Sunlight. Bright and shining. My eyes fluttered open, and I rolled over and clutched my head, trying to stop the throbbing that rang through it. I lay there for an hour, flitting in and out of sleep, my mind discombobulated and confused until I finally sat up and instantly regretted it.

My limbs felt like spaghetti, and I shook out my arm to only gasp at the pain that shot through it and gape at the bandages that went from my elbow all the way to my fingers. "Oh good, you're awake." I snapped my head from my cast to the voice, and found myself looking at a dark-skinned woman with silky black hair wearing a white coat smiling down at me.

"Who are you? Where am I?" I asked the strange woman, my eyes for the first time taking in my surroundings. I was in a wooden cabin--I could tell from the mahogany walls, floors, and ceiling-- and was laying a comfortable cotton bed with a wool blanket over me, keeping me warm. A few cabinets were in the corner, their counters covered in bottles of medicines and remedies, and a sink stood in the opposite side of the room next too a long table.

The woman sat on the side of my bed and I flinched as she nudged my trembling legs away so she had more room. "Rose, my name is Kimberlee, I'm your personal nurse that General George Washington made sure you would get. You're in the city of Trenton and in a cabin where I will take care of you; last week you were found half-alive on the battlefield, covered in snow and blood.

Speaking of blood, you lost a lot of it, and you were taken here by a girl named Josie, who claimed to be your "good friend." She said, looking at me for an explanation. But I wasn't listening, for in that moment all of yesterday's events crashed over me.

The battle. Fighting and losing Josie. Greg's plan to kill me. Charlie's dead. Oliver's dead. The thought ran through my head like a symphony, the notes dancing in every part of my brain, causing me to sob. "You okay Rose?" Kimberlee asked anxiously, watching my shaking shoulders as tears poured down the light pink nightgown I guessed--and hoped--Kimberlee had put on me.

"Oliver. He's dead." I choked out, and Kimberlee's expression softened, looking at me with sympathy. "Was that the young man you were on top of?" She asked, and I nodded, choked up. "I'm very sorry." She said softly, and I continued to cry, the sorrow finally setting in and swallowing me whole.

I wanted to die, to crawl in a hole and forget that I ever existed, to pretend like Oliver was still alive, that there ever was a way for us to be together. Kimberlee--bless her soul--sat with me and soothingly rubbed my back until I had cried so much I couldn't any longer.

"I'm very, very sorry for your loss Rose. But there are a few things that I want to go over with you." She said gently, and I rubbed my eyes with my fingers, sorrow eating my insides. "O-O-Okay." I stuttered, and Kimberlee patted my hand. "Well first, we should go over your medical injuries." She said, taking a deep breath. "You've been in a coma for a week."

I sat up at her words, my jaw hanging open. "Wait. So Oliver didn't die yesterday... he died a week ago?" I asked, my chest compressing. "Yes." Kimberlee said. "We weren't sure you were going to make it Rose. You had a lot of internal injuries we didn't know we could fix, and your arm was messed up a lot. But you woke up, and here we are." She said, and I nodded, stunned.

"Okay. Is there anything else I should know?" I asked, and Kimberlee nodded, her lips pursed. "There are a few people that came to visit you. If you're not ready to see them yet that's okay. I can tell them to come back later." She suggested, but I shook my head. "I want to see them." I said, and Kimberlee nodded. "Okay. I'll bring them in." She stood before pushing open the door to the cabin and leaving me alone.

Who would come to see me? I thought, biting my lip in anticipation. My thought was answered when, to my absolute and utter shock, my mother walked through the door. "Mom!?" I cried, sitting up, my head swimming. "Oh baby, shhh, sit back down." My mother hushed, rushing towards me and wrapping her arms around me. "Oh Rose, my strong woman." She cooed, and I felt tears run down my face, dripping into my hair and pillowcase and blending with hers.

