Chapter 47: The Morning Hours

“Eric, what would you do if you were in my position?”

I glance over at him while waiting for an answer, but when he doesn’t say anything right away, I approach him to get his attention.

“Eric, are you alright?” I say a little louder this time.

Glancing up at me, he hesitates and then answers finally. “Yeah, I was just thinking. If I were you, I would make sure that everyone knows you mean business by cleaning the house of all the pests? Do you still have confidants in the castle?”

I nod, and then he continues, “Well, then I would have them figure out who was involved and tell you. It is so much easier for them to hear conversations than it is for you. People always pay special attention when authoritative figures are around, but not so much when a lone person is lurking in the shadows. I think this is what your dad would have done if nothing else. Then, and only then, I would get rid of them quickly.”

Turning to watch Arabella sleep on the only bed in the cabin, I pause for a brief moment and wonder if that is indeed what I should do or possibly if it would just make things worse. Anything is possible right now and I just want to make sure I am making the right decision for our family and the kingdom. It is days like this, that I really wish dad hadn’t passed on, because he always had all the answers. He was a very smart man.

Glancing back over to Eric, I say quietly to not wake her, “I don’t know. I am damned if I do and damned if I don’t, honestly.” Shaking my head, I wish that things didn’t have to be this way.

While we sit here, a car pulls up in the long drive and I am instantly leery of their intentions. Eric sees it and stands up quickly to survey the situation from the window. As we both rush over to it, I watch as an older man gets out of the black sedan and then stares at the car Eric drove, before making his way up to the cabin cautiously. He has black hair and is somewhat short for a man, with dark brown eyes. His skin tone is not quite cocoa, but more yellowish.

Does this cabin belong to the old man? When he drove by, he just happened to notice that someone was here? I hope not, because a lot of times, people don’t appreciate encroachers on their property, and they tend to shoot them on site. How do I explain our situation?

Watching as the man walks up to the porch and produces his keys, I reach over and open the door for him so he wouldn’t have to. It must have taken him by surprise because he backs up quickly and looks startled. “I am so sorry sir. If this is your cabin, we meant no harm. My woman is about to have our babies and we needed a place to stay for the night. We will be gone in no time, I promise.” I say louder than expected and then calm down a bit to not scare him so much.

Looking at us with doubt in his eyes, I don’t believe that he. thinks we are here just for the moment. So, I try to assure him. “Look, to show you that we mean no harm, I will wake her up right now and we will leave right away.” I smile at him while moving towards Arabella.

Clearing his throat, he stares at Eric nervously still and then states, “No need. I was just scared that you were here to take my land. We have had a lot of problems with that lately around here. Someone stays the night and then just moves right in. I guess it is a sign of the times.” He shakes his head and then runs his thick fingers through his hair while he turns his attention to me and Arabella finally.

“Yes, that is true. It is unfortunately everywhere though. I live a couple hours away and it happens there a lot too. For some reason people think it is alright to steal others property and just move on in. Although, there the landowners shoot them on site. It takes care of most of the encroachers right away. We claim self-defense.” Eric smirks while he says it.

As I wake up Arabella, I am determined to leave now, because something just doesn’t feel right about this old man, and I don’t want to outstay our welcome. Not to mention, if we leave now, we can get back home before most of the castle has lunch. Then perhaps, I can find out exactly who is behind all of the problems.

Turning to the older man, I raise my voice a little and then declare, “We will be leaving now. Thank you for your hospitality, but we won’t be needing it. Arabella here has had some rest so now we can get home. Thank you again.” I smile and offer a hand for him to shake.

When he takes it, I am pleased there are no hard feelings, but then he says something a bit odd to me quietly. “Did you say Arabella?”

“Yes? Why?” I ask hesitantly while raising one eyebrow at him.

He pauses, but then says snidely, “Because a month or two ago, I remember her father came by and asked if I had seen her. He told me that she had taken off and was missing now. Did she ever go home? Or did you kidnap her and get her pregnant?”

Looking closer at me now, he says in a quieter tone, “You look familiar. Do I know you?”

I try to rush Arabella around, by taking her hand and leading her towards the door, but she stops and looks at the older man. She cocks her head and then says, “Uncle Jim. I can’t believe this is your cabin. It has been so long since I have seen you. It has to have been what, ten years?”

Shocked, I drop her hand and then turn to them, while glancing over at Eric and giving him a questioning look. This is definitely a strange turn of events and now I don’t quite know what to do. If she tells him how we met, I will be thrown in jail or worse for sure, if I don’t kill him first.

What do I do? I ponder this for a few minutes while they catch up and then I turn to Eric before taking her hand and stating, “Well, I hate to break up this family reunion, but it is time to go. We have to get back before lunch.”

She looks at me with a hurt look in those beautiful eyes of hers that ask me to stay, but we can’t, and it is for the best if we go before someone has to die. So, I pull her towards the door and then he yells, “Stop!”

We all turn and stare at him, as I wonder what he could have possibly figured out from this. “Arabella, your uncle needs a hug at least.” Smiling, he opens his arms, and she rushes over to him before hugging him and he gives her a kiss on the cheek.

Once he releases her, he walks over to me and says, “You had better take good care of her and the babies or I will visit you one of these days.”

With that said, we walk out the door and get in the car. I figure that they can drop me off at the Ferrari and I can follow them home. In the meantime, I sit in the back of the car thinking “That if he only knew I was within a few minutes of ending his life, he wouldn’t have threatened me like that.”