Chapter 15 — A Little Trip to Rome
“Do you confirm this destination and location, Rick?”
“Yes.”
“Would you like to put any time limits or any other restrictions on your journey at this time, Rick?”
“No.”
“Do you wish to disable safety protocols, Rick?”
“No,” he answered that question much quicker than the others.
“Everyone who is not traveling, please step well outside the red crystal circle,” T intoned as the area started to flash.
Abby, Jessica and Anna all stepped back after giving everyone a quick hug.
Rick nervously stood with his arms crossed; the girls all held hands firmly.
Suddenly anxious, Alex croaked, “What if we get scrambled or something?”
“Even before safety protocols were installed, Alex, in 10,127 trips nobody has ever been scrambled,” T said calmly.
“We’re ready when you are, T,” Rick tried to sound confident, looking at Abby and the other girls, wondering if he would ever see them again.
“Destination confirmed safe, initiating displacement,” T answered.
“They just vanished, no fancy lights, no countdown? How un-dramatic!” Jessica complained, disappointed.
Rick didn’t remember traveling. T had mentioned a slight, brief orientation period upon arrival. He looked around to see the girls standing with him in the exact positions they were in the room, but now amidst a clump of trees and brush. The view of the land gradually faded in. It took about five seconds before he was able to move, and noticed the girls moving simultaneously with him. They all gathered and locked arms around each other, taking in the view.
Christy finally spoke, “You know, I expected a more eventful journey, and a more exciting arrival.”
“We chose this spot because it was not exciting,” Kaylie reminded her.
“What did you expect? Flying through worm-holes with lights streaking by?” Alex teased.
“It certainly wasn’t what I thought it would be, either, but we’re here and we have a mission, don’t we?” Rick reminded them.
“Yeah!” they answered, eager to be trusted with their task. He gave them each a hug and headed for his hiding place, offering final words of encouragement. The girls casually strolled toward the house, occasionally glancing back where Rick was crouched, commenting on how he tensely watched them.
It was a beautiful, sunny day. The fresh, new green grass rolled for half a mile past the farm house. The temperature was in the low seventies, but felt chilly in the clothes they wore — the steady breeze whipped through the open sides, removing all the trapped body heat their normal clothes would have afforded them. In the distance, past the farm, they could see the edge of the city — they were literally on its doorstep. They were less than a mile to the east and could clearly see the main thoroughfare leading into it just a few hundred yards to the north, crossing into the heart of Rome. The road they needed to take soon.
“It looks just like North Carolina,” Kaylie said, “I expected something a little different.”
“Yeah, me too, it’s so isolated, but so close to town…” Kaylie agreed.
Rick felt like it was Halloween and he was standing on the sidewalk as he sent his excited kids to a stranger’s door for candy. He also felt useless. Here he was, just observing, as the costumed trio headed toward their quarry. Alex carried a pouch Anna had made from the sleeve of one of the shirts and Christy and Kaylie each had one filled with coins and gems. Rick smiled broadly at the thought of three young girls being entrusted with enough money to buy several small countries and broke into a chuckle when it really hit him. And that was just a handful of the hundred or more pounds that remained in the boxes. He mused that it was probably enough to buy the United States. The coins weren’t so valuable because they were gold, as most were not; they were valuable because they were so old and in nearly perfect condition. Some of the gems also made the Hope Diamond look like a $99 engagement ring. He decided after seeing all the coins and jewels, he could easily afford to send Rob that Spanish coin. He felt his own pouch, which he carried, since he had no belt… yet, and then remembered he was supposed to watch the girls.
The girls timed their interception well, seeming to merge accidently with the ancient youngsters as they came across the last knoll before their home.
“Hi!” an over-excited Christy shouted before they were even spotted. Alex and Kaylie shot her angry glares. She cowered slightly; they had decided Kaylie was going to speak, since she was the oldest and biggest and knew the most about Roman history.
“Hail! Who goes there?” the oldest boy yelled back angrily.