"How'd you get here?" I sobbed after mother reluctantly pulled apart from me. She used the palms of her hands to wipe away tears, and I noticed she looked younger than I'd ever seen her. "It's a long story." She said, and I adjusted on the bed. "Well, go ahead and tell it." I prompted, and my mother chuckled. "Nosy child." She mumbled before kissing my forehead. "But I'll tell it." She settled down on my bed, and then began to speak.

"Rose, you should first know I knew everything about the Shadow Group. A mother isn't blind to things such as that. You should also know that I knew you were unhappy with your marriage arrangement; I could tell after you came home from Charlie's that night with such an odd expression on your face.

Then, after the wedding, you disappeared. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't devastated. I was a mess, and for the next month I bombarded the palace with questions, disturbing the royals and cursing your once-would-be husband Charlie for not caring as much as I did. But when I got wind that you were in Virginia, I knew you weren't dead or hurt. I knew you disappeared for a reason, and I couldn't be more proud.

Your father--curse him-- one night found out that you'd belonged to the Shadow Group from a girl by the name of Wendy,--at least I think that was her name--when he met her at the bar. The two drunks talked for a while and apparently it slipped from her mouth. Your father came home and said he was going to turn you in, and that's when I decided to stop him once and for all. You will be proud to know I kicked him out of the house, manually shoved him, and then left for the colonies in the dead of night the next day.

My intended destination was Virginia, but I only realized we were going to Trenton after I overheard a few sailors talking about it on the deck, and by that time it was too late to turn around. So for the past week I've been trying to get to you, and one day I was in the market I ran into Josie. She told me a brief version of what happened and where you were, and I came here as soon as I heard about your coma. I stayed here for so long, hoping you'd wake. And now you have." She said with a breath, and I hugged her tight, breathing in her comforting scent.

"Oh Mother I am so proud of you." I cried, and she hugged me back, stroking my hair. "I'm proud of you too Rose. And speaking of that, tell me your story. I am sure you've had more adventures than me, and I am very excited to hear them." She said, and I nestled into the crook of her arm.

"Alright, but it's a long story." I warned, and she laughed. "We have time." She said warmly, and I took a deep breath and then told her everything. I told her all about Charlie and the things he said to me, all about Fiona and the Shadow Group, all about writing letters to Josie and the journey to get to her and how I eventually did. I told her all about meeting Oliver, falling for him, meeting Washington and then the battle, and by the end of my speech we were both in tears again.

"Baby you've been through so much." Mother sympathized, and I grabbed her hand and squeezed it. "I know. And so have you. But we're going to figure it out." I said, and as I said it my stomach suddenly lurched, and I clutched it, moaning. "What's wrong?" My mother asked, and I pointed to my stomach. "Oh you must be so hungry! I'll have Kimberlee get you some food. We can talk more later, you have a few more guests that want to see you." She said before leaving, screaming about food.

I giggled softly, wiping away my tears, and watched with curious eyes as the door creaked open and in stepped the person Ieast expected to walk through the door-

"Fiona!?" I cried, my heart stopping. She lifted her eyebrows, a smile spreading on her face. "Rose, it looks like you fulfilled the mission after all." She said, eyes flashing playfully. "Oh Fiona come here!" I begged, and she came and sat on the bed, her hair twisted in her signature bun.

"Did you get my letter? Why are you here? How's Lila?" I asked, and Fiona put her hand on my shoulder, chuckling. "Patience child," she said, not unkindly. "Okay, but I'm dying to know everything." I said, and Fiona put a finger to her lips. "I only have a little time here, so I'll make my visit quick. Just listen to me, okay?" She said gently, and I nodded.

"Alright. Now that night you left, Lila came to me and told me everything that happened, and I put the Shadow Group into survival mode. I was so shocked about Greg, but really was killing myself for not noticing the signs earlier; skipping some meetings, acting sketchy. I made sure all of the members were gone before giving Lila specific instructions to help keep the group safe. Then I turned myself in."

I stopped her, my jaw hanging. "What!?" I breathed, and Fiona rolled her eyes. "Let me finish." She instructed, and I bit my lip and let her go on. "Anyway, I turned myself into King George and said it was just I that was a part of the Shadow Group. He put me in the dungeons and ordered me to be executed, but when the day came and I was brought outside I fought the guards and ran and found your Mother at the edge of dock."

