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The guard sighed and rolled his eyes. “What’s the name again?”
“Jackson,” Hammer said fiercely. “Charlie Jackson.”
“Merrett!” the guard called to another, stationed closer to the village.
The guard walked over and was given Charlie’s name and the request before heading back into the village. Hammer stood with his hands on his hips, awkwardly waiting in silence with the first guard, who never took his eyes off him.
Hammer turned back to the forest and wondered if she would decline to see him. If she did, he would return to his cabin, having no regrets about trying one more time. The cabin walls might bring loneliness and memories of her for the rest of his life, but he couldn’t sit still any longer.
He heard voices approaching from behind the first guard and squinted, trying to make out the bodies walking toward them. He smiled widely, and his eyes slightly watered as he identified the beautiful woman approaching him.
THIRTY-THREE
CHARLIE
She lay in bed and watched the sunset through her window. She had finished her nightly duties and should have been asleep about two hours ago, but her thoughts kept her awake. It had been weeks since she had last seen Hammer, and she couldn’t help but second-guess her decision every day.
The artifacts and bones she examined kept her entertained and stimulated throughout the days, but the evenings and nights were lonely and cold. She had tried to make new friends at the tavern and had been slightly successful with some of the women her age, but she still returned home alone every night.
Men from the countryside had tried to get her attention, but she wasn’t interested. If she wasn’t ready to settle down with Hammer, she couldn’t be prepared for anyone else. It would have been him if it were to be someone, so why hadn’t she taken the chance?
She shook her head and got out of bed, getting a glass of water from the kitchen. The sound of running water broke the silence surrounding her. She stood in the kitchen, swirling the water in the glass, her eyes locked blankly on the wall.
The thoughts spinning in her head were loud and unavoidable. Hammer would have been a great father, and someday he will be with the right woman. She wanted kids and even craved being a protector and a caregiver, but not right now. The last thing she wanted was to let him down, but she had done it anyway with her rejection of his proposal.
She walked back to bed and told herself it was the right thing to do. It was better to let him down now than in the future when he was more invested. Curling up in her sheets, she closed her eyes and tried to push him out of her mind.
She began to drift off to sleep when she heard a knock on the door. She jolted from her daze and got up from bed, pulling on clothes.
“One second!” she yelled, rubbing her eyes.
She opened the door, and a guard stood stoic as ever. She wrapped her arms around her waist and squinted her eyes, furrowing her brow.
“What can I do for you, sir?” her heart thumped in her chest as she worried she had messed something up at the archaeological site earlier.
“You have a visitor,” the guard declared. “Come with me.”
Charlie looked back at her home and closed the door behind her. She wondered why her father would be here after the sunset, how he even got here in the first place.
She was led to the outskirts of the village, her arms wrapping around her torso to keep her warm in the cold night air.
The moon illuminated the outskirts of the village. The light from the town center didn’t stretch that far. She squinted, trying to make out the figures in the field before her. She saw a guard dressed in typical robes and a tall man behind him.
As she got closer, she made out Hammer’s facial features. Her heart leapt in her chest, and her eyes watered as she broke into a sprint.
“Hammer?” she exclaimed excitedly.
He laughed and opened his arms as she rushed to him, hugging him tightly. He staggered back slightly from her force and put his hand on the back of her head, kissing it before embracing her tighter.
“What are you doing here?” she asked, pulling back and placing her hands on his face.
“I had to see you,” he said, brushing her hair out of her face.
“But, your house, the mountain, I …”
“None of it matters,” he stated firmly, grinning. “I had it, I did it all, but you weren’t there.”
She closed her eyes and buried her head in his chest. He held her again, playing with her hair lightly.
