For the Love of Family

Chapter Four

Chapter Four

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For two days the party followed the southern road as it slowly moved inward from the eastern border. On the third day they left the road entirely to travel southwest through the plains that spread from Wyndfall into Torah and beyond. They avoided other people as best they could, choosing instead to make camp off the road and share the watch throughout the night. On the fifth day they reached the edge of the western forests and knew it would not be much longer. The entire western portion of the country was awash with trees that were perfect for building both cities and ships, which was perfect for ports and villages that lined the coast. Here they rejoined one of the roads and pushed as hard as they could with what they had left to reach the hamlet of Kolblim, just south of Devresh.  

Gerard slowed his horse to a walk as they made their way to what should have been the town center. Instead, it could only be described as a ghost town. There were no people to be seen anywhere, and aside from the creaking of an unlatched door swinging in the soft sea breeze, there was no sound either.  

"Where are all of the people?" Jonah, the head of Gerard's guard, asked in a hushed tone, but even that seemed to drive a knife through the oppressing silence. During the journey Gerard had confided in all of them the news of plague in the port cities so they would know to what they rode, but none of them had suspected this.  

"Fan out and see if you can find anything. Report back in fifteen minutes if not before," Levi ordered from the back of the group. Each of the guard nodded in understanding and began riding in various directions through the town. Once they were out of earshot, Levi moved next to Gerard. "This isn't a good sign," he warned softly.  

"No, it's not," Gerard agreed solemnly, scanning as much of the town as he could from this vantage point. "Do you think they all retreated inside the city?"  

"Some might have, but probably not. They city is riddled with plague from what we've been told. Retreating inside would be like trapping oneself with the monster one is trying to escape." 

"They have to have gone somewhere," Gerard countered, and Levi didn't disagree.  

Within ten minutes, Jonah returned to the town center.  

"What did you find?" Gerard asked, knowing he'd only returned early because he'd seen something.  

"It'd be better if you followed me," Jonah returned, and the commanders nodded, following Jonah as he guided his horse back the way he'd come. When they reached the edge of the hamlet, he turned slightly to the left and led them to a hill overlooking a flat expanse dotted with stone markers.  

"Why are we at the cemetery?" Gerard asked. 

"This way, Commander," Jonah said, urging his horse down the hill and amongst the graves.  

They picked their away between the headstones until they came to the end of the marked graves. What began there made Levi and Gerard's hearts grow cold. The land was littered with mounds of overturned dirt marking all the graves dug recently enough the grass had yet to regrow over them. Levi began counting them, but he gave up when he reached the forties and was nowhere near done.  

"There have to be at least a hundred," Gerard whispered in horror.  

"More, sir," Jonah replied softly, and Gerard's eyes widened.  

"That has to be most of the town," Levi whispered as they began to walk amongst the new graves.  

They were silent for a moment before Gerard realized the question no one had thought to ask yet, and pulled his horse up short. "Who buried all of these people?"