by C. R. Pugh
“She was always playing in there with Corwan,” I told them. “I scolded her about it a few days before I left.”
Please let me be wrong.
We halted thirty feet from the entrance to the barn. The back half of the long building was engulfed in red and orange flames. Smoke billowed out of windows. Men were carrying buckets of water over, attempting to douse the flames.
“Give me one of those,” I told one of the men, snatching the full bucket of water out of his hand. “This isn’t doing any good!” I told the men. “There’s not enough water to stop the fire. Help the other citizens evacuate – search every home! Go!”
The men dropped their buckets and scattered to do as they were told. I dumped the water over my head, soaking my clothes and body.
“What are you doing?” Tallon asked, watching me.
“Stay here, both of you,” I ordered Kemena and Tallon.
A strong hand grabbed my arm. It swung me around and I was staring into the face of the last person I wanted to see.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Gunter demanded. “You can’t go in there, Thorne. It’s going to come down on top of you.”
“Lenna might be in there.” I shoved him back. “Stay out of my way, Gunter.”
Gunter swore behind me as I darted into the barn. The inside of the building was glowing from the fire, but dark in the smoky haze. My eyes watered from the ash hovering in the air.
I checked each stall as I passed to make sure all the horses were out and no one else had been left behind. There was no sign of Lenna.
The hayloft at the back of the barn was engulfed in flames and there were a few small fires down below that were starting to spread up the walls. Sweat poured down my face from the suffocating heat. The haze was so thick I couldn’t see more than a foot in front of me. The charred walls of each stall were black silhouettes against the bright orange flames. It would not be long before the building was weakened enough to collapse.
I coughed and managed to call out, “Lenna.” I squinted through the smoke, hoping to see some sign of her.
From the very back of the stable I heard a scream as part of the hayloft buckled. A few beams of burning wood caved in and fell to the floor.
Someone is back there.
“Lenna!” I bellowed again.
“Thorne! Help!” the little girl screamed. She coughed a few times in the smoke.
I glanced all around at the flames devouring the pine of the walls and ceiling overhead. Another beam of wood caved in and fell to the floor right in front of me. The stalls around me exploded into flames.
Lenna screamed in terror. There was no time to think. I had to get to my baby sister.
“I’m coming, Lenna,” I called to her.
Getting a running start, I leapt over the fallen beam and the flames at the back of the room. I crouched down to stay under the smoky haze, but it was still difficult to see. My eyes began to burn. The temperature in the room was well over two hundred degrees. It was beginning to drain all my strength.
“Where are you, Lenna?”
“Back here!” she sobbed.
I eased past the flames on either side of me, willing my feet to keep moving. Lenna was hunkered down in the last stall on the left. Her blonde curls were damp with sweat and her cherubic face was covered in soot. The walls around her had already caught fire. She hadn’t passed out from the heat or smoke inhalation because she had been curled in a ball on the floor with her head covered.
I scooped her up into my arms and turned for the entrance. “I’ve got you, Lenna.”
“Wait!” she said.
“We have to get out of here, Sister.”
“Father is back there!”
She pointed to the back of the barn. A pair of booted feet were sticking out of the stall across from where Lenna had been hiding. A man lay prone inside the stall, unconscious.
“Please! We can’t leave him!” she cried.
“I’ll come back for him when you’re safe.”
I turned for the entrance and another beam of wood came crashing down in front of us. Lenna screamed as I jumped back from the flames. I ducked down to keep us both out of the worst of the smoke. Taking off my damp shirt, I ripped it into two pieces.
“Put this over your mouth and nose, Lenna.”
I covered my own face while I figured out what to do. The fire had spread across the path, making it impossible to jump across with Lenna in my arms. We were trapped.
“Thorne!” Gunter bellowed from near the entrance.
I lowered the rag from my face and yelled back to him. “I have Lenna, but we’re trapped!”
Gunter didn’t answer. After another ten seconds I was about to call out to him again, but I heard boot steps pounding inside the barn.