As they approached, the girls stalled, with Kaylie stepping forward slightly. The elder boy, on the right, had short, dark hair, and dark brown eyes. He stood a mere five feet tall. He appeared to be about eleven years old or younger, but they knew he was fifteen from their research.
“They look much smaller in person,” Alex whispered. Kaylie nodded almost imperceptibly.
The girl was slightly smaller than Christy, but they knew she was two years older. She looked much healthier though. She wore an infectious smile of a perpetually happy kid, and seemed to be skipping when she was walking. She had the same dark brown eyes as her brothers, but flopping from her head was a three-foot long mane of nearly blonde hair.
The younger brother was a carbon copy of his older sibling, only smaller. He looked to be a normal-sized eight-year-old kid. He was ten.
They all wore the same type tunics — off-white wool and in desperate need of replacement. The little boy’s shoulder strap was ripped and hung down across his chest. The edges of their clothes were frayed and each had a dozen or more holes, noticeable from ten yards away. The youngest was dirty as a pig, but the other two apparently bathed and washed their clothes in the stream while the little one played in mud.
As they neared, Kaylie quit studying them and put on her friendliest smile, “Hi, I’m Kaylie and—”
“This is our land, what is your business on it?” The older boy demanded.
Kaylie thought he sounded more frightened than anything. “I… um,” she stammered.
The girl shoved her brother aside, “What my vicious brother, Lucius, is trying to say is welcome!” she said with a bright smile.
She then turned to Lucius, “These girls are not wearing swords and don’t seem to be threatening.”
She then turned back to Kaylie, extending her hand, “I’m Vespasia, and this is my little brother, Titus. What brings you to our farm?”
Kaylie was much happier to deal with the friendly young girl, “I’m Kaylie, this is Christy, and this is Alex. We’re traveling to Rome, planning to find a new home,” she said.
“What odd names,” the little boy commented.
“You can’t buy a home in Rome unless you have a lot of money or are related to a senator,” Lucius said skeptically.
“Well, they must have a lot of money,” Vespasia said as she leaned forward and ran her hands across the edge of Kaylie’s homemade tunic, “I have never seen linen this fine, it’s almost like silk, who made this?” Her big, round eyes opened widely with awe.
“I did,” Christy volunteered, and then came forward to feel the girl’s fabric. She ran her hands over Vespasia’s garment, immediately noticing how coarse it was and recalling how Rick had said they looked like grain sacks. This felt like a grain sack.
Vespasia continued as Christy checked out her tunic, “Yours are so soft, and your belts are so pretty, they must be silk!”
The girls blushed collectively, they had thought these clothes were very simple, but this Roman girl treated them like $10,000 designer dresses.
“Yes, yes they are silk—” Christy started to say.
Lucius, becoming even more suspicious, interrupted, “Wait, if you’re wealthy, and traveling to Rome, where’s your chariot? Where are your horses? You don’t even smell like you’ve been near a hors
e! And who do you travel with? Where are your parents and servants? Three young girls wouldn’t be coming to buy land in Rome and they wouldn’t be walking through our land — the main road is over there!” he pointed, then stood with arms crossed, impatiently waiting for an answer.
“Well, we uh, well, we’re on foot—”
“Nobody would travel that road on foot! Certainly not three kids. The next village is days away by foot—”
“We’re with our father!” Alex blurted, frightened.
“See! I’ve uncovered a plot! He plans to ambush us and take our lands!”
Vespasia shoved him to the ground, “How absurd! These girls’ clothes are worth more than our entire farm, Lucius! You think everything is an evil plot lately.”
She turned back to the girls, “You mean us no harm, right?” she seemed hopeful.
“No, of course not!” Kaylie exclaimed.
“Where is your father, then?” little Titus asked.
“He’s up there, in the bushes,” Kaylie pointed.
“See! He hides!” Lucius spat.
“No! He hides because, well, because he’s embarrassed. His tunic is ruined and he has nothing else to wear. He sent us down here to see if we could perhaps purchase one?” Kaylie said.
