Bow and Sparrow

CH 16

Anders didn't object the next morning when I walked out of Rylan's cabin, and we walked silently towards the training grounds together. Even though the sun had just risen, its heat was already permeating the air, causing sweat beads to form on my forehead. My body thrummed with restless energy from last night and I rolled my shoulders back to try to dispel some of the soreness that had taken root there.

"Are you alright?" Anders asked, concern etched on his face. I hadn't noticed but he had been eyeing me for the entirety of the walk.

"Hm?" I rubbed at a particularly large knot at the base of my neck. "Oh, yes. I just didn't sleep well last night."

It wasn't entirely untrue. But besides the nightmare, I had a relatively peaceful sleep. Even though my shoulders ached and my fingers had been rubbed raw from the bowstring, I had felt better when I woke up this morning than I had since I was taken by the slavers. I knew it had been risky, sneaking out, and that anyone could have caught me last night, but it had been worth it. I was feeling more like myself again.

As we approached the training grounds, it seemed like the group of new soldiers had been transformed. They sparred with each other, yelling out constructive criticism when the other would miss a blow. I had no idea what Anders did to them yesterday, but whatever it was, it seemed to be working.

Silence fell over the grounds as Anders stepped forward to address the soldiers, commemorating them on their fast progress. I snuck past him and settled into the same reading spot as yesterday as he started the soldiers on their drills.

It didn't take long for me to pick up where I left off as Faine made his harrowing escape from captivity. I ran my fingers over the words as I read them. Though Faine's home was a pirate ship and he was escaping from pirates, I couldn't help but empathize with him. The story didn't tell of his longing for his ship, but it was portrayed in the sorrow illustrated in his eyes as he was captured again and again. All he wanted was to be at peace aboard his own ship. At least, Faine always got a happy ending. I wiped my watery eyes with my sleeve and scoffed at myself. Here I was shedding tears over a fictional pirate.

I shut the cover of the book and leaned my head back against the trunk of the tree, listening to the sounds of the training soldiers behind me and the quiet rustling of the forest beyond.

The sun hadn't reached its highest point, and yet the heat was starting to cause my eyes to droop even under the safety of the shaded trees. I stood, stretching my cramped legs. I spotted Anders to the side of the training soldiers, speaking to another, and went to him. The soldier stopped mid-sentence, mouth hanging open.

"The heat is starting to get to me. I'm going to lie down."

"I'll walk you-" Anders turned from the soldier he was talking to, but I held my hand up to stop Anders from escorting me back

"Anders, there's no need for that. I can find my way."

Anders reluctantly nodded, a line forming between his eyebrows. He took the bodyguard role too seriously. I gave him a comforting smile and started back towards Rylan's cabin. The walk was quiet as most soldiers in camp were off doing chores or training. It reminded me of the first time that I walked this very path with Rylan. I felt like a different person now. The weight I carried on my shoulders then had started to lessen as I grew more and more comfortable here. I wasn't the frightened little girl that had to fight for her life anymore.

When I stepped through the doorway to the cabin, I wasn't expecting another person on the other side. He was thinner than I was with sparse blonde hair tucked beneath a red messenger cap. He had a satchel clung across one shoulder and a sealed envelope in one hand and with the other he was rifling through papers that Rylan had left filed away on a shelf.

"Can I help you?"

The man -boy, he looked no older than fifteen- spun around, sending a sheaf of papers tumbling to the floor. He stooped over, shuffling the papers in an untidy stack before straightening up. He mumbled an apology as he set them on the desk. His cheeks were as red as his crooked cap and he never looked up once.

"I have a letter for Captain Rylan Fields." He clicked the heels of his shoes together as he held the envelope out to me, eyes casted downward.

I stepped forward slowly, eyeing the boy. His shoulders stooped forward, causing a curve to his back that he likely didn't notice. I grabbed the letter from him, the thick envelope heavy in my hands. "I'll be sure he gets it."

The messenger clicked his heels together one more time, almost tripping over his feet as he rushed out of the room, brushing so close to me that he almost touched my shoulder. "Yes, sir."

He was out of the room before I could process his words that left me staring bewildered at the doorway he vanished through. My hand traveled to twist among the short strands of my hair. Sir?

I shook the thought from my head and sank into one of the chairs at the table, turning the cream colored envelope over in my hands. There was a red wax crest that sealed the envelope that I vaguely recognized as the Rezantri crest, an eagle in flight with a double sword crossing behind it. Rylan's name was scrawled on the other side. I shook the envelope, contemplating the contents inside but figured that it was nothing more than military correspondence.

I tossed the envelope on top of the pile of papers the messenger had bungled up and stacked them back on the shelf they had fallen from. From the bottom of the stack, the corner of a map stuck out. I pulled it free, setting the other papers aside, and flattened it on the table.

It was a map of Verdana, complete with seaports and trade routes. In the tiniest letters, Dast was labeled on the bottom of the map and to the north was Bellevue in larger letters. But what concerned me most was the dotted arrows connecting Rezantri to Verdana. They ended at our largest cities, including the capital and our port cities. I flipped the map over and on the back were detailed descriptions of the cities with their population.

My face paled. I tried to rationalize that maybe the map was old but I couldn't find any indication of a date on the page. I carefully folded the map and placed it in my pocket. I didn't know what to do with it but I didn't like the idea of putting it back in the stack. In my mind, if it wasn't there it didn't exist. I would figure it out later.