I stopped her again, eyes wide. "My-my-my mom?!" I asked again. "Do you ever listen?" Fiona huffed. "Yes, but my mother didn't tell me she came with you." I said, and Fiona waved her hand. "Oh yes, well I told her not to mention it. I wanted to tell you myself." She said, and I nodded reluctantly. "Now, let me continue my story." Fiona scoffed, and I rolled my eyes playfully and nudged her, indicating her to continue.

"Now I saw on split-second and needed to get out of Britain soon, and one look at your Mother and I knew she wanted to too, so I pulled her aside and asked if she wanted to go together and she said yes, so that's what we decided to do.

I got on a ship with her, and luckily she had brought along enough food and clothes to feed a small army. She told me all about you, and I told her all about the Shadow Group and everything that you'd been doing and how you'd been sent to Virginia, and she was so elated to find that she was going in the right direction.

But when we got off the ship we were surprised to discover we were in New Jersey instead. We stayed here for a few weeks while I tried to figure out what to do with myself and your mother searched for you. I never got your letter Rose because I was on the ship, but I bet Lila got it since she's back at headquarters." Fiona finished, and I whistled.

"Wow, Fiona. Wow." I said, and looked up to see her looking at the ceiling, blinking tears away. "Fiona, are you okay?" I asked, and Fiona bit her lip, the most emotional I had ever seen her. "Rose, there's something else I need to tell you." She said quietly, and I looked at her, a feeling of dread in my stomach. "Okay..." I said, and she took a deep breath. "Rose, remember how I told you that Charlie was my son?" She said, and I nodded, shuddering at the thought of the monster she had created.

"Well...Charlie had a brother. When Charlie and I left for England on a ship it was so crowded and I didn't notice that he was gone. I thought we lost him forever, until I got a letter one day from an old friend telling me he was somewhere in Virginia. I wanted to get there forever, but I had the Shadow Group and other duty's to do first. And..." She stopped, and I could feel my heart pounding, my mind reeling.

No way could it be him. It was impossible.

Fiona took my hand and squeezed it so hard I thought it would fall off. "His name was Oliver Cornwallis." The words ran through my head but didn't comprehend with my brain. The world was swimming, and I felt my tears return. It can't be him, I told myself. It's impossible. But in the back of my mind I knew it was. I knew it couldn't be a coincidence.

"You mean...I was engaged to your son and fell in love with your other son? And Oliver was killed by his own brother?" I asked, taking deep breaths to calm myself and choking on another sob. "Yes." Fiona said tightly, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I'm really sorry Rose." She said as I closed my eyes, trying to make sense of the chaos that crashed down around me.

At her words I opened my eyes and looked into Fiona's face, suddenly spotting all of the resembles of Oliver. Her chiseled face, thick eyebrows, quirked smile. It all came rushing back, too familiar and all too soon. I pushed my tears away, knowing that Fiona had other things to do and I couldn't bother her with my crying.

I sniffed, wiped my tears away, and squeezed her hand again. "I know you have to go Fiona, but I want to thank you. What you did for me... the Shadow Group is my everything. It changed my world, and I plan to dedicate my whole life to it." I swore, meaning my words. Fiona's eyes softened, and she opened the palm of my hand and pulled something out of her pocket before placing it there.

"Open-" She was interrupted by the door opening and Kimberlee entering with a tray of food, causing my stomach to spasm with hunger. Fiona pulled her hood up, not wanting Kimberlee to see her face, before kissing my forehead and leaving as swiftly and quietly as she did come, leaving Kimberlee and I with the tempting aroma that wafted from the tray.

Kimberlee placed it down in front of me, her eyes soft and gentle. "Eat your food Rose, and then you can see your last visitor if you're up to it. I promise this is the last one." She said with a wink before leaving me and the tasty food alone.