A shadow approached through the flames and smoke. A flood of water poured across the beams and then another. Gunter had doused the flames dancing in front of us for the time being.
“Run, Lenna! Run outside to Kemena,” I said, giving her a nudge. She picked up the hem of her dress and scampered out.
Gunter gripped my upper arm when I turned back. “What are you doing? We need to get out of here!”
“Cadmar is back there,” I told him. Gunter’s eyes widened. “I’m not leaving without him.”
I watched in astonishment as Gunter ran and dove over the beams that were quickly being consumed in the blaze again. After all the running from danger I had seen Gunter do before, I hadn’t expected him to barrel headfirst into the blaze. I followed right behind him.
Together, we lifted Cadmar by his hands and feet. “We’ll have to toss him over those beams,” Gunter yelled over the roar of the fire.
We shuffled back to the middle of the barn. The ceiling and walls were cracking all around us. “We don’t have much time,” I said.
“Swing him,” Gunter said. “Together.”
On the count of three we tossed Cadmar over the flames to the other side. His limp body rolled over a few times when he landed, but he was clear of the flames.
“Go!” Gunter shouted at me, nudging me in the back.
Nodding to him, I took a few steps back, ran, and jumped back across the beams and through the flames that were growing hotter and higher. My legs buckled when I landed on the hard ground and I was sent sprawling into the dirt. Not a second later, the roof of the barn caved in and crashed to the ground. Still lying on the ground, I curled up into a fetal position and covered my head with my arms. Once I realized I hadn’t been crushed, I looked back to check on Gunter. Had he made it out? Was he still trapped inside the barn?
“Gunter!” I bellowed. I scrambled to my hands and knees and squinted through the smoke and flames. My heart was beating hard. I couldn’t see him and he wasn’t answering me.
He’s right behind me, I thought desperately. He’ll make it out!
I was still screaming Gunter’s name when Pierce and Archer grabbed hold of me under my arms and pulled me out. Brock seized Cadmar by the arms and hauled him to safety after us.
“Gunter!” I cried out again. “No! You have to let me go back! He’s still inside!”
They dragged me out of the barn while I thrashed and kicked, struggling to go back for my friend. Just as they’d pulled me clear of the barn doors the rest of the roof buckled. I watched in horror as the entire building caved in, crushing anyone who might have been inside.
“Gunter!” I howled, reaching out toward what was left of the burning building.
“It’s too late, Thorne,” Pierce shouted at me. He and Archer stood motionless, firm hands on my shoulders to keep me on the ground. “I’m not letting you die too.”
Arms were wrapped around me from both sides, even as I covered my face with my hands in defeat. Both Kemena and Tallon whispered words of comfort into my ears, but their voices were drowned out by the crackling of the flames and the breaking of my own heart.
***
I had been hunched in a chair beside Cadmar’s hosp
ital bed for three hours, waiting for him to awaken. Tallon was asleep on the rug at the foot of the bed. She’d been just as devastated as Kemena about her father and was feeling guilt over running away. Lenna was sleeping in a hospital bed in the room next door. I wanted to dig a grave for Gunter myself, but Pierce and Kemena both ordered me to stay here, out of the way, insisting I sit with Cadmar and Lenna.
“Someone needs to be with them in case they wake up,” Kemena had said. “Send another healer to find me when they do, Thorne.”
Gunter was gone. It didn’t seem real. It couldn’t be. If I closed my eyes, I saw the barn collapsing on him again, so I sat and stared at Cadmar. Kemena had stuffed three or four pillows behind his shoulders and head to keep him sitting upright while he rested. He’d been struck on the head by a rock or some other blunt object. A three-inch gash trailed across Cadmar’s forehead and a lump was forming on his skull. Not only that, he had been inside the barn for over ten minutes, breathing in the ash. If he didn’t die from the head injury, the smoke inhalation would be our next concern.
