THE FIRE WITHIN
Chapter Eleven
Amsterdam sat and watched Jenny
on the stage, seeing Bill throw the daggers at her. He lurched forward every
time, worried about what might happen to her if Bill knew who he was, if he
didn't know already. He worried about everything--Christa, Jenny, and Michael.
What would happen to them? He loved Jenny, but he loved Christa more, and what
about Michael, his son? He hadn't thought about all that ‘til now. But he must
follow through, for all that he cared about. Something had to be set right, for
he would pave the road for his child and for every child in the world.
When Jenny made a pun about
Bill's throwing, he threw a dagger at her, cutting her neck. She looked at
Amsterdam, scared.
Amsterdam knew something was up
then. He knew Bill knew about him, but he decided to go through with it anyway.
When Bill held up a flaming drink
in his hand and mentioned his father, Amsterdam threw a knife at him.
Bill deflected the knife.
Amsterdam had missed.
Bill threw one right at him,
hitting his stomach.
Amsterdam fired a pistol.
"That's a wound!" he
retorted. "I would like all of you to meet the son of Priest Vallon. He
tried to kill me like a sneak thief," he announced. "McGloin, splay
him out," Bill told him.
*****
Christa wondered what all the
commotion was about. She entered toward the center of the salon. She saw Bill
standing over Amsterdam. She ran toward them.
Bill's men held her back before
she could go any further.
"Please, Bill, let him go,"
she pleaded.
"You side with traitors
rather than your own blood?" he asked, holding his hatchet above
Amsterdam's head.
"And you trade your
great-nephew for nothing?" she screamed back at him.
"It wasn't for nothing, my
pet. You were to marry Joseph." He lay down the hatchet near Amsterdam's
head.
"How could you? You had no
right. I wasn't for sale." She was upset and angered, more than she ever
had been.
"It was for a better
life." He tried to justify his actions.
"I would rather live with
Amsterdam and Michael in the streets than have a rich husband." She
brushed past his men and went to Amsterdam.
"You named him Michael
Ryan?" he asked.
"No, I named him Michael
Vallon!" She looked up at him with a vicious glare.
"No! Not Vallon!" Bill
looked at Amsterdam and grabbed him up. "Is this true?" he asked him.
"She was the best whore I
ever had." Amsterdam smiled and spit in his face.
Bill got mad and head-butted
Amsterdam repeatedly until blood splattered everywhere.
Christa screamed and fainted,
seeing the blood on his face.
*****
Christa woke up saying
Amsterdam's name. She got up quickly.
She woke up to find herself naked
and in bed. She pulled down the sheets, only to find a man beside her.
"Amsterdam?" She
touched the man's hair.
Joseph turned around.
"Ah…you’re up," he
said.
"Please tell me this is a
dream." She got out of bed and put on her clothes, which were soaked with
blood.
"It is not," he said,
and got up.
"Did we fuck?" she
asked, not caring that she had said the word.
"No. Why?" he asked,
looking at her.
"Just wondering." She
looked at him. He was nothing like Amsterdam. "Where's Amsterdam?"
she asked.
"Who?" He had no idea
who she was talking about.
"My husband." She
looked over at him.
"You’re already
married?" He was surprised that no one had ever mentioned that she was
married.
"No, but we might as well
be. Where's Michael?" She had not seem him all day and wondered if he was
hungry.
"Sound asleep in the
carriage. Why?" He checked the infant.
"Would you mind taking care
of him?" she asked.
"Sure, but where are you
going?" He wondered where she would be going at three AM.
"I am going to go pay a
visit to a friend. Do you mind?" She felt that she didn't owe him a thing.
"No, just asking. Christa, I
am really not a bad person," he tried to tell her.
"Me, either. Thanks,
Joseph." She left, closing the door and sneaking out.
*****
She went to where she knew it was
safe. It was the only place she had known when she was tortured by Bill.
When she stepped forward into the
hallway, Jenny came at her with a gun.
"Oh, it's you." She put
down the gun.
"How is he?" Christa
asked.
"Fine. The doctor came to
see him. He will heal in a few days," Jenny informed her.
"Thanks, Jenny." She
hugged her.
"You’re welcome." Jenny
stepped back, watching her go to him.
"Can I?" Christa asked.
"Sure. Go ahead." Jenny
let her go to Amsterdam.
She saw him. He looked terrible.
