drink, Hugh let his memories drift to the front. Memories he usually kept buried. He wasn’t normally a melancholy man but all the same, these memories were the strongest around this time of the year.
Sighing, he let them overwhelm him.
~~~
1207 - Sussex, England
Hugh Fitzcairn was nervous.
He was seventeen summers, he was to be wed and not to the woman of his choice.
His father had apprenticed him as a stone cutter when he reached his tenth summer and he had continued until he reached his Mastery little over a year ago.
He had fallen in love with the lovely Adela Cooper, a barrel maker’s daughter. He had started his courtship when he was fourteen summers. And he had hoped she would be the one by his side for the Solistice celebration.
She had blonde hair and pretty green eyes. Freckles littered her nose and she had a lovely smile. He was completely happy with her and he loved the way she lived life; carefree and full of wonder, able to find joy in the simplest of things. She could even out drink him!
But her father was a greedy man and sold her off to a Lord of the land, who was fat, ugly and covered in sores. Hugh knew she wasn’t happy. He would’ve run away with her, but before her wedding night he managed to slip past his father and visit her. She begged him not save her and that she would be all right. That she was strong and didn’t need any rescuing.
“But Adela!” Hugh pleaded.
“Shhh, my love,” Adela smiled, small and sad. “I am a daughter of the Saxon lands and I shall be all right.”
“I could take you away right now and we could leave and be free!” Hugh tried pleading again. “How can you marry that fat bull?”
“Because if I don’t, he will increase the property taxes and kill off everyone I hold dear,” Adela stated flatly.
“Oh, Adela,” Hugh sighed and held her tight.
“Please, Fitz,” Adela pleaded and pressed her body against him.
He smiled at her. “I love it when you call me that.” Reading her intentions, he slowly undressed her and the two made love throughout the night.
And in the morning, Hugh Fitzcairn gave Adela a goodbye kiss on the lips and slipped out of her bedroom.
~~~
1217 - Sussex, England
Hugh Fitzcairn was now Twenty-Seven summers and he was a widow. Oriel Fitzcairn, nee Oriel Dendy had been a good wife. Hugh could say nothing bad about her, except she wasn’t Adela. But he treated her well and they'd had a happy marriage.
Oriel had been set to wed another man of the village, but he took with fever and died. She carried that man’s child and had been desperate find a husband before her shame was revealed.
Hugh had agreed to say the child was his when the two were married.
Dagan Fitzcairn was born into the world on a cold winter night, kicking and screaming into the world. And if Hugh didn’t know the boy wasn’t his, he would’ve swore that this little one looked just like him.
Although Oriel was not his first love, he loved her and their child.
They were happy for those ten summers and then a fever struck their happy home.
He survived.
They didn’t.
He had to burn their bodies and set the ashes to the sea. He wanted to join them, but knew they’d want him to keep living.
~~~
1224 - Sussex, England
Grumbling, Hugh drove his horse and wagon up to the large spacious home of Lord Harold Watt. The man wanted his home protected by a large stone wall and this was the first shipment that Hugh had cut personally.
Tightening his fur coat around him, Hugh surveyed the area and sighed.
It would be at least two years of hard work. Hugh thought despondently. Breathing on his hands, he tried to warm them up as the wind blew around him. It was approaching winter and he wanted to unload and get home as soon as possible.
But knowing his luck, he wouldn’t get out of here until it was late.
“Fitzcairn!” Boomed a large voice.
Jumping off the wagon, Hugh could make out a large, bulbous, balding man, covered in furs and leather.
“Milord,” Hugh replied as he bowed low. He was, if nothing else, a dutiful servant of the land.
“Straighten up, Fitzcairn,” Lord Watt replied. “I see you have brought the stone I requested.”
“I cut the stone myself,” Hugh boasted as he stood up. “If I may say so, it is perfect and should suit your needs.”
Lord Watt eyed the stone on the back of the wagon with a dubious eye. “We shall see if you are as good as your father was.”
“The villagers certainly think so,” Hugh replied without thinking and paid for it.
SMACK!
Gripping his cheek, Hugh kept his eyes to the ground.