Nothing could be done to retrieve Gunter’s body until the flames had burned themselves out. Pierce, Archer, and a few other older Warriors formed a temporary camp outside the Peton walls in the meadow to keep people away from the smoke until it cleared and set up a rotation of Warriors to keep watch. Only the barn, the surrounding trees, and two homes on the south side of the barn had been destroyed. The Warriors, and any other strong, young men, had worked quickly to create a fire line to prevent the flames from spreading further into the village. Tree limbs were chopped down, brush was cleared, and homes were doused with water. The wind had been blowing southwest, so there wasn’t as much of a threat to the northern parts of Peton.
Other elderly citizens and those with small children were housed inside the Council building until further notice, since it was built on the western side of the main road, clear of the forest that was still burning up into the foothills of Mount Asa. The hospital was still open as well, though there were Warriors keeping watch on the flames nearby. We would evacuate the patients again if we had to, but for the time being, Kemena and the other healers wanted to keep all injured as close to her supplies as possible.
The room was silent, as was the rest of the hospital. The cedar walls and floor were clean, as Kemena and Aaron preferred. The shutters on the window had been closed to keep the smoke out.
Leaning forward in the chair, I rested my head in my hands, thinking of Gunter. Losing him today hurt far worse than I’d ever imagined after he had snaked my position out from under me. He’d risked his life to help me save Cadmar … or maybe it had been for Cadmar and not for me.
But he didn’t know about Cadmar when he first came into the stable. I told him that Cadmar was in the barn.
A knot formed in my chest. Gunter came back for me. He died getting me out of there.
The creaking of the cedar floorboards alerted me to someone entering the room. My head popped up to find Pierce tiptoeing through the door. His face was streaked with soot, dirt, and sweat. Wiping his sleeve over his filthy face, he crossed the room and sat down in a chair next to me.
“How are you holding up?” he asked, keeping his voice quiet.
I shrugged, not wanting to talk about Gunter. Instead, I peered up at him and asked, “What’s happening out there? Did we lose anyone else?”
“Gunter was the only one lost in the fire.” Pierce mumbled, glancing at Cadmar. “So far, anyway. At least eight of Wolfe’s soldiers were killed in the skirmish. The others are being rounded up and imprisoned. Five Warriors were killed.”
“Did we find out why the Warriors were fighting each other?”
Pierce leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees. “Archer and Brock are getting the whole tale from Max as we speak. Apparently, there was some sort of uprising while we were away. Ryelle, Dorsey, and a few other Warriors were following orders from Aurel and the other Elders in league with Wolfe. The Warriors that remained loyal to Peton, Hawke, and us … they rebelled against them.”
“And Gunter? Where did he fall in all this?”
“Gunter fought and defeated several of the traitors and soldiers.”
I straightened and my brows shot up. “He was fighting against them?”
“Archer and I were both as surprised as you.” Pierce ran a hand down his weary face. “Elder Aurel was found inside his chambers with a bullet in his head and a gun in his hand.”
My eyes widened. “Suicide?”
“Looks that way, but questions have been raised. You know how suspicious Max has always been. He thinks the soldiers set it up to make it look like Aurel killed himself. The soldiers won’t answer our questions. Bunch of brainwashed idiots,” Pierce muttered to himself. “We may never uncover the truth.”
I furrowed my brows. “What makes Max believe it was murder?”
“Another Elder was found dead a week ago,” Pierce stated.
“What?” I gasped, leaning back in my chair. “Two Elders dead.”
Running my fingers through my curls, I regarded Cadmar’s injuries again. He was still sleeping, though his breathing was labored. The knot on his forehead was the size of a bird egg. Someone had bashed him over the head and left him lying in that back stall. And the barn just happened to catch fire? That was too much of a coincidence.
“And another one in the hospital with a suspicious knot on his head,” I added. “Someone’s getting rid of Elders.”
“Looks like it.”
“I’m surprised more people weren’t killed today,” I murmured. “Did you notice no one was firing guns?”
Pierce nodded. “It seems someone sneaky crept into the armory and stole all the magazines during the night.”
