When You Were Young

Reverend Crane set Prudence on the ground to push aside a boulder guarding the entrance to her prison. She made sure he wasn't watching before she unwrapped herself from the dress and ran towards the river. "Come back here!" he shouted.

Prudence dove into the dark water. The reverend's hand grabbed the ends of her hair for a moment before the current swept her away. Water filled her mouth and lungs as it carried her from the caverns. The current forced her beneath the water, pinning her down no matter how hard she struggled against it. Her efforts slowed until coming to a halt as she blacked out.

She awoke on the familiar bank of the stream near the future site of Eternity. She spit out what seemed like gallons of water onto the beach and wrung another gallon from her hair. Then she dragged herself up the bank and onto a boulder.

She didn't know what to do now. The remaining settlers were on the other side of the island. Four years old, alone, and naked, she didn't think she could get there on her own. This left her with no other choice than to appeal to the savages for help. From Rodney had said their village was near the future site of Eternity. If they killed her, she wouldn't be any worse off than now.

She climbed off the boulder and trudged along the forest path towards where Reverend Crane would build his perfect kingdom if she failed. As she walked, she watched the brush and listened for any more of the black beasts. In this state, she knew one of them could snap her in half with little effort.

The farther she went, the more she longed for Rodney by her side. The comforting warmth of his body, his steady nerves, and boundless optimism could put her at ease in almost any situation. Why did I let him go? she asked herself. If she had only found a way to keep him from going on that doomed mission, then he would still be alive. If she hadn't listened to Reverend Crane and come here, then Rodney would still be alive. If she hadn't married Rodney, then he would still be alive.

She wished she'd been given the chance to go back to that day they met on the roadway. Then she would turn him away so he could go on with his life without her. He would have been much happier then. As for herself, it didn't matter. Since the day Reverend Crane violated her in the forest she'd carried around the weight of that knowledge that in time took the form of weight around her midsection. The reverend's sin had blossomed inside her stomach like the child she could never bear.