The Boy in the Field (7 page)

You were awake for a long time, waiting to make sure everyone
else was asleep before you made your escape. You’d brought enough trouble to
the Wicker family in the short time that you had known them to want to avoid
bringing them anymore. They were nice people and they didn’t deserve to have
you ruining their lives.

You stood, folding the sheets neatly behind you. They would be
less worried if you tidied up behind yourself. Mess always made people worry.
You gathered what few of your things you had with you and opened the window,
dropping onto the soft grass outside.

You ran. If you followed the main road out of town, you would
eventually get to the city of Chapra. Even if it meant living on the streets
for a while, you knew you would find work there eventually. And even if they
looked for you, they would never find you in that big city. You were just one
nameless girl amongst hundreds.

Then they’d be safe from you. Then you could start again.

The End
(Back to start)

You rolled over, clamping your hand over your ears as if to
block out the voice. Meeting the Wicker family was the best thing that had ever
happened to you. You weren’t going to let some little doubt in the back of your
head ruin it. You were going to stay for as long as you could and you were
going to be the best house guest they ever had.

You used the money that you had saved to pay Adina for your
food. At first, she refused to accept it and instead, you completed chores for
her around the house and snuck money into her purse when she wasn’t looking.
Whenever she tried to give it back, you just left more until she eventually
gave in and negotiated a rate of rent with you.

After that, the only time you went home was when you needed to
fetch clothes and personal belongings. Noah reassured you have everything would
be okay but it was Ethan who went with you, prepared to defend you should your
father return home early. Ethan was always the one to have your back.

He was at your side two years later when you saw the two scouts
on the edge of town. You both knew exactly what their presence meant: the town
was at threat. You had seen their clothing before on the men your father
brought back to the house. They were from the desert. They were Taatars.

The men in the town already knew they were coming. It made
sense now – the sudden abundance of weaponry and armour for sale at the
markets, the men with the clipboards urging the able-bodied to join the Landian
Paramilitaries – they were already preparing for the attack.

“Those men can’t stand against an army,” Ethan said, looking at
the line of scrawny young men offering their lives in defence of the town.
“They’ll be killed and we’ll all be taken as slaves.”

“What can we do?”

Ethan smiled. “We run. We go home, we convince Ma and Ethan and
we run.”

You laughed. “Your mother will never agree to that. And if she
doesn’t go, Noah won’t go.”

“He might listen to you though. He likes you. Please, try to
convince him.”

“And if he doesn’t?”

“We go alone.”

* * *

They came that night as sudden as thunder. You heard people
running in the streets, panic and chaos. Shouting. Screaming. Crying. Doors
banged in the house and you looked out of the window to see Noah standing
outside the front door, his father’s sword in his hand. Ethan came into the
room behind you, a bag slung over his shoulder and your shoes in his hand.

He barely paused for thought before grabbing your hand and
pulling you through the house and out into the garden. Your mind caught up with
you as you paused at the garden fence. Ethan crouched to lift you over but you
shook your head, pulling him down behind the bushes.

“What about Noah?” you asked, fastening your shoes.

“He’s going to get himself killed. We need to move.”

“We can’t just leave him!”

“We have to if we’re going to live.” He took up his position
again, ready to lift. “Are you coming?”

Choice:
42.
Go with Ethan
or
43.
Try to Save Noah

You turned and fled, moving as fast as your feet would allow.
The man called after you as you ran, ordering you to stop. You dodged between
the trees, leaping over the roots and ducking beneath low hanging branches,
doing everything you could to evade him. But he was a soldier and he was fast.
It took him less than a minute to catch you, diving at your legs and tackling
you to the ground.

“You’re under arrest,” he said, pulling handcuffs from his belt
and twisting your arms behind your back. “Anything to say?”

Choice:
35.
Confess
or
36. “My
Friend Did It”

“It was an accident! I didn’t mean to do it!”

“You wanna tell me what happened?”

“He came in and hit me and attacked my friend. I thought he was
going to kill him. I had to do something!”

“Start from the beginning.”

