ONE SENTENCE THREAD

[TW]

Crane took a long slow breath, "When Rebecca found that she was pregnant she had no family in the village, so she sought the council of her Pastor, the Rev. Godwyn."

[sweetpea]

She knew he was a godly man and would keep her secret and would see that she received the help and attention that she would be needing .

[soulsearcher]

"But the Rev. Godwyn only recently found her," William continued, then, turing to Abigail, asked, "Where were you all these years?"

[TW]

"Your father was a good man," Abigail answered, "when he found out mum was pregnant he wanted to provide for her, so he sold her 100 acres of land near Harman's Cross for one Pound Sterling an acre."

[TW]

It has been awhile since I did this last, so - - -

Chapter Four
All Dreams Must End

The fog became denser upon the Salisbury Plain, muffling sound, but the dark priest smiled to himself, he could see the glow of the torches as they snaked their way over the last of the low hills and onto the plain, just a mile and a half away. . . soon, . . . very soon.

Countless memories and thoughts ran through Cranes mind concerning Stonehenge, he knew he had a great undertaking ahead, but he would see it to the end. Since they had a few hours left they proceeded at a moderate pace towards their destination.

On another slope, from his carriage window, the Rev. Godwyn gazed upon the parade of torches and whispered, "Almighty God, save us from this hour."

At the head of the procession a man in the robes of a priest led a white mare with a young girl upon its back, her hands bound together, two men walked along either side of the horse. Through his prism binoculars Crane confirmed his worst fear; the girl on the white horse was Victoria. By the look on her face he knew she had been tortured, both mentally and physically.

Crane and his men met to devise a battle plan. Crane addressed his troops. "Sgt. York, William and I will force our way through to the girl, the rest of you scatter the cult members and run them to ground, once the fight is out of them we will march them back to Salisbury and the High Sheriff. With that said, Crane and York exchanged nods, reared up their horses, and galloped off to rescue the girl.

The dense fog concealed them until the last second, then the line of Dragoons crashed down upon the precession as a wave crashes upon the shore. Crane's horse found his way to the horse on which the girl rode. As he pulled the horse's reins free from the priest, the priest turned to face him, he was stunned by what he saw, it was Miles.

Miles was supposed to be taking care of things at the manor, but Crane had suspected that his intentions were less than honorable. Miles had returned to the manor earlier in the day with a wild tale of his captivity, however Crane had lost track of him in the confusion and rush to prepare for this quest. "Now a lot things make sense", thought Crane. A stunned Miles blurted out, "Crane, you should be dead!" "And why would you think that?", asked Crane. “We gave Glenda and Higgins six of our best men to kill you, that witch has failed us, now I shall have to do it myself!" Miles snarled back. At this time Crane's men rushed on the enemies. Amidst the confusion Miles produced a dagger that had been concealed in his robes and threw it at Crane; unable to fully avoid it, the dagger lodged high in the left side of Crane's chest. Simultaneously, a bullet from York's pistol tore through Mile's right shoulder, dropping him to the ground, where he was trampled by one of the horses.

Crane looked down at the hilt of the dagger protruding from his chest, his left arm hung limply at his side, "Sergeant Major, It seem as I have need of a Field Surgeon." Rev. Godwyn's carriage clattered to a stop on the nearby road, just a few yards from them. At the sight of Crane he quickly looked up into the heavens and said "Almighty God, with all Your Power and Might, we ask You to reach down and help our friend: please be with us and protect us from these evil forces."
As William and Sgt. York helped Crane dismount the Sergeant Major said, "Sir, we have no Field Surgeons, we are only a militia, however I have had enough experience with wounds to take care of this until we can get you to the doctor in Salisbury."
Crane was laid down upon a make-shift bed of cloaks and, after close inspection of the wound, the Sergeant Major ordered a fire built for searing the blade of his knife. "Gentleman, before we begin ,I think a word of prayer is in order, "said Sergeant Major. After Rev. Godwyn lead them in a short prayer, Crane ask him to attend to Victoria, and told William to see to Miles. As the Sergeant Major picked up the knife, his hands trembled, but he knew it was a job that had to be done in order to save Cranes life. The blade of the knife glowed cherry red, he quickly withdrew the dagger, and then used his own knife to cauterize the wound.
Crane should be okay until they reached their destination, then his personal physician could do a more thorough examination. York tore Crane's shirt into strips and made a dressing and bandage to cover the wound, he also fashioned a cravat to hold the injured arm. Next he built a makeshift cot in the back of the wagon in order to transport Crane back to their village.
"Sergeant Major!" Crane grumbled, " I will not be hauled about in a wagon as if I were a side of beef, if I cannot ride my horse then I shall ride in the carriage, put Mile's body in the wagon, we can't leave it here for the ravens."

