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Four days later, Marshall was laid to rest in the family vault He was there; he told her he’d be back; he’d help her until it was tiain

To help her, so he said

And he was kind at first He helped her haul in some water Heher that she needed whiskey She drank it She would have enjoyed the entire bottle It warmed her It nu, and she didn’t really care

But then he knelt by her feet and started to rub them, and she was instantly alarmed

"Emma…"

"No, no, stop!"

"You need me here"

"My husband is barely dead!"

"It’s a harsh world, Eet worse with the war You know you need h this, and by God, if I’m to be a man for you, you will be a woman for an to teeter She fell, and fell into his aran spinning, but it was still full of agony

Then she felt hi at her clothing

No!

But his hand fell over herripped from her She couldn’t believe it This was a friend…

No…

She was powerless

Help…

The word escaped her

And she still felt him, the bastard on top of her, felt her flesh, his flesh, but it wasn’t her; no one could really touch her anymore

Then help came at last, and he was ripped from her She tried to stumble up, tried to call out…

Ashley jerked up

Tears were strea down her cheeks Her body felt bruised--and violated

But nothing had happened She was in her own bedroo was intact She hadn’t been touched

Not in this world, not in this ti out at the cemetery where he had died

She realized that he had led her to the battle, but that so else had happened in her dream She had seen what he had never seen

One of his own men had betrayed him after his death and violated his wife

He turned to her "Battle is ugly It is blood and slashed lily, and perhaps we all sin e take up arht," she whispered

He caht she felt his hands on her shoulders "Yes, battles ht and holy But we need to be sure of what is right and holy before going to war" He winced "Those ht deht, they ressors"

He pulled her against hith of his chest, and of his ed to learn--in his afterlife She felt tears on her cheeks again, and she heard hiain to defend you I failed ain"

Jake was surprised at how emotional it was to drop Beth off in the French Quarter They were on Royal Street, in front of the hotel where they had stayed after the Holloway age easily for the day

"You go on and solve this thing so that I can come back!" Beth told the I’net at Café du Monde, and then I’ll be onthe car at street parking on Decatur Street and starting off on foot As they walked, Jackson made the necessary phone calls

Fifteen minutes later, Justin Binderdown frohters and told them he’d meet up with them for dinner as they went off with his o to my hotel room and talk there," Justin told them

Jake hoped immediately that Justin was all that he seemed: a family man who respected his mother-in-law and loved his children

His hotel room was a little suite with a bedroo with the children while Justin took the couch in the parlor area He apologized; the housekeeping staff hadn’t been up yet, and Justin closed the couch quickly so that they could sit

"I heard about the latest," Justin said, sitting "The newscaster and Toby Keaton He was all right I was so sorry to hear about hireith the creatures, spent his life around theators," Jackson said