“Watch your cheek boy,” Lord Watt sniffed and pointed to the west of the house. “You may unload there.”
“Thank you my lord,” Hugh replied as he looked to see where Lord Watt was pointing.
“I came out here myself to see what you were about, instead of letting some servant deal with it. With the way she talks about you, I thought you’d be more impressive, but I guess you are nothing but some lowly pup,” Lord Watt sniffed again and then his expression turned feral. “But I beat it out of her to not talk about another man in my presence. Oh I definitely taught her a lesson.” And then if possible, he sighed a little. “My precious, Adela.”
Hugh felt his breath leave him and he was left standing near his horse and wagon as Lord Watt waddled back to his large house.
This man was beating Adela. Hugh thought. A woman so carefree in life and he is beating her!
Grabbing the reins to the horse, Hugh led the animal to the west side of the house. Eyes open and searching for any kind of sign of a way in and to Adela.
Unloading the stone from his wagon, Hugh concentrated on his work. It was after sundown when he finished. Wiping his brow, he went to turn around to grab his waterskin from his wagon and stopped and stared at the person standing near his horse.
“Adela?” Hugh whispered.
A sad smile graced her lips as she petted the horse.
“Hello, Fitz,” Adela whispered.
Hugh strode forward and took in the changes of his first love. The hair had some grey going through it and wrinkles lined her face, but she was still the prettiest thing he ever saw.
He frowned at the bruise on her cheek. He went up to touch it, but she took a step back.
“Please don’t,” She asked.
“Don’t what?” Hugh asked. “Care for you? See what that fat oaf did to you?”
“Fitz...”
He grabbed her hand. “Come with me! Just like I asked so many summers ago! We could leave here and begin anew!”
“I, I can’t.”
Hugh felt a pang in his chest. She was broken.
“Please don’t ask me again, Fitz,” Adela asked softly.
“You have nothing left to protect, your family is dead and I have no one either,” Hugh insisted and squeezed her hand lightly. “Let’s leave our bad memories behind!”
She looked up at him, tears in her bright green eyes and Hugh thought he saw hope shining in them. With one last look behind her, she flung herself in Hugh’s waiting arms and he held her tight.
“We must hurry, he has drunk himself to sleep tonight,” Adela whispered.
Smiling, he helped her up onto his wagon and the two left Lord Watt’s home behind.
~~~
Adela smiled happily at Hugh as he lightly flicked the reins at his horse to go a bit faster. They had stopped at his house to pick up provisions and then had ridden through most of the night and put the small village behind them.
“Where did you want to go, Adela?” Hugh asked.
“Anywhere that’s far away from here,” Adela smiled at him.
Leaning forward, Hugh kissed her on the lips.
Breaking off the kiss, Adela smiled at him once again and turned to look behind them to enjoy the sunrise. What she saw instead filled her with dread.
It was Lord Watt and a few of his servants on horseback.
“Fitz,” Adela whispered, frightened as she shook his arm.
Looking behind them, he saw what she was afraid of and paled. They wouldn’t be able to outrun them in the wagon and horse.
The horse screamed in pain as it was hit by an arrow. More arrows rained down near the horse and a couple severed the harness connecting the horse to the wagon. It broke free, overturning the wagon.
Hugh and Adela tumbled out of the wagon and fell forward. Hauling her upwards, he shielded her as they ran into the thick forest.
Hand in hand they ran from their pursuers, but their luck did not last.
They tripped and fell down a steep hill. They laid in a heap at the bottom.
Crawling over to Adela, Hugh helped her up. “Get up, Adela, we have to keep running.”
“I don’t think I can,” She sniffled and gasped in pain at the weight she put on her ankle. “I did something to my foot when we fell.”
Hearing voices, Hugh picked Adela up and they hid under an uprooted tree.
“...be around...somewhere...”
“How...loose...”
“IDIOTS!!”
“We’ll find...”
Hugh and Adela huddled together under the tree, silent and still. They waited a bit longer until they could no longer hear the voices of the men chasing them.
Peering out, Hugh didn’t see them and helped Adela out. Clutching her close, he started to walk, making sure that she kept pressure off of her foot.
Stopping, he quietly shushed Adela and turned his head towards the sound of rushing water.
