Dwellers of the New World Chapter Nine ( Pt 10 ) The Moors

Brad was still fuming at what this man Gregor had done to his friend,
he was determined one way or the other, that such an evil man would not get away with hurting the travellers.

As they reached the moors, they were now out of sight of the barracks, there was no way he was going to lead his friends across the rough terrain in the pitch black.

He told Rue that they must stop to rest, but be ready to move at first light. The travellers huddled together where they were and tried to make the best of the situation. Brad pulled his heavy fur wrap around his shoulders, resting his eyes, but still aware of what was going on around him.

A fine misty rain began to fall, as slowly the first light began to appear, clouds filled the sky, hanging around as the wind had now passed. Brad opened his eyes, feeling stiff. Stretching his arms in the air, he told Rue to let the people know they were ready to go.

Rue jumped down from the wagon, and went to let everyone know that they were ready to move off, but to be extremely careful, due to the deep crevices that inhabited the moor. He also informed them they were in for a rocky ride and to hold on tight.

Then he went to check on Joe, who was being looked after by Sam.
Pulling the curtain back he enquired, “how is he?”

Sam turned to face Rue. “He's breathing okay, but he's still not come round.”

“Okay...give us a shout if there's any change. We're moving off now, the moors will be pretty bumpy, so hold on tight.”

Sam said he understood, then went back to watching his friend. In spite of all their disagreements they'd had, Joe was like a brother to him, he couldn't imagine anything bad happening to his companion.

Rue climbed back up on the wagon next to Brad. “Okay...everyone's
ready to go.”

Brad geed up the horses, as they set off. The bumpy ground soon woke
Cinnamon, she started to moan and groan a bit, then yawned as she came round. Suddenly she was aware of the movement of the wagon.
“What's going on...where am I?” she panicked.

Daisy had been napping and was suddenly roused by the sound of the girl's voice. She opened her eyes to see Cinnamon bolt upright.

“It's okay your in safe hands.” She knew it would be her job to inform
Cinnamon as to what was going on.

“But why are we moving...where are we?” the girl cried out in alarm.

“Listen...we had to keep you asleep, some bad men came with torches, they told us if we didn't move on, then they would torch and burn down our wagons, they wouldn't even let us stay till first light. Then when we finally did leave, we were approached by this really bad man, who then shot Joe, it was horrible. Poor Joe's in Brad's wagon.”

Cinnamon was so distraught, she could hardly take in everything the girl was saying. “But...but I have to go home, my family will be worried about me, work will be wondering where I am, I shall be in so much trouble.” She began to cry, tears stinging her cheeks. “Oh...what have I done?” she exclaimed.

Daisy came and put her arm around the girl. “There...there, I'm sorry my friend, but we couldn't risk those bad men finding you, we could have been taken prisoner for kidnapping, they would never have believed we saved you.”

“So where are we now?” Cinnamon asked, wiping the tears away with the back of her hand.

“We're crossing the moor, heading down to the ocean,” replied Daisy.

Cinnamon began to panic again, jumping out of bed. “No...no, I can't go down to the ocean, it's too dangerous and I'm not allowed...please stop the wagon, I have to get off.” Coming to standing, she suddenly stumbled, feeling dizzy and weak.

Daisy stood up, grabbing the girl, she lifted her back on to the bed.
“Look Cinnamon, I know you've had a nasty shock, but you must lay still, you're in no fit state to go walking back across the moor, anyway
you're still wearing Cassia's dress, she won't be too pleased if she doesn't get it back.” Daisy smiled, trying to make light of the situation.

Cinnamon lay back down, feeling the warmth of the sheepskin. She thought about how worried her parents would be, when they found her missing, not knowing where she was. “Will Joe be al right?” she asked, changing the subject.

“I don't really know,” replied Daisy. “He's in the back of Brad's wagon with Sam. I hope he is okay though, cause he's a good friend and doesn't deserve to die.”

Daisy then thought about the weapon that Joe was shot with. “That man that shot Joe, had a very strange weapon, it was like a lightening
bolt struck him...never seen anything like it before.”

Cinnamon suddenly thought about Dawson, the weapon sounded very much like something that belonged to him. “Poor Joe...I hope he'll be okay. I'm so sorry you're in this mess, but you see I've never been this far away from home, my parents don't allow us to wander far, they will be so worried,” said Cinnamon, feeling a little calmer.

“I understand,” Daisy replied. “But there's nothing we can do now. On the way back, we'll take you to where you need to be, but for now, at least your safe.”

Cinnamon felt safe enough, but she'd heard so many bad stories of the ocean people, that she couldn't help wondering what was in store, then she wondered what had become of Dawson, maybe she was a little closer to finding out, just where Gregor had sent him.