In Brist's time - Chapter 11

Chapter 11

“Nicholas, why do you hate Brist so?” Morgan asked his older brother.

“What makes you think I hate her?”

“You couldn’t even speak to her during dinner without arguing about something. I know she says some outrageous things, but she is family, and you should at least try to get along with her.”

“So, you believe her?” Nicholas asked.

“You don’t? How can you not? She has things from the future, and she knows things she couldn’t possibly if she wasn’t.”

“I’m more inclined to believe her guilty of witchcraft than time travel. She has bewitched you all.”

“Witchcraft! Nicholas, what is wrong with you? You don’t just accuse ladies of being witches!” Morgan exclaimed in dismay.

“Ladies don’t go around claiming they’re relatives from the future!” Nicholas countered.

“They do if they really are!” Morgan knew that had sounded childish, but he couldn’t think of anything better to say. “Apologize.”

“What?”

“I cannot allow you to slander Brist like that. Now apologize, or I’ll have to inform mother of your bad manners,” Morgan considered challenging him to a duel, but he knew that he could never beat his older brother in a fair fight. Also, he had no desire to have another wounded brother in the house. (Which would likely be him.)

Meanwhile, Nicholas had no desire to receive another tongue lashing from his mother. The one he had received earlier was enough to keep his ears ringing for days to come. He cringed as he remembered it.

“Nicholas David Evans! I know I raised you better than that! You do not ever violate a lady like that!” She had loudly stated.

“Violate her! I was the one who was bested and thrown on the floor!” Nicholas had protested.

“Well, if you had controlled yourself and treated her properly, she would not have had to defend herself!” His mother, in her anger, left no room for him to argue.

Nicholas sighed, willing to do anything to avoid his mother's wrath.

“I’m sorry,” he grumbled reluctantly.

“What was that?” Morgan asked.

“I said I’m sorry. I’m sorry I ever laid eyes on that woman! I wish she would just go back to wherever she came from and leave our family alone,” Nicholas said emphatically, trying to ignore the little inner voice that called him a liar.

Outside the door, Brist stopped walking as she overheard him. She had been returning to her room from the twins’. She shrugged sadly and continued on her way.

*******

“David, how can you say that? We can’t go now,” Regina said.

“My ship is still ready and waiting. Tomorrow, the boys and I will go hunting for that bandit camp, and when we find it, we’ll reclaim our horses. Then, after that, I can find no reason to stay any longer,” David told his wife.

“We can’t just leave Brist here, and we can’t take her with us. We have to stay,” Regina protested.

“Why can’t we take her with us?” David asked, his plan had been to do so if Nicholas could not manage to control himself.

“She’s not used to our ways yet. Taking her to England and introducing her to the ton would just be cruel. Not to mention, think of the scandal she would undoubtedly cause!”

“Then we leave her here,” David stated, mentally reminding himself to have a firm discussion with his eldest son.

“Alone with Nicholas? Aside from the fact that such a situation is highly improper, David, they would kill each other 10 minutes after we were out the door! Also, we can’t just expect Nicholas to accept her into his household when it’s so obvious that he doesn’t like her,” Regina pointed out.

“I have an idea that should work beautifully. We’ll leave the twins,” David decided.

“No, David! No! We are not leaving my babies behind,” Regina refused.

“I have made up my mind. If we leave the twins, we don’t have to worry about Brist’s reputation. Also, if we hire Brist as their chaperone, then I have provided a solution to Brist’s request for employment, and Nicholas can hardly refuse to keep her here if she’s in my employ,” David said, proud of himself for thinking of such a brilliant solution.

“That may well be true, but I have never been without them. I don’t know- I will not allow them to- David they are my babies! You can’t expect me to just leave them behind,” Regina wailed, distraught.

“Regina listen, Brist will need female companionship just as much as the twins would if it were they in her position. Now stop your protestations, I have made up my mind, and there’s no changing it. The twins will stay behind, and that’s that.” David quickly covered his wife’s mouth with his own to silence any forthcoming objections. His hands roamed her body, and he marveled at how much he still wanted his wife after nearly 30 years of marriage. He explored her body with his mouth, paying special attention to all the spots he had discovered over the years that drove her wild.