Alex reached for her pouch, opened it, and poured some coins into her hand. A couple fell to the ground and Lucius picked one up.
Vespasia, obviously star-struck by all the shiny coins, barked at Lucius, “Go get our friends’ father a uniform while I show them around!”
“But... they belong to our father! He’s—”
“Dead! He’s dead, Lucius! And we need the money, now go!” she ordered.
The girls looked at each other guiltily; the shock of the kids’ father being dead knocked them back a bit.
“But mother wouldn’t allow it, and she’s selling another blanket today, we’ll be fine as soon as our livestock matures and breeds,” he argued.
Vespasia stood her ground and pointed defiantly while the girls watched the scene, disbelieving.
Lucius attempted to defy his sister once more, “Mother will be furious!”
Again, the small girl stood her ground, arm extended toward the house, directing him. “Then she shall be furious at me, and you won’t starve tonight!”
He lowered his head and left. Titus followed.
“Our father died two years ago in a battle. He was a soldier in the Thirteenth Legion. Our mother has been trying to keep the land ever since. We help harvest grain, tend the animals, plant crops, and weave fabrics, but most of the work is too hard for a strong man, much less a woman and young children,” the girl explained as she led them around the farm, pointing out where things needed to be done.
“Lucius thinks mother will somehow manage, but we have slowly used up all that was left of father’s salary. Now we get only a couple coins a week from the blankets I weave and mother spends her time either gathering food or selling what I make. About all Lucius is good for is milking cows. Titus can’t even do that.”
“That’s sad,” Alex commented.
“Don’t feel pity for us, we’ll survive!” the Roman girl said with the same happy smile she wore when they met.
Alex decided to try to change the subject, “So how much is this tunic he’s fetching worth?”
“Oh, probably about five sestertii if it were new, but it’s used. I’ll let you decide. Anything is better than starving while it hangs uselessly.”
Alex was floored with compassion for the story. She couldn’t imagine what kind of iron character this girl possessed after losing her father and what appeared to be a wonderful life. She hoped she could help. “Well, Da—, my father said to pay whatever you ask for it, he is quite rich.” She opened her pouch and stuck her hand in, returning with roughly 25 coins and held them out, “Do you think this would be enough for such a cherished family heirloom, and enough to curb your mother’s anger for selling it?”
Vespasia’s eyes grew to the size of cantaloupes, “Oh, no, I couldn’t possibly—”
Alex grabbed her hand and placed the coins in it, spilling several to the ground. “Take it, it’s far less value than my father’s pride.”
Titus came out just then carrying a studded leather tunic. It was a rich dark brown color with lighter tan strips of leather hanging from it. He approached the girls, who were each standing on the lower rails of a split-rail fence, leaning over with hay for the animals. “Lucius said to bring you this — he’s too busy crying like a baby.”
Vespasia laughed, “Tell him to be a man for once.” She then turned to the girls, “He turns sixteen soon but still acts like a little girl sometimes. I have more chance of becoming a man than he.”
“Do you really have to get married when you’re sixteen here?” Kaylie suddenly asked, forgetting where she was.
The girl seemed confused, “Well, if you’re rich, yes. Some girls at twelve, but you should know—”
“Oh, I just thought it may be different in different cities,” she quickly tried to cover her ignorance, “I don’t want my father to force me to marry.”
“I was wondering why you aren’t married now, as wealthy as you are, you must be at least fifteen...”
“How can you tell I’m not married?” Kaylie asked, now she was confused.
“You don’t wear a stola, or… How far away did you say you lived?” Vespasia was becoming suspicious.
“Oh, not too far, but I’m only thirteen. My father told me I could wait until we get settled in Rome though. We planned this journey when I was eleven,” Kaylie was trying her best poker face.
Vespasia’s face lit up, “Oh, that makes sense, if you had married, you would have had to stay with your husband instead of your father and sisters.”
