Page 13 of The Spy

“Drink the broth, at least,” Ralph told Ama, holding the bowl for him since Ama’s hands were shaking.“You need the liquids.”Ama squeezed his eyes shut and then nodded, opening his mouth when Ralph tipped the bowl for him and drinking directly from the side.

Karl barely slept that night, worries jolting him awake, certain every noise was Ama crying out for help.In the morning, he helped Ralph get Ama down from the compartment.Ama’s skin was clammy and hot.He definitely had a fever.Ralph forced him to drink two cups of tea, and then rather than putting him up on the bench, they tucked Ama back into the compartment again.Ralph rigged the door so it remained open a crack so Ama could have fresh air, and they continued on.

They stopped to rest late afternoon, as the forest was thinning.Long, brown grass waving in the wind was visible through the trees.

“From here on, we’ll be out in the open.Sorry, my lady, but this is where we’ll need to hide you away again.”

Lady Ettine sighed, but nodded, accepting Ralph’s help to climb back up into her hiding spot.Ralph closed Ama’s door too, and they rolled on.

The forest ended abruptly.One moment they were in the forest, and the next they stepped out into vast prairies.The grass Karl had only glimpsed before stretched out ahead of them for miles, an endless expanse brown in the early spring, even with the sun blazing overhead.The path was cut into the ground in grooves from years of wagons traveling on it in four parallel lines: two for the wagons heading to Toval, and two for the wagons headed into the forest.They were able to move faster now, and Karl found himself speed walking for the rest of the afternoon.When they stopped for the night at twilight, simply halting right in the path, Karl’s legs ached, but he had definitely recovered from his ordeal.Ama, on the other hand, hadn’t improved at all.

Their fire was in the center of the path, between the two sets of parallel lines.Ralph had to hold Ama up to eat.Tonight’s soup was chicken, Char’s wake-you-up-from-the-dead chicken stock with chunks of carrot, parsnip, and celery mixed with chicken pieces and more of those tiny pasta squares.Ralph got Ama to drink most of the broth, but Ama didn’t open his eyes the entire time.He was deteriorating swiftly.

Marc and Emily ate hidden inside the wagon, so anyone who might be watching wouldn’t suddenly see more people walking around the wagon than expected, so Ralph’s voice was a little louder than usual when he spoke so they could hear.

“We’ve got good moonlight and a straight path.Let’s give the horses a few more minutes to rest and see if we can’t make up some time tonight.”He pressed a hand to Ama’s forehead and grimaced.“We’ll sleep in shifts.Emily and Tilly, you’re up on the bench.Marc, you’ll sleep in the wagon.Karl and I will take first shift walking.We’ll swap at midnight when we rest the horses again.”

They finished dinner and got everything cleaned and put away.Ama and Lady Ettine returned to their compartments and the rest of the group went to where Ralph had directed.Ralph took the front, one hand on the lead horse’s bridle to guide them along.Karl took the back of the wagon, trying to keep an eye out for anything attempting to sneak up on them from behind.Their pace was slightly slower in the dark, but thanks to the marked road and the three-quarter moon overhead, they still made good time.Karl ended up on the bench when they swapped at midnight, Ralph in the wagon, while Tilly, Marc, and Emily took their turns walking.Around two in the morning, tilled fields suddenly interrupted the prairie, the dirt freshly turned and ready for spring planting.Farther afield were fenced pastures with cows and sheep.About an hour later, they clattered through a small hamlet, the houses dark and only a dog barking indicating anyone else was alive.The night felt endless, like some sort of magical loop in time.Just them and the town, silvered in the moonlight so it looked surreal.Past the town were more fields, and then the prairie returned, the stalks of grass waving hypnotically in the gentle breeze.Karl couldn’t sleep, but his consciousness drifted, hovering in that awkward space between asleep and awake as if he couldn’t quite decide which way to fall.

At dawn they stopped for an hour.Karl went through the motions of helping to pass out jerky, but his fingers moved without any seeming involvement of his brain, almost as if he were a zombie.They didn’t bother with a fire, drinking water from their stores along with the rations.Ralph got Ama to drink a little, but that was all.Once the horses were cooled down, fed, and watered, they headed out again.Karl took his turn walking, and the movement energized him a bit, but he still felt disconnected from reality.Endless prairie passed on either side.Karl could have been walking in place, each step seemingly bringing him no closer to anywhere.A surge of relief ran through him when the prairie ended, again replaced by cultivated fields and pastures, except, half of Karl was convinced this was the same village they had passed through the previous night, and they were simply walking in circles.