Regina moaned with desire and frustration. It was unfair that he still was able to render her incoherent after all these years, and he knew it! He used this tactic every time he wanted to win an argument, because he knew she would agree to anything in the heat of passion. She was determined to not give in this time.

David knew his wife was feeling like molten lava, and he hadn’t even touched her womanhood yet. “Say that the twins can stay,” he demanded.

“No.” Regina shook her head.

David grinned as he lowered his mouth to gently blow on the hair covering her sex. Regina whimpered. He lightly ran his tongue over the pea-sized bundle of nerves that drove her to near insanity when touched.

Regina gasped. She felt as if she were flying; as if the room was spinning. Why oh why does he always have this effect on me? If Regina had been still able to think coherently, she would have thought how unfair it was that David was once again using this tactic. He knew perfectly well that Regina agreed to anything while in this state, and often did this to her when she wasn’t in agreement with him.

Regina was at the point when she had to explode or die, and David, sensing this, paused to resume negotiations with his wife.

“Say they can stay,” he demanded. Regina just barely remembered to whisper no. David positioned himself so that he could tease his wife’s clitoris with his manhood. Regina inhaled sharply.

“Please take me,” she nearly sobbed.

“I will, just as soon as you give permission for the twins to stay,” David assured his wife.

Regina shook her head and raised her hips to try to take him inside her. David anticipated her tactic and moved out of her reach, yet managed to maintain contact between them. This frustrated Regina to the point of screaming.

“Calm down, my love, all you have to do is say they can stay and I will give you what you want,” David promised, kissing her neck.

“Anything! I’ll do anything you say, please just take me now!” Regina begged. David placed the very tip of himself inside her then paused to ask her:

“Are you sure about that?”

Regina would have raised herself to take him, but was still raised from her previous attempt, so she wrapped one leg around his waist, followed quickly by the other forcing him to plunge deep inside her. David laughed at his wife’s determination, and decided to give in to her demands now that she had given in to his. He rode her through two climaxes before he allowed himself to spill his seed deep within her.

Spent, he lay down next to her.

“Well now, you must be getting old if that’s the best you can do,” Regina teased him as she regained her ability to think.

“Woman! You are becoming more demanding every day!” David said in mock frustration. “Old you say? I’ll show you just what this old man can do!” David promised, and then proceeded to do just that.

*******

In the room that Brist was assigned, she was preparing to go on her planned expedition to retrieve her horse. She was deciding what to wear, and so far had separated all her clothing into two piles; one of just black items, and the other contained all her other clothing. Something one might find on Charlie’s Angels, yet also something that a cat burglar might wear to keep himself concealed in shadows.

Brist decided to start with her undergarments, for even though no one would see them, they would help keep her in the right frame of mind... sneaky! She put on a black bra made out of lace and a matching pair of thong underwear. Over those she put on a form-fitting, black baby tee that had the word Goddess on it in red, and form fitting pants that flared slightly from her calves down.

Brist decided that she would need to do something with her hair so that it wouldn’t be in her way. She considered various styles before deciding on a simple braid with plenty of stray locks to frame and highlight her face.

After deciding that she looked gorgeous, Brist picked up her gun and tried to decide where to put it. Where would one of Charlie’s Angels hide it? How about Scully? Brist tried tucking it in the back of her pants, but they were so snug that she couldn’t get the gun to fit properly. Hmm, so that wouldn’t work, maybe in my bra? No, that would be too obvious. My handgun maybe small, but it isn’t that small!

Brist chuckled as she realized that with the size of her breasts, the gun just might fit after all. Even so, she decided to bring a spare purse that she could tie around her waist, covering her sacrum.

Brist took a look in the mirror; I look great; very Amanda from Highlander: The Raven. Cautiously, she opened her bedroom door and looked out to see if the coast was clear. It was, and so she silently made her way to the servant’s stairs, which she figured would be her best bet for getting out of the house unnoticed.

In the kitchen, Nicholas heard a faint noise coming from the servant’s stairs, which he thought was odd for this time of night. He quickly stepped into the pantry, which gave him a good view of the kitchen, and yet kept him hidden from view. Seconds later, he saw Brist emerge from the stairway and head out the door.

“Now what is she up to?” He asked himself. Without deciding to, he followed her outside and into the woods, completely forgetting the food he was so eager for just moments ago. It looked like she was heading in the direction they went earlier today.

