“May I ask why you’re interested in him?”
Isabel paused before answering. “He isn’t supposed to be here. After you find out his name, tell the lieutenant I want to see him. In person.”
Will left after that, rather than risk being seen if her bodyguard stepped out too quickly. His head was swirling with questions that had no clear answers. Why was a noblewoman posing as a nurse? How did she know he was from Barrowden? The thing that bothered him most was wondering why she seemed so interested in him. Had she seen something unusual when she looked at him?
He vividly remembered his grandfather’s warnings about being caught as an unlicensed wizard. They’d accuse him of being a warlock. It hardly seemed fair, since he hadn’t the faintest idea how to do anything useful with his magic.
He found his place in the mess hall and ate with mechanical efficiency, lost in thought. Sven and the others tried to draw him out, but he remained quiet through breakfast. Once or twice he looked up and saw Tiny watching him, but the big man didn’t say anything.
Later that morning he received another surprise when someone from the company digging near their section recognized him. “Will!”
He knew the voice. He ran up the mound of earth and saw his cousin standing near the top. “Eric!” The two embraced.
“What are you doing here? I heard Dad was given an exemption, but I didn’t know you were here,” said Eric.
The others from his squad were staring at him, and Will saw Corporal Taylor frown. He had too much to say to simply blurt it all out. “We need to talk,” he told his cousin. “Can we meet later? After supper?”
“Where?”
“How about by Company B’s latrine?” suggested Will. It wasn’t an ideal spot, but it was one of the few places he was allowed to go on his own during his severely limited free time.
Eric understood. “Sure. See you there tonight.”
They parted and Will returned to digging. Corporal Taylor walked over to him. “Who was that?”
“My cousin,” he answered. “I haven’t seen him since before Barrowden was burned.”
“I bet you’re glad to see him,” said the corporal amiably.
Will stared at the earth. “Yeah, but I have a lot of bad news to give him.”
“Take your time when you see him then. If anyone asks why you’re gone so long, I’ll tell them you have the piles,” offered the corporal helpfully.
“Thanks,” said Will wryly.
That evening he rushed over to the latrines as soon as he was free, though his feet felt heavy as he did. Eric was there ahead of him, waiting. His cousin waved when he spotted him. They hugged once more and then Eric pushed him out to arm’s length. “We heard about Barrowden a few weeks ago. How bad is it?”
The food in Will’s stomach felt like a rock. “Really bad. They burned the whole village.”
“What about Mom, Doug, and Sammy? They got out, right?” There was desperation in Eric’s eyes, though he was doing his best to control it.
“Sammy is safe,” said Will. “I didn’t get there fast enough to help the others.”
Eric’s face was dark, his eyes swelling. “Then Mom, and Dougie?”
“They died trying to protect each other,” said Will. “Your mom got one of the raiders with your dad’s crossbow.”
His cousin crouched, putting his hands on the ground as though to steady himself and hanging his head. “How much did you see?”
“It was mostly over before I got there. There was smoke everywhere. It was hard to see, but it looked like they died quickly without much pain. I grabbed Sammy and ran to my house.”
“And your mom?”
“We got out before the soldiers got there, but the old man died trying to keep them from following us.”
The two cousins remained together for half an hour, but most of their time was spent in silence as Eric was no longer able to speak clearly. Will sat beside him, feeling numb and dead inside. The only comfort he could offer was an arm around Eric’s shoulders.
When Will finally returned to the tent, the first person to approach him was the last one he wanted to speak to. Dave grinned at him. “I saw you with your girlfriend over by the latrines. When will the happy day—” The thief stopped when he saw the expression on Will’s face.
Will’s fists were balled up so tightly that his knuckles had turned white. Deep down, he hoped Dave would go on so he could vent his anger on the man, but the ex-cutpurse surprised him.
“Whoa, sorry. I didn’t realize it was something important.” That said, the other man backed away and went to his bedroll. Corporal Taylor walked over and began whispering into Dave’s ear, explaining what he knew of the situation.
Everyone left him alone until lights out.
Chapter 40
The next couple of months went by slowly for a couple of reasons, the first being that Will was anxious to get back to Barrowden. Aside from Eric’s family, there were a lot of people he was worried about, like the Tanners—or Annabelle Withy. He tried to be rational. Chances were most of them were dead, but it ate at him not knowing.
The other reason time moved so slowly was that he was miserable. The constant drills and training had taught him new things about fatigue and exhaustion. His body had adapted, so it wasn’t as bad anymore, but the constant supervision and lack of freedom was beginning to drive him slightly mad.
Once his first eight weeks were finished, he was told he was no longer a trainee, though he didn’t feel any different. He had paid off his debt for the spear and shield and had six silver clima in his purse, more money than he had ever personally possessed in his entire life. Unless one counted that time when he had briefly held the gold crown that he had used to pay his aunt.
Since he was no longer a trainee, he was entitled to one day of recreation every two weeks, which seemed rather pointless since he didn’t know anyone in Branscombe. Free days were arranged by squad, which meant he could go into town with Tiny, but Eric was in an entirely different company, so their days would never line up.
The first time he had the opportunity, he declined Corporal Taylor’s offer to go into Branscombe together. He could tell his decision disappointed Tiny, but Will had one thing to do that came before everything else. Starting early, he visited the town’s market and bought everything he thought Sammy and his mother were probably missing: salt, sausages, cabbage, lard, flour, dried beans. He even bought certain perishables, like milk and butter.
No matter how long he thought about it, he felt certain there were things he probably hadn’t considered, but he did the best he could, and when he was finished his purse was empty. Heavily laden, he left town, keeping a close eye on the road behind him. It wouldn’t do for any of his fellow soldiers to wonder about his destination. Then he went home.
The journey was short and unremarkable, taking only a matter of minutes, but when he reached his grandfather’s house he hesitated. Maybe I should just try and leave everything on the porch, he thought, dreading the idea of facing his mother.
He nearly jumped out of his armor when he heard Sammy scream from the direction of the garden. Turning around, he barely managed to angle the hilt of his sword away so it wouldn’t hit her in the stomach before she slammed into him at a full charge. She was slightly taller than he remembered, but that hardly mattered as she clung to him, repeating his name over and over. “Will, Will, Will… Do you know how worried we were? How could you do that? I thought you’d be dead for sure! Then Dad came back and we knew you weren’t dead, but I was still mad! And your mom! Aunt Erisa nearly lost her mind. What’s all this stuff?”