Her own way

Chapter 10

A/N here is the next part... yay! Funny what you can do when you lose the internet for a few hours :)

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Back at the camp, the soldiers were beginning to rise. The fire was already burning as breakfast was being prepared. Gradually the noise level picked up as the men ventured out into the crisp air, leaving the warmth of their tents. Several of the men could be seen shivering as they moved quickly towards the fire. Samuel, Captain of the Guard chuckled to himself as he watched the men fall into the morning routine. He often found it amusing that even these men, the most skilled of King Thomas’ troops could act like children when it came to being out of their comfort zone. As he was contemplating the current events, his second in command Jackson was making his way over.

“Enjoying yourself lauding over us Sam?” Jackson said, laughter flickering in his eyes. Sam looked down from his spot, he had taken refuge in one of the trees without conscious thought.

“You could say that, I just say old habits die hard. I get to stay safe in the knowledge that you all could die first if we were attacked, and I get to see what mischief the boys can get themselves into without them even knowing.” Sam laughed, trying to make light of the current situation. It was not really all that often that he took to the trees, just when he was stressed or deep in thought. In all the times he had been found up a height, he always joked that he had the best seat in the area. Realistically it was the one place that he could find the solitude needed without leaving his men behind.

“So,” began Jackson. “What thoughts have you up there so early in the morn?” Sam sighed. Jackson was the only one aside from King Thomas who knew him so well, of course he would realise that Sam was puzzling over something.

“Your ghost. That’s what has me up here.”

“The girl? She’s long gone now Sam. I still want to know how she did it…” Jackson grumbled the last part to himself, frustrated that this slip of a girl had managed to evade one of the best trackers in the kingdom! A burst of laughter had Jackson glaring at Sam. “It’s not funny Sam.”

“I know, I know,” Sam chortled. “But you have to admit that it is amusing to hear that you of all people have been outsmarted by a child. A girl at that!” A grin was now spreading across Sam’s face, lightening his solemn mood. Jackson could feel a smile beginning to grow and tried to school his face into one of annoyance.

“In that case I shall leave you to it Captain.” His voice was even and held no hint of emotion. With that, he turned on his heel and began walking back to the other men.

“Oh Jackson come back,” called Sam. “You know not to take my teasing to heart.” Jackson paused mid-step, and glanced over his shoulder. Sam was leaning forward on his perch, as if ready to stop Jackson leaving

“And you know that I never do anyway. Come on, breakfast is ready.” With a chuckle, Jackson carried on walking towards the fire.

After feeding themselves, Sam and Jackson sat back with the men to discuss the plan for the day. It was clear that the ghost girl from the previous day must be found, if only to give Jackson peace of mind. All of the men were curious of the ‘girl who got away’ as they called her, and some joked that they wanted to congratulate her for both leaving unnoticed. Comments like this made Jackson sulk, no man wanted to have their skills questioned, it just wasn’t right! He cleared his throat and gave Sam a pointed look telling him to get a move on. The teasing look on Sam’s face turned serious and he gave a nod to Jackson.

“Right men, plan for the day. Jackson, take Paul and two others and look for the girl. She can’t live too far away and remember, we only want to talk to her so no scaring her away Paul!” The men laughed at that, Paul was one of the gentlest members of the group, he was the type of man who would stop in his tracks if someone or something needed help. Human or animal, it would not matter, as they are equal to him. Paul’s cheeks gained a tinge of red as he looked down at the ground, a small smile showing his embarrassment. “I’ll be visiting villagers again so Stephan I’ll be needing your assistance once more. The rest of you can carry on with the camp chores: clean, cook, hunt. You know the drill.” He looked around at them, making eye contact with everyone. Several nodded and others gave a salute in acceptance of the orders. One by one they began to move away from the fire to make a start on the day’s activities. Glancing around, Sam pushed himself to his feet and made his way to his tent to gather supplies for the day. Jackson followed Sam into his tent.