“Yeah,” she hugged Christy, who was closest, “I couldn’t be away from my family.”
Alex took the opportunity of a slight lull to remind Kaylie they were there for a reason, “Speaking of family, we must get back to father. He may be worried.”
“Oh, yeah, we should hurry,” Christy added.
“Can I go with you?” the bright-eyed Roman girl asked. Kaylie was mulling the question over when Vespasia asserted further, “I go into Rome often by myself — I can show you around the city. You could get lost or killed if you don’t know what you’re doing.”
“We should ask father,” Alex finally answered for her.
“Yes, certainly,” the girl agreed, “Go ahead and I’ll catch up — I can’t carry all this money or I wouldn’t make it back alive.”
With that, Vespasia ran into the house while the girls walked briskly back to the brush, hoping to arrive before she caught up.
The girl was on their heels a minute later, as they ascended the small rise to where Rick hid in the bushes. “You sure are in a hurry!” Vespasia panted, arms and ponytail swaying rhythmically as she ran. They allowed her to catch up. Together, they approached the bushes. Alex took the new clothes behind the bush and handed them to Rick, and alerted him of their new friend.
Rick smiled at the thought that the girls seemed to make friends everywhere they went. It must be due to his wonderful parenting! He quickly dragged the tunic over his head, finding it fit surprisingly well.
“So, she wants to be our guide? I see no problem with that — we could definitely use one,”
“But what if she finds out what we’re doing here?”
“This is a recon mission, soldier,” Rick teased, “I actually think we should tell her what we’re looking for. Another pair of eyes wouldn’t hurt,” he said, adjusting his outfit a little. “There, does it look good on me?”
His daughter appraised him carefully, “Well, if you want the truth, it looks pretty stupid. But if you were going to battle, you couldn’t possibly be better dressed. At least you’re not wearing a towel with a hole cut in the center and no sides!”
Rick chuckled and hugged her. They ducked out of the brush to be welcomed by the others.
“You look good, Rick,” Christy blurted.
Kaylie elbowed her and grabbed her arm, “Yes, Father, you look splendid,” she emphasized ‘Father’ for Christy.
Apparently Vespasia didn’t notice the slip; she was staring intently at the man in her father’s clothes. She thought it was a dream, had she really been so disconnected from the loss of her father? She had always acted tough, as if it were honorable for a girl to lose her daddy at war.
Rick saw she had frozen, but could not tell why. Her eyes started to form tears.
“Hi, I’m Rick. I understand you would like to guide us through Rome?”
She just stared blankly.
“What is your name?” he tried.
She started to answer, but couldn’t.
Rick knelt down in front of her, placing his hands gently on her shoulders and softly shook her, “Are you OK?”
She snapped out of her daydream about the last time she had seen her father in that outfit. “Oh… Hi, I’m Vespasia,” she stuttered, bashfully sticking her face in her tunic to dry the tears.
“Vespasia! What a beautiful name for a beautiful girl! Are you going to be OK now?”
“Yes,” she said weakly, then straightened herself and mustered some fortitude, “Yes, sorry, I just… thought I saw a ghost. You look just like my father did last time I saw him wearing that,” she explained.
“Oh, I’m so sorry. I never thought how difficult that could be—”
“No, it’s OK. It feels good to be able to help. We should be on our way, shouldn’t we? I understand you’re in a hurry for some reason?”
Rick glanced at the girls and motioned them all to start walking, “Yes, we need to go, please. Tell us about Rome, and yourself, on the way, will you? But I feel I should let you know why we are really here, first.”
The girl looked up at him inquisitively as they walked side by side. He told her of the necklace and that it was to be given to Octavian today, but they did not know how. He explained that it was a priceless family jewel that meant a lot to them. She ate up the tale like french fries.
