I continued to struggle through the frozen woods. The snow was already at my knees and more still filtered through the trees above me. I looked at my surroundings in search of a marking or sign that could tell me where I was. I could be wandering in circles or straight into a trap for all I knew. All distinguishing marks had been obliterated by the snow. I stumbled over a hidden tree root and tumbled head first into the powdery snow. After several attempts to raise myself, I let out a shivering sigh, allowing the icy numbness to wash over me. It felt good. As my tired, half-frozen body sunk deeper into the snow, my mind wandered through memories of the past like a row of paintings on a wall—completely detached form the emotions shown there. My father’s carpentry shop, cool and smelling of new wood. My mother’s still body after the physician declared her dead. A girl in that awkward transition between woman and child. Her tousled red hair hung halfway down her back and a green ribbon was in her hand. The once-numerous freckles on her face were beginning to fade. I knew that face. Jamie. She smiled as if I had said her name aloud and began to beckon to me. I smiled back at her and raised my hand to take hers.
Just as I felt her warm hand slip into mine, I sensed a steady throb emanate from the ground. Someone began brushing snow off of me. Then, a deep voice broke the peaceful stillness that encompassed me. I gradually recognized the voice of my friend, Collin, as it dragged me back to a groggy half-consciousness.
“Greg? For heaven’s sake, man, talk to me.” I was roughly pulled out of the snow as he sought to bring some warmth back into me. “Come on, Greg, you can’t die on me. Too many of us have gone already.”
I groaned and cracked my eyes open. “Collin.” My tongue was thick in my mouth and my words slurred together. “What’re you doing here? You should be back at camp with the information. They need that more than they need me.”
Collin chuckled. “I did get there, and when you didn’t follow, I went back after you. You didn’t think I’d leave you out here on your own, did you?” Before I could respond, he slipped me back onto the ground to bring his horse closer to where I lay. “Come on, let’s get you up. I don’t know how close Gautzelin’s men are.” Collin draped my arm around his shoulders and slipped his own around me. With his help, I floundered up to the horse. It took several tries before Collin was able to lift me into the saddle. Fortunately for both of us, Collin was the larger of the two of us. As he jumped up behind me, I finally lost consciousness.
***
Warm, flickering light danced above my closed eyes. My entire body ached, and my feet and legs throbbed. I groaned and shifted slightly. I lay on something soft, but kind of lumpy. An army cot? There were people all around me; I could hear their voices, but they all melded together into a low mumbling sound. My head felt like it had been trampled by an army. One of my hands involuntarily went up to my forehead. The voices closest to me paused.
“So you’ve finally decided to wake up.” I forced my eyes open through the pain searing through my body and looked up into Collin’s relieved face.
“You shouldn’t have come back for me.” My voice came out as a raspy croak.
Collin rolled his eyes as he sat down on the edge of the bed. “And what kind of friend would I be, then?”
I winced as doctors pulled the sheet off of me and began poking and prodding my legs. I looked down and, to my chagrin, noted the deep scrapes and bruises scattered across my legs and feet.
“How long have I been asleep?”
“Probably about four or five days. You started to wake up a few times, but they drugged to so you’d sleep. Apparently it’s the best way to heal.” Collin smirked and rolled his eyes. “You’re lucky. Apparently, I got you here just in time. Any longer and you might not have legs anymore. They were really cut up and frostbitten.”
I stifled a cry of pain as the doctors prodded a particularly tender area around the arch of my foot. “Well, it couldn’t be much more painful than it is now.”
One of the physicians came up beside me. “How are you feeling? Are you in a lot of pain?”
I bit back a sarcastic retort. “Well, I don’t think there’s a spot that doesn’t hurt.”
“Do you feel up to some food?”
“Sure.”
“You there, lad.” The physician pointed at Collin. “Run down to the kitchen and get some food for him. Try and get some of that soup they were cooking up this morning.” He waved Collin off dismissively and continued his examination of me.
“I’ll be back, Greg. I’ve been officially booted for the time being.” Collin offered a wan smile before striding off down the corridor.
I was forced to endure more poking and prodding from the medical staff until Collin returned a short time later. “I told them I needed food for you, and they just piled this thing high.” Collin laughed. “We’re going to eat good tonight, Greg.”
“We? I thought that was all for me?” A smile tugged at my lips. I struggled to sit up, but sank back down with a gasp of pain.
“Easy-does it, Greg. You’re still hurt.” Collin set the tray on a nearby table and helped me ease up against the pillows to a semblance of a sitting position. Then he pulled up a chair with his foot and balanced the tray on his knees. He handed me a steaming mug of broth, but I struggled to hold it. For the first time, I noticed the bandages on my hands and winced as the hot container made the wounds underneath sting. I stifled a growl of frustration and balanced it on my knee before attempting it again. I could see Collin trying to look busy in the chair beside my cot, but I knew that he was watching me. I managed to make it through most of the broth, only spilling a mouthful on the bedding. After a few minutes, I turned to place the mug on the table beside the cot. It barely made it. The mug hovered on the edge for a second before Collin pushed it on.
I leaned back and closed his eyes, discouraged and tired from my attempts to eat. Maybe it would have been better if I had just died in the woods. I opened my eyes to see Collin watching me anxiously. That’s when his words suddenly came back to me. You can’t die on me. Too many have gone already. I took a shaky breath. "Thank you . . . for everything you've done for me. I don't think I'll ever be able to repay you.”
Collin raised an eyebrow. "That's what friends are for. You've done the same thing for me numerous times. I wouldn't be here now with all the scrapes that you've gotten me out of."
I did not respond for several minutes as I reflected on the last couple of months. "I've just had enough of this. I want to go home."
"Home?"
"I don't know. Somewhere that isn't here--away from blood and people who want your life. Maybe I could go back to Emilton, where I grew up. I sometimes wonder how everyone there has been." I paused. "It's been ten years. They might not even remember me."
We sat in silence for a few minutes.
"Well, why not? Sounds like a plan to me." Collin sat back in his chair. "We could go together. And then it doesn't matter if anyone remembers you. We'll have each other, right?"
"Yeah . . ." I stared off into space. I could almost see her--red hair, hazel eyes, a bright smile. I hoped she, at least, would remember me. "Yes, we'll have each other." I looked up at my friend with a smile. "Cause that's what we are, aren't we . . . brothers-in-arms."
Collin responded with a crooked grin. “Aye, I like the sound of that—brothers-in-arms.”
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