Lost but Loved

Chapter Twelve: Traveling to Stancely Part Two

Lucy woke up when the moon was high in the sky to find that Jayce had fallen alseep on watch duty. She scoffed, thinking that was typical of boys not to hold their word. She untangled herself from the blanket and draped it over Jayce, taking up guard duty. The other guard was slumped up against a laying down horse, no doubt sleeping. She stood and stretched her limbs out, feeling her sore muscles tighten. The dying embers glowed a soft dark red as Lucy stared at them. Alec stood a few feet away from her, blood dripping from his muzzle. On the ground in front of him was the broken body of a rabbit.

Jayce snorted in his sleep, a horse let loose some air, and a man burped. Lucy scrunched up her face in disgust. This is no place for a girl, to be traveling with a bunch of men. She sat back down, drew her knees to her chest and rested her chin on her knees. The stars danced and twinkled merrily in the dark. A lone cat prowled the village, a wolf in the far distance howled and a little orphan boy wandered through the village.

Jayce stirred in his sleep and Lucy couldn't help but lean closer to hear what he would say. "Mother, no. He's lying again. Again." Lucy felt her chest tighten and she wondered who was lying and why Jayce was having dreams about it. A man stirred, woke up and replaced the guard that had fallen asleep. All was calm. The only sounds were the soft chirps of insects, the crunching of bones because of Alec, and the soft crackling of the dying fire. She wanted to do something, but she didn't know what. So she stood and walked to Apollo's house. It was a bit more than a hut, with wooden walls, a thatched roof and a small slab of wood acting as a door. It was probably no more than ten feet in length and width. She shoved the 'door' away and entered the one room home. Knight Marcus looked pale in the meager light of a small cooking fire. He laid in the corner, shivering frequently in his sleep. The old man sat against the wall behind Lucy. She turned around to face the man.

"How is he doing? Will he be okay? Are the stitches fine?" The old man merely chuckled at her questions and shook his head. He stood shakily with the help from his strange cane and then knelt by the knight. He tilted the man's head back, opening his eyelids.

"He is fine. The person who did the stitches did an excellent job of mending his flesh back together. He will recover fine, I am pleased to announce. But may I ask you a question, how did you know of the answer to the riddle?"

"Why, you are a blunt old man, aren't you?" Lucy's despise for the man deepened. "That is not of your business to know. Now, will he be able to travel by the morn?" The old man left Knight Marcus's side and returned to his spot, Lucy swivelling her body so she could stare at him. "I need an answer, old man!"

"Impatient, aren't we? Is that how you talk to your elders?"

"Its how I talk to lowly scum! Now my answer, old man!" Lucy balled her hands and was close to slapping the man. If she hit him hard enough, maybe his neck would snap killing him... She shook her head and glowered at the healer.

He just shook his head, anger rising in him like it hadn't before in a long time. "No, woman. He won't be able to travel by the morn. Unless..."

Lucy lunged, and wrapped her hands around his frail neck, lifting him up off his feet. His cane slipped through his fingers, his only weapon. She shook him like a rag doll. "No more riddles! I want a straight forward answer, understood?" He tried nodding unsuccessfully.

She dropped him and he crumpled to the ground. Stepping over him, she mumbled a few choice curses and exited the house. She sat back down next to Jayce who kept stirring and mumbling in his sleep. Lucy debated about whether waking him from his dreams or not and finally decided that she would want him to wake her from her troubling dreams. She tapped him on the shoulder, making him jolt. He sat up bleary eyed, not sure what was going on.