My Dear Laurens (Lams)

J. Laurens

"Not him." 

"Again? You keep taking hits for that mute, and soon enough you won't be there to cover for him." 

Shield took a step forward. Arty's body was no longer in the redcoat's line of sight as he peered down in their grave. Shield held the redcoat's stare with his.  

"Not him." 

The redcoat shrugged his shoulders then threw a thick rope into the hole. He held one end, along with another redcoat appearing behind him. "Climb up," he said. 

Shield was the first to grab the rope. He held tight with his hands and lifted his legs to push against the slick, mud wall. The soldiers above grunted as they tried to keep their position while Shield hoisted himself out of the hole. Shield reached the top and stood. A soldier walked behind him with rope in his hands. He tied Shield's wrists together. Laurens wondered if those bonds were strong enough to hold Shield. Laurens' attention was drawn out of the haze when the next person to grab the rope was Paragraph.  

The boy's medium-toned skin appeared much darker under the dirt and grime he lived in. His small fingers gripped the rope tightly, and he lifted himself to the top in half the time it took Shield. He looked like a spider crawling on a ceiling, and once he stood next to shield with his wrists tied, he was a hawk perched on a tree. Laurens turned to see Riot holding Relic in her arms. He knew she couldn't lift Relic herself, so he strode over to her.  

"It's nothing I can't handle," She said, throwing Relic's arm over her shoulder.  

Laurens stared into her narrowed eyes. "Don't worry about it. I'm not doing this for you or him." Laurens put an arm between Riot and Relic and around Relic's back.  

Riot huffed. "Whatcha doing it for then?" 

Relic smiled at Laurens and looped his arms around Laurens' neck. Laurens grabbed the rope with both hands and hoped Relic wouldn't choke him as he climbed. Laurens glanced at Riot, then offered her a grin. "Need the workout." 

Laurens' last image of Riot before he reached the top was a pair of hands on her hips, a cocked head, rolled eyes, and the hint of a smile at the corner of her lips. When he reached the top, Relic was pulled away from him and placed by Shield and Paragraph. Exactly where Laurens stood a second later.  

As a redcoat bound Laurens' wrists together, Laurens craned his neck to scan the camp behind him. The redcoat didn't notice Laurens' face inches away from him, as he kept his mind on his task. Laurens saw the bunched together tents, lit only by candles, lanterns, and a fire or two. The scene looked different from before even though he had only been in the grave for a few hours. His senses could barely handle the stimulants before him. It was so much more than mud and mud-covered people. He didn't know how to feel.  

"Hang in there." Riot nudged Laurens' shoulder. His eyes met hers, and he knew the sight of her pale, a-storm-is-coming, green eyes would be the last piece of beauty he would see in a while.  

He was pushed. He walked with Riot on his right, Relic on his left, and Paragraph and Shield further down. Arty was safe from harm in the grave, and Laurens wondered for a moment what safety felt like. If it was real, and if he could ever have it again. Or if he ever had it. Laurens kept his eyes on the scene in front of him. He sucked in each characteristic of the camp. He didn't want to forget a single detail. A redcoat walked in front of them, stopped, and stared into Riot's eyes. A small frown dragged his features, then he walked into a tent. Riot kept her head down after that. Until, they crossed a couple hundred feet, and arrived at a group of thick oak trees. They almost seemed hell-sent, as they were lined up in a row with small metal hooks jutting out on the trees. There were six trees, and the metal hook was perfect for hanging bound hands for a person of all different heights. Each of them was sent to a tree with a hook that would keep their toes on the ground, but not their heels. A redcoat lifted their hands and hooked them on the curved metal. Laurens had Riot to his right and Paragraph to his left. His eyes stained Paragraph longer than Riot. He couldn't stop himself. He saw a young Alexander, and he heard Riot's words from earlier.