The Rosewood Prophecy

Chapter 39

                                                                   Katherine

Aaron told me how he and Indigo were too far away to help when I fainted and was carried off by two Evils. He told me how Ashley was overwhelmed, but Jason arrived in time to save her. He told me how he saw Jason's murderer but was too far away to do anything. "I saw a man in black throw something towards Jason and Ashley," Aaron said. "Jason shielded Ashley with his body and aimed water at the weapon to stop it, but somehow, it didn't work. The dagger pierced him straight through the heart, and he died in Ashley's arms. By the time we arrived it was already too late." Aaron, whom I never seen cry, was sounding a bit choked up. I dipped my head and focused my attention on the pieces of straw that I was braiding together so that Aaron could calm his emotions.

"We built a funeral pyre for Jason." Aaron finally said after a few minutes. "I thought that after all he's been through, he deserves a hero's goodbye and a safe passage into the afterlife. No one was there to honor him and whatever, but to us, Jason deserved all the honors in the world." I nodded solemnly.

"I wish I was there to pay my respects," I said wistfully. "I didn't even get to say goodbye. But anyway, how did you get caught?"

"Ashley and I came to rescue you. I followed her through the maze of passageways, because she seemed to know what she was doing. I thought that as a spellmaster, she would be able to sense where you are or something." Aaron twisted a piece of straw around his finger distractedly. "I guess I was wrong. She was leading me into a trap."

"You didn't notice that anything was wrong? Ashley wouldn't have felt entirely comfortable with leading you to your demise. She would have shown some suspicious signs."

"Now that I think about it, the deeper we went the sicker Ashley looked. I thought she was claustrophobic or something." Aaron said thoughtfully, tilting his head to one side. "And then at one of the last few passageways she had to stop and rest. I went first, and she followed behind, instead of her leading me. And then I was so sure that we've arrived at the prison cells that I ran on ahead, assuming that she was right behind me. Did she even follow me?"

"I don't know," I admitted. "But I know that Ashley would feel really guilty, and that's why she can't bear to watch you get caught. The guilt would overwhelm her."

"Maybe. I was so sure that we were close to you, I didn't think about anything else. Ashley pointed left, and I went left, but it was a dead end. I turned around to ask her if we took a wrong turn, and she was gone." Aaron looked off into the distance, remembering the details. "I heard a sound behind me in the empty corridor, turned around, pulled my sword out, but didn't see anything. Then something or someone hit me from behind, knocking me flat to the ground and stabbed something in my neck." He rubbed at the back of his neck, wincing at the memory.

"A sedative," I offered. "Whoever attacked you injected it into your bloodstream while you were distracted."

"Yeah, I guess so. Then I woke up and found you staring at me from five inches away." Aaron turned to look at me and grinned. I blushed with embarrassment.

"I fell over while trying to get a good look at you," I said, flustered. "I wanted to make sure it was you."

"Or were you too overwhelmed by my handsomeness and swooned?" Aaron grinned wickedly. "Too bad no one was there to catch you." I was so taken aback by this comment my mouth was left hanging open, and my brain short-circuited. Aaron laughed, the sound waking me from my trance and leaving me feeling even more mortified.