Lost Youth

She nods a little at his words. "Thank you for saving me. I don't think I'll ever be able to thank you enough for that." She smiles softly.

Looking to the horses ,she gently petted them again. "I am glad they are both safe too.." she smiles warmly.
 
Travis smiled, taking her hand and inspecting her wrists, running his hands gently along the healing scars,
"I could not leave you there, it went against everything in me to leave you here."

"Travis!" Martha's voice sung across the manor grounds. Travis sighed,
"Yes, Martha?"
"Bring that poor girl inside before she collapses from heat stroke. I need you to help turn the vegetable garden!"
Travis sighed and smiled gently, "We better go before she sends Toby after us."
 
As his fingers touched the scars, she watched the movement feeling it. Her wrists had faired better than her back it seemed. In the chaos of everything she had even forgotten about them. "I will always be grateful for that." She murmurs to him.

She smiles as she hears Martha yelling. It was a wonder that the woman hadn't sent Toby already out there after them. Nodding softly to Travis. "Alright." She says.

Gently she gave both Rose and Old Fellow a kiss on the muzzle and a final pat before she walked with Travis back to the manor to go inside.
 
Travis smiled, kissing the tips of her fingers gently, "I'm the one who should be thankful."
He led her around the back of the big house, to a sprawling and beautifully designed vegetable and herb garden. Martha was already standing there, hands on hips, Toby was bent double in a garden bed, sweat plastering his blonde hair to his head.
"About time you showed up," He groaned, "Start pulling, baby brother."
Travis rolled his eyes, pointing out some chairs in the shade for Lena, "If you'd like to sit down, I'm sure Martha will have something to keep your hands busy, if you want, or you can read one of the books she keeps there, although she tells us she never stops working and doesn't get any time to read."
"I have to do something while I wait for bread to rise," Martha said. She smiled at Lena, "You're welcome to the books, or I would appreciate some potatoes peeled for dinner."
 
It was hard not to feel the love that was flowing between the brothers. It was a good love, nothing like what those other brothers had shown at all to each other or her for that matter. Seeing the chairs he had pointed to, she nods softly and starts to walk that way. Another smile touched her lips as she looks to Martha. She barely knew the woman but she felt great respect for her.

"I can defiantly help with the potatoes." She says smiling again. The least she could do would be able to help out and peeling potatoes should be something she could do without stressing herself so much which would keep everyone from worrying about her she hoped. She didn't like when she got the worry looks.
 
Travis began working alongside his brother, removing the plants that had finished their lifespan and adding them to the compost pile. Then the pair of them grabbed hoes and began to turn the soil, working the rich, black richness over and over.
Martha smiled and fetched the bag of potatoes and a bowl to put the peeled spuds into.
"The peelings can go straight to the compost and help other plants grow," The cook smiled, "I much prefer to grow what we need than to have to buy it all the time."
 
Getting comfortable in the seat, she began the process of peeling the potatoes. "How many potatoes do you want peeled? Just fill the bowl?" She asks curiously. She was careful and made sure not to peel towards herself, something she had done for the brothers before was prepare meals but this felt different instantly. She didn't feel the loom of what happens after meals at all. If anything, she was looking forward to when everyone was together and around one another for once. There wasn't that darkness that waited for her.

She looks over at the men as they turned the soil for Martha. The soft breeze that picked up sent the scent of the freshly turned soil into the air. It was a comforting smell in a way. New growth would be under way soon she was sure. It was comforting in its self. As she continued with the task of peeling the potatoes to the correct amount that Martha wanted, she listened to the sounds of the men working, the horses in the paddocks and the birds as they sang.
 
"Fill the bowl as much as you can," Martha said, "There's these three fools to feed, plus yourself and all the staff. So lots of mouths to feed."
Martha was shelling peas into another bowl.

Travis began to gently remove tiny saplings from their pots and plant them. Toby was working ahead of him, making small holes for the infant plants to be deposited into.

Hooves clattered on the cobblestones. Trey dismounted and handed off his horse to a stableboy. He walked around to the group in the garden, sweat and dust from the road still covered his face, but he was smiling.
"We'll have the bailiff come around for dinner and stay the night as well," He said, "He'll be a way behind me, his bones don't like hard riding anymore."
 
Lena nods softly at Martha and kept up a steady pace of peeling the potatoes. She did what she could to fill the bowl, topping it pretty good.

As she heard the sounds of hooves, she looks in the direction. Soon seeing that Trey had returned. His words made her pause a little in her peeling. They would know soon enough then who she was. The feeling of nervousness was filling her again. Did she really want to know? She knew though that she had to know and it really wouldn't be fair for her to refuse to know just because she was scared.

It was a few hours later before the sounds of more horses arriving filled the air. One was an elder man that sat upon a horse that matched his age. His grey hair a mess from the ride. Hands that were rough from holding a weapon and his face stern from everything those eyes had seen in his time. Dismounting, he let the stable hand tend to his horse.