My head still spinning, I brought the tray closer to me and dug into it, savoring the delicious meal on my tongue as I ate it in swift, rapid bites. When I was finished I lay back down, my eyes closing. I'll just rest them, I told myself. Just a quick rest. But as the snow swirled on outside and my sorrow and thoughts began to fade I found myself drifting into sleep.

I woke up too Kimberlee's soft hands gently shaking me awake, her hair tickling my neck. "Wake up Rose, wake up." She said, and as I opened my tired eyes I felt a stab to my heart, remembering how I'd begged Oliver to wake up and he never did. "Kimberlee..." I said groggily, and she smiled down at me.

"I just have one more visitor for you Rose. She really wants to talk to you." She said, and I sat up. "If you're feeling up for it, she'd like to meet you outside. The snow has eased." She suggested, and I nodded. "Okay." I said, and Kimberlee grinned. "Atta girl." She led me outside the cabin, where to my delight I saw Josie sitting on a bench under a tree.

She was writing something in a notebook, and I went to call out to her when my words snagged in my throat. My eyes fell on what she was wearing. It was a long velvet black dress, and she wore a long black veil over her eyes.

The signs of mourning.

Kimberlee caught my gaze and her already soft eyes melted even more. "I'll prepare some soup for you." She whispered before going back into the cabin. I stared at Josie, aware of how weird I was being but too full of sorrow and guilt to say anything else. When Josie still hadn't noticed me I finally cleared my throat, and she looked up, brown hair falling into her face.

"Rose!" She cried, throwing her notebook in the snow and running to me. "Josie," I choked out, and she enveloped me in a hug, her arms wrapping around me in the most warming way possible. "Oh Josie," I whispered as she pulled away from me, holding my hands.

A tear slipped down her cheek, and before I could think about it I squeezed her hands tighter and took a deep breath. "I loved him." I blurted out, and to my horror Josie whipped her head around, eyes flashing with betrayal, fear, sorrow, anger and realization all at once.

"I-I-I'm so sorry Josie. But I loved him. I really did." I choked out, watching Josie's face crumble and feeling my heart falling to my shoes. "I'm...so sorry." I repeated, and Josie blinked, tears falling down her cheeks. "You aren't sorry Rose and I know it." She said sharply, dropping my hands.

I cracked.

"Josie please, I beg you. Please forgive me..." I cried, and Josie turned towards me in anger. "What other secrets Rose? You're harboring British men in my bedroom?" She snarled, and I felt a punch to my gut. "Josie I...I can't apologize any more. The guilt of loving Oliver ripped me apart every night and I don't deserve any sympathy but please, if you can find it in your heart to just forgive me it would be worth it. I would never speak to you again, you can, you can kill me for all I care... just please forgive me." I blubbered, sobbing at Josie's feet.

She looked at me with an expression of so much hurt it almost killed me. "Please...I made a mistake..." I cried through tears. "You're pathetic Rose." Josie said with a sneer, looking me up and down. The world began to spin around me once more, but then Josie must have noticed my face fall for she turned away and took a long, deep breath. "I'm sorry Rose." She said quietly, and I took her hands again.

"Don't you ever say sorry." Passion filled my body until I was bubbling with the feeling, so intense it threatened to bubble over. "Don't ever. You have done nothing; you let me stay with you, you almost died for me multiple times, and I kissed you're would-be-husband, and I messed up everything." I sobbed, and Josie looked at me with crushed eyes. "You... kissed him too? He loved you back?" She swallowed, and I sank to my knees. "Yes-yes, I did, he did, and I'm so sorry." I cried, and Josie pulled me to my knees.

"Josie this can't ruin our friendship, please-" I began to beg, but Josie stopped as she put a finger to my lips. "Rose... there's something I need to tell you." She said, and I blinked through my tears, watching her in her somber black dress. "Oliver and I... never got past that fight." She swallowed, and I took a sharp breath.

"What do you mean?" I asked, my heart racing. "Well, that first night, while you were asleep in the back of the carriage with Washington, I broke up with Oliver. I could tell he was in love with you, and truth be told, I wasn't in love with him." She confessed, and my jaw dropped.