They quickly learned that Vespasia was indeed a veteran of the city. She explained the exact route Octavian and his guards would be taking, how they could watch him, and how he could acquire the necklace. Eventually, she got around to telling about her life, the family, farm, house, and her escapades in Rome. Nobody was paying attention to anything but her. Alex asked specific questions about how they built their homes, what they were made of and how they cleaned them. Christy soaked up all the information she could about the sports they played. Kaylie talked on and on with her about clothes, and Rick prodded her for more information about the markets, army, and economy. Before they knew it, they were within the walls of Rome, staring at the exact steps Octavian would traverse in just a few minutes.
Rick ushered the girls to where the video had ended then turned and faced where Octavian would arrive. He leaned over in a huddle with the girls and started giving instructions.
“I’ll go ahead of you and see if I can find anyone suspicious,” Vespasia volunteered.
“That’s a good idea. Thanks. If we get separated, we’ll meet you at your farm, OK?”
She showed him her brightest smile and put her hands on her hips, “We won’t — I’ll know where you are!” She then turned and blended into the crowd.
“OK. Remember, girls, use the necklace if there is any danger whatsoever to anyone. I will carry Christy and you two walk behind me, act like you’re looking at the food and wares for sale, but be looking for the necklace… it may be for sale and he may buy it.”
“Why do you need to carry someone?” Kaylie asked.
“So she can watch behind me and keep an eye on Octavian — unless you want to walk backwards and draw attention to us?” he explained. They giggled and agreed the idea made sense.
They were at an intersection, hundreds of people shuffled around them. Kaylie saw two boys playing with a ball, trying to keep it away from each other with their feet. She tapped Rick’s arm and asked if she could go play.
“You have four minutes, not a second more,” he answered.
She smiled and bounced off.
Alex then pulled him over to a stand where they checked out the food. “We should buy some bread and fruit for Vespasia’s family, Dad. Wouldn’t that be nice? Plus it would look a little more normal if we at least had one of these baskets.”
“Go for it,” he replied and stole a glance down the street in anticipation of the future emperor.
Alex picked what looked like a three-gallon basket and asked the elderly woman how much it would cost. Before the woman could tell her, she added two smaller ones, then two round loaves of bread, a dozen different fruits and some dried meat. The woman seemed overly pleased with the sale, which made Alex wonder if she had been shammed on the price. She simply smiled and handed over what the woman requested, plus two extra bits. The woman graciously thanked her and insisted she take an extra basket which would fit neatly inside the first one. Alex accepted the offer gladly.
She excitedly ran to Rick to show him, but he was calling Kaylie, who had two boys fumbling all over the place trying to get the ball from her. They all converged in the center of the street and Christy urged Rick to pick her up with a playful look on her face. Rick hauled her up on one shoulder so she could watch behind them and keep an eye on Octavian, relaying the information right into Rick’s ear. Alex watched the street for Vespasia, but could not see her anywhere.
Octavian, clad in a long, pure white robe with a golden rope belt and flowers in his hair, came up the street with his entourage in tow. He smiled at everyone, often waving like a beauty queen. This made Rick laugh uncontrollably when Christy explained it to him. The soon-to-be emperor finally turned and started to walk toward them. Rick walked a few yards ahead of the group, whispering in Christy’s ear to tell her to notify him if he needed to stop or go faster and watch out for the necklace to be handed to him.
“This is fun!” was her cheery reply.
“Just pay attention, OK?” Rick told her.
Christy tried to give detailed commentary along the trip, “He just gave a little boy a coin. Awww, he’s so cute! He patted a little crippled kid on the head. Stop a sec, he’s kneeling down to give the kid something… oh, how sweet!”
“Christy?”
“Yes?”
“Just the important details, OK?”
“OK, Father!” she teased.
Octavian must have given fifty coins to beggars and children, plus he handed out flowers to all the little girls and he stopped twice to buy clothes or food for orphaned kids.
Rick’s arms were already growing tired and he could feel chaffing around his neck from the leather outfit and Christy’s squirming. They were nearly ten minutes into their stroll when Rick saw a commotion up ahead.
A woman was screaming, “Thief!”
