Meanwhile, Zeven was in the courtyard of sorts behind the mansion.
Sweat dripped off his brow as he concentrated on his next swing. His shirt had been thrown to the side, after he decided it was too hot to deal with the offending garment. Exercising had become like a crutch to him, when his mind would begin to cloud. Systematic breaths worked in tandem with his footwork as he swung his longsword through the center of the straw dummy splitting it in half. The string of half standing dummies showed his efforts this morning. Every swing he took was an emotion he was releasing until he felt, once again, back in control.
Zeven put his longsword back in resting place on the outseam of his left leg. He never sheathed his sword, always leaving it out in the open where anyone could see it. It gave him a sense of security to always be no more than a second away from full alert. Zeven turned to walk back to the bow and arrow resting under the shade tree he had also carried outside with him. Silently he notched an arrow and pulled back hard, aiming for the center of the remaining half of the straw man. Releasing his held breath the arrow soared through the sky hitting its mark. He drew in a breath as he prepared his next arrow. Soft crunch of earth and leaves marred his concentration as he whipped around to see the source of the noise, arrow still in a firing position should the face not belong to a friend.
Zeven relaxed the bow when he saw Gunter, who looked no worse for wear despite an arrow having been pointed directly into his face. Zeven turned back to his target drawing the bow once more.
"And? She's cute right." Firing the arrow hit just below the first. "If I may, was this a good idea to bring her here?" Third arrow zinged through the air. "Whatever could you mean?" It was clear Zeven had also thought about this. "My plans have not changed, however my method has been slightly altered." This arrow landed to the left of the first arrow by no more than a centimeter. "Zeven, you know how I feel, I will trust your judgement. But I implore you to be careful. Women are fickle creatures."
"No, women are women."
The last arrow flew from Zeven's fingertips, splitting the first arrow right down the center, and a wicked smile crossed Zeven's face as something caught his eye. "Look," Zeven pointed to the window on the second story slightly offset from the courtyard. At that moment a white sheet fluttered over the balcony. "No way-" he was smiling from ear to ear, "There is no way- She's too smart to do that." Zeven had entered a conversation with himself. "I can't believe it-" Staying under the tree cover, he moved closer until he was almost directly below the window. "She won't-" He watched as she tied ends to ends and pulled to make sure they were secure. "There is no way she is going to go through with this, she's too smart any minute she'll give up and try something else." Chris kept working. Every so often she would look down at the ground below. Zeven nudged Gunter, "We HAVE to make her jump!" It was clear Zeven was excited, the wheels were turning in his head, "Gunter, go scare her into jumping sooner rather than later."
"Are you sure that is a good idea?"
"Oh, this is the BEST idea." Zeven's body buzzed with anticipation. His mischievous plan swirled around him as he got himself into position.
****
Chris had been sure of this plan to start with, but as she looked down to the hard ground below she became less sure.
Her one chance to escape was suddenly a frightening prospect as she prayed her knots would hold. She stood on the balcony readying herself to crawl onto the outside of the railing. Standing up next to the railing she threw a leg over the side of the banister. One leg already over, her senses came back to her and she realised how foolish this plan was. If she had just stayed calm she was sure there was a better solution. About to attempt to pull her leg back onto the safe side of the iron railing a heavy pounding came at the door.
Panic washed over Chris, getting caught by Zeven was not an option. Once he knew she knew his scheme; the rules of the game would change and she would be right back where she started.
The door knob jingled while Chris was still deciding what to do. But the decision was taken out of her hands as she lost her balance and fell backwards over the railing.
Flailing, Chris tried to grab onto the white bed sheet hanging down, but like a ghost it fell through her fingers. The burning of her palms was nothing compared to the pain she was going to feel when she hit the ground. She braced herself for the impact as she gave one last reach to the sheet to stop herself.
But the hard impact never came. Instead she was caught the same way one would catch an egg, carefully, stopping her slowly so she didn't shatter into a million pieces. Chris kept her eyes tightly shut and her body completely rigid. She was ready for the pain, but all she could feel was the burning of her hands.
Chris carefully opened her eyes, and found herself looking directly into Zeven's Big. Stupid. Grin. "Shit." And in that moment Chris wished she had died.
Frustrated and in pain, Chris put on the face she used to take charge of situations, "Put me down. Now." Zeven's grip loosened and Chris prepared to be dropped, but at the last minute, Zeven used his arms to swoop her up higher into the air and in a more comfortable position, for him. "No can do, princess." He smiled, "See, I knew you'd fall for me one day." Chris saw red, using the elbow trapped between her and Zeven she jabbed it into his ribs and taking her burning red hands gave a shove to his chest pushing her out of his arms.
Back on her own feet she took off running. Right into the dense tree line where Zeven had previously been hiding. Zeven, who had not been hurt by Chris's sudden attack, sighed before counting to 10 giving Chris a head start. 1. inhale 2. Exhale 3. inhale 4. Exhale 5. Roll shoulders 6. Get into a runner's stance 7. Bend back leg 8. Inhale 9. Exhale 10. Go. Chris was fast, but he knew the area. it took him no time to catch up to her and less time still to throw her to the ground.
The wind was knocked out of her as she hit the ground. Zeven was already on top of her, Chris grabbed a handful of dirt and flung it into his eyes. Temporarily blinded Zeven drew back trying to wipe his face, Chris took that brief second to throw a hook to his cheek. It connected with a thud, but Zeven didn't even seem to notice. If not for the red already starting to blossom on his check, she would never have guessed it had actually landed. Zeven's usual smile was gone, but it wasn't replaced by anything. There were no emotions, no pain showing from behind his mask. He looked like the perfect soldier; a blank husk of a man with only one goal.
Zeven's reprease lasted only briefly before he swooped back down to pin Chris's arms, who was still beneath him. There was now a clairity in his eyes that was missing before, like the flame on a candle. He didn't smile as he looked down on Chris from above. Both of them were breathing heavily, lungs trying to take back what had been stolen.
After waiting for another moment, he stood up, and stepped to the side. Dusting his hands on his pants he took another deep breath and held out a freshly wiped hand to Chris. A peace offering of sorts. Chris looked at the hand and then to the man it belonged to. Her choices were limited, but she did have choices. If she played nice now her chance would come again. She was sure of it.
She raised her hand to meet his. As skin touched skin she hissed at the pain that arose from her abraded palm. Zeven in an uncharacteristic show of compassion let go of her hand and found grip on her forearm before pulling her up.
The adrenaline leaving her body, Chris started to feel the full pain of the friction burn caused by her trying to grab onto the sheet while falling. In a small attempt to protect them she curled them in and held them close to her chest.
Carefully, but with purpose Zeven put his hand on the small of her back and began guiding them to the house.
Leaves and dirt stuck out of Chris's hair and her clothes are thoroughly soiled. Zeven was also covered in dirt, his brow was sweaty and the cheek Chris had struck was starting to swell.
The pair looked worse for wear but thankfully Gunter didn't say anything as he opened the front door for them. Zeven continued to lead Chris to the foot of the staircase, "Go bathe." His tone left little to be debated, but Chris found fault- "what am I supposed to change into-" "You should have thought about before you had your outburst." Zeven was devoid of his usual humor, "Nevermind," he said, "I'll figure it out." He turned on his heel and left her alone.