"B-But you always went on and on about how much you loved him, and even after the carriage ride you were holding hands and kissing and-" Josie stopped me again. "Rose, by now you can tell I'm a wonderfully talented liar." She said, a sad yet wry smile quirking on the edge of her lips.

"And I, as selfish as I am, asked Oliver to pretend we were still together until after the battle. I told myself I wanted to do that because I didn't want you to lose focus since you had to flirt with Charlie and all, but I knew the real truth: I was scared of being alone. Even before you arrived Rose I knew I loved Oliver as a deep, beautiful friend, but not as a lover. We were too different and fought all the time, about silly matters such as food. But you love him Rose, and know it's too late." She said, tears rolling down her cheeks to match mine.

"I...Josie, I felt so guilty about loving Oliver, and I can't believe that you wouldn't tell me..." I trembled, my head rushing. Now the tables were turned, and I couldn't help but be angry. If only Josie would've broken up with him earlier. I could've kissed him harder, I could've let our slow dance go on, I could've found a way to make him live... I was interrupted from my sorrow as Josie embraced me in a bone-crushing hug.

"And I was jealous Rose." She whispered as my arms hugged her waist. "So jealous of your confidence, so jealous of your courage, so jealous that you could be happy while my world crashed down around me." She was full on sobbing now, our tears entwined together. "Rose I'm depressed. I can't stop it, it's a part of me and I just can't control it!" She screamed, and I held her tighter, my heart expanding with sympathy and love for my sister.

"Josie...I know." I choked out, rubbing her back. "Rose, before you came I felt like I could barely go on. After my parents died life seemed like something that didn't matter, something that I was longing, craving to be over. And then I met Oliver at a party and he made some of the darkness of my life fade. He made my world brighter, but when he moved in I soon realized I couldn't just cling to him, for Oliver was a shooting star that needed room to soar and I wasn't his galaxy. 

And once I realized that I was even more alone everything just seemed so bleak and I pushed myself away from the world. I locked myself in my bedroom, leaving Oliver downstairs alone, fighting with him over every little thing, even though he once loved me and I once was attracted to him. And then after last night, when I came so close to dying, I realized that I want to live. That I have to live."

 "I want you to live Josie." I sniffed, and she grabbed my dress, bringing me closer to her. "And I want to too." She whispered.

And we stayed there, sobbing until we couldn't any longer, crying for each other, crying for lost opportunities, crying for the hardships we'd gone through. Crying out of missing for each other, crying for the fear of losing each other and crying for our loss. Crying because we were one; we were together and no one could ever take that away.

Finally, when our eyes couldn't possibly produce anymore tears, I took her hand, looking into her red-rimmed brown eyes and smiling. "Josie, we've been through so much. And our worries are far from over... but make me this promise." I said, and Josie sat down on the bench, taking me with her. "Anything Rose." She said, and I lay my head on her shoulder.

"From now on, no matter what happens, let's be honest with each other. Promise me you'll always tell me everything, promise we won't ever let us get this distant again." I said, and Josie sniffed, brushing the snow out of our hair. "I promise Rose." She swore with a tiny light of a smile, one that gave me hope that one day she could be okay. 

We sat there for a while, until she had to get back to the apartment Fiona had gotten her until we were too travel back to Virginia, together. And as I waved at her as she got into her carriage and drove away, I knew our story wasn't over. I knew that we still had so much to do, so much history to make, so much stories to write before our time was up.

Because if I'd learned anything over the past two months, it was that life was a beautiful thing, a privilege that could be ended as quickly as it could be given. Life is a complex, twisted, wonderful maze, one that I planned to never take advantage of again, one that I planned to make the most out of before my time was up.

For I knew that one day in the future, one day after hundreds of generations were born, things would be different, and in my bones and in my heart, I knew that our story would be told. I knew that history would remember us, would remember the rag-tag team that had a hunger for freedom, would remember the royal rebellion that would pave the road to America.

And I, Rose Indenza, esteemed member of the Shadow Group, lover of Oliver Cornwallis, colonial rebel, woman of the revolution, was going to make my mark.