When it was near midday, we halted on a barren flat. Halted means we were worn out and couldn’t go much farther so we collapsed beside each other. I said, “Have your dragon fly over so they can find us.”
“You want them to do all the work?”
“Have they been idly sitting in a rowboat for two days while you and I found a way to rescue them? Yes, they can search for us. Besides, that’s what I told Anna to do. Look for the dragon and we will be below it.”
Kendra punched my shoulder, none too easy. I might have a bruise, but that was okay. There are strange ways brothers and sisters tell each other they love each other. Hers was to punch me. Mine was to hold back my instinct to punch her harder.
The dragon came into view and started flying in lazy circles. *Anna, we are under the dragon.*
*I see it. We’re not far away but have no water. Will wonders if we should return to the lake and get our water jars.*
I said to Kendra, “They are out of the water. Will says they should go back to the lake because they have no water.”
She snickered, then laughed. I joined in. We never had to worry about the lack of water again. I reached out to Anna again, *We have plenty of water. Just come find us, but we are going to keep walking so the army can’t catch us. Just follow the dragon.*
They didn’t catch up with us right away, but near mid-afternoon, we spotted them on a converging angle. They were drooping with exhaustion and thirst. Their heads hung, their movements were slow, and they didn’t notice us until they were nearly upon us.
Kendra and I shouted our greetings. They nodded or lifted a tired finger or two in acknowledgment. Will held up a water jug and said in a voice that rasped, “Water.”
I hadn’t realized how thirsty they were, or I’d have gone to them instead of waiting. I’d already refilled our water twice and they were almost empty again, so I should have known. A person required two or three large water bottles a day in the desert—or more.
I said to Will, remove the cap of your jar. In an act intended to show off, I placed my finger at the lip of his jar and quickly filled it, the water seemingly flowing from the tip of my finger as I focused the concentration of moisture there. While ignoring the astonished looks and curiosity, I filled them all. They were too thirsty to complain about my dirty finger or question us.
The old fisherman and his sons had accompanied them. I’d expected they would row their boat back out on the lake again, but if the army arrived in boats tomorrow, there would be no escape. They had accepted water from me, their expressions curious, too. Each son touched the tip of my finger as I concentrated the water there as if they thought they could plug the hole that had to be at the end of my finger.
Just because my sense of humor is like the soldier who cannot stay in step with the others of his unit, I pretended that when they touched my fingertip, the water slowed . . . then stopped. When they removed their finger, the water flowed again. I got away with it three or four times until Anna mouthed off and ruined my fun.
Will had emptied his water jug in one huge drink, so I refilled it, and then all the rest. We fell to the ground exhausted, with no blankets, no food, nothing but the clothing we wore. A glance told me there was no firewood. It would be a cold night.
Elizabeth took another sip and caught my eye. “It does not taste like your finger.”
“How would you know that?” I teased.
“You have a lot of explaining to do, Damon. Kendra, also.” Elizabeth had slipped into her princess mode, and instead of being annoyed, it pleased me. Her change in attitude reminded me of our days in Crestfallen when our biggest problem was to figure out which male royal was escorting which young woman to a ball.
Kendra said, “We are all going to be hungry and cold tonight, but at least, we will have water.”
Will, who had been quiet since arriving, said, “If my guess is correct, we will reach Ander late tomorrow, or the next morning at the latest.”
Then old fisherman scratched the whiskers on the bottom of his chin as he grunted for attention. When he had it, he said, “It’ll be cold as hell tonight. If we don’t get an early start, we’ll spend another cold night out here and none of us will want that.”
I noticed the three boys kept to themselves. Not that they were scared to talk, or were not part of our group, but the presence of Princess Elizabeth overwhelmed them. I watched their eyes, and they seldom strayed far from her. Impressed didn’t begin to explain their feelings and fascination.
All that was understandable.
The water revived everyone. Will glanced at Elizabeth as if imploring her to talk. His eyes flicked to the side as if surrendering power.
She nodded slightly and said, “As Coffin told us, it will be a long walk and a cold night. The more distance we move today, the quicker we get to Ander.”
Coffin said, “Can you do that trick with the water whenever we need it?”
I nodded.
He started to walk and hesitated as he faced all of us but spoke to me. “Do you think those following us have a mage that knows that trick with them?”
I turned but saw nothing.
He continued, “Just before joining up with you two, I saw them behind us. They were moving slow.”
“How many?” Elizabeth asked.
“Fifteen or twenty, at a guess.”
She turned to me. “Could you sneak back there and provide water, so they don’t die? And make sure there is no mage with them?”
Kendra said, “If he does give them water, will they come after us or go back?”
Surprisingly, Coffin answered, “If it was me and I was a soldier, I’d agree to go back to the lake and thank you for the chance. Most of those serving in the army are not our enemies. Some were our friends and neighbors during better times.”
“What are you suggesting?” Will asked.
Coffin said, “My guess is they’re too worn out and thirsty to fight. By morning most will be dead, and they know it. They are not our enemy today. The mage and you could slip back, offer them enough water to get back, and follow our tracks until you catch up.”
I turned to my sister. “Why didn’t you think of that? You’re the one with the empathy in our family.”
She said, “I did think of it and was going to suggest it as soon as I could think of a way to force a kind thought into your hard head. Why are you still here? Didn’t Will say we have to hurry?”
There were a dozen retorts to her glib answers, but none were exactly right. She would turn and twist any of them and make me look more a fool. I said, “Come on, Will. We have some water to deliver.”
Yes, I heard Kendra and Elizabeth laughing but refused to look behind. We followed our tracks back along the hard ground. Will said, “It would have been easier to let them die.”
I kept walking. The right words eluded me again. Finally, I said, “It would have been easier today. But what about tomorrow? And the day after? How easy would it be to know we could have saved them and didn’t?”
Before Will answered, I saw movement. It was the group of them.
We walked side by side with the energy supplied to us by the water. They shuffled, stumbled, heads down, and as I saw past the larger group, there was a smaller one lagging behind, and one man sprawled motionless in the sand. One of them spotted us and grunted as he pointed.
We didn’t pause or respond until we were well within the range of an arrow. None had drawn a bow. They waited.