“So she is in league with the thieves! I was right!” He whispered to himself triumphantly. Yet somehow, Nicholas was unsure as to whether he should be triumphant... or disappointed.

He followed her for about an hour, trying his best to keep up with her and not be detected by her at the same time. Which was hard for she was fast, and he almost had to run to keep up with her, which didn’t leave him much time to avoid anything in his path. She stopped suddenly, looked around a moment, adjusted her course slightly, then continued on. Only now she was walking slowly and keeping to the shadows.

If I’m correct, and I believe I am, then the thieves made camp right about where the town will one day be located, Brist thought to herself. Then, she vaguely remembered a story about the thieves and the town. The thieves camp was located farther out than the town, it wasn’t until her many times great grandma Brist founded the town that they moved closer to treepass, which was finished by then. Wait, didn’t Belana say her great-grandmother founded the town?

Brist was moving silently in the direction she was sure the camp must be in. Just like in the movies, I am undetectable to the enemy, moving in swiftly yet cautiously to rescue the damsel in distress, or rather horses in distress. Any moment now I will come across a feeble attempt at security, a guard to try to keep me out. Brist had to cover her mouth with her hand to keep herself from laughing out loud at her thoughts.

Suddenly, she froze. From where she stood, she could just make out the outline of the camp. Okay, so where are the camp guards? Slowly, she circled the perimeter of the camp, careful to keep out of view of anyone who might be watching.

What in blazes is she doing? If she is in league with the thieves, why doesn’t she just walk directly into camp? Nicholas wondered. From where he was, he couldn’t see the camp, but he figured that it must be there, or else why would Brist be walking as if she were circling something.

I should have brought a gun, I could then kill all the thieves and be done with them once and for all. Maybe I can still find a way to do so, and then once Brist sees that it’s hopeless, she’ll consent to be my mistress, and I’ll finally be able to teach her a woman’s proper place. Wait a second….

Brist had to once again place her hand over her mouth to prevent herself from crying out when she saw her beloved horse. She counted the horses, hoping that she’d be able to recognize all the Evans family horses, for she didn’t want to steal any of the thieves’ horses. Thirteen, but then that would mean that they all belonged to the family. Didn’t the thieves have any of their own? Maybe they kept theirs in a separate pen. And just where are the guards? Surely a thief’s camp would have some security.

Just then, Brist spotted a man sitting under a nearby tree, she edged closer to him, trying to figure out a way to subdue him silently. What would Xena do? Hmm… I hope it doesn’t come to that.

Brist walked as close to the man as possible without being seen. She held her breath; it was now that would decide the outcome of her excursion. Either he would spot her and shout out in alarm, causing her to kick more thieving butt (or be shot trying), or she would subdue him without causing alarm, and waltz out of here with all thirteen horses.

What was that noise?

Is it? … Yes it is!

The man was snoring softly; he was sound asleep! Oh what luck! Brist made a soft noise calling Cream to her. She was sure that Cream had already smelled her, but was smart enough to stay put until signaled. Cream didn’t even bother to move for she knew that she couldn’t go anywhere while she was tied to a long post along with all the other horses.

Brist quickly untied Cream from the post, allowing her to roam freely for a moment while she untied all of the other horses and tied them to each other.

“If this weren’t incredibly convenient for me, I’d find the man that left all of you ungroomed and in your saddles, and I’d smack him so hard that he’d see stars for the rest of his life!” Brist told the horses sympathetically.

Brist led the horses around the perimeter of the camp until she was facing the direction that she needed to travel. She was just about to mount Cream, when she heard a familiar voice and decided to investigate.

“Randy, I hate this, we were better off in England. At least there we weren’t thieves!”

“Belana, you know as well as I do that if we had remained in England, we would have ended up thieves in the end. I hate it too, but what other choice do we have?”

“Perhaps there are a few gentlemen in the city that would pay nicely for the privilege of bedding an actual titled lady,” Belana suggested.

“I will not have you whoring!”

“And I will not have the last of my children starve to death!”

Randy visibly choked back whatever he was going to say, and sighed. “Our plans were to claim a piece of land and use our savings to turn it into a farm capable of supporting ourselves. That plan fell apart only because those rich Evans bastards stole every dime we owned in payment for our passage here. We have only been stealing from them out of revenge, but what if we stopped plaguing them for the change they carry in their pockets, and we actually sneak into their house and rob them of enough money to accomplish our goal?”