As he spoke, Crane looked heavenward into the circling clouds, and a flash of lightning signaled an approaching storm. "Sergeant Major, sound the Recall," Crane said, "We need to get off the plain before the storm arrives." Rev. Godwyn's carriage was brought around and Sergeant Major helped Crane inside, whereupon he noticed a book on the seat, opened to an underlined passage that read, "A pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth. (Revelation 6:8). As Rev. Godwyn settled in the seat across from him, Crane handed him his Bible and said, "I fear not the pale rider, because I know that in the end, our Lord will have the final victory." Rev. Godwyn took Crane by the hand and smiled, then shouted to the driver, "Onward to Salisbury!"

The Sgt. Major took control of the company of militia, one squadron was left to march the dozen or so prisoners back to Salisbury and the High Sheriff, the other squadron would escort the carriage, along with William and Victoria, he also dispatched a rider head to summon the doctor in Salisbury to meet them at the cathedral. Crane grimaced as the carriage rumbled over the road to Salisbury, catching an occasional glimpse of William and Victoria, riding side by side, in conversation.

As the carriage made it's final turn on the approach to the cathedral, Crane could see the torches of the awaiting crowd. The crowd must have been waiting all night, the torches were almost out and they were low on oil! As the carriage came to a stop at the foot of the steps to the cathedral, Crane could see Abigail's face brighten when she saw Victoria. Salisbury, finally, but Crane knew he still needed lots of help from GOD and his friends and employees before everything would be a haven of rest. Tears streamed down Abigail's cheeks as she hugged Victoria, yet her eyes searched for Crane. Could Crane possibly be the father of both girls?

William and the Rev. Godwyn helped Crane dismount from the carriage as Sgt. York approached with the doctor. "Please, sir," William addressed the Doctor," take your greatest care with this man, as he is like a father to me."

[TW]

Chapter Five
A Life In the Balance

When the doctor emerged from the room where he had examined Crane, William could tell from the look on his face that the news not good. "He's lost a tremendous amount of blood," the doctor began, "due to a major artery above his heart being severed; an emergency operation and blood transfusion is his only hope." The doctor continued, "he has suffered irrepairable damage to one of the nerves to his left arm, he will never regain full use of that arm."

William rolled up his sleeve and said, "Where do I donate the first pint of blood, Doctor?" The doctor place his hand on Williams shoulder and said, "Young man this is a risky procedure, both for the patient and the donor, and I'm afraid that he will need more blood than we can safely take from you." "I can guarantee that every eligible man in my company will follow my lead and donate the necessary blood," William pledged. "That is commendable," the doctor replied, "however, we have found that transfusing blood between family members is usually safer."

Abigail moved her mouth to speak, but Victoria clutched her hand and whispered, "We must speak privately." The two girls withdrew some distance and Abigail looked questioningly at Victoria, "Vickie, Captain Crane is dying, and I can help him." If the doctors will check our blood they will find they will be compatible. "Please, Abigail," Victoria begged tearfully, "don't make me do that." But without my help he will die! I don't think I could live knowing that I willfully with-held my blood to save his life. "Vickie you don't have to give blood, but please try to understand," she hesitated, "he's my father." she whispered.

Are you sure? We never knew Mr. Crane until we came to visit: perhaps he is my father also, I will let them test my blood. Just then William approached and said, "They are preparing Thomas for the surgery, and the Sgt. Major has dispatched a fast rider to the Manor House at Swanage to fetch Alistair, but it will be hours before he can be here and Thomas doesn't have that much time, he needs the operation now!" You could tell by the sound of William's voice and the look of concern that he knew his dear friend was in a dire situation.