You took a deep breath and told the man the story. He listened,
inspecting the body as you spoke, as if searching for evidence to disprove your
account. When you were done, he wrapped the body once more in the sheet and
took a pair of handcuffs from his belt. You held out your hands, making it
easier for him to cuff you. He then heaved the body over his shoulder and
guided you towards the law hall in Landia.

For six hours, you sat in the damp, draughty cell at the back
of the building while the two soldiers went in and out. You stood as one of
them came in with Noah, Ethan and their mother, watching them being led across
the room. Noah caught your eye in the second before the door closed behind him.

You waited a while longer, straining to hear anything being
said in the other room. The thick walls allowed only muffled sounds to reach
you, giving you no indication of what they were saying. When they were done,
Adina and Ethan walked away, but the soldier brought Noah to see you. He smiled
at you and put his hands around the bars.

“I’m sorry,” he said, sliding his fingers along the bar to
touch yours. “I had to tell her. She saw the bruises.”

“It’s not your fault. I hit him.” You looked at your feet,
unable to face him.

“You saved my life.” He turned towards the guard. “What’s going
to happen to her now?”

The soldier shrugged. “The council will decide. Chances are
she’ll be sent to live with her next of kin.”

You shook your head. “I don’t know who that is.”

“My mother would look after her if—”

The soldier shook his head. “If we don’t find family, she’ll
get a place in the nearest orphanage – most likely Chapra.” He put his hand on
Noah’s shoulder. “It’s time you were going now. I’m sure your mother will let
you know what happens.”

“I’ll write to you,” he said, as the soldier steered him away.
“I’ll find you.”

* * *

He kept to his word. Once a week, he wrote to you and every
time, you wrote back. The orphanage wasn’t secure and you could easily jump
over the wall each day. You took any job going in the town, no matter how
small, how tough, how demeaning, saving the money you made so that one day, you
might be able to get back to Landia. So that one day, you might see each other
again.

The End
(Back to start)

“It wasn’t me!” you cried, turning your face so that your
mouth wouldn’t fill with dirt. “My friend got into a fight with him and hit
him. He wasn’t breathing and I thought I could hide him in the woods. I was
trying to protect my friend!”

“Does this friend have a name?” The soldier pulled you to your
feet.

“No.” You shook your head. “I don’t know his name.”

“Then he’s not really your friend, is he? And you’re gonna take
this hit for him?”

“I didn’t do it.” You began to walk, pushed by the soldier.

“It’s not me you’ve got to convince, Miss. It’s the council.
And from where I’m standing, it looks like you’ll be spending the rest of your
life in some institution in Chapra.”

“What?”

“You have blood on your hands and your friend has no name. If
I
think you did it,
they’ll
think you did it.” He gave you another nudge
as you made your way out of the woods. “Still can’t remember his name?”

Choice:
89.
His Name Was Ethan
or
90. His
Name Was Noah
or
91. I Don’t Remember

You pushed the man and turned to run, but he was much faster,
trained to react to fleeing hostages. He pulled you by the hair, dragging you
to the ground. You screamed, but knew no one would hear you. The second man
stood over you while you wrestled with the first. His fist struck you in the
cheek and you felt teeth come loose.

“Let me go. Please!”

His hand wrapped around your throat. That must have been what
Noah had felt, just an hour ago when your father was choking the life from him.
Now it was your turn. You tried to call out, but could make no sound but the
rasp of air as you filled your lungs. You gasped as he let go, coughing and
fighting for the use of your hands, pinned beneath the man’s knees.

“Let me go!”

The men spoke to one another and the one pinning your hands
stood up, releasing you. He held his hand out to you and helped you to your
feet. “Now, do you help us?”

Choice:
38.
Make the Deal
or
39.
“I’ll Never Help You”

“Okay! I’ll do anything!”

“Good girl.” The two men looked at one another and smiled.
“Now, you go home. In Landia, you stay – always. Yes?”

You nodded. “Yes. I understand.”

“Good girl. Soon, we find you. Then, you work.”

He reached out and took your hand, drawing the tip of his blade
along the back in a straight line below your knuckles. You cried out as the
knife slashed your skin, clutching it to your chest as the man released you.

“Go home, good girl. Now.”