“No! I will not allow you to fall so low. What if, instead, we sold their horses? 13 fine horses should bring a fair price, and then we could move on.”

“I’m sorry, but you wont get the chance to do that either,” Brist said, calling attention to herself. She pointed her gun at them so that they wouldn’t do anything rash, like sound an alarm...

“What are you doing here?” Randy demanded.

“Retrieving some stolen property,” Brist answered with a shrug.

“The instant you try, I’ll have the entire camp come out to stop you,” Randy threatened.

“Sorry, but I’ve already recovered our horses, the only reason I’m still here is to get our jewelry,” Brist informed the good-looking thief. She had intended to let them keep the money and jewelry they had taken, but now that she had insanely allowed them to know that she was there, she figured she may as well recover as much as she could.

Randy and Brist stood glaring at each other, both trying to figure out their opponent’s next move, and how to effectively counter it. Randy judged Brist to be about one foot out of his natural reach, but perhaps if he used the element of surprise, he could remove the gun from her grasp. Gathering his courage, he lunged for her, praying that she wouldn’t shoot him.

Brist had no intention of shooting anyone unless she had no other choice. When she realized that Randy was going to try to disarm her, she stepped aside and tripped him, using her arm to ensure that he landed directly at her feet. Face down. Brist placed her foot on his neck and pointed the gun at his head, surreptitiously checking to make sure the safety was still engaged.

“Please don’t kill him!” Belana cried softly, for she feared that if she made too much noise – and accidentally alerted the camp to what was going on – her husband would be shot for sure.

“Find some rope,” Brist ordered her. “And don’t even think about getting help. Oh, and find something to gag him with as well.” Once Belana had found the requested items, Brist motioned for her to tie her husband up.

Randy glared at Brist with murder in his eyes, but allowed his wife to do as she was told.

“Now, bring me the jewelry and money that your husband stole from us today,” Brist ordered when Belana had finished her task. Belana did as she was told, handing her the bags, which still contained all of the stolen items. “Please understand that I have to tie you up now too.”

“I understand, but please Lady Evans, please understand that I am also against the theft that had occurred. It's just... my husband is only doing what he has to in order for us to survive. We have no money, no other place to go, and no food. Any food that we do manage to steal, we feed to our children, and yet they are starving! Please, isn’t there anything you can do to help us? Perhaps you could leave us some of the jewelry to sell for food, or one of the horses,” Belana pleaded.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t do that, only one of those horses belongs to me, and she wouldn’t allow anyone else to ride her even if I did give her up. As for the money and jewelry, none of it belongs to me, so I can’t let you keep it either,” Brist apologized.

She helped Belana to her knees, and using some of the excess rope used to tie up Randy, she tied Belana’s feet together, and then she tied her hands. She left them in a position that would allow Belana easy access to untie Randy after Brist had gone. She was about to place a gag in Belana’s mouth when the woman – who was an exact replica of her friend in the future, only older – spoke out.

“Please, take my child with you! Belana implored. “Her name is Sarah, and she is sleeping just inside that tent.”

“Why would you want me to take your child?” Brist asked, utterly confused.

“I already lost one child, and I can’t bear to watch as another one dies. I know that if you take her with you, she will be taken care of,” Belana explained. Randy violently shook his head and moaned in protest. Brist thought for a few moments.

“Are you sure this is what you want?” She asked, and Belana nodded. Tears streamed down the bound woman’s cheeks. “Alright then, I will,” Brist agreed with a heavy sigh.

Inside the tent, Brist found the child – a toddler of about three – asleep on a bed made up of thin blankets. The child was much too thin, and she whimpered in her sleep as if experiencing nightmares. Gently, Brist extracted the child from the bed and carried her out to her parents.

“From now on you are her mother, and she is your daughter,” Belana said to Brist. Randy looked wounded, or as if he were about to be sick. Tears streamed down his face, and Brist found that she was crying too.

“I will take good care of your daughter,” Brist promised the outlaw parents as she held the little girl up to Belana so that the sacrificing mother could kiss her daughter goodbye. “Already you are a better mother than I could ever hope to be, for I seriously doubt that I could ever give up my own child, even if it were for her own good.”

