A Tale That Never Was
Chapter 19: Road to Despair

The first thing Selvina experienced when regaining consciousness was a pounding headache. It felt like her skull was in a vice and on the verge of cracking. She moaned in pain and went to hold her head in her hands when she found them resisting her will. They lay on her lap but they would not rise up. Fluttering her eyes open, she glanced around, taking her bearings. It was dark but there was enough light coming in from one side to reveal that she was in a sheltered wagon. There were no benches and she sat at the bottom on hard wood. She eyed her hands and found them bound tightly and attached to the bonds on her ankles, hogtied. Across from her was Cindy, similarly bound, with her head bowed low and her hair veiling her face. To Selvina’s right were the flaps of the wagon’s canvas cover and a beam of light filtering through the crack between them.

“Cindy?” Selvina whispered, hoping she didn’t attract unwanted attention from outside.

The girl didn’t react.

“Cindy!”

Her friend looked up and her face was red with tear-soaked eyes. “Red’s dead, Selvina…”

No, she wasn’t. Selvina had to believe that. “You don’t know that for sure.”

“Yes, I do…”

Tears were threatening to drip out of Selvina’s eyes but she fought them back. Now was not the time to cry. “Cindy, stop. Where are we going?”

“I don’t know… I don’t care…”

“Snap out of it, Cindy! I thought you were stronger than this!”

The wagon hit a rut in the road and bounced harshly, throwing Cindy right atop of Selvina. Instead of moving away she buried her face in Selvina’s lap and cried with great, heart-wrenching sobs. Selvina couldn’t help herself and cried with her. The two young women wept for several minutes, their bouncy ride offering no comfort, until they had no more tears to shed. Cindy then sat beside Selvina and leaned her head on her shoulder, sniffing away her runny nose.

“We’ll see her again, Cindy,” Selvina said softly. “Red’s too tough to die…”

Cindy’s reply was a nod and another sniff.

Selvina leaned her cheek on the top of Cindy’s head and closed her eyes, fighting a mental battle against thoughts of death, surrender, and hopelessness. Why did she have to go to the castle? Why couldn’t she leave things alone? Jack had been right. None of this was their concern. Had they remained in Our Lady they would be safe. She and Cindy wouldn’t be stuck in a wagon and Red wouldn’t be… well she would have never got hit by a black arrow. Bigbad would still be happily chasing deer. She had only wanted to do the right thing but in doing so she had doomed her friends. She was to blame for all of this. It had been her idea, after all…

After what felt like hours had passed the wagon jerked to a stop and Selvina heard voices beyond the canvas walls. They were speaking in earnest and after a few minutes there were cheers and congratulations. She could hear Gaston’s voice in the tumult and it made her blood boil and her spine chill at the same time.

“I may have lost Beast but with you I can get him back,” he was saying. “He’s as good as mine now.”

There was commotion just beyond the flaps and suddenly they were thrown back, momentarily blinding Selvina with the sudden increase in light. A woman was unceremoniously tossed into the wagon, her arms and legs bound. She hit the wooden planks hard and moaned. Selvina glanced at her and gasped in surprise. It was Belle. Gaston was looking into the wagon with a great grin on his face and Selvina wanted to rip it off in the bloodiest way possible.

“You three women may just fetch me a handsome price,” he said victoriously. “Judge Frollo will not stand for those who willingly aided a monster. He will sentence you severely. I hope you three enjoy pain for it will be your only friend from now on.” With that he closed the flaps and left.

Selvina stared at the closed flaps with such intensity she hoped they would burn to a crisp. They never did, of course, and she instead focused her attention on Belle. She had sat up and was leaning against the side of the wagon opposite Selvina and Cindy. Her hair was dishevelled, the clothes she wore were tattered and dirty, and she was bruised on her arms and face. She also refused to meet Selvina’s gaze.

“You must hate me…” she said, her eyes on her bare feet.

“Why do you think that?” Selvina asked, though she knew the answer. She just wanted to know how Belle was here but Jack wasn’t.

“You were not a part of this and now you are captured and on your way to see Judge Frollo, a most dishonorable man…” She looked up, eyed Cindy, the rest of the empty wagon, and finally fixed her eyes on Selvina. “Where is Red Riding Hood?”

Selvina’s heart twisted painfully. “She…she was…”

“She’s dead,” Cindy blurted out angrily, her head still leaning on Selvina’s shoulder.