The second man was tall, his hair a dark red, and clothes of finer quaility. The family crest ring resting on his left hand index finger. He was almost the spitting image of Lena in so many ways. As the man dismounted from his own horse, he looked around. His eyes were tired and his expression carefully blank. Could he really be about to see his little girl? He was still wary of it and from what the bailiff had told him, it may not be his same little girl. The elder man wouldn't tell him much though.
 
Martha had readied dinner, but Trey had suggested that they all meet in the less formal sitting room first, the staff were more than welcome to eat first though, knowing that many of them had a long day and were tired.
Travis was sitting in one of the family's overstuffed lounges, one foot balanced on his opposite knee, jingling nervously, although he did try to cover it.
Toby paced before the fireplace.
Both young men had bathed and wore nicer quality clothing than they would normally to a family dinner.

Trey went outside to greet the men and welcome them in. He asked Martha if she could send Sophie in with some drinks, please.
 
The men shook hands with Trey and then followed him inside to the sitting area. The bailiff was more relaxed it seemed but the tall man who's name was Falkor Treavon, was clearly trying to keep calm and patient. After several years of never finding even the body of his little girl, he had hoped against hope that she would still be alive. His wife though, had not fair so well and had become ill a year after the kidnapping. Another year after that and she had passed from the sickness that had weakened her. It had left him alone in the world but now, he had a hope.

Lena had been trying to not be nervous as she sat in a chair. Sophie had helped her clean up earlier from helping with peeling the potatoes so she would be presentable. She was so nervous. She hadn't wanted to take any of the pain meds as she hadn't wanted to feel sleepy during such an important meeting but as she sat there, the tension in her body had made her stiffen up a bit and made her regret not taking the meds.

As the two men entered the room behind Trey. Falkor instantly looked to Lena, it was like staring at his dead wife. His breath caught in his chest and he moved towards her. It was the look of no recognition though that caused him to stop. What was it the Bailiff had said? She may not remember him? He felt his heart break a little as he gazed at her. He forced himself to be patient though and not run to her. She looked so small, so fragile...

His throat felt suddenly dry and he works his mouth a little to try and clear it. What could he say to her?

Lena looked to the men, it was the tall one that had moved towards her. She felt he was familiar but she couldn't pull the memory of him to her mind, nothing. She clenches and unclenches her hands a few times. The hurt in his eyes pulled at her. What could she say to him? She couldn't remember him.
 
Travis rose and knelt beside Lena, placing a hand on hers.
"Lena, it's okay. What ever you remember or don't remember. It's alright," He said softly. He didn't like that she had refused the pain meds earlier, but he knew why she had.
Trey placed his hand on Falkor's shoulder, "Maybe a drink, sir? Over on the sideboard here," He steered the man away a little, giving Lena room to breathe and process.
Toby had stopped pacing, his mouth dropped open in shock.
"You're catching flies, Tobe," Trav said dryly, as Sophie came in with a heavy tray of drinks. Trey quickly relieved her of it and whispered in her ear.
Sophie nodded, casting a worried glance at Lena and darted out of the room.
She returned quickly with a little bottle and went to Lena,
"Martha said this shouldn't make you tired, it doesn't work as well as the sleepy pain killer, but it should help take the edge off if you like." She offered it to the girl, along with a glass of juice.
 
Falkor nodded a little at the elder brother. "Yes...yes of course." He said absently but followed the male away from his daughter. He had to force himself not to just jump over to her. It made him wonder ever more what it was that had happened to his little girl, what had she seen and been through. Then again, she wasn't so little anymore was she?

He accepted the drink that was offered and tried to relax. Did he really want to know what his little girl had been through?

Lena nods a little at Travis and tried to relax but she felt horrible for not knowing who the man was. She felt she should know who he was but she couldn't remember. Quiet tears fell from her eyes as she shakes her head a little and looks down into her lap. She couldn't remember.

When she saw Sophie approach her, it took her a moment to figure out that the woman had spoken to her. Pain killer...yes, she probably should. Her mind felt frazzled at the moment. She tries to clear her head a bit and accepts the glass of juice and the pain meds from Sophie. "Thank you." She says to her. She took the pain meds and tried to relax.
 
Travis gently lifted her from the chair, not caring who saw and sat back down, cradling Lena on his lap, rocking her gently.
"It's okay," He whispered in her ear, "It's not your fault."

Toby rolled his eyes as he moved to join the men around the drinks,
"I guess the cat is out of that bag," He said quietly.
"What?" Trey asked, turning around, "Oh damn, Travis, seriously man?"
Travis curled a lip at his older brother, "Enough Trey, she's scared and upset. If you'd been through what she has, I'd want a little comfort from someone I know cares about me." there was enough venom in his voice to stop an elephant, it wasn't often Travis got angry, but right now he was furious in defense of Lena.
Trey rubbed his forehead, "Thank god you'll never inherit the dukedom, you have no tact, little brother. none at all."
Travis smiled, relaxing a little, "that's why I have you to bail me out of the situations I put myself in."
 
Lena didn't really pay any attention to what anyone was saying at the moment as the quiet tears fell from her eyes. She rested her head on Travis' chest as he rocked her. The movement serving to calm her down some as she closes her eyes and tries to relax even more.