Brist shifted the sleeping child so that she could hug her mother, who she still thought of as her friend in the future. Then, she placed the gag in the woman’s mouth, for she still couldn’t chance an alarm being sounded. She intuitively knew that this Belana had also handed her a guarantee that the bandits wouldn't rob from them again out of fear that this child would be harmed in retaliation.

“I know you aren’t able to give your daughter a hug or a kiss goodbye, and since she is sleeping and I don’t want to wake her just yet, she can’t give one to you. So I am going to do it for her,” Brist informed Randy as she leaned over to kiss his cheek. After taking a moment to try to stop crying and wipe away her tears, Brist made her getaway. She paused a foot away from her horse, for the toddler whimpered in her sleep.

“You poor baby,” she murmured soothingly as she ran her fingers through the girl’s hair. Then, she kissed the sleeping child’s forehead. Sarah stirred in her sleep, flinging her arms around Brist’s neck.

A few feet away, Nicholas felt a strange pull at his heart. He was more confused by Brist now than he had ever been confused by a woman before in his life. He watched as Brist mounted her horse, and then decided to stop her before she got away and he had to walk home.

“I must say,” he said, standing in front of Cream. “That you handled that very well.”

“It is a very good thing that they cannot see or hear us, for I would not want them to think that I have anything to do with you. Don’t you have anything better to do than spy on me?” Brist asked as she untied the rest of the horses from Cream, and then flung the rope at him.

The two antagonists stared at each other for a few long moments. Suddenly, Brist had a mischievous idea, and she grinned impishly. Nicholas watched incredulously as Brist kicked Cream into a soft canter, leaving him alone with 12 horses.

Soon, Brist was riding into the family’s stables. She laid Sarah on a blanket covering a semi-soft pile of hay while she took care of her horse. Brist was still upset at finding that the horses had not been properly groomed, and so took her time to thoroughly brush down Cream. Finishing up, she tossed a warm blanket over the patient horse, and unconsciously placed her in the same stall that she would occupy in the future. She then carried Sarah to her room, just barely remembering to go to the one she was assigned to in this time, for her sub-conscious had led her to the one she had always had in the future.

Brist sighed as she cuddled up to the toddler, who wriggled against her, seeking warmth. It was not long before she was enveloped by deep, blissful sleep.

*******

“How did she expect me to handle 12 horses when she’s seen how bad I am at handling just one?” Nicholas grumbled. Here he had tried to avoid walking home, only to end up not only walking, but also struggling with 12 horses. “I should have just watched to see how she planned to handle not only the horses, but the babe too. How did I get myself into this mess? All I’ve wanted since I first laid eyes on the wench was to persuade her to bed me, and here’s she’s ruined any chance of me joining her in bed tonight. Ah! The witch! With her purple witch’s eyes, and her desirable, voluptuous little body. Why can’t I get her out of my mind?!” Nicholas asked his horse, which just so happened to be the lead horse. The horse simply rolled his eyes and snickered at him.

Nicholas made a disbelieving noise, and tried his best to put her out of his mind, but ended up driving himself almost to the point of insanity by the time he got home. By the time he took the last few steps into the stables, the sky was giving him the impression that it was holding back the sun on purpose, just to annoy him even more.

Nicholas’ mood had long ago passed foul, and now it was simmering somewhere between frightful and abominable. He had no intention of taking the time to properly groom one of the horses, let alone all 12. Nicholas found no purpose in doing himself what he paid others for. So, he strode moodily over to one of the stable boys, grabbed him out of his bed, and tossed him onto the stable master. The two employees awoke fighting, each positive that the other had started the fight.

“Stop fighting! I want these horses taken care of right away!” Nicholas bellowed.

“Of course my lord, immediately!” The startled stable master promised. He was a man brought over with them from England. Nicholas made a beeline for his bedroom, grumbling the entire way.

“If I weren’t so blasted exhausted at this moment, I would go strangle that pain-in-the-arse while she slept! GOD! I feel as if I just returned from a yearlong pilgrimage in which I carried pebbles in my boots as penance for my sins!” By this time, Nicholas was crawling into his bed. He hadn’t even bothered to remove any of his clothes; not even his boots! He sighed as he drifted off to sleep, muttering, “I’ll kill her when I wake up.”

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