Belle gasped and shook her head as tears rolled down her cheeks. “No! I am so sorry. I am so sorry for all of this… It is my fault this happened…”

Not completely, Selvina thought dismally. “It’s Gaston’s fault, Belle, not yours. He tricked us…”

“No, he tricked me. I was foolish to believe him. I knew he was lying. I knew he was, Selvina. I knew it yet I still decided to trust him. I desperately needed to. I needed him to be the man I thought he could be but I was too stupid to see him as the man he really was. It’s because of me that he got into the castle and ruined everything. Beast told me not to trust him and he was right. He was right about a lot this…” She looked at Selvina directly, her eyes moist with tears. “Why do we hold on to lost hope? Your friend is dead because of me and my childish dreams…”

“Belle…” Selvina started. She didn’t know how to comfort her but she wasn’t right to put the blame all on herself. “I made the decision to come to your castle. It’s not your fault she’s dead. It’s mine.” Before Belle could argue the matter she asked, “Did you see Jack? He was looking for you in the castle.”

Belle shook her head. “No. I did not see him. I left the room Gaston locked me in as soon as I thought it was safe to do so.”

So Jack was alive. He might still be fruitlessly searching for Belle but at least he was alive. There was hope. Once he found Red and Bigbad…and after he’d recover from the sight, he’d go to Captain Hook for help. It was what she would do in his situation, anyhow. Selvina would like to see Frollo’s face when the fierce captain came to take her back.

If he did…

She had an agreement with him but she might be too much trouble to deal with. He wouldn’t want to be branded an outlaw for saving her. She wanted to believe that he would but Captain Hook had his own life to live and she already ruined Red’s. She didn’t want to ruin his as well.

Hours slowly passed and at one point the girls were tossed a skin of water and a few stale crusts of bread for nourishment. They shared the food and water equally but said little. There was nothing to say. The light seeping in from the crack in the flaps was gradually dimming and when there was little left, the bumpy ride smoothed out and the sound of civilization surrounded the three bound women.

“We’re in Our Lady,” Belle noted.

“Our time is almost up,” Cindy added glumly.

Selvina wanted to debate her statement but had nothing to do it with. Frollo would soon come for them and she doubted that he’d be lenient. The wagon stopped moving after a few minutes and the flap was thrown wide. A tall soldier came in, cut their bonds, and then ordered them out of the wagon with a gesture from his halberd. Selvina didn’t fight and scuttled out to the cobblestone road. Cindy and Belle obediently followed behind her. There were outside a large, blocky building made of stone, just a few streets behind the great cathedral. Several more guards approached and gestured the girls to move toward an open door in the building’s side. They did as they were told and soon found themselves engulfed in darkness as they descended a narrow, stone staircase. Dim torchlight beckoned them from below and when they stepped on level ground a wide hall spread to the left and right.

“Right,” the tall guard behind them barked.

The girls turned right and followed the hall, passing several closed doors, until they came to a large one made of oak and reinforced with iron. The tall guard shoved himself through the three girls and unlocked the door with a keychain at his waist. He then opened it and grabbed a torch from its sconce on the wall. With a wicked grin at the girls he led the way inside.

Damp and moldy air filled Selvina’s nostrils and made her grimace. She heard the scamper of small animals, probably rats, and the constant drip of water. The guard stood in the middle of the room and his torch lit up the area to reveal four cells behind black iron bars. Each cell had a small pile of straw tucked in a corner and a bucket. There were no other furnishings. Selvina took a step back in disgust but was shoved ahead by a guard behind her.

“Inside,” the lead guard said as he opened one of the cell doors, its hinges creaking loudly.

No way, was Selvina’s initial thought. She wasn’t going in a cell full of rat droppings, moldy hay, and a stinking piss bucket. She hesitated for too long and the guard behind her poked her back with something sharp and cold. She yelped and reluctantly walked into the cell, her shoulders slumped and her head low. Tears found their way back into her eyes. The cell door slammed shut and Selvina winced as she heard the damning sound of a key turning a lock in place. Cindy and Belle were placed in their own cells and the guards left the room without a word, taking the only source of light with them.

The girls sat down against the cold stone walls of their cells and didn’t speak for many minutes. The sound of water dripping from above relentlessly pelted against their ears like a blacksmith’s hammer. Rats scampered and squeaked, out of sight but definitely not out of mind.

Selvina felt something cold and slimy brush past her leg and she screamed, throwing her hands up defensively. She wanted to cry but fought the urge. She had done enough crying today. It was time to replace strength again. Misery couldn’t take a hold of her, no matter how easy it was to give in to it.

