She sat silently with her fingers running through his course hair. He was sleeping so sweetly it was hard to believe everything that had happened that day. She wished with everything she was that she could take away his pain. He fought so hard today standing his ground, battling the very demon that meant to destroy him. He was so brave in her eyes standing up to the one person he thought he could trust. It was all too clear how difficult life would be for him. Nothing from this moment on no matter how hard they tried to move past this would be easy. 

Things weren't always like this, though. He was once happy only shedding happy tears ever. His big blue eyes were so bright they could light up even the darkest room, and his smile so warm it could replace even the best hugs. His voice so soft with understanding and compassion moved those around him in ways only a fit for a king's command. He was lucky in his childhood always finding the best trails in his parents' gardens of their 150 acre plantation home. He always wore only the nicest clothes and his mother made sure that the help were always fixed with love and warmth in their every interaction. His mother grew up poor and never wanted her little prince to experience the life she knew if she had any say in it. Well, now she didn't have a say in it and this young prince grew into a very tortured man with his heart in shattered pieces, and the only thing that Anna could do to soothe his heartbreak and feeling of betrayal was to sit here and run her fingers through his hair to put him to sleep.

Suddenly he began to jerk violently in his sleep. He screamed unintelligable tongues repeating murmur afte murmur followed by the insistent "no!" 

She could tell he was dreaming about what had happened. She stroked his gentle face and kissed his forehead. She bent over lying next to him and just held him in her arms rubbing his back. "It'll be ok my love. It's ok my love. It's over now. You're safe. It's just a dream." She kissed his face again and he began to wake his eyes overflowing with tears.

"She's gone, Anna. She's gone and he killed her!" he started sobbing and curled into a ball there his head on Anna's chest. Anna comfortingly placed her hand on the side of his head the way a mother would comfort a child. she kissed his crown and breathed in deeply. She had no idea what they would do now. She knew as well as he did that this would not be the end of their nightmare. At least for now they were safe. 

"Rest, my love. You will need your strength. I'm sure this won't be the last we see of your father."

"Don't call him that!" he spat sitting up and facing her with all the sting of betrayal in his eyes. "I am no longer a part of that family! That MAN," he said in disgust, "will never be deserving of being called family! He lied to me and killed her in front of me!"

"I know, baby, but there's nothing we can do about that now."

"I can still see her face as she looked so helpless, her eyes wide open with the horror, all the blood and her broken twisted body lying there on the quartz walkway. I feel like this is my fault. I couldn't stop him! I was too late!" he began sobbing again and she pulled him to her wrapping him in all of her love. 

"It's not your fault. No one could have predicted this." They laid there wrapped in each other's arms until he cried himself to sleep again and she slowly began to close her eyes feeling the relief of sleep overtake her tired body.