He led them there.
Gently placing Adela near the water, he lightly grabbed her foot and pushed it into the river.
“OH!” Adela gasped at the sudden cold water.
“Quiet, Adela,” Hugh whispered.
“I’m sorry, Fitz,” She whispered back.
“Yes, be quiet, Adela.”
They turned around at the sound of the voice.
There stood Lord Watt and six of his servants.
“You almost gave us the slip, but it was with my good sense that we waited,” Lord Watt boasted.
One of the men rolled his eyes.
“Take them,” Lord Watt ordered.
The six men strode forward, intent on gathering their prey.
But Hugh would not go down without a fight. Making sure to place himself in front of Adela, he jabbed forward with a fist and made a satisfying connection on one man's jaws. He went down in a heap, but Hugh couldn’t fight them all and he found himself overwhelmed.
The fight didn’t last long and soon Hugh was forced to stand defeated in front of Lord Watt, bloodied. Adela in a similar position beside him, her lip split due to the backhand she received from one of the men.
“Oh, Adela,” Lord Watt sighed. “If you hadn’t tried to run away, I wouldn’t be forced to do this.”
Adela raised her head and glared at Lord Watt. “I won’t be your slave anymore.”
“I thought we had gotten rid of that fiery spirit but it seems I’m mistaken,” Lord Watt sighed as he waddled up close to Adela. Gingerly brushing her hair away from her face with his meaty fingers, Lord Watt brought out his dagger and ruthlessly plunged it into her abdomen and repeated the motion two more times.
“NO!!!” Hugh roared out and struggled in the holds of the men keeping him prisoner.
Adela hands went to her wound and she stared down as she raised her hands in front of her - bloody. Falling limply to her side, Hugh watched as what life was left in Adela’s eyes nearly fade away.
“Fitz...” She whispered and then died.
“Adela...” Hugh softly said and cried out his agony in the forest.
“Now, now, there is no need to go howling about like a wolf,” Lord Watt sniffed as he waddled his way over to Hugh.
“I will kill you,” Hugh snarled. Anger and rage burned bright in his blues eyes.
“Hmph,” Lord Watt scoffed. “I sincerely doubt that.” And with that said, Lord Watt stabbed Hugh several times.
And Hugh Fitzcairn died.
Sniffing, Lord Watt tossed the bloodied dagger next to Hugh’s body and undid his pants. Sighing as he relieved himself over Hugh’s body, he waited a minute more before securing his breeches and motioned his men to leave.
“We’ll leave a treat for the wolves,” Lord Watt chuckled and then he frowned. “Now I need to find a new wife.”
The servants listened to their Lord bemoan the loss of his wife and left the dead behind.
~~~
It was late in the night and the forest animals and insects made noise as if nothing was wrong. .
Two bodies lay dead near the river.
One sat up, gasping for air, blue eyes wide with fright.
“Adela?” He cried out and then he looked at the body near him. “Oh, nonono.” Was muttered as he ran and skidded towards the woman.
“Adela, please, it’s Fitz,” Hugh whispered in her ear. But she didn’t wake up.
Hugh looked to the sky as he held her close. “WHY ME? WHY NOT HER?” But an answer did not come from God.
Tears ran down his cheeks as he kissed her on the forehead and gently stared moving the small rocks near the river to cover her.
Within an hour, his love was entombed.
Eying the bloodied knife, Hugh picked it up and tucked it into his boot. Even if the gods didn’t answer him, he knew why he had been brought back.
For revenge.
Slicing his palm, Hugh vowed he would kill Lord Watt. Dripping the blood onto Adela’s grave, he went to wrap his hand up, only to find that the wound was healed.
Staring at the unblemished skin, Hugh realized that God must’ve made him some sort of avenging angel. With this power, he wasn’t even human. With his destination set in his head, he headed out of the forest and back towards Lord Watt’s home.
It took nearly two days of walking, but Hugh crept into the giant house in the dead of night. The dagger that took his and Adela’s life was clutched firmly in his hand.
A blank look was on his face as he found Lord Watt snoring away and lying on a bed of furs and fabric. Shaking his head, Hugh crept forward and put his hand on Lord Watt’s bulbous face.
