A/N: Found will up soon :)
Aubrey Cortez: Talia is always fun to write. She's pretty complex.
Gold: Wow! Thank you so much for all the great reviews! I was reading them as you put them up at work and they made my day :) As for your favorite character? Hm...the one I think I can't say here because it could become a spoiler...
Alice: Oh Alice...
Saberin: Lina and Talia are the perfect opposites attract friendship :)
Disclaimer: I'm not John Flanagan. Or Kiera Cass. Or John Green.
039: Break
"We can't go on much longer," Lina pointed out to Will as she glanced behind her. They'd worked together to free thirty slaves on a rogue Skandian ship. Its jarl and crew were detained in Seacliff Castle until the oberjarl could come deal with them. Most of the liberated people were divided out to charitable Seacliff residents who would help them get home or build a new life in Araluen. The Seacliff Ranger had done well solving the dispute, until he realized thirteen orphans among the slaves could not be accommodated by the Seacliff ward.
Will and Lina had been in the area anyway, investigating reports of organized highwaymen targeting the main road that connected several wealthy fiefs. They volunteered to escort the children to Redmont. Traveling from Seacliff to Redmont on foot proved challenging. Baron Ergell gave them a workhorse and cart so the youngest wouldn't be a major burden but still, it was slow. The older children, forced to walk, complained loudly.
Will looked up at the sky. They still had a few hours of sunlight. If it were just him and Lina, they'd ride well into the night before breaking for camp…just as they had since their mission started. But it wasn't just them, and the children tired.
"There's a clearing up ahead we can stop at," he told the children. Only three still walked. The others all either rode in the cart or on Jarra or Tug. They all cheered with delight.
"I'm hungry," the smallest pled. "Will we eat tonight?"
"Of course," Lina answered. "You're going to eat every night from now on."
The child grinned as she clutched to a makeshift doll. Once they came to the clearing, Will set the older children to work gathering firewood and fetching water. They younger ones gathered around Lina, who kept their hands busy plucking three chickens they'd been given as supplies for the road. Will built two fires, knowing just one wouldn't cut it trying to feed fifteen people.
"Can we fry it?" a boy asked as they continued to prep the chicken. Will and Lina shared a glance.
"I'm sorry," Will told him. "We don't have oil to fry it in."
The boy stuck out his lip, earning pity from both Will and Lina. Of all thirteen children, he'd been the most complacent all day. He'd walked a fair bit before Will lifted him onto Tug. He'd not once asked for a snack since they started that morning nor did he whine when Lina told them just how long it'd take to get to get to Redmont at their pace. His first request all day and they couldn't let him have it.
Lina worked on boiling carrots and potatoes while Will set two of the birds up on a rotisserie. After recruiting a girl to turn the spoke, Will set the third chicken in their largest pot and used his knife to cut slits around it. He motioned to the boy to follow him back to the wagon and pulled back the canvas over their food supply.
"We'll marinate the third one. What looks good to you?" he asked.
The boy scanned the cart carefully. He gleefully reached for a jar of pickles and held it up.
"Really?" Will asked.
"My ma used to make these the best! Can we eat them, Ranger? Please?"
Will opened the jar and handed him one of the pickles. "Eat that quietly before the others see you," he whispered. The jar held only eight (now seven) pickles and if one got one the others would all want one too.
Seeing the delight on the boy's face, Will took the jar back over to the cooking fires. Lina eyed him curiously as she seasoned the birds on the rotisserie. She raised an eyebrow as he poured the juice out over the third bird.
"You know that one is going to be the one we eat, right?" she asked with a concerned expression. Will nodded to the children. They already lined up to stare at the chicken soaking in pickle juice.
"Can you think of anything else that would cheer them up?"
Lina made a face. "I'm never leaving without powdered soup again."
Will laughed. The moment food came off the fire the children began eating. As Will predicted, the rotisserie chickens were polished before he and Lina could even taste them. He set the pot of pickle-chicken on the fire and took a guess at what seasonings to add. Lina sighed.
"If we're going to eat this we may as well make it really interesting. Show of hands, children. Who likes spicy?"
All the boys and one girl raised their hands. Lina went to her pack and retrieved a bottle of orange powder she'd acquired on her last trip abroad. She added it to Will's chicken. Will sent a boy to get a lemon from their cart.
"There's not much lemon can't help," he said as he squeezed the juice in. Lina put the lid on.
"That's enough for this mess." She turned to the boys. "You're all eating this."
They laughed. They waited a half hour before uncovering the chicken. The tangy aroma caught them off guard.
"There's no way this is going to be edible," Lina muttered as Will served it up. He handed her a plate.
"You take the first bite."
Lina pushed the plate away. "Not a chance."
Will laughed and offered it to the children. They each took a piece but held it unsurely to their lips, sniffing it. One boy, the one who had requested pickles, took the first bite. His eyes lit up. "Is good!" he declared. The rest ate their bites and cheered in agreement. Will tasted it. He held the plate back to Lina.
"They're right," he said. Lina finally mustered up the courage and pinched some off. She ate it quickly.
"Wow," she said once she swallowed. "How did we make that good?"
Will laughed. "I have no idea.".