They stopped in the town square, where Ralph bartered for access to their well and for a couple loaves of fresh bread.Aside from the person Ralph spoke with, the rest of the villagers gave them a wide berth.Mothers steered children away and men glared when they passed.Once the horses were watered and they had eaten some of the bread, they continued onward.Ralph passed some bread and jerky up to Lady Ettine once they were back into the prairie, and they stopped again briefly at noon to swap who was walking versus who was resting, but that was it for excitement the rest of that morning.

“We’re going to have to stop for a few hours tonight,” Ralph said, grunting.He had joined Karl up on the bench, giving Tilly the back of the wagon for an extended rest.Marc was up front and Emily covered their rear.“Horses won’t make it if we don’t.”

“How much farther until we reach the border?”Karl asked.

Ralph grimaced.“Between our fast pace and not stopping last night, we’ve probably cut at least a day, day and a half off the route, so it’s hard to say exactly.Since we’re forced to stop tonight, perhaps a little after lunch tomorrow?That’s my best estimate.”

Karl lowered his voice just in case anyone was around to overhear.“How far past the border before we reach a healer?”

Ralph glanced over his shoulder at the wagon where Ama was hidden away, also lowering his voice.“Under an hour.Reinforcements are supposed to be waiting five miles from the border—far enough away they won’t arouse suspicion, but close enough to support us.As soon as we’re over the river, we’ll make a sprint for them.”

Ama would have to survive until then.Emily might not be able to heal him, but perhaps she could give Ama a little extra strength to help him get through the next twenty-four hours.If everything went as planned, Ama would be with a qualified healer soon… If.

Karl forced back his pessimistic thoughts.Ama was ill, but he knew he was safe and all he had to do was hang on until they could get him to help.That hope would bolster Ama, would keep him fighting.And that hope would also keep Karl from worrying.At least, that was what Karl told himself as firmly as possible as the hours passed and the sun began to sink into the horizon.

They made camp that night, their bedrolls next to the wagon and the fire in the middle of the road.The horses ate and drank, then promptly went to sleep, even more exhausted than Karl.They had no choice but to let the horses rest.

Ama didn’t open his eyes when Ralph and Marc carefully pulled him free, his head lolling and limp.His breathing came in short pants, and his face was flushed.

“We need to get fluids in him,” Ralph muttered, eying the beef stew bubbling in the pot hanging from the tripod over the fire.There was good broth in there with a ton of nutrients, and plenty of water in their water skins, but Ama had to be conscious enough to swallow.

“Can you do anything for him?”Karl asked Emily.

“I can’t make him any worse,” Emily replied, heading over to where Ralph was cradling Ama.Her hands glowed green as she pressed them to Ama’s chest and frowned in concentration.Karl stirred the stew as he watched, heart thudding.At least five minutes passed with nothing happening.Tilly and Marc finished setting up camp, and Lady Ettine remained hidden until Emily could vanish from view, but her hatch was open while she waited.Finally, Ama’s eyelids fluttered, and he let out a soft groan.

Emily’s knees gave out and she landed on her butt in the dirt, but she was grinning.“I was able to reduce the fever a bit and some of the swelling,” she explained.“I still can’t fix what’s causing all that,” she added with a scowl, “but he should be able to eat and rest a bit better until the symptoms flare up again.”

Emily had bought Ama a bit more time, which was really all they needed if Ralph was correct and reinforcements were just over the border.Karl quickly filled a bowl with only broth and brought it over for Ama to eat before he fell asleep again.

“Drink all of this,” Ralph instructed, taking the bowl from Karl with a nod of thanks.“And more water.The water skin you had with you is still mostly full, so you definitely haven’t had enough to drink today.”

Ama didn’t respond.His eyes were open, but they weren’t really focused on anything.He wasn’t actually awake, just conscious.Karl took the bowl back from Ralph so Ralph could hold Ama steady while Karl carefully tipped the contents into Ama’s mouth.Ama swallowed automatically.It wasn’t long before the bowl was empty, and they moved on to feeding Ama plain water.

“You have to drink.”Karl only realized he was murmuring that phrase over and over again to Ama when Ralph smirked at him, but Karl didn’t stop.It didn’t matter if Ama spent the rest of the night finding somewhere to pee, he needed the liquids to combat the fever.Only when Ama let out an indistinct sound of protest and turned his head away did Karl put the water skin down.Ralph settled Ama into one of the bedrolls, covering him tightly in the warm fabric.

“This way he’ll get some fresh air,” Ralph explained as he stood.He gripped Karl on the shoulder and turned them both back toward the fire.“Now it’s our turn to eat and get some rest.If the horses recover enough, I would like to leave not long after midnight.”

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