The wagon is bare. There is nothing inside that could help, except the beige canvas awning that could be torn, if I had use of my hands. Although the tear would alert the guards, I’d have torip a little at a time until I had enough space to sneak out when we’re resting.
The newly adapted door of the wagon was a problem, the bars are big enough for me to fit my hand through to release the latch, but after watching the guards the past few days, the latch is stiff and loud. Every time they open it, it groans with a deep reluctance. There’s no chance they wouldn’t hear it.
I need to figure out the right moment: when the young guard dozes off, which he does every time we stop for the night. If I could just free my hands.
Finally, after three days of silence, I hear a quiet hoarse voice, “Wish we’d hurry up and get there already.”
“Wow, he speaks,” I say in surprise.
“I was hoping they would kill me back in Vendyl. But only the good die young.” There’s a hollowness to his voice, and deep, dark purple bags under his eyes. “What’s your name, kid?”
“I’m Wyatt. What did you do to deserve such an honour of meeting the High Lord?”
“Bearnard.” He offers with a curt nod. “I said that both they and Adrian could suck my dick. They didn’t take too kindly to that, one arsehole punched me in the face, so I spat at him.”
I chuckle, but Bearnard’s face shows the same solemn look.
“Oh, come on, don’t leave me hanging. There’s definitely more to the story than that?” I say, raising my eyebrow.
“When the guards first came to Vendyl, to look for that girl. You saw how cruel they were, treating the women and girls in town like livestock. My wife and daughter were among them, and they tried to take my daughter Eve with them. But Ani, my wife, pleaded with them to leave our daughter alone. They did. But they took Ani with them instead. I fought back, only they knocked me unconscious. When I woke, I could barely speak, my jaw was in agony. Left me with a few loosened teeth, blood pouring from my mouth. They beat me rotten while I was out.Not one part of me isn’t covered in bruises.” His head dips, sighing.
I hear his breathing becoming more ragged, heavy. “They abandoned my wife back home a few days later, she was… well, let’s just say she was a different woman. The sweet, caring Ani I fell in love with was gone. She became withdrawn and numb. Flinching every time I went near her.”
Bearnard closed his eyes tightly, his jaw clenching, trying to regain control of himself before continuing, “She couldn’t cope, never slept, never ate. I didn’t know how to help her. She never let me in. Then one morning, she was gone. Dead.”
I stare at him, my forehead creases, and my jaw tenses. “I’m sorry, Bearnard. I—I don’t even know what to say.”
“There’s nothing to say. After I found her, I drank myself stupid. Somehow found my way to the tavern. Guards swarmed the place, joking and laughing, and I lost it. Decided I’d take a few down with me. I hoped they’d kill me and get it over with. I was wrong.”
I watched the man before me, who had lost everything. His demeanour was grim, and he spoke in hushed, lifeless tones. His appearance was scruffy. His clothes worn, tattered, and reeking. His face was withered and tired, drained of all colour and life. His eyes scream the words he couldn’t voice.
“What about your daughter? What happened to her?”
“After the guards took her mum, she and her husband ran. Only decision they could make given the circumstances. He’ll look after her, I know that. Best she doesn’t see what I’ve become anyway.”
Bearnard turns his body away from me. I leave him, lost to his grief. There’s nothing I could do to make his life any better.
I gaze out of the cracks along the wooden panels, and the sky darkens as another day concludes. Another day, not knowing where Nia and Elana are. If they’re hurt. Bearnard’s story sendschills down my spine. Elana is a young, naïve girl. The guards have proven time and time again, that they have no morals.
Misneach,if you’re listening, keep her out of their grasp.
The sun lowers into the horizon, its bright orange blends into red like fire in the sky, before being engulfed by the never-ending darkness of night. The faint glimmer of starlight begins to sparkle above.
My stomach aches for food, my energy levels have dropped dramatically, I haven’t been this hungry since I was a child alone in the woods. Maybe they’re just hoping we die of starvation before we reach Zury.
Auron shouts up ahead, and the cart slows. “We’ll stop here for the night. You, get some firewood. You, tie up the horses.”
The wagon comes to a stop in a clearing. The woods to the left of us are dense and dark. There’s a strange feeling surrounding them, like something is watching us, waiting to pounce. The guards don’t seem to sense it like I do. I can’t explain the feeling, having never felt anything like this before, but these woods are hiding something.
Once the guards are occupied with their food and drink, I try to wriggle my hands underneath my legs, hoping the rope will have stretched enough for me to pull my hands to the front. I feel the flesh ripping from my arm, but I can’t stop, not when I’ve almost done it.
Wincing in pain as my hands slip underneath me, I whisper, “Yes.”
The young guard hits the bars with his bottle, a reminder that he’s watching. I tuck my hands under me, hiding them from his view. Once he sleeps, I can rip open the canvas.
I’m barely able to contain my excitement, but for now, I have to wait. To pass the time, I watch the sky, now pitch black. I strain my neck to look out of the bars for the constellations, like Andi and I did as kids. I never could remember their propernames, just the shapes they make: dragon, lion, and the winged horse—my favourite one.
It reminds me of books I found in Andi’s house, stories of knights flying on winged horses, called Pegasus, tales of kingdoms filled with these magnificent creatures. I used to dream that I would find a Pegasus and fly up to the constellations themselves.