The man’s eyes opened and he panicked, flailing his monstrous body about.
Taking the blade, Hugh made sure Lord Watt know who was killing him as he stabbed the large man several times in the side.
“For, Adela,” Hugh whispered in Lord Watt’s ear and made sure to keep the large man’s mouth covered, lest he alerted his servants.
Within a few minutes, Lord Watt’s eyes rolled back as he finally died from the severity of his wounds and blood loss.
Leaving the dagger in the man’s side, Hugh left the house and disappeared into the night.
~~~
Present Day
Seeing there was only a swallow of the whisky left, Hugh poured it on the rocks and gazed about the massive field.
He remembered all of this when it had been forest, before people moved in and cut the trees down and planted fields.
As time marched on the farmers moved out and all that was left were these fields.
Hugh bought the land up as soon as he was able to and once a year, he visited to honor Adela.
He didn’t remember much after leaving Lord Watt’s house.
But his first teacher found him nearly half-feral in the forest. Mad with grief, not being able to join the woman he loved, not even sure if he was still human. He still didn’t know to this day how much time had passed in those woods.
Henry Fitzmartin certainly taught him a lot, how to live again and enjoy life but that was another memory for another day.
If anything, he lived each day to the fullest as he was sure his Adela would’ve done.
“Goodbye, Adela,” Hugh whispered in his native tongue.
As he climbed off the rocks and started to head towards his car, he felt the wind pick up and familiar fingers brush past his cheek.
“Goodbye, Hugh.”
THE END.
Author: Sparrow aka sparrowwritings
Fandom: Highlander
Characters: Hugh Fitzcairn
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I do not own Highlander. It belongs to its owner.
Author Note: This is for the hl_flashfic comm. And my prompt is Hugh and lost love, I am also adding alcohol because I am allowed! *cackles* I’ve never written Hugh before, so I hope I do him justice. I would like to thank strangevisitor7 for the beta and ithildyn for the history lesson in religion.
Spoilers: Just a basic understanding of Highlander and who Hugh Fitzcairn is.
Summary: Fitz reminisces with a bottle of whisky about a lost love.
Hugh took another mouthful of whiskey from the bottle. He had already half consumed it and he could feel himself getting slightly tipsy. If it wasn’t for his Immortal constitution, he probably would’ve been drunk by now.
Lightly laughing, Hugh looked over the landscape; high sweeping plains with a forest in the background. It was almost picture perfect. He sat upon a cropping of rocks, contemplating the view. All of this was his land; even if it ‘changed hands’ from time to time.
Taking another large gulp of the drink, Hugh let his memories drift to the front. Memories he usually kept buried. He wasn’t normally a melancholy man but all the same, these memories were the strongest around this time of the year.
Sighing, he let them overwhelm him.
~~~
1207 - Sussex, England
Hugh Fitzcairn was nervous.
He was seventeen summers, he was to be wed and not to the woman of his choice.
His father had apprenticed him as a stone cutter when he reached his tenth summer and he had continued until he reached his Mastery little over a year ago.
He had fallen in love with the lovely Adela Cooper, a barrel maker’s daughter. He had started his courtship when he was fourteen summers. And he had hoped she would be the one by his side for the Solistice celebration.
She had blonde hair and pretty green eyes. Freckles littered her nose and she had a lovely smile. He was completely happy with her and he loved the way she lived life; carefree and full of wonder, able to find joy in the simplest of things. She could even out drink him!
But her father was a greedy man and sold her off to a Lord of the land, who was fat, ugly and covered in sores. Hugh knew she wasn’t happy. He would’ve run away with her, but before her wedding night he managed to slip past his father and visit her. She begged him not save her and that she would be all right. That she was strong and didn’t need any rescuing.
“But Adela!” Hugh pleaded.
“Shhh, my love,” Adela smiled, small and sad. “I am a daughter of the Saxon lands and I shall be all right.”
“I could take you away right now and we could leave and be free!” Hugh tried pleading again. “How can you marry that fat bull?”
“Because if I don’t, he will increase the property taxes and kill off everyone I hold dear,” Adela stated flatly.
