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CHAPTER TWO: THE ACCIDENT
1863
WHEN THE NEWS OF her brother's disappearance was spread, Emma couldn't help the sobs that would escape her throat whenever she was alone. Emma didn't want to believe it. He had promised her he would come back, Jasper never broke his promises. He wasn't dead, Emma knew that for sure. If he would have died or perished in any way, Emma would have felt it.
Jasper and Emma had always shared a tighter bond than any other siblings in Houston. Everyone in the town was sure that they could be twins from the way they spoke at the same time, their flawless looks that matched evenly with one another, they could even feel when the other was in pain. That fact made Emma mess up on a stitch she had been doing. A random flare of pain had appeared in her neck, trailing all through her body. It was a painfully uncomfortable feeling, and then there was nothing. Emma had sobbed a little harder for three nights, and then her sobbing died down a little when reassurance fueled her brain.
Her brother wasn't dead, but something had happened to him and Emma was determined to find out what it was. Emma had worn her best jeans as well as a flower patterned long-sleeved shirt. She took her horse that her parents had gotten her when she started her nursing job and she took off towards the place her brother had last visited. Galveston.
Emma hadn't seen him in almost six months and her worry for him was only continuing to grow. He had to be okay. He was okay. Emma didn't know what she would do with herself if she found out that her brother was dead. She quickly shook the thoughts from her head. Jasper was not dead, and she wouldn't believe anyone until she saw proof of a dead body.
She had been riding for days. Her body ached at the constant position on the horse. She didn't stop to sleep. She stopped to use the washroom and to take two apples as well as a water―︎one of the apples being for her horse. Emma was determined, and when Emma was determined, nothing was going to stop her from getting what she wanted.
Emma was drained both physically and mentally. Worrying about her brother was taking a toll on her. Her health was growing weak and she was growing tired. Eventually, she was forced to build a campfire right outside of her destination. She walked into the forest, dragging her horse with her. Emma tied her horses reigns around the nearest tree as she started to build herself a small campfire. She smiled in delight when the fire lit, burning along with the sticks and growing enough to give her warmth.
She laid her head on her arm in which she was using as a pillow. Her eyes started to close as the warmth from the fire overtook her body. She hadn't realized how truly tired she was until she had fallen asleep. She awoke suddenly when her horse started to let out cries of terror. She peeled her eyes open, slowly sitting up as she looked at the animal. The horse was trying to run away from something, or rather someone.
