Virgin Bride

Virgin Bride Chapter 5

Chapter 5 

Gregory was awakened by a bright light shining on his face.  

"Sorry to wake you up, Boss, but we're here," Domeng said.  

"Put the lights out, Domeng," he ordered. "It's bothering me." The flashlight was quickly turned off and it was pitch dark again inside. Outside though, the surroundings had lightened up with light that Domeng and his companions must have brought and he recognized the voices of some of his men. Heavy rain was still falling continuously. 

Joy was still fast asleep in his arms, held fast to him by the jacket. He released her from his embrace and started flexing his stiff arms slowly. He stretched out his numb legs and rotated his feet to get his blood circulation going faster. 

Slowly, he unzipped the jacket that enveloped him and Joy together and nudged her awake gently. "Hey, wake up. We're being rescued," he said. 

She awoke with a start and cried out softly when she discovered how stiff her legs were and how her whole body ached. 

"Move your arms and legs slowly so you won't get cramps," he advised her. "Try to massage your legs, too." She had slept with both her legs folded up around him.  

When they had extricated themselves from each other, he took off the jacket and handed it to her. "Put this on," he said simply and his peremptory tone silenced any protest she planned to make. 

"Domeng," he called out, "what do you have out there?" 

Domeng immediately showed up, this time with a portable lantern in one hand and a pair of men's boots in the other. "I brought you your boots, Boss, and your leather jacket. We also have bottled water and some crackers. Col. Labato and his men are here too."  

Another man beside him stepped up and handed Gregory his jacket.  

"Good evening, Sir. We came over as soon as Domeng showed up. We have several vehicles that we can use to bring you back to the house. The Range Rover is the closest and is ready to go. You will only have to walk about twenty-five meters to get there. We also know what route to take to get back to the house safely." 

"That's good," Gregory said, moving slightly away from Joy as he put on the boots and the jacket. 

"What about our visitor here," he said, motioning towards Joy, "can she walk to the car?" 

Colonel Labato turned his attention to Joy and brought the lantern into the shelter. He saw her mud-encrusted legs and bare feet. 

"Good evening, Ma'am," he respectfully said, "do you think you can walk without any shoes?" 

"Yes, I can!" Joy said quickly. "That will not be a problem." She did not want the men to leave her behind. 

Gregory had not known that she was barefoot. He inched past her, stuck his head out of the shelter and looked around. A man with a big umbrella quickly materialized to shield his head from the rain.  

"Again, how many meters do we have to walk?" He asked Col. Labato. 

"Around twenty-five, Sir, to get to the Range Rover," his security chief replied. 

With a quick movement, Gregory dropped down from the pipe and surveyed their surroundings more intently. Through the pouring rain, he saw that they were in a thickly wooded area with a lot of wet trees and shrubbery. The wet ground was strewn with debris. 

"Where is the safe route you were talking about? How many men do you have here now? Did you bring any tools or equipment?" He fired his questions rapidly. 

"There are twenty of us here right now, Sir, and we were thinking of going that way," Colonel Labato replied, motioning with his hand. "The shrubbery is a bit thicker but it is on higher and more solid ground. Aside from the flashlights and lanterns, we brought ropes, bolos and hatchets and a few shovels." 

During all the time that they were talking, Gregory was continuously doing his stretching exercises while the man beside him with the umbrella tried hard to shield him from the rain. 

"We need to get out of here as soon as possible. Send some of your men ahead to clear the trail as much as they can. In five minutes, we should move out and follow. I will carry the girl." 

"Okay, Sir," Colonel Labato replied and started giving directions to his men. Domeng came forward and handed Gregory a bottle of water and some crackers. He reached in to the shelter and gave Joy water and crackers too which she gratefully accepted. She wasn't aware of what Gregory planned to do.  

"Is everything set? Are we ready to go?" Gregory asked after five minutes. 

"Yes, Sir. We can go anytime you want." Colonel Labato replied. 

"Okay. Get everyone moving." Gregory said. He stood beside the pipe opening and asked Joy to move forward and drop her legs over the edge. She did so quickly. Then he bent down and scooped her up into his arms.  

"Put your arms around my neck and hold tight," he said. "Just relax. I will not drop you." Once again, she could not say or do anything. 

They went through some rough terrain to get to the car. The ground was soft and muddy sometimes and sometimes hard and rocky. A lot of leaves, branches and shrubs were strewn in their path and although the men around them tried their best to remove the debris and to give as much light and protection from the driving rain to Gregory and Joy as they moved along, getting to the jeep was no mean feat for everyone.  

Joy just hang on to Gregory for dear life, burrowing her face into his neck throughout the way. She kept her eyes closed and just kept praying that they would not fall down together or that he would drop her for any reason. She prayed too that he would not hate her too much for all the trouble she was causing him. 

When they got to the jeep, he lay her down inside the passengers' seat, closed the door after her and got in through the other side. Domeng was at the wheel and Col. Labato sat beside him. The wind and rain continued to pommel their vehicle as they moved forward and Joy could feel the engine straining over the difficult terrain. Strangely enough, she felt calm and safe. She didn't know where she was, she didn't know where they were going and she didn't really know the men she was with. But somehow, she felt safe. She kept her eyes closed, barely listening to the men talking around her and it seemed perfectly natural for her to lean against Gregory and eventually, to sleep.