You turned and ran, feeling the air chilling the damp streaks
on your face. The sounds of the woods no longer bothered you and you didn’t
avoid the clear paths, just wanting to get through the trees as quickly as you
could. You hesitated at the other side, unsure where to go. You remembered Noah’s
words, trying to convince you that his mother would help. You shook your head.
At the first mention of Taatars, she would turn you in to the military and your
life would be over.

Instead, you went back to your house. The door was still open
when you got there and you crept inside, closing it behind you. Puddles had
formed on the kitchen floor, pink and murky where the blood and water had
seeped through the floor boards. You laid down some towels to soak up the
liquid and took more upstairs, cleaning each step as you went.

“What happened?”

You jumped as you heard the voice and looked up to see one of
the boys sitting on the bed. No bruises: Ethan.

“Nothing. He got up and he left.”

Ethan shook his head. “You’re lying.”

You ignored him, crossing the room to sweep the rest of the
water between the floorboards. You picked up the pieces of the jug and placed
them into another cloth, trying not to notice the blood and hair coating the
fragments.

“Noah told me what you did.”

“He hurt me. He tried to hurt Noah. He deserved what he got.”

Ethan hopped off the bed and came to crouch beside you, putting
his hand on your shoulder. “Give me the cloth.”

“Why?”

“I’m going to help you. If anyone asks, I saw him leave.”

“Why? Why would you help me?”

“Because I like you,
masuki.”

“
Masuki
?” You looked at him and smiled. “I thought you
said I spoke funny.”

“I asked my mother. She says you speak the same as she did when
she was a girl in Ethigos.”

“I ain’t ever been to Ethigos.”

“Ma says you speak Ethigot. She’s never wrong.”

“So you mean I’ve been speaking foreign all this time?”

Ethan nodded. “Yep.”

“
Saa
. I never knew.” You smiled and passed him the
cloth. “Thank you.”

* * *

For months, everything seemed fine. Ethan visited you all the
time, sometimes with his brother but usually alone. Nobody asked about your
father and you didn’t even see another Taatar. You even let yourself believe
that they had forgotten about you.

And then you heard the knock on your door. Not the front door –
your bedroom door. There were voices in the house, like when your father
invited ‘friends’ back after his outings to the tavern. You sat up and pulled
the blankets around you to find three men and a woman in the room with you.

“It’s time,” she said, translating for one of the men. “We stay
here tonight and prepare. Bring us food and water.”

You nodded and went down the stairs, avoiding more Taatars as
you moved through the building. You didn’t count them but guessed there must
have been more than fifty people in the house. If they all wanted food and
water, you would be running between the house and the well all night. But
that’s what they wanted. You would be too busy to warn anyone of their
presence.

Choice:
46.
Run for Landia
or
47.
Fetch the Food

“You’re Taatars. I can’t help you.”

The man spun you around so you were facing away from him. For a
brief moment, you felt pain in your lower back and then he let you go. You
fell, hitting the dry grass once again, but this time no one wrestled with you.
You heard the men walking away, talking to one another as if nothing unusual
had occurred.

You put your hands out to push yourself up only to find you had
no strength in your lower body. Pain flared through your bones as you tried to
crawl. You cried out. Only those men could hear you and they weren't going to
help.

Gritting your teeth, you reached behind yourself, feeling for
injuries. Blood coated your hand when you pulled it back, hot and fresh. He had
stabbed you. You were bleeding.

You ignored the pain as you forced yourself to crawl forward.
If you didn't get help, you would die. If you blacked out in the middle of that
field, you would die. You had to go somewhere you would be found. You had to
get to a road.

The sun beat down on your back as you inched forward. It must
have been one of the hottest days that year. If you hadn't seen the red, you
might have believed it was just sweat soaking into your shirt. If you had been
able to move, you might not have known you were dying.

Your head began to feel fuzzy as you neared the trees, your
fingers numb. You had to stop. Any further and you'd fall unconscious.
Everything hurt and yet, at the same time, didn't. The sun felt less hot. It
all felt... Peaceful.

“Noah.”

You weren't sure why you said his name. Maybe you thought he
could hear you or that he would save you. You said it again.

“Noah.”

It was the last thing you said.

The End
(Back to start)