I lowered my chin to my chest and rubbed my forehead. Gunter had fought on the side loyal to Hawke and me? How was that possible? I glanced up at Cadmar, who was still sleeping. He was the only person who might be able to answer my questions, and he might not wake up.
“Was I wrong about Gunter?” I whispered to my brother, still staring at Cadmar. “He tried to explain after the Council hearing, but I was angry with him. I never gave him a chance.”
Pierce folded his arms over his chest and shook his head. “Gunter made choices. A lot of them cowardly and disloyal, especially to you. If he was loyal to the end, he hid it well.” Pierce stared at me for a moment. “That’s why you’re sitting here with Cadmar, isn’t it? Are you hoping he’ll know the truth?”
“Maybe. Do you think it matters?”
“It won’t change what happened, but I would want to know the truth.”
I glanced at Pierce again. “If we had any serum, we could save him,” I said, nodding to Cadmar.
Pierce frowned. “I questioned an Elder about it. He claims it’s all been destroyed. The Elder didn’t know who might have done it and no one has claimed responsibility for it.” He shrugged. “Doesn’t matter now.”
I lowered my head into my hands again, the knot in my chest twisting tighter than before. My sisters would be devastated by losing their father, and I could do nothing to save him.
Pierce rose to his feet and patted my shoulder. “I’d better get back to work.”
Half an hour later, Cadmar began to stir. His wheezing had already been worrying me, and upon waking his body began to convulse in a fit of coughing.
Tallon jumped up from her spot on the floor where she had been sleeping. “I’ll go get Kemena.” And she ran from the room.
Cadmar heaved and began to gag. I surged forward, grabbed the large bowl on the bedside table, and helped Cadmar sit up so he could dispel any ash and soot from his lungs. Once he’d choked up the black phlegm and his body relaxed again, I eased him back down on his pillows. I set the bowl down and grabbed a glass of water from the side table for him to drink. He took a few sips and stared at me as if he were in a daze.
“Thorne,” he groaned, his voice gravelly from the smoke he’d inhaled.
“Do yo
u want me to fetch a healer?” I asked, taking the glass of water from his hands and setting it back on the small table.
Cadmar shook his head. “I’m … glad you’re here. There are … things I need to say to you.”
I sat back down and scooted my chair closer to the bed.
“I needed to tell you … I didn’t kill Sidra – your mother.”
That was the last thing on my mind. The past couldn’t be undone. “Cadmar, I -”
“Please,” he wheezed, his eyes pleading with me. “Kemena told me your suspicions … after you left, and I need to set things straight, before …”
His words trailed off, but it didn’t take a mind-reader to know he meant before I die. I pinched my lips together and allowed him to go on.
“I thought I loved Sidra,” Cadmar admitted, staring up at the ceiling. “Looking back now, it was my hatred for Hawke that made me pursue her. He and I were as competitive as you and Gunter were.” Cadmar shook his head. “Did you know … I tried to become a Warrior?”
I gaped at him. Cadmar had never mentioned it before.
“I was jealous. It was stupid, thinking back on it as an old man. Hawke always managed to accomplish anything he set his mind to. He was a fearsome Warrior, like you’ve become. I … didn’t make it past my second year of training. In my anger, I swore I would best him at winning Sidra. She was the child of a great Warrior and Elder, and so was I.” Cadmar peered at me out of the corner of his eye. “I was the one who was in the wrong. Not Hawke. I should never have come between them.” He cleared his throat and coughed a few times.
I rubbed my brow a few times. “You don’t need to explain anything. Hawke still did wrong in his betrayal.”
“But if he hadn’t, you would have never been born. And that … would have been a great loss.”
Cadmar gazed up at me, his eyes shining in admiration, the look I had been craving from him my entire life. A lump formed in my throat. I clenched my teeth together to hold back the pain I’d been carrying around for years. Why the sudden change of heart? Was it because he was on his deathbed?
“I should have let her go before we wed, but I was too stubborn and proud. I didn’t want to let my own father down. Losing such a prize would have been my ultimate failure.”