Rick, at just a hair over six feet tall, was surprisingly well above the short crowd and could see now that it was Vespasia who the woman had by the hair, calling for help.
“Two of the guards are running at us!” Christy almost yelled in his ear from the excitement.
Rick lowered her quickly to the ground, “Stay with me, girls!” he ordered as he tried to follow the guards without looking too obvious.
“What of this?” demanded the larger of the two guards on the scene. He was possibly an inch taller than Rick and twenty pounds heavier — mostly beer gut — with a scarred, square chin and a flat nose. If he had any hair, it was hidden under his helmet. His voice was deep and scratchy and brought fear into the eyes of the formerly perpetually happy child.
“This rodent has stolen a necklace from me!” the woman reported. She was a fairly attractive thirty-something lady wearing a moderately expensive flowing purple robe. Her wavy black hair was tied tightly behind her head, but her eyes were hateful, taking away from her appearance greatly. Her brow scrunched up in a way that spoke of evil. The woman was tearing at V
espasia’s tunic, trying to get at the necklace the girl had tucked inside, enlarging several of the holes in her garment. The girl was trying to free her long ponytail from the wicked woman’s grasp, her legs and arms flailing around wildly, obviously also in pain from the tearing of hundreds of hairs from her head.
Despite her painful and vulnerable position, Vespasia still managed to shriek, “I stole nothing! This woman tried to steal from me!”
The bigger guard looked to the smaller one, passing a nod, the smaller one said, “Show us this necklace, street rat!”
Rick came forward and wrenched the woman’s hand from Vespasia’s head, lifting the girl from the ground by her underarms to his side, where he cuddled her closely with his arms wrapped firmly around her. This startled both the guards and the woman.
“You should be ashamed of yourself, wench, picking on such a small child!” Rick scolded, his voice filled with authority.
The smaller guard butted in, “This woman is obviously a respectable one, while this child is obviously a—”
Rick raised his hand as if threatening to swat the guard, which brought the sword of the larger guard out, by instinct.
“What is it to you, veteran,” he said condescendingly, which made Rick realize he was wearing an informal military uniform. He immediately recognized the decorations on the man’s chest.
He slowly released Vespasia and held her a few inches away, leveling his gaze at the bigger man, “Sorry, Captain, but this girl is my daughter… and certainly no thief. If you wish the truth, she is carrying a yellow gem necklace I gave her for her twelfth birthday. It belonged to my mother.”
The captain looked down at the frightened child, “Show us this necklace, girl,” he ordered.
Vespasia made a good play of looking up at Rick as if to ask for permission.
Rick nodded, “Yes, honey, show the captain your necklace. Why aren’t you displaying it; you were so proud of it…”
“Sorry, Father,” the girl continued her part flawlessly, “but she kept trying to rip it from me so I tried to hide it inside my tunic. I got scared and tried to run away from her!” she was half crying through her explanation.
What a good show, Rick thought, “Come on, Vespasia, show the good man your necklace,” he encouraged.
She slowly stuck her hand down into her tunic and pulled the necklace out, her cries changing to a gloating smile.
“She’s lying!” the hateful woman spat.
The captain appraised Rick thoroughly, finally concluding, “The daughter of a veteran in the famous fighting Thirteenth Legion? Come now, I find that impossible to believe,” he determined.
The Thirteenth Legion? Wow! He was wearing the uniform of Caesar’s most elite and most respected squad among all the Romans. He gathered his thoughts as he heard the captain speaking in praise of him. He began fumbling in his pouch until he found a similar stone, pulling it out to show. It was blue, but roughly the same size and shape.
“See, we have several gems of this type,” he explained to the captain.
The captain raised his eyebrows at the woman, who was quite shocked, indeed.
“Arrest this woman!” The captain barked.
“No, please, let her go. It may just be a misunderstanding. No harm has been done, and perhaps my daughter has learned not to stray too far from her father,” Rick said diplomatically.
“She ripped my hair out!” Vespasia hissed.