“Oh, Adela,” Hugh sighed and held her tight.
“Please, Fitz,” Adela pleaded and pressed her body against him.
He smiled at her. “I love it when you call me that.” Reading her intentions, he slowly undressed her and the two made love throughout the night.
And in the morning, Hugh Fitzcairn gave Adela a goodbye kiss on the lips and slipped out of her bedroom.
~~~
1217 - Sussex, England
Hugh Fitzcairn was now Twenty-Seven summers and he was a widow. Oriel Fitzcairn, nee Oriel Dendy had been a good wife. Hugh could say nothing bad about her, except she wasn’t Adela. But he treated her well and they'd had a happy marriage.
Oriel had been set to wed another man of the village, but he took with fever and died. She carried that man’s child and had been desperate find a husband before her shame was revealed.
Hugh had agreed to say the child was his when the two were married.
Dagan Fitzcairn was born into the world on a cold winter night, kicking and screaming into the world. And if Hugh didn’t know the boy wasn’t his, he would’ve swore that this little one looked just like him.
Although Oriel was not his first love, he loved her and their child.
They were happy for those ten summers and then a fever struck their happy home.
He survived.
They didn’t.
He had to burn their bodies and set the ashes to the sea. He wanted to join them, but knew they’d want him to keep living.
~~~
1224 - Sussex, England
Grumbling, Hugh drove his horse and wagon up to the large spacious home of Lord Harold Watt. The man wanted his home protected by a large stone wall and this was the first shipment that Hugh had cut personally.
Tightening his fur coat around him, Hugh surveyed the area and sighed.
It would be at least two years of hard work. Hugh thought despondently. Breathing on his hands, he tried to warm them up as the wind blew around him. It was approaching winter and he wanted to unload and get home as soon as possible.
But knowing his luck, he wouldn’t get out of here until it was late.
“Fitzcairn!” Boomed a large voice.
Jumping off the wagon, Hugh could make out a large, bulbous, balding man, covered in furs and leather.
“Milord,” Hugh replied as he bowed low. He was, if nothing else, a dutiful servant of the land.
“Straighten up, Fitzcairn,” Lord Watt replied. “I see you have brought the stone I requested.”
“I cut the stone myself,” Hugh boasted as he stood up. “If I may say so, it is perfect and should suit your needs.”
Lord Watt eyed the stone on the back of the wagon with a dubious eye. “We shall see if you are as good as your father was.”
“The villagers certainly think so,” Hugh replied without thinking and paid for it.
SMACK!
Gripping his cheek, Hugh kept his eyes to the ground.
“Watch your cheek boy,” Lord Watt sniffed and pointed to the west of the house. “You may unload there.”
“Thank you my lord,” Hugh replied as he looked to see where Lord Watt was pointing.
“I came out here myself to see what you were about, instead of letting some servant deal with it. With the way she talks about you, I thought you’d be more impressive, but I guess you are nothing but some lowly pup,” Lord Watt sniffed again and then his expression turned feral. “But I beat it out of her to not talk about another man in my presence. Oh I definitely taught her a lesson.” And then if possible, he sighed a little. “My precious, Adela.”
Hugh felt his breath leave him and he was left standing near his horse and wagon as Lord Watt waddled back to his large house.
This man was beating Adela. Hugh thought. A woman so carefree in life and he is beating her!
Grabbing the reins to the horse, Hugh led the animal to the west side of the house. Eyes open and searching for any kind of sign of a way in and to Adela.
Unloading the stone from his wagon, Hugh concentrated on his work. It was after sundown when he finished. Wiping his brow, he went to turn around to grab his waterskin from his wagon and stopped and stared at the person standing near his horse.
“Adela?” Hugh whispered.
A sad smile graced her lips as she petted the horse.
“Hello, Fitz,” Adela whispered.
Hugh strode forward and took in the changes of his first love. The hair had some grey going through it and wrinkles lined her face, but she was still the prettiest thing he ever saw.
He frowned at the bruise on her cheek. He went up to touch it, but she took a step back.
“Please don’t,” She asked.
“Don’t what?” Hugh asked. “Care for you? See what that fat oaf did to you?”
