Emeralds and Enemies

Chapter Seventy-three

            Song-hee pretty much left Rufus to his own devices. He remembered Junseo complaining the horse was like riding an avalanche but he felt how carefully the charger moved with his sleeping cargo. Junseo must have been having a bad dream because at one point he grabbed Song-hee's arm tightly and muttered "get help." A little while later he came to enough to ask for a drink of water before falling back asleep.

Song-hee couldn't help noticing the ring Junseo was wearing. The small red stone flashed in the sun and looked like the bird was winking at him. Sen Dou noticed the ring as well and he drew a quick breath. The bond between Jong Tai Yi and Park Junseo on the palace practice courts suddenly made much more sense. Whatever else Junseo said about his background, the ring proved his connection to the northern court. Sen Dou understood the urge to keep this fact hidden and wondered where he might be able to find another neck chain for Junseo to use. He did have some riding gloves tucked away so could make sure he at least had those handy before others spotted the phoenix crest.

The group halted in the late afternoon. They had not covered as much ground as they had originally planned but the treed knoll with a rocky cliff on one side was much more defensible than the original stop. The cadet up in front of Sen Dou was panting and had drool running from one side of his mouth. It took three people to lift him down off the horse. Junseo came over to check on the cadet. He tested his reflexes and then just shook his head sadly.

"I don't know if we did him a kindness or not," he whispered.

"You can only do your best," Sen Dou said and then handed the riding gloves over.

Junseo looked bewildered for a moment but tucked the gloves into his belt and twisted his ring so the crest was on the inside. He was relieved to find Xuiyang showing better signs of recovery. The almost normal reflexes were a good omen. San Jin woke up long enough to eat and then crawl into a tent. Il-don followed suit.

Junseo asked Song hee to help him check on the others who had been injured. Thankfully, no one else showed signs of poisoning but he did have to rinse and rebandage a couple of sword wounds. One he decided to stitch so sent one of the cadets to find Manager Doak to bring his kit.

"I'm sorry this will hurt a bit but it should help you heal faster," Junseo explained to his patient as he sterilized a needle in the fire.

"He had been practicing his stitchery so it shouldn't be too ugly a job," Manager Doak offered a teasing reassurance.

"You could wait it out but we would still have to clean up the edges," Junseo explained and then passed the young man a stick to bite down on. Manager Doak and Song hee held the cadet still and Junseo worked as quickly as he dared. There were tears streaming down the cadet's face by the time they were through.

"Oh, once it heals the girls are going to go crazy for your scar," Song hee assured the patient.

"It will definitely make you seem much more legit when you join your regiment," Manager Doak added.

"Right. We will bandage it tonight and then you can leave it to air. Just be sure to cover it if you think it might get dirty. Any healer should be able to snip out the stitches in about ten days but get them checked before then," Junseo said these things pretty much automatically as they had been the usual fare at his father's clinic.

He was nearly staggering with fatigue by the time he finished so he followed San Jin's lead to have a quick meal and find a bed roll. The poisoned cadet had a seizure in the middle of the night and died before there was even time to look for Junseo.

Everyone took it hard, especially Il-don who had nearly collapsed trying to extract the poisons. The guard who had identified the poison explained how toxic it was, and how it amazing it was the cadet had lasted so long. Junseo worked to accept there was no way they could have reached the cadet in time. He also thought it likely if the young man had survived, he would not have had the use of his legs and maybe his arms as well.

Xuiyang felt guilty for feeling better, even though he was left with a drooping eye and slurred most of his words. He still could not manage his horse on his own so Chenhui continued to double with him. Junseo warned Xuiyang to call out if he felt even the slighted bit dizzy or out of breath.

He let Il-don grieve on his own for a while and then rode up beside him. "The first time I assisted my father with a surgery the patient didn't make it. Until then I had thought my Dad had godlike powers and I couldn't believe there wasn't something more we should have done. He tried to explain what it would take to survive the injuries the man had, and what his life would be like if he had lived on maimed the way he was, but I couldn't hear it. It was just so bloody unfair. It made me so angry but I couldn't talk about it. I don't think I looked Dad in the eye for a full month."

"What did he say to you?"

"Nothing. He just put me to work taking care of the children who came in with scrapes, bumps, and fevers. Then I found out he helped the widow of our patient win an award against the man who was responsible for the building collapse so I knew he had been just as angry as me. He just had a different way to deal with it."

"So, it doesn't get easier."

"I don't think so. The hurt won't be as fresh but you always wish for a different outcome."

"Is that why you haven't accepted the offer from the medical academy? I mean Professor Yip seemed pretty adamant." San Jin could not help asking.

"Its not that. Or maybe I should say its not just that. I appreciate learning the skills but other things interest me more," Junseo said.

"You know what would interest me more right now?" Il-don said and Junseo just shook his head. "Getting the bastards responsible for coming after us. More than half of us aren't even of age, and where is the honor in using poisoned arrows?"

"To true, brother," Junseo tapped his chest. Then he saw how the others around them made the same gesture and realized how many had been listening in.