The only door into the room opened and orange light bobbed into view. Holding the source of light, a torch, was a tall, slender man dressed in a black robe. His short hair was pearl white and neatly combed back. His face bore wrinkles of age but his blue eyes were sharp and full of cunning. He held himself with an air of superiority and looked down his hooked nose at the three girls, examining each of them in turn. Selvina didn’t need to hear him speak to know it was Frollo.

“I see three cursed witches in my midst,” he said in his clear, baritone voice. “Agents of the enemy, no doubt. Tell me, sorceresses, what unholy spell does that monster have you under?”

“He’s no monster!” Belle cried out as she stood up and grabbed the bars of her cell. “He did nothing wrong!”

Frollo turned to her and eyed her expressionlessly. “You must be Belle. I have heard the tales of your loveliness and thought them exaggerated. I see now that they were in fact grossly unjust.” With remarkable speed, he reached his hand through the bars, grabbed her chin, and then brought his lips less than inch from hers. “In all my years I have never set my eyes on a figure of such beauty.”

Belle pulled away from his grasp and stepped away from the bars, a deep frown on her face. “You need to let us go. We did no wrong.”

“I see that where your beauty excels, your intelligence is rather lacking. This creature the common folk have come to call Beast is an unholy demon and must be destroyed. The people fear for their lives going into the forest for they never know when he may attack them. Twenty soldiers and the world’s greatest bounty hunter could not bring him down. How much damage do you think he could cause to an undefended village? He could massacre hundreds, perhaps thousands, before he is stopped. He is a threat to us all and you three were aiding him escape. This cannot be excused.”

“Beast never hurt anyone!”

“I have seventeen soldiers and fifteen horses who would beg to differ.”

“They attacked him first! He was just defending himself and you know that! He was fighting for his life!”

“True as that may be, he now has a taste for human blood. We are all at risk here. He could attack the city at any moment, seeking revenge. He must be stopped before that happens.”

“You’ll never replace him.”

“That is where you are wrong, Belle, for I will not have to look for him. He will come to me.”

Selvina saw Belle’s expression change to one of worry and she knew why. She was going to be used as bait and remembering the conversation she had overheard between Belle and Beast, she knew that the latter would not stand idly by as his true love was hurt. He would come for her and Gaston would be waiting.

And there was nothing she could do about it.

“As for you,” Frollo said, turning to look at Selvina and Cindy. “I do not allow demon thralls to survive. You will be burned at the stake alongside Belle. I suggest you pray to whatever heathen gods you worship and make peace. Your execution is tonight.”

“What?” Selvina cried out in disbelief. “What about our trial? You can’t just condemn us like that without even hearing our end of the story!”

Frollo walked up to Selvina’s cell and looked down at her, his icy eyes drilling through her soul. “I am Judge Frollo, girl, and I judge for myself that you three are guilty and deserving of this sentence. It is too dangerous to put you on trial. Witches have powers of persuasion; they cannot be trusted.”

“We aren’t witches!” Selvina knew it was pointless to say that but she was terrified and had to say something. “We did nothing wrong!”

Frollo stared at her for a few minutes, speaking no words, before turning, leaving and locking the door behind him. In the ensuing darkness, Selvina could hear Belle weeping.

This couldn’t be happening. She had done nothing wrong… She struggled to make sense of everything. Why had she been brought here to Faeryum? Surely it wasn’t some fluke. There had to be a reason. It couldn’t be to fail at saving Beast and to die burning alive. There had to be a reason. On the other hand, sometimes things just happened and there was nothing anyone could do to change that. Sometimes there was no purpose.

Sometimes, people died for no reason.

****

Jack walked down the road alone, his legs tired and his stomach growling. He had searched the entire castle and had found no sign of Belle. After calling her name for what felt like forever and getting no reply he eventually surmised that she had left. The sun was now low and the sky was various shades of gold, crimson, violet and rose, as if a painter’s brush had haphazardly stroked across the canvas of the heavens. It was a beautiful sight but it was lost on him. He had thought to come across his friends by now but after walking for a few hours he had seen no sign of them. Following huge wolf tracks that he knew belonged to Bigbad he knew he hadn’t missed them. He just hoped to replace them soon before night fell and the dangerous denizens of the forest awoke. Tracks of various other animals heading in the other direction dotted the road and though he found it odd he only assumed it was because soldiers had been hunting Beast. He had heard some frightening roars during the castle’s search and was almost certain Beast had uttered them. Such sounds would terrify even the most dangerous of predators. He hoped Beast had survived but he had his doubts.

