Chapter 21: Forbidden Love

Time was flying from day into weeks, and their love for one another was getting stronger. Most of the time they share, as they share all hopes, dreams, and fears. Sitting one day at the river, Nathaniel pulled gently out and took Emma's hand. "I love you, Emma," Nathaniel told her. The beating of her heart against her ribs was the only thing she heard; it was what had been keeping her alive all along. "I love you too," she whispered back. Nathaniel dragged her into his arms and kissed her fiercely. They stayed that way, wrapped in their world, as Emma felt the peace and contentment of a sort she had never felt before. Meanwhile, Olivia and Henry were consummating their taboo love. She had always felt drawn to Henry's passiveness, knowing full well it was complicated. Henry was the heir apparent of the Caldwell estate-a very powerful family with an extremely long history in Eldridge Falls. His family would have a cow if they knew he was associated with Olivia. With both aware of the risks, neither Olivia nor Henry could help the way each felt about the other. They continued seeing each other, their love a flame that burned so bright, yet could easily be extinguished. But one mysterious message brought them back from the joy of enjoying new happiness. It was unsigned but gave a hint. "The treasure lies where the shadows meet the light," it read. Immediately, Emma and Nathaniel were racked with curiosity and arousal. They knew indeed that something of importance was being hidden by the Order of the Veil, and determined they were to find it. Days were spent poring over old maps and documents in trying to decipher the clue. It was then that I realized the message was talking about some hidden chamber beneath the old church. Emma and Nathaniel entered the church. Through a loose stone in the wall was a secret passage that plunged deep beneath the church to a hidden chamber of ancient artefacts. Looking around them in the chamber, they suddenly heard a noise. Somebody was coming. Emma and Nathaniel each seized the nearest artefact to themselves and retreated towards a pillar where they could safely hide. Through the entrance, they watched a pool clear into a group of hooded figures. The hooded figures were members of the Order of the Veil-they had come for the artefact which Emma and Nathaniel had pulled. They then began to chant some kind of ancient words in preparation for a ritual. Thereafter, Emma and Nathaniel knew they needed to stop them. They stepped out from behind the pillar and faced the hooded figures. A fight ensued: Emma and Nathaniel fought bravely, but the other ones outnumbered them. It almost seemed that they were about to lose when a figure came out of the shadows. It was Silas. Silas had followed the hooded figures; he wanted to know what they were up to. He watched them enter the church and knew an intervention was necessary. Silas fought gallantly-his manner with a sword unbeatable. He fought off the hooded figures long enough for Emma and Nathaniel to get away. A loud explosion of sorts rang out as they ran from the church-the hooded ones had set off some sort of trap, and the collapsing chamber was coming down. Gravel was pounded by feet as Emma and Nathaniel turned around to see, in utter horror, the church started to crumble. They knew right there and then they needed to run, or they would be buried alive. The town would be in danger, with Emma and Nathaniel having to win out against the greatest challenge of the Order of the Veil closing in, step by step. Would they succeed in fleeing the church before the tunnel collapsed, or somehow manage to stop the sinister plans of the Order? As for Olivia and Henry, did the love they shared come first above all things forbidden?