From the Beginning: The Old World Read Online Free PDF Page B

knowledge that he was alive, breathed courage and a regenerated spirit into everyone.
    “As far as I am concerned, he can stay crippled, and we will tend to him like a baby—as long as he stays with us, to lead us and tell us what to do!” said someone in the group. The mere thought shook me to my core. I could not envision Eddie handicapped or maimed, yet I couldn’t disagree with that statement. That is how much everyone relied on Eddie.
    The hours went by. The evening’s darkness penetrated into the cave as well, and Eddie showed no signs of recovery. My entire body felt fossilized, and the blood stopped flowing to my feet. The shimmering light from Roan’s flashlight was shining at me when he came and offered to relieve me from my shift.
    “I can’t leave him. I am scared that if I do not touch him constantly, he will disappear on me again…” I revealed my irrational logic to him.
    “I understand you, Grace, but you must rest a little too. There is no point in having two welfare cases in one day!” he winked at me. I always adored people with a sense of humor that knew when to say the right thing and bring a smile to my face.
     
    I used to be like that , I remembered. Before I got married, before I got divorced, before the world sank into the deep, before I lost my child, my family, everything and nearly Eddie.
    “If you help me, we can lay him beside me so I can stay close to him. I have no idea how long he will be unconscious, but something inside tells me that warmth and touch—and a lot of love—” I almost whispered, “are the most vital essentials needed right now for his recovery!”
    Roan nodded and co-operated immediately. He supported Eddie’s limp body, and I removed my body from under him. I stretched and moved my numb legs, shaking them carefully feeling the known tingling sensations of the blood resuming its flow to the tip of my toes. I put another blanket on the ground where Eddie would lie, situated myself on the ground and signaled to Roan that I was ready.
    In spite of his size and his clumsy look, Roan’s movements were very gentle as he laid Eddie at my side. In spite of Roan’s best efforts, he couldn’t have known of Eddie’s internal injuries. Any touch on one of Eddie’s affected organs hurt him immensely–and the pain woke him once more from his faint.
    “Grace? Grace…?” Eddie called out in a vague whisper.
    “I am here, Eddie! I’m here!” I replied, excited, and moved even closer to him so he could feel my body and warmth.
    I hoped that the knowledge of my presence would penetrate his conscious mind, but Eddie was even more phased than we realized and kept calling to me. “Grace! Grace—Don’t listen to them!” His meaningless words caused Roan and me to look at each other with wonder.
    “Eddie! Eddie, it’s me, Grace! I’m right here beside you!” I turned to him in a louder voice, stroking his face, trying to focus his look and attention on me. His eyes fluttered when he tried to open them, and he gave me a little smile because he recognized me. Tears of excitement came to my eyes.
    “Grace…” he whispered. “My beautiful one. Don’t cry. I will not let them hurt you again…” his good hand caressed my face.
    My tears of joy were exchanged by the confused looks I gave Roan, who seemed as much worried and absent-minded as I was.
    “What are you talking about, Eddie? Who wants to hurt me?” I asked with concern, hoping to receive a more logical explanation from him.
     
    “I will not let them ruin it for us again, Grace. Even if my family excommunicates us, I will not leave you…” he proclaimed exhaustingly and again sunk into oblivion.
    “At least we got an answer!” Roan tried to joke again when he saw the astounded look on my face.
    “I never imagined he suffered as much…” I confessed, recalling all the painful events I suppressed, which happened about a decade ago when I left Eddie after I could no longer bear his parents’