“Fitz...”
He grabbed her hand. “Come with me! Just like I asked so many summers ago! We could leave here and begin anew!”
“I, I can’t.”
Hugh felt a pang in his chest. She was broken.
“Please don’t ask me again, Fitz,” Adela asked softly.
“You have nothing left to protect, your family is dead and I have no one either,” Hugh insisted and squeezed her hand lightly. “Let’s leave our bad memories behind!”
She looked up at him, tears in her bright green eyes and Hugh thought he saw hope shining in them. With one last look behind her, she flung herself in Hugh’s waiting arms and he held her tight.
“We must hurry, he has drunk himself to sleep tonight,” Adela whispered.
Smiling, he helped her up onto his wagon and the two left Lord Watt’s home behind.
~~~
Adela smiled happily at Hugh as he lightly flicked the reins at his horse to go a bit faster. They had stopped at his house to pick up provisions and then had ridden through most of the night and put the small village behind them.
“Where did you want to go, Adela?” Hugh asked.
“Anywhere that’s far away from here,” Adela smiled at him.
Leaning forward, Hugh kissed her on the lips.
Breaking off the kiss, Adela smiled at him once again and turned to look behind them to enjoy the sunrise. What she saw instead filled her with dread.
It was Lord Watt and a few of his servants on horseback.
“Fitz,” Adela whispered, frightened as she shook his arm.
Looking behind them, he saw what she was afraid of and paled. They wouldn’t be able to outrun them in the wagon and horse.
The horse screamed in pain as it was hit by an arrow. More arrows rained down near the horse and a couple severed the harness connecting the horse to the wagon. It broke free, overturning the wagon.
Hugh and Adela tumbled out of the wagon and fell forward. Hauling her upwards, he shielded her as they ran into the thick forest.
Hand in hand they ran from their pursuers, but their luck did not last.
They tripped and fell down a steep hill. They laid in a heap at the bottom.
Crawling over to Adela, Hugh helped her up. “Get up, Adela, we have to keep running.”
“I don’t think I can,” She sniffled and gasped in pain at the weight she put on her ankle. “I did something to my foot when we fell.”
Hearing voices, Hugh picked Adela up and they hid under an uprooted tree.
“...be around...somewhere...”
“How...loose...”
“IDIOTS!!”
“We’ll find...”
Hugh and Adela huddled together under the tree, silent and still. They waited a bit longer until they could no longer hear the voices of the men chasing them.
Peering out, Hugh didn’t see them and helped Adela out. Clutching her close, he started to walk, making sure that she kept pressure off of her foot.
Stopping, he quietly shushed Adela and turned his head towards the sound of rushing water.
He led them there.
Gently placing Adela near the water, he lightly grabbed her foot and pushed it into the river.
“OH!” Adela gasped at the sudden cold water.
“Quiet, Adela,” Hugh whispered.
“I’m sorry, Fitz,” She whispered back.
“Yes, be quiet, Adela.”
They turned around at the sound of the voice.
There stood Lord Watt and six of his servants.
“You almost gave us the slip, but it was with my good sense that we waited,” Lord Watt boasted.
One of the men rolled his eyes.
“Take them,” Lord Watt ordered.
The six men strode forward, intent on gathering their prey.
But Hugh would not go down without a fight. Making sure to place himself in front of Adela, he jabbed forward with a fist and made a satisfying connection on one man's jaws. He went down in a heap, but Hugh couldn’t fight them all and he found himself overwhelmed.
The fight didn’t last long and soon Hugh was forced to stand defeated in front of Lord Watt, bloodied. Adela in a similar position beside him, her lip split due to the backhand she received from one of the men.
“Oh, Adela,” Lord Watt sighed. “If you hadn’t tried to run away, I wouldn’t be forced to do this.”
Adela raised her head and glared at Lord Watt. “I won’t be your slave anymore.”
“I thought we had gotten rid of that fiery spirit but it seems I’m mistaken,” Lord Watt sighed as he waddled up close to Adela. Gingerly brushing her hair away from her face with his meaty fingers, Lord Watt brought out his dagger and ruthlessly plunged it into her abdomen and repeated the motion two more times.
