Sorry I went so long without posting, I had stuff going on. But, I am back. So, thank you all for reading, please review!
Chapter Seven: Divided
They all sat around the fire, drinking coffee.
Halt set his cup down. "That was Seamus O'Dell. He and Ferris were close friends. But, we never got along. Around fifteen or sixteen he ran off to avenge the death of a shady friend of his. He had been training to be a knight, his father was a wealthy nobleman, everything was going pretty good for him." Halt sighed. "When Ferris tried to kill me, Seamus helped him find poisons, assassins, and the like. I didn't see him for several years after that, not until I met Pritchard." Halt reffered to the ranger who'd trained him, and Crowley. "Though he and Ferris kept in contact, until Ferris' death." Halt picked his cup up and took a swallow.
Will figdeted with his cup. One part was still bugging him. "Halt, who is Alina?"
Halt's gaze jerked up to Will's. Their gaze held a moment, then Halt looked away.
"When I was training with Pritchard, Seamus stayed nearby, bugging me mostly. I was seeing this girl, Alina. Seamus decided he was in love with her too. But she was disgusted by him, and she didn't even know he was an assassin."
Will was hard pressed to picture Halt with anyone but Pauline, but this had been a long time ago.
"But, it didn't matter too much anyway. She died not long before I left for Araluen."
"How'd she die?" Horace piped up. "Did Seamus kill her?"
Halt looked away. "No, childbirth."
Horace frowned. Gilan's eyes widened, and he and Will exchanged a glance.
Will sucked in a deep breath. What. The. Hell.
Will jumped up and dashed off.
Horace frowned more. "What's wrong with him?"
Gilan rolled his eyes.
Halt got up and followed Will.
~A~A~A~
Will sat on a fallen log, his head laid on his knees. He forced himself to breathe slower.
In, out. Pause. In, out. Pause.
Wake up, Will. Wake up. It will all be normal in just a moment.
"Will?"
Halt. It will NOT be normal.
Breathe.
Halt sat down beside Will. "Are you okay?"
Will turned away. "No."
Halt let out a shaky breath. "Me neither."
Will picked his head up. "It's me."
Halt nodded.
"Why didn't you just tell me? What about the story about Daniel?" Words spilled out.
Halt opened his mouth, then sighed.
"I guess I had this coming. The story about Daniel was true. I left you with them."
Will waited.
Halt glanced away. "Will. . . Alina had just died. . . I- I was scared." The last part came out a whisper.
Will licked his lips. "So?You should've–you should've told me."
Halt looked down. "I didn't know how to. It was better this way."
Will stood. "It wasn't." He walked away.
~A~A~A~
The rest of the day was. . . tense around camp.
Gilan glanced up. The sun was setting. "We ought to be getting ready. It's nearly time."
Horace raise his gaze from hi coffee. "I'll just finish this." Horace grabbed a plateful o food. "And this."
Halt already stood by Abelard, packing.
Will grunted and went to Tug, who stood on the opposite side of camp.
Gilan glanced between the two and sighed.
It only took them a few minutes to get ready. Then Gilan laid out a plan. "I scouted their camp earlier. Seamus has twenty men."
He pulled a map out. "This is a rough sketch of Seamus' camp and set it on the table. It was fortified on all sides with barricades. Seamus had a wood shack, like the one he'd held Halt in, in the center.
"Halt, you will sneak inside and capture Seamus. Horace and I'll take care of those twenty men. Will, you'll find a high up place and shoot as many men as possible." Gilan straightened. "Is everyone clear?"
Horace took a large bite of chicken. "Sure. I follow you inside and bash people."
Halt grunted, and Will nodded. Then both headed for their horses.
Gilan sighed again. Seamus had some secret plan running through all this. And this rate, Will and Halt would be caught off guard.
But it was time