Chapter 27

Chapter Twenty-Seven

I t was dark outside. The moon was not full, but it waxed such that the light shone before Hannah, enough for her to see the way ahead as she charged through the forest. Holding up her skirt, she jumped over felled tree trunks and darted around stray bushes and trees. She stumbled but did not slow down. She tripped but kept her footing. Nothing could slow her down, for time was not a luxury that she had.

Perhaps running was not necessary? Perhaps she would arrive to find Amelia safe and sound? That was what she wanted. That was what she prayed for—and had been doing so since she left home not thirty minutes ago. But something told her that she might not be so lucky as that.

The motherly instinct that she did not even know she had roared to life, and so she ran as if her life, as if Amelia’s, depended on it.

No idea how far away she was, it felt like she had been running through the forest for an age. Out of breath. Out of her mind. She called out, hoping to hear a response.

“Amelia!” she cried out as loud as she could. “Amelia! Are you there!”

“Hannah?!” a frightened voice echoed in the darkness. “Hannah! Help me!”

Somehow, Hannah’s pace increased. Through the brush she charged until she eventually came upon a small clearing that she recognized immediately, for she had been there once before.

Not a large clearing by any means, it was perhaps half the size of Frederick’s house. Tall trees stood like a barrier around the edges, allowing the mood to shine in full on the center. And at this center, spread to the edges of the clearing, was a pond. Placid and tranquil it sat, until her eyes swept over it, spotting in the middle a struggling, little girl desperate to keep her head above the water.

“Amelia!” Hannah cried and ran to the edge of the pond.

“Hannah!” The little girl thrashed in the middle of the pond, desperate and scared, her head barely above the water. “Please! Help! I’m—I’m stuck!”

It was hard to see what was happening exactly. Although there was nothing keeping Amelia where she was, the little girl thrashed and paddled desperately with her hands, her head bobbing, only to go down, only to emerge from the water again, followed by a scream. There must be something under the water, latching onto her dress, keeping her from swimming freely.

Again, that motherly instinct roared inside Hannah. Amelia was not her daughter, but at that moment, it felt as if she was, for Hannah knew there was nothing that she would not do to save her, even if it meant giving her own life. Such was the love she had for her.

“I’m coming!” Hannah cried out. She was quick to undo her dress, as keeping it on would only weigh her down. “I’m coming!”

The dress was off, and the cool night air whipped at her body. She wore a thin pelisse, barely a cover from the cold.

“Hurry! I can’t… I can’t… I—” And then the little girl was gone.

“Amelia!”

Hannah ran into the water without pause and dove headfirst into its depths, ignoring the cool spike that shot through her body like a knife, constricting her chest, knocking the breath out of her lungs, seeming to try and pull her down as if the water itself had a life of its own.

She kicked her feet and pushed with her arms until she came to where Amelia’s head had been moments before.

“Amelia!” she cried out, before taking a deep breath and diving beneath the surface at a straight angle.

It was too dark to see beneath the water, but she reached out with her hands and grabbed hold of the little girl. Then, still holding on tight, she pulled her to the surface, forcing her head out of the water so she could take a breath.

Amelia coughed and spluttered as she gasped for air. Her body still thrashed, kicking desperately to stay afloat. Hannah held onto her, her own legs now growing tired as she tried to kick them back to the surface. Only… the little girl refused to move.

“I’m stuck!” Amelia cried out through mouthfuls of water. “My dress! It—I can’t move!”

Hannah had her arms wrapped around the little girl. Her legs kicked powerfully, even though by now, they were sore and near useless. Her chest burned. Her body shook from the cold. But nothing, no force in this world, could stop her.

“Hold on!” Hannah shouted over the noise of Amelia’s screams. “Amelia!” she shouted, forcing the little girl to look at her. “Look at me! Amelia!”

It must have been something in her voice. A calm that washed over Amelia, for she managed to keep herself from panicking for long enough to look Hannah in the eyes. Oh, she was terrified, that was clear. But now there was something else, and understanding that so long as Hannah was there, everything would be all right.

“You need to stop kicking,” Hannah told her, still holding her tight. “Stay perfectly still.”

“But—”

“I will get us out of here!” she assured her. “But you must trust me!”

Amelia’s eyes went wide, only for her to see her rescuer’s composure and somehow calm down. A nod shared between them, and Hannah smiled.

Then, holding Amelia to her body with one arm, she reached beneath the surface and pulled on Amelia’s dress. Indeed, it was caught on something, likely a submerged tree. Another tug, still the dress refused to budge.

“Argh!” Hannah cried. “Amelia, I am going to let go of you?—”

“What? No! Please! Don’t!”

“Kick with your feet!” Hannah told her. “Use your arms to keep your head above the water. I will only be a second, I promise!”

“But… but… but I am scared!”

“You don’t have to be.” Again, Hannah made sure the little girl was looking at her. “I am here, Amelia, and I promise that nothing will happen to you. All right?”

The little girl understood, and what was more, she accepted it. Her face hardened, and her brow furrowed. Slowly, Hannah let her go, making sure that Amelia was keeping her head afloat on her own. And then, she dove beneath the water a second time.

She could not see what she was doing, but she followed the dress with her hands, finding where it was snagged around a tree branch. Using both hands and all her might, Hannah tore the dress apart, ripping it down the seam, stretching it out and then wrenching it free from the branch. The moment she did so, Amelia’s feet kicked all the harder, and the little girl was off.

By then, Hannah was exhausted. She could not feel her arms. She could not feel her legs. Her lung burned. Her chest ached. With all her might, she managed to kick her way to the surface, pulling in a final lungful of air and seeing Amelia scramble toward the shore.

She was safe.

Hannah smiled to herself, knowing that she had rescued her. But then, all the energy she had used to save Amelia vanished in an instant, and despite knowing what it would mean, she could not fathom what it might take to swim back to shore. Impossible, it seemed.

A final look to ensure that Amelia was safe, and Hannah stopped kicking. Her body shut down. Her eyes fluttered shut. And then, slowly, she began to sink into the water, all the while smiling because at least she would die knowing that she had saved someone she truly loved…