With weakened voice, Captain Crane whispered to the doctor, "William... please... William, my son." When William arrived at his side, Crane spoke to him; "Should I not survive this you need to know that I think Alistair is more deeply involved in this Epona affair than he has led us to believe." Williams watery eyes reflected the assurance Crane needed as he said, "Doctor, do what you must, as you have my total cooperation and trust." Crane had no fear of dying, he had made everything right with his God many years ago.

William laid down on the table next to the table that Crane lay upon, a nurse sat between them with a small hand pump that had two lengths of rubber tubing with needles attached to the ends.
An intense burning sensation overtook Crane as the sharp needle entered his vein, and he drifted into unconsciousness.

As the doctor continued with the operation, William's mind drifted to Alistair and The Epona Affair.
Crane's statement, "Alistair is more deeply involved in this Epona affair than he has led us to believe." kept coming to his mind. William turned his gaze to Crane, still unconscious, and the blood dripping into him, counting one... two... three... all the way to thirteen, before succumbing to exhaustion.

When Crane awakened the first thing that he was aware of was Abigail sitting by his bed, holding his hand, she was asleep with her cheek resting on the back of his hand. Sweet, sweet, Abigail, she had been there all night ,Crane could only hope and pray they could make up for all the wasted years that had gone by. Crane's next thought turned to William... where was he?
William had decided to find Alistair and confront him about the Epona Affair. He intended to find out exactly what Alistair knew and find a way to stop the madness and evil. As William prepared to mount his horse for the ride back to the Manor House, Sgt. York's fast rider returned with word that Alistair was not at the estate. For an instant, fear gripped William, but was soon followed by a surge of energy to unhinge a diabolical plot. He knew with help from God, he would be able to stop this evil work of the devil before it would go any further.

William realized that he would need to know everything that Crane knew if he were to bring the madness to an end. A moment later William stood at Crane's side and said, "Sir, if you are strong enough, there are some questions I must put to you."

[TW]

Chapter Six
Past, Present and Future

Crane indicated the chair next to his bed, "Sit down William, we have much to talk about."

William began, "Tell me the truth about Abigail," but stopped in mid-sentence as Abigail appeared in the doorway. "It is all right William, she knows,” Crane reassured him, “ the Rev. Godwyn was kind enough to fill in the history that neither of us knew." Then more to himself than anybody else he continued, “I can't believe all the wasted years that have gone by, if I had only known things would be so different than they are at this time.” "How did Rev. Godwyn know about Abigail," Williams pursued, "and why her... I mean, why was she held captive?"

Crane took a long slow breath, "When Rebecca found that she was pregnant she had no family in the village, so she sought the council of her Pastor, the Rev. Godwyn. She knew he was a godly man who would keep her secret and see that she received the help and attention that she would be needing.” "But the Rev. Godwyn only recently found her," William continued, then, turning to Abigail, asked, "Where were you all these years?"

"Your father was a good man," Abigail answered, "when he found out mum was pregnant he wanted to provide for her, so he sold her 100 acres of land near the village of Harman's Cross for one hundred pounds."

[TW]

Crane continued the narrative, "When father died, Alistair was appointed Steward over the family affairs, when Rebecca could not immediately pay off the mortgage he forced her to marry one of his henchmen as compensation, thinking that he would still have control of her land."

[sweetpea]

Rebecca would not buckle under and do everything Alistair wanted her to do,so he hired two men to abduct Abigail and paid them to keep her hidden from her mother.

[TW]

"The entire time Rebecca's 'husband' beat her and forced himself on her, claiming his 'rights' as her husband until she became pregnant with Victoria, then he abandoned her, and returned to work for Alistair."

[sweetpea]

After the birth of Victoria,Rebecca became very weak and her health began to fail.

[soulsearcher]

William exchanged glances between Crane and Abigail and concluded, "Then Abigail IS your daughter."

[TW]

Crane nodded, "Yes, Abagail is my daughter," he paused for a second then continued, "and Victoria is her half sister, who's father was Miles."

[sweetpea]

"when you say Miles is Victorias' father,you are talking about the former overseer of Salisbury Manor,aren't you?'

[TW]

"Yes, the very same one;" Crane answered, " the same one that would have sacrificed his own daughter in this mad scheme."