“NO!!!” Hugh roared out and struggled in the holds of the men keeping him prisoner.
Adela hands went to her wound and she stared down as she raised her hands in front of her - bloody. Falling limply to her side, Hugh watched as what life was left in Adela’s eyes nearly fade away.
“Fitz...” She whispered and then died.
“Adela...” Hugh softly said and cried out his agony in the forest.
“Now, now, there is no need to go howling about like a wolf,” Lord Watt sniffed as he waddled his way over to Hugh.
“I will kill you,” Hugh snarled. Anger and rage burned bright in his blues eyes.
“Hmph,” Lord Watt scoffed. “I sincerely doubt that.” And with that said, Lord Watt stabbed Hugh several times.
And Hugh Fitzcairn died.
Sniffing, Lord Watt tossed the bloodied dagger next to Hugh’s body and undid his pants. Sighing as he relieved himself over Hugh’s body, he waited a minute more before securing his breeches and motioned his men to leave.
“We’ll leave a treat for the wolves,” Lord Watt chuckled and then he frowned. “Now I need to find a new wife.”
The servants listened to their Lord bemoan the loss of his wife and left the dead behind.
~~~
It was late in the night and the forest animals and insects made noise as if nothing was wrong. .
Two bodies lay dead near the river.
One sat up, gasping for air, blue eyes wide with fright.
“Adela?” He cried out and then he looked at the body near him. “Oh, nonono.” Was muttered as he ran and skidded towards the woman.
“Adela, please, it’s Fitz,” Hugh whispered in her ear. But she didn’t wake up.
Hugh looked to the sky as he held her close. “WHY ME? WHY NOT HER?” But an answer did not come from God.
Tears ran down his cheeks as he kissed her on the forehead and gently stared moving the small rocks near the river to cover her.
Within an hour, his love was entombed.
Eying the bloodied knife, Hugh picked it up and tucked it into his boot. Even if the gods didn’t answer him, he knew why he had been brought back.
For revenge.
Slicing his palm, Hugh vowed he would kill Lord Watt. Dripping the blood onto Adela’s grave, he went to wrap his hand up, only to find that the wound was healed.
Staring at the unblemished skin, Hugh realized that God must’ve made him some sort of avenging angel. With this power, he wasn’t even human. With his destination set in his head, he headed out of the forest and back towards Lord Watt’s home.
It took nearly two days of walking, but Hugh crept into the giant house in the dead of night. The dagger that took his and Adela’s life was clutched firmly in his hand.
A blank look was on his face as he found Lord Watt snoring away and lying on a bed of furs and fabric. Shaking his head, Hugh crept forward and put his hand on Lord Watt’s bulbous face.
The man’s eyes opened and he panicked, flailing his monstrous body about.
Taking the blade, Hugh made sure Lord Watt know who was killing him as he stabbed the large man several times in the side.
“For, Adela,” Hugh whispered in Lord Watt’s ear and made sure to keep the large man’s mouth covered, lest he alerted his servants.
Within a few minutes, Lord Watt’s eyes rolled back as he finally died from the severity of his wounds and blood loss.
Leaving the dagger in the man’s side, Hugh left the house and disappeared into the night.
~~~
Present Day
Seeing there was only a swallow of the whisky left, Hugh poured it on the rocks and gazed about the massive field.
He remembered all of this when it had been forest, before people moved in and cut the trees down and planted fields.
As time marched on the farmers moved out and all that was left were these fields.
Hugh bought the land up as soon as he was able to and once a year, he visited to honor Adela.
He didn’t remember much after leaving Lord Watt’s house.
But his first teacher found him nearly half-feral in the forest. Mad with grief, not being able to join the woman he loved, not even sure if he was still human. He still didn’t know to this day how much time had passed in those woods.
Henry Fitzmartin certainly taught him a lot, how to live again and enjoy life but that was another memory for another day.
If anything, he lived each day to the fullest as he was sure his Adela would’ve done.
“Goodbye, Adela,” Hugh whispered in his native tongue.
As he climbed off the rocks and started to head towards his car, he felt the wind pick up and familiar fingers brush past his cheek.
“Goodbye, Hugh.”
THE END.