The Centurion's Woman

Chapter 1

ALEX TOOK OUT the strained stitches and did what she could to clean the wound in Verus's thigh, and then she sent Marcus out with the rags she'd used to collect the pus, instructing him to toss the bundle in a latrine and have someone bury everything. The seasoned Optio, Quintus Abelardus, had left on her order for more hot water to be delivered in four hours. After that, he was to inform the rest of the officers what Ixillius wanted them all assured was a brief and temporary change in command from Verus – who was the true First File – to Ixillius, who Verus had promoted just before passing out.

        "The wound looked better," Ixillius said quietly as Alex started washing up.

        "We will see in four hours," was all Alex replied. She was trying to think where they were camped geographically, and if where they were was close to a town or a city she knew of in her time – two thousand years in the future from now – in case Verus didn't improve. Mark, another time traveler, had said that the jumps were all based on desires. For the past hour, Alex had been having a very difficult time thinking of anything but how much she wanted antibiotics, but she was still here. Mark had said that he'd gotten Big Man Max to love her, though, so that he could ride the stallion back to this time after Alex, so maybe what she wanted had to be a person. At least that made coming back to now easier if she did manage to go forward to her own time: she loved her husband and self-proclaimed brother.

        She glanced between the two of them. Her husband, taller than nearly everyone, as blond and blue eyed as most of the locals they'd met, was the opposite to the dark hair and green eyes of her – using the only term that described him – beautiful brother. She'd thought because they'd gotten back to the Legion today, the rest of the march would be easy.

        So much for that...

        Alex sighed, her shoulders slumping under the worry and lack of knowledge that made curing the infection impossible. And guilt, she admitted. Verus wouldn't have gotten cut fighting if she hadn't been here in the first place, hadn't taken Naevius's little stallion into the forest to sell to the enemy and introduced herself to Hludwolf. The deaths of too many Romans and who knew how many Germans landed squarely on her shoulders for just being here.

        "I did not hear you," she replied, the words her husband said not penetrating her thoughts. She turned toward Ixillius and grabbed up a rag to dry her hands now that all the blood was washed off. She was exhausted and just glad he was still here in Verus's tent with her. She dropped the rag beside the washstand and wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her ear on his chest to hear his heart beating. He didn't return the hug.

        "What are you, Alex?" he asked again.

        Ixillius finally knew what Alex meant when she'd described nearly drowning: the weight in his chest burned and he could barely breathe. He closed his eyes and pushed away his wife before he could let himself ignore the strange things about her yet again.

        "This past month, I've watched you, listened to you. Nothing you say or do combine to make a full story," he said. Her face was a blank mask to him when he looked down at her, but he'd expected that. "I've prayed every day to stop thinking like this, but I can't. You talk of long travels, but are surprised at the trade value of meat. You say you're no soldier, but fight beside a veteran with familiar ease. A mare gone mad these past two years spends a day with you and can be ridden, an owl from the forest sits tame on your hand, you ride without bridle or saddle, the list goes on and on and then when I ask you say you knew nothing of the mare, the owl was tame, Max is trained that way..." he scoffed. "You have an answer for everything that's happened but none of your answers explain anything. But this?" he pointed to where Verus lay, then dropped his arm back to his side. "Bad drink and salt and the wound improves to the eye? Your father is gone for seventeen years, leaving nothing behind but tracks in the mud that simply stop, then you show up thirteen years after he returns and say you're looking for him but you wouldn't even tell me his name until..." he drew a shaking breath. "The slaves we took at the village where I found you say you pushed up from the Underworld. Alex, what are you?"