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‘I told you. He’ll be a little saddened, for a while. Then I will be there to pick up the pieces and step into your shoes.’
‘You sad bitch. You really believe that, don’t you?! You’re warped!’
Bang! The gun went off and Freya screamed out loud, closing her eyes in anticipation of pain. Pain didn’t come and she turned around to face Sasha. The woman was stood, looking furious, the gun pointed to the sky.
‘If you make one more comment like that… one more… I swear to God, I’ll blow you away.’
Sasha’s teeth were bared, her expression wild and Freya’s heart sank to the floor. How was she going to get out of this one?
‘Get on the bridge,’ Sasha ordered, turning Freya back around and pushing her shoulder roughly.
Tears running down her face, Freya reluctantly stepped onto the bridge and began to walk along it.
She had never felt so terrified and all she could think of was Nicholas and their baby. The baby she hadn’t really wanted, hadn’t been planning for. The baby she now so desperately longed to protect.
‘So, what do you really know about these bridges, Freya?’ Sasha asked as she followed her across the wooden slats.
‘I… they were built by the Christian Fathers so people could get across the river to the churches in the area,’ Freya spoke quickly, trying to compose herself.
‘That’s right, they were. You see, since you seem to have made these bridges something of a muse, I thought I would look into what fascinated you about them.’
‘I just think the designs are wonderful and the rural location makes them even more spectacular.’
Her lips were dry and the cold, winter wind was sucking the moisture from them as they walked.
The clouds were even darker out here than in Mayleaf. There was a storm brewing.
‘Hmm, as I thought. You don’t really know anything about what happened here.’
‘Something happened here? What, like an important event?’ Freya inquired.
‘It was important to a lot of people at the time, yes. Stop!’ Sasha ordered.
Freya shivered and did as she was told, coming to rest at the middle of the bridge.
‘“Glory to the Father, leave sorrow behind and take hope from the past”,’ Sasha spoke as she came up beside Freya and ran her fingers across the inscription on the side of the bridge.
‘You know what that means?’ Freya asked through chattering teeth.
‘Oh yes, I know what it means. And you’re going to find out exactly what it means.’
Sasha produced the white cloth she’d been holding earlier. Before Freya had a chance to react, she pulled it across Freya’s face as a blindfold. She tied it tightly around the back of her head and Freya was then unable to see.
‘Sasha, please. Don’t do this. There’s still a chance to stop all this. We’ll forget about everything, no charges for anything. Just let me go,’ Freya pleaded.
She was completely disorientated. She couldn’t see anything through the cloth at all. She felt sick and dizzy and her heart galloped.
‘Let’s duck underneath these railings and see if we can smell the water,’ Sasha suggested.
She pushed Freya underneath the rails, holding her by her bound wrists.
Freya let out a cry and held her breath, unable to get her bearings. She felt off-kilter, unable to balance.
‘The Christian Fathers were all a bit mad, Freya. Oh, they were all very charity-driven, a bit like you. But they didn’t like change. They didn’t like revolution, or growth of knowledge, or advances in the world. They built themselves a commune. A town within a town. They barred themselves from the outside world. But, one day, after months of meetings and deliberations, the authorities took it upon themselves to break into the commune and threaten its existence. The law couldn’t allow people to live against their rules, creating different values from the ones everyone else adhered to. They were warned, they were told they had to integrate,’ Sasha explained.
‘What happened?’
If she kept her talking, it would buy time and she could get a feel for her position on the bridge. She had to try and stay calm.
