The Game

I walk slowly down the hall to the stairway. The room that Calin and Ekohl are staying in is three down from mine and Mehta’s. After dragging the rest of the story from Mehta, I no longer had any appetite. Only four of our original twelve guards made it to Lequin. Two returned to Kyshia with our dead and an entourage of ten Lequinian men to bring tidings to my father. Ekohl and the fourth man, whose injuries bar him from travel, remain with us in this village. That means we’ve in essence only one fighter left with us. My father was a fool to send only a dozen men.

“What are you doing?” I snap my head to the right. Ekohl stand at the top of the stairway, one foot still on the last step. I realize I’ve been standing in front of this door, his door, for some time now.

“I was…” I stop. What do I hope to accomplish here? I’m not a healer, not even a real apprentice healer either. “How is he?” I ask instead. Ekohl strides toward me and stops a few paces away.

“He’s bleeding internally. Took a blunt blow to the shoulder, another to the right temple,” he admits. I look back at the door, not wanting to meet his eyes. Those are injuries sustained when your attacker wields a hammer.

“It’s my fault,” I say, remembering the man who distracted the bandit.

“Yes,” he agrees. His words hit me like a physical blow, or maybe it’s just my ribs. Either way I suddenly feel sick. I back up and lean against the wall opposite the door.

“Ekohl-“

“Don’t,” he interrupts. He’s standing in front of me now. I didn’t even notice him moving. “What did you think would happen?” I don’t have an answer, and he doesn’t wait for one anyway. “Those were real adversaries with real weapons and no reason to pull their blows just because you’re a woman. I told you to stay out of it, to stay in the carriage. Why couldn’t you just listen for once?” I press my back hard against the wall. I want to run away, have my hands already pressed to the wall, but I can’t move.

“I didn’t mean for this,” I answer weakly.

“No!” He slams his hand against the wall just above my left shoulder. It startles me enough that I look up at him. “Of course not. When do you ever think about the consequences of your actions! You got involved in something beyond your skill and another good man will probably die because you couldn’t follow orders.” I’ve never seen Ekohl so mad before, and it’s directed right at me.

“I’m sorry,” I cry, finally pushing away from the wall and shoving past him. He doesn’t move from his position, leaning with one hand against the wall, but I don’t care. I just need to get away from him, away from this inn, away from my guilt lying there dying just on the other side of that door. I ignore the pain in my ribs as I lurch down the stairs. I keep running, through the hall and out the front door, and even then I don’t stop.