A dead horse appeared some distance later and he stopped walking as flock of carrion birds surrounded it, biting morsels of flesh from its corpse. He walked up to it, scaring the birds away, and noticed three huge gouges into its neck where some large creature had slashed it. Had Beast done this? It was clearly a soldier’s horse therefore it was quite possible that he had.

He soon came across broken trees, more dead horses, discarded weapons, and even a handful of dead soldiers. His heart began to race as his instincts sensed something terrible had happened. He took off running, ignoring his aching legs and parched mouth. Clouds of dust kicked up behind him as he raced ahead, sweat dripping down his skin. Up above, the sky was getting darker. Faster, faster!

He was out of breath and ready to collapse when he arrived at the battle scene. Many felled trees lay about and as he walked off the road and into the forest he noticed blood splattered on some tree trunks and blades of tall grass. His foot tripped on something and it turned out to be a dead soldier, his lifeless eyes staring up into the sky. Jack stepped back and glanced about, eventually noticing something large and black in the distance. His heart skipped a beat and his spine felt as if it would crumble from all the frost gripping it.

No. Not Bigbad… It wasn’t Bigbad. It couldn’t be.

But it was. Jack stood before the huge wolf and felt a heavy weight gather in his gut. Two black arrows protruded from the animal’s body and his tongue hung out of his mouth, unmoving and stiff. Jack bent down and placed his hand on the wolf’s abdomen, wincing at how cold it felt. A tear rolled down his face and he wiped it away.

“Good boy, Bigbad,” he whispered to the dead wolf. “You fought until the end… May you chase all sheep and deer you want now. Catch a big one for me, eh?” He sniffed back more tears, stood up, and rubbed his nose. Captain Hook would be devastated about this. He had grown a strong bond with the wolf and had even begun to train him. As sadness slowly ebbed away, his mind veered toward a terrifying question.

If Bigbad was dead, where were the girls?

Jack snapped into action and hurried about the battlefield, hopping over dead soldiers, snapped chains, and fallen trees. He searched for any sign of his friends and felt his worry lessen ever so slightly when all he came across were soldiers. If Bigbad was the only casualty then not all was lost. There was still hope!

And then he saw a red cloak lying in the grass.

NO!

Jack found himself unable to move. He needed to see if there was more to the cloak but he feared doing so. Perhaps if he didn’t inspect the cloak he wouldn’t see the body inside it. Perhaps if he left it where it was he would see Red again. It made no sense whatsoever but he had to believe something other than what he feared was the truth. Red couldn’t be dead. If she was gone then that meant Cindy and Selvina were…

It wasn’t true! It couldn’t be!

Eventually, reluctantly, painfully, he found himself moving toward the red cloak. He choked on his tears when he saw Red’s pale, lifeless face staring back at him. Her eyes were fogged over and a stain redder than the cloak she wore tainted the area around the black arrow that stuck out of her chest. His trembling hand moved over her face and touched her forehead. Jack wept openly as his fingers touched skin that was colder than ice. He looked away and fought to regain control but the sobs and tears were too powerful. He shouldn’t be crying. He hadn’t found Cindy or Selvina. They could still be alive. Red and Bigbad perhaps sacrificed themselves to save them. Perhaps they were hiding somewhere, waiting for him. Yes! That must be it! They were here, alive and well!

Cold and aching, Jack stood up and shouted Selvina and Cindy’s names over and over. He called for them as loud as he could, his voice echoing through the forest. Stars were beginning to dot the cobalt sky when his energy left him. He fell on all fours and shut his eyes, fighting back more sobs and tears with only marginal success. He should have stayed with them. He shouldn’t have searched for Belle. It had been pointless anyway. If he had stayed with his friends they might still be alive. His fist punched the ground in anger. It was his fault they were dead. He should have stayed with them! He punched the ground again, hitting a sharp rock and shedding blood.

Good, he thought. I deserve to bleed. He punched again and again, harder each time, until his hand was aching and bloody. His head then bent back and he yelled as loud as he could, releasing the frustration, pain, anger, and sadness that had welled inside of him in one loud wail. Sitting on his heels, he regained his breath as his damaged hand formed a pool of blood on the ground.

“Selvina,” he whispered, the sound of her name making tears flow freely. “I’m sorry I couldn’t save you… I’m so sorry…”

“Your friend is alive.”

What? Who said that? Jack quickly looked up and there, standing a few dozen feet in front of him, was a sight that both terrified and enchanted him.