The Long Road to Ruin Ch. 14

"We are not sure yet. Vico brought her in like this."

"Ah, the dark knight?" Angella hissed. "You would do well to watch him. He is not entirely without guilt."

"Are you making an accusation, healer?" Nathan raised an eyebrow at her.

"It 'tis a feeling I have. Their auras tell me much. A putrid blackness shrouds her as surely as it does him. Guilt plagues his very soul. He loves her and hates her as surely as he loves and hates himself. She is an obsession, a demon in his soul that he is powerless to exorcise. I could tell this the moment I saw him downstairs. It spoke to me loud and clear," Angella stated, her voice taking on a haunted quality.

"Vico is the one who found her this night and brought her here," Nathan replied, scratching his chin. Something didn't add up. Doubt niggled at his conscience. He knew he had to get to the bottom of this dilemma and fast. "Father, Angella, can she be healed?"

"Most certainly," the good father finished his chanting and gathered divine energy within his hands. He pressed them gently against her ribs. Her skin began to glow ethereally. "The grace of the Hooded One will keep her safe. She will need plenty of rest and plenty of liquids. And constant care."

Angella popped the top of the vials and slowly began to feed each of them to Shiloh. "These will jump start the healing process. One will put her into a deep sleep and the other will strengthen her will to recuperate. And this one," she held up one final vial. "This one will act as a balm for her spirit."

Angella fed her the last vial, making sure she swallowed it all. Father Derthur nodded at her before he began to mutter another healing incantation. He pressed the divine light to her face.

"Angella dear, do you not have on you the infusion of comfrey, barley juice, betony, black cohosh, valerian, and yellow dock?"

"Most certainly."

"I believe she may benefit from it. Feed it to her to speed her healing and I will feed her this." He pulled a long cylindrical vial from his robes.

"That would be most wise, Father Derthur." Angella smiled at him, pulling the herbal infusion vial from her pouch and poured it down her throat. The good father did the same with his potion.

"Her body will heal and be as good as new." He bowed to Nathan. "Remember she needs plenty of rest and liquids. And make sure she stays calm."

"We will, good father." Chella handed him a small pouch of coins. "Take this for now and we will settle up the bill later."

Chella repeated herself as she handed another pouch to Angella. The two then took their leave, exiting the small bedroom on the second floor of the Bear Pit.

Then the waiting game began.

O.O

Shiloh slept for five days straight. She awoke mid-afternoon on the sixth day, a startled cry slipping from between her lips as her blurred vision cleared up, finally focusing on Vico's face.

His brow furrowed. "Shiloh," he whispered.

She let out a piercing scream as terror gripped her. Heavy footfall sounded as several people, Master Nathan included, raced into the room. She screamed a second time, scooting towards the other side of the bed.

"Shiloh! What's wrong?" Nathan asked, his voice thick with concern for her well-being.

She caught the look in Vico's eyes and knew at that very moment only the two of them knew the truth about the encounter on the wharf. She trembled, fighting to pull herself together. Her voice cracked as she started to speak. "Oooowwww...my head," she croaked, knowing she had Vico by the balls. "Where am I?"

She thrashed about and attempted to sit up, but she felt far too weak. Tiny pains shot straight up her back, exploding in her head. She cried out and collapsed back on the bed, whimpering pitifully.

"You need rest, Shiloh. You were grievously injured. We nearly lost you." Nathan's face was filled with worry. "When you are ready, I need you to tell me what happened. When you are ready..."

"My head hurts too much to think ...," she muttered.

"When you are ready....," he repeated calmly.

She nodded, her eyes moving from Nathan to Vico. She held out her hand out to him and touched his face. He flinched, pulling back from her as if her touch had scalded him. "Vico...," she whispered.

He nearly jumped up from his chair and charged out of the room, knocking a few others aside as he went.

"What the hell was that all about?" Nathan demanded, glowering at her.

Shiloh sighed heavily. "We had a fight."

"When? Where? And why hadn't I been told of this prior?"

"It was at the hideout. I was angry with him for ordering me around and for treating me the way he does. It was stupid. I hit him and he responded in typical Vico fashion by throwing me over his knee. He gave me one hell of a spanking. Didn't Alfons tell you?" Shiloh explained.

"No, he didn't." Nathan frowned, "Is that all that I haven't been made aware of?"

Shiloh exhaled a deep breath. She turned her blue eyes upon him. "Why did you arrange that meeting at the Old Wharf? I wouldn't have betrayed you. I owe you my life."

"We had to know. 'The Family' takes care of its own, Shiloh."

She shook her head. "I understand that, but if you can't trust me...after all I've been through...,"

"I do trust you." He reassured her, sitting on the chair beside her bed. "Once you are well and have completed all of your lessons, there are a few things that need to be explained to you."

She nodded. "I know you want answers, but I don't know...what happened. I left the wharf. I know Vico was there. He's too big to lurk unnoticed. I was upset that you didn't trust me. I headed for the hideout. I wanted to confront him. I wanted to scream at someone. I don't think I made it. The last thing I remember was something grabbing me. I didn't see who it was. All I saw was the wall I was slammed into. That's all I know."

She looked over at the door to see Vico standing in it. His eyes narrowed dangerously at her and he shook his head. Looking away from him, she stared down at her lap. "Little Angel..../Big wings flap in an ethereal sky, / borne aloft as sheer as gossamer, as strong as steel. / Love in her heart, goodness in her soul, smiles upon her pretty face, /brings Love to the Dreamers of the world."

"Shiloh?" Nathan asked.

A small giggle escaped her lips. "A childhood memory...," she murmured as tears filled her eyes. The giggle turned into a full blown belly laugh that quickly became a heart-wrenching sob. "Leave me alone. GET OUT!"

The room cleared except for Nathan and Vico. Both looked upon her with concern. She wailed and screamed, loosing it in a fit of madness. Despite her pain, she launched her at Vico, slamming into him with all the force she could muster from her small body. She pummeled his chest with her clenched fists. He stood unmoving, taking the brunt of her attack. He absorbed the blows with unflinching resolve. It was only when her knee connected with his groin that he groaned and staggered backwards.

"Enough, Shiloh." Nathan stepped in and grabbed hold of her, restraining her flailing arms. He used that authoritative voice and pushed her back to the bed. "Whatever hostility between the two of you will stop immediately. You both will make every effort to get along. If that is not possible, you will stay completely away from each other. I will not tolerate this kind of behavior from either of you. You are dismissed, Vico."

Vico glared at Nathan before inclining his head in acquiesce. He exited the room and headed down the stairs. He knew she remembered what he had done to her yet she had not talked. She had kept it to herself. He grinned and began to form a plan in his head.

O.O

"What the hell was that all about?" Nathan repeated an earlier question, his fury bearing down upon Shiloh. "You will explain yourself."

Shiloh scoffed as she limped back to the bed. "I hate him....I hate him....hate him...HATE HIM....," she screamed, her voice rapidly rising in octaves until it took on a manic quality. She sobbed into the blankets, unleashing all her inner turmoil and pent-up fury.

She screamed until her voice gave out, coughing hoarsely as her throat constricted. She looked up at Master Nathan with a swollen face and puffy red eyes. She cleared her raw throat, her voice raspy, and whispered, "I love him....,"

She buried her head beneath a pillow and sought solace in the truth. She could never tell the truth. She would never tell the whole truth, but she knew there would come a time for settling accounts with Vico. This was not the proper time, though.

O.O