“Like when they took Dave.”
Tiny held a finger in front of his lips. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. That was just me.” Then he smiled. “I worry about you. You aren’t always where I can see you.”
“It’s not your job to take care of me,” Will replied.
“You’re my first friend.”
Embarrassed, Will gestured at Sven and Dave.
“Squad mates, maybe brothers even,” said Tiny. “But just like family, I don’t necessarily like them.” His eyes turned serious as he stared at Will. “Think about what you do. If that big heart of yours gets you into a fight, you might not be the only one bleeding at the end. Your friends might wind up bleeding for you.” The big man lay back and closed his eyes.
Damn, thought Will. I never realized he was a deep thinker. Tiny’s speech had made him feel bad on several different levels. The big man had been whipped because of Will not once, but twice, and on top of that, Will had been one of the people thinking that Tiny wasn’t especially bright. I’m a shitty friend, he thought, but he promised himself he would do better.
Will stayed awake after the lanterns were put out. It was something of a struggle since his sleep habits had gotten quite rigid over the past few months. Hard labor, a fixed bedtime, and rising at dawn had set the pattern in his bones. He wished he could take a nap and wake in the middle of the night, but he knew if he let sleep set in he would be dead to the world until the sun rose. That was a simple statement of fact since he had joined the army.
Fortunately, that also applied to pretty much everyone else, aside from the men on night watch duty. Just an hour after lights out he could be pretty certain that the vast majority of the camp was asleep.
Easing up to a sitting position, he studied the dark interior of the tent. His eyes had had plenty of time to adjust to the dark, and though the only light was what filtered in from the gap in the tent flaps at the front, he could see well enough to navigate. Once again he had Tailtiu to thank for his better vision.
Slipping on his boots, he took the note he had written from his satchel. It was contained within a hand-folded envelope that he had sealed with wax. On the exterior was written one word: ‘Isabel.’ He hoped that would be enough to ensure that whoever found it first would give it to her rather than open it themselves. Given Isabel’s poorly concealed status, Will suspected that anyone that worked near her would deliver it to her rather than risk reading a letter meant for such an important person.
He crept carefully to the entrance and looked outside. A pole in the center of Company B’s tents held a lantern that provided some illumination, but the camp sentries weren’t there. Each company had two men that walked the darker perimeter outside the circle of tents. Aside from the company sentries, Will knew there were also nighttime guards set in important places to guard the supplies, officers, and livestock. There were also general patrols that patrolled the perimeter of the entire cohort as well as sentries in fixed positions.
Will only had to worry about the sentries inside the general camp, meaning Company B’s patrol and a few that might be positioned close to the medic tent. He waited patiently until he heard footsteps on the dark side of his platoon’s tent. That meant the patroller was now at his closest, while his partner was presumably on the opposite side of Company B’s perimeter. Will counted slowly to ten and then eased through the tent flaps before following the outside of his tent to the side hidden from the light.
He stopped again there, until his ears confirmed which direction the patroller had gone, then he followed the man. In the distance he could see light from the other companies’ positions, and he used his memory of the layout to keep track of how far he had gone. Once he had moved a quarter of the way around the Company B camp, he set off at a right angle that should take him directly toward the medic tent.
After he had gone fifty yards, he knelt and waited again. He was in a nearly pitch-black pool of shadows that existed in the gaps between the various lantern poles. Though his night vision was good, the light from the lanterns regularly spoiled it and consequently he was nearly blind to what might be within the darkened area around him.
The various patrollers stayed primarily within the shadowed regions for an important reason. In the dark areas they preserved their night vision and could easily see anyone crossing through the lighted portions of the camp. Will did the same, but he would have to rely on his ears to warn him if one of the patrollers got close to his position.
Will’s only advantages were his keener eyesight, better hearing, and the fact that he wasn’t following a strict pattern with his movement. It also helped that he knew the patrollers were there, while they didn’t know about him.
There were also the ever-present flows of turyn, and while they didn’t provide much illumination, they helped slightly. At one point he was saved from walking straight into a guard holding a fixed position simply because he spotted the strange movement of turyn where the guard was standing.
He was almost to the medic tent when he heard approaching footsteps in the darkness to his rear. Glancing back, he saw two dark shapes faintly highlighted by a distant lantern behind them. Will froze, then got down on all fours. There was nothing close enough for him to use to hide, but if he stayed still and made no noise…
After several tense minutes they passed by after having come almost within ten feet of where he crouched. Will took a moment to let his heart calm down before continuing. He also took note of how cold his hands were. Though spring was almost upon them, it was still quite cold, and he hadn’t worn his gambeson for fear it would make noise. At least I’m not sweating, he thought wryly.
Will was relieved to see that no guard stood outside the medic tent. Creeping close, he glanced within and saw a man and woman sleeping on two field cots. Seeing the cots made him jealous, for they seemed like an immense luxury after sleeping on a bedroll that was directly on the ground for months.
A sudden noise made him freeze in his tracks. It was the sound of metal and leather rubbing together. There was a guard nearby. It was a while before he heard it again, and his ears helped him gauge the direction. The noise came from somewhere behind the medic tent. Will debated whether he should leave his note and leave immediately or whether he should confirm the guard’s position first.
It wasn’t a patroller, or there would have been more noise. The sound had to be from someone standing guard in a fixed position. I should see where he’s at so I don’t run into him by accident when I leave, Will decided.
Moving slowly and carefully, he eased around the medic tent, stopping to wait and listen after every few feet. He could see something lighter than the darkness around him in the direction he was facing. Another tent, hidden by the shadow of the medic tent.
Will waited another ten minutes, until his eyes had adjusted enough that he could make out the dark form of the guard standing in front of the other tent. Why would that tent have its own guard? Will wondered. A guard meant something important. Or someone important.
Surely it wasn’t possible. A noble lady should be housed in a room in the nearby town, or at the very least have her own tent near the camp commander and other officers. Why would she stay here next to the medic tent? It made no sense to him, since it wasn’t necessary for her disguise, unless Lady Isabel really cared that much about treating the wounded.