"I love you, Amsterdam. I am
so sorry." She cried silently.
"Christa?" he asked
lightly.
"I'm here." She grabbed
his hand.
"Michael?" he asked.
"He's fine. He's with
Joseph. We're okay, Amsterdam. Don't worry about us." She brushed his
hair, trying to make his worry go away.
"You needn't be sorry, for
it wasn't your fault. I am sorry for calling you a whore." He turned
around to hug her.
"It's okay. I knew you
weren't angry at me, but I feel responsible. Amsterdam, if I had never come, I
would have never created this mess."
"What mess? Do you know you
are what keeps me alive each day? Not to mention Tommy, who has become a great
warrior. I can't imagine a day without you." He held onto her.
"How can you say that when I
share a monster's blood?" Christa felt angered by that.
"Blood isn't everything,
Christa," he reminded her.
"Isn't it? My uncle killed
your father. If I could have stopped that, I would have." She bent down to
kiss his lips.
"I know you would have, and
I don't want you to be sorry about all this. Listen. Go take care of our son.
He's the only thing that was good that came out of this tragedy, except you, of
course." He tried to make her see that she was not the guilty party in
this whole mess.
"I will. I don't deserve
you." She turned away.
"You're wrong. You deserve
way more than I can offer you." He got up, clutching his ribs.
"Jenny?" She turned
around.
"Yeah, Christa?" Jenny
replied.
"If you need anything, you
know where I'll be." She smiled back at Amsterdam.
"Yeah. I know where you are.
Don't worry. He will be fine." Jenny wanted to tell her that she would
have done it anyway, despite Christa, but she didn't say a word.
"I owe you, Jenny."
Christa hugged her.
"Don't worry, Christa. Once
he regains his strength, everything will be all right." Jenny felt close
to Christa, not like her competition.
"I hope so. Good-bye,
Amsterdam." She waved adieu to both of them.
"Bye." She went up to
him and kissed him on the lips before leaving.
Christa now had to settle the
score, not only for Amsterdam, but for herself, also.
*****
The next few days went by.
Christa called on Marie.
"Marie, I need your help. I
need you to take my son with Tommy to Kerry." Christa wrapped the baby up.
"But where will I go? I’ve
got no money," Marie told her.
"Don't worry. I have some
saved. I want you to take my baby out of New York." Christa got an
envelope and gave it to her.
"But, Miss, I can't,"
Marie told her, holding Michael.
"Don't worry. I trust
you." Christa had gotten them both tickets on the next voyage to Ireland.
"Go to Kerry. Tommy will know where to go. It's the only safe place in
Ireland. Tommy and I have connections there, so there is no need to worry,"
Christa tried to assure her.
Christa sneaked out of the house
with Marie and the baby. Tommy came along.
"Tommy, thanks for doing
this." She kissed him on the lips.
"No problem, Christa."
He took the infant from Marie.
"Take him to Kerry. You know
where," Christa told him.
"Yeah. I promise you, I will
guard him with my life." Tommy held the baby close to him.
"You’d better. I will get
there as soon as I can." She smiled at him.
"All right. Bye,
Christa." He hugged her and kissed her good-bye.
"Bye, Marie, Tommy."
She waved good-bye from the shore as the ship left. She cried as her baby and
her best friend left to her hometown.
*****
She now had time to figure out
what she was going to do. She went into the dirt-covered cavern. It was empty.
She went into the church to pray. Everyone was inside.
"Christa, what are you doing
here?" Amsterdam asked.
"I came to join you."
She stood by his side.
"Why? I told you to stay
with Michael." He was worried about his son.
"Don't worry. He is fine and
out of here." She felt guilty for not telling him, but she knew he might
have been angry with her decision to send Michael away.
"Out of here?" He
waited for her to explain herself.
"I told Tommy and Marie to
take him out of town. He's going to Kerry. I’ve got to settle a score with my
uncle," she explained, but was afraid he wouldn't understand.
"I don't want you to get
killed." He pushed her back against the wall.
"Killed? I am good, just as
he is." She got her knife, and hit a man's hat on the wall a few yards
away.
"Nice," he said, amazed
by her talent.
"That's what the Cutting
blood has taught me. So, what's the plan?" She smiled at him.
"We still need to gather
men, so we’re not ready to fight yet. But by the time we are, we will be ready."
Since Michael was out of harm's way, he felt safe for once in his life, and
without worry.