Falkor looked over to find the youngest brother cradling his daughter. The nobleman in him wanted the man away from his daughter but it was the father in him that understood. He even found himself grateful about the fact that even though he could not comfort her, that someone was. It was hard though to watch just the same.

Forcing his eyes away, he recalled the words the man said. "I want to know what happened to her? Where did you find her? All of it." He finishes his drink. Something told him that by the end of the night, he may need something stronger.

The bailiff sighs and drinks quietly a moment as if collecting his thoughts then he nods. "What is said in this room, does not leave this room as I'm sure we all agree upon without it needing to be said, and I'm not talking for the sake of titles but for that girl's sake. As it's been said...she's been through enough."
 
Travis sighed deeply, cuddling Lena closer and rocking her, looking at his brothers who he had spoken to at length the night before.
Toby sat himself down heavily into the couch,
"From what we can gather, all she can remember was waking up to dead bodies, several years ago, she's not even sure how long ago it was. She was found by a slave trader who sold her to be a slave to an elderly woman and her three son."
Trey took over, "The old lady seemed to treat her alright, but her sons are disgusting pieces of work. When she died - well, my lord, you can imagine the treatment of a young lady at the hands of brutes with absolute power. Travis found her some time afterwards. He'd stopped on his way home, by a lake and she came down to fetch water. He paid the men for her and left."
"I knew they wouldn't let us go, I'd dropped the family name so that they wouldn't kill me outright," Travis said, his chin resting on Lena's hair, still rocking her gently. "By the time we got to the city, I figured they had given up or we had slipped past them. Evidently, they were recruiting aide."
"As soon as Trav and Lena left the city, they were ambushed and taken captive once more," Toby said quietly, "Trav was unconscious, but Lena's back was re injured, event though Trav ha spent several days treating the whipmarks and injuries. When Travis came to, he schemed to get them free again. The two bounty hunters helping the brothers, seemed to know something about Lena and wanted to protect her from her old tormentors."
"I convinced them to let me treat her back once again and that she was better off riding with me," Travis said quietly, "That's how we got away, they put me on the old war horse. Lena undid his bridle and I guided him with my knees. We let the horses run home and went up a stream, leaving no tracks until my brothers arrived to help us."
He looked down at Lena, "Do you have anything else to add, sweet?" He asked softly.
 
Lena shakes her head a little. What the brothers had all said had been about everything, she couldn't think of anything else that could be told. Then she thought back to the field of dead bodies, there was something she needed to remember, had to remember about it but she couldn't. She shakes her head a little again, biting her lip.

Falkor tried to prepare himself for what they would tell him but how did one ready themselves to hear the torture and horrible things that his child had gone through. His hands clenched as the story was laid out before him. He looked to his daughter with wide eyes, tears filling them. She had survived all of that? He was astonished about it. He wanted to hold her even more and it was torture not to be able to. He knew though that it would probably only frighten her more.

"I am in your debt for saving her..." He says, swallowing a bit as his mouth felt dry so suddenly. He had failed at doing the one thing every father should do and that was protect their child. He had failed and then had failed to find her when a body hadn't been found. He should have kept looking.

The bailiff sighs a little and nods. "We've been keeping an eye out for the bounty hunters as well as the brothers. So far they have hidden themselves well but we will find them. They have much to answer for."
 
Travis' lips quirked into a smile,
"You two must be related, she keeps saying that too. There is no need, at any point."
Trey shook his head tiredly, "Lad will never make a politician, he's too pure of heart." But he smiled, "Why don't we all head to dinner. Unless," He looked to Lena, "Would you like a moment with your father, alone or with Travis, if you like."
 
Falkor looked to Lean and waited quietly for her response. As much as it was hurting, he knew he had to be patient with her on this.

Lena hesitates a little, "I...would like a moment...but Travis to stay with me.." She says in answer.

He tried to ignore his relief at the words but he was indeed happy to hear them. Falkor waited until everyone else had left to go eat, then moved to a chair near Travis and Lena but not enough to crowd them.

Lena bites her lip a little and looks to the man a little.

Before she could say anything Falkor spoke. "Understand hun...I'm not going to take you away just because I know you are my daughter." He glances to Travis a little. "We can take this slow...Start with us just talking...maybe you can visit the home...but only when you are ready. And it's okay if you don't remember or if your memory never returns. We can make new memories." He smiles gently.

His words relaxed her and she nods slightly. "Okay...." She manages to return his smile, relaxing in Travis' arms a little more. It helped that the pain meds had kicked in as well but it was his words that really helped and that Travis was there with her.
 
Travis smiled a little, glad that Falkor didn't want to upset Lena from the get go.
"Do you have any questions you need to ask?" Travis asked gently.
He looked at Lena's father and said quietly, "I just want you to know sir, I have never crossed any line with your daughter. I am familiar, but we were on the road together for close to two weeks and I was the only medical help available. I've never done anything to hurt or scare Lena and I never would." He paused, then looked at Lena, "I haven't scared you, have I?"
 
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