Rick clasped his hand over the little girl’s mouth, nodding at the guard.
The guard unclenched his big meaty hands from the woman’s arms and she wasted no time stumbling away in retreat, eventually turning a corner and disappearing.
As the commotion died down, Rick took the necklace from the girl’s neck and placed it in his pouch, calmly prodding the girls to come with him.
“That was sooooo cool, Vespasia!” Alex gushed as they walked to the corner of the street, all grinning from ear to ear.
“Mission accomplished,” Kaylie declared proudly.
Rick stopped and turned, getting down on one knee. He squared Vespasia in front of him by the shoulders and went into father mode, “Now, little one, you could have been hurt or killed. You should have come to me when you spotted it.”
She lowered her head, afraid to look him in the eyes. “Sorry, I know I—”
Thwapp!!
Rick saw her eyes widen in surprise as she grabbed her side in pain. She pulled a bloody hand away from her side and stared at it with incomprehension.
Just then, over her shoulder, Rick saw him — Bergamiser. He was on a balcony across the street. He was loading another bolt into his crossbow.
As the shocked girl looked at her hand, she began to faint. Rick scooped her up and tried to stand when he felt his own pain. The bolt Bignose had fired had only grazed Vespasia’s side, but was lodged in his upper thigh. He winced and staggered, realizing he couldn’t make it around the corner before another volley was launched.
He fumbled, nearly losing the woozy girl but managed to maintain a firm grip on her. He was trying to cover her with his body when he heard the second missile impact his shoulder, going completely through. Vespasia saw this and instantly passed out. The other girls shrieked in alarm. Rick, full of adrenalin now, lunged to his feet with the limp girl still clutched in his arms. He awkwardly struggled around the corner before another arrow could be flung in his direction. The girls followed, shielding themselves behind him.
Rick staggered against the wall, feeling dizzy, smearing a bloodstain down the rough stucco as he slumped. “Alex! Grab that arrow and yank it out!” he ordered.
Alex was hysterical, “I can’t! You’re not supposed to do that anyway, Dad!”
“I know, but if you don’t, I won’t be able to run or even walk!”
“Why don’t we just use the necklace?” Christy insisted.
Rick considered that for a second while he fought back blackness in his own eyes, then looked at the lifeless girl in his arms, “No, we can’t leave her here, she could die.”
“But so could you, Daddy!” Alex sobbed.
“Nonsense, if I was in danger of dying the necklaces would have recalled us already. Now just quit complaining and do what you’re told!”
Alex clutched the basket in her arms as if hiding behind it and adamantly shook her head no.
Christy finally took the initiative as Rick stared angrily at his daughter, quickly wrapping her hand around the shaft and yanking it out in one smooth motion. Rick gritted his teeth through the pain, fighting to remain conscious.
Alex nearly fainted at the sight of the wound, which was only slightly trickling blood.
“See, I knew it didn’t hit an artery.” Christy casually pointed out.
“Now let’s go before one does,” Rick grunted. Somehow, his arms still held tightly onto Vespasia. He was glad her body blocked the view of his leg and he didn’t dare risk a glance at his shoulder. Steeling himself, he pushed off the wall and to his feet. “Come on girls, straighten up and let’s go, now,” he was saying this mostly to Alex, who looked a bit unsteady.
Rick half hopped, half limped, following Christy, with Kaylie and Alex at his side, helping him stay upright. Christy quickly led them to the main road where they hid behind a display while Kaylie doubled back to purchase some cloth. She quickly returned and tossed the white muslin to Rick and then went to stand guard.
Rick sat on the ground, back against the wall, and shifted Vespasia so he could see the damage to his leg. Blood ran all the way to his ankle, but otherwise it didn’t appear to be too bad. He then checked Vespasia to see how badly she was hurt. Blood covered her entire hip and back, but the arrow had caught nothing but the outer layer of her side, making an angry red groove above her waist. As Rick ripped the cloth into strips, he asked Alex to find some water.