Page 136 of An Archer's Reckoning

“You should stay,SergeantDoa.”

Ridley’s jaw dropped. “Sergeant? Sir?”

“Don’t question your superiors,Sergeant. Sit.” Albius gave him a tight grin as I patted his shoulder in congratulations.“Now, Keelan, why don’t you bring us up to speed on your investigation and what you found across the border. We can brief you on our situation here and the preparations underway for the people’s return.”

Chapter 56

Keelan

Ineeded to see the city’s wounds for myself.

Fewer than one in three houses survived unscathed.

Even fewer shops were safe.

But it was the bodies that stole my breath.

Everywhere I turned, soldiers, mostly in Melucian blue, lay in impossible poses, legs and arms contorted in unbearable angles, faces frozen with silent screams pouring from open mouths.

I expected to see the horrors of war, to see soldiers bent and broken.

What I had not expected were old men and women who had refused to evacuate when the call had come. Whether afraid to leave their homes or unable to run with failing bodies, the poor and elderly of Saltstone weren’t spared the wrath of Isabel’s army. An hour into my tour, I couldn’t take any more and turned back.

These weremypeople, the people I’d given my life to protect.

My heart ached.

Over the next week, Albius assigned me command of Guard units clearing roads and securing residential areas for returning citizens. It was impossible work that would only be made easier by the arrival of more strong hands.

Unfortunately, when the first people passed through the eastern gate, I realized strong hands would not follow. The vast majority of the evacuated citizens were women and children. Their men had remained, either serving directly in the army, or supporting the military as blacksmiths or farriers or in other vital roles. Few had survived the bloodshed.

What should have been a series of joyous reunions as mothers, daughters, and sons returned home to their husbands and fathers became somber, desperate searches for any hint that their loved ones still lived.

Moreover, the shock of the city’s devastation stabbed deeply into the heart of her already grieving people. Wails and cries were far more common than laughter.

Losing most of the city’s Mages meant shortages and rationing of even the most basic goods. There were plenty of civilians to bake bread or other foods, but grain stores and stoves had been looted or burned. Water was the only commodity in abundant supply, as the river bubbling down from the Silver Mountains offered its clean, crisp bounty.

On my order, riders were sent in every direction with missives urging cities and towns throughout Melucia to send food, blankets, and clothing. We needed it all. Replies would take a week, with supplies following weeks later—if we were lucky. Luck had been in short supply. Somehow, this desperate throng had to hang on until then.

I couldn’t fathom how we would manage it.

I was juggling a line of messengers when a cart pulled through the compound’s gate. The smell of fresh bread reached me long before the cart, and my eyes widened. Declan sat beside thecart’s driver, his golden tunic aglow, causing every Guard within eyesight to pause whatever they were doing and gape. Everyone had heard stories of the Heir of Magic and his golden tunic, but few had actually seen him. Seeing the glowing man and his Phoenix differed greatly from hearing a fireside tale.

“Little brother, you came all the way from the guild to bring me lunch?” I smirked.

My men stepped back, unsure how to take their usually stoic commander’s sudden humor.

Declan, foppish smile broad as ever, hopped from the cart before it came to a halt. Ayden struggled to grab the reins in time to keep from running an unsuspecting soldier down.

“No, big brother, I brought lunch foreveryone!” Declan declared.

His words somehow carried across the yard. Guardsmen cheered. In moments, a line of hungry men waited for their loaf of the still-steaming bread.

I couldn’t keep the astonishment off my face. “The closest town is four days away. How? Where . . .?”

Declan beamed. “You told me a long time ago that having a Gift is only part of who someone is. How they use it, how cleverly they think, is more important than their magic. Remember?”

I nodded, confusion replacing astonishment.

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