Chapter 3 The War

POV: Amelia

The first wounded soldier arrived before sunset. I was helping Mara move a family into an empty house near the village centre when we heard the horses. People rushed toward the road, hoping for news, but the sight of the men riding in silenced them.

There were six soldiers. Two were supporting a third between them. Another had his arm wrapped in a bloodstained cloth. Their horses were covered in dust, and their faces looked exhausted.

I searched their faces for Kael. He wasn't among them. "Where are the others?" someone shouted. The soldier at the front dismounted slowly. "The northern settlement has fallen."

A woman near me gasped. "No," she whispered. "My son is there." The soldier looked at her, but he had no comforting answer. "The enemy attacked before our reinforcements arrived. We held the road as long as we could, but they had more men than we expected."

"Where is the king's army?" another man demanded. "Fighting farther north." "And our soldiers?" "Some are still there. Others were ordered to escort the wounded and civilians back."

The questions continued, but the soldier raised his hand. "We need food, water, and somewhere for the injured to rest. That's all I can tell you right now."

People began moving again. Mara hurried toward her house to fetch water. I followed her, but my thoughts were already with Kael.

He had been sent north. The soldier hadn't said which road his unit had taken or where the fighting was happening. He hadn't mentioned Kael's name.

I kept telling myself that there were hundreds of soldiers in the king's army. Six returning men couldn't tell us what had happened to every one of them. Still, I couldn't shake the fear growing inside me.

"Amelia!" Mara's voice pulled me back to the present. "Help me with this." She handed me a bucket, and together we carried water to the wounded men.

One of the soldiers was sitting against a wall with his eyes closed. He looked younger than Kael, perhaps only a few years older than the boys who helped their fathers in the fields. I knelt beside him and held out a cup. "Drink slowly."

He opened his eyes and accepted it. "Thank you." "Which unit were you with?" He paused before answering. "The western guard."

My fingers tightened around the empty cup. "Do you know the men who went north this morning?" "Some of them." "Do you know Kael?" He looked at me properly then. "Kael?" "Kael, my husband. He was sent with the reinforcements."

The soldier lowered the cup. "I know him by name. I haven't seen him today." I waited, hoping he would say something else. He didn't.

"Were you fighting near the northern settlement?" "Yes." "Did you see the king's men?" "Some. We were separated during the retreat." He seemed reluctant to continue, and I didn't want to force him to speak while he was injured.

"Thank you," I said quietly. I stood and returned the empty cup to the bucket. Mara touched my arm. "Come and sit down for a moment." "I'm fine." "You've been standing here for hours." "I said I'm fine."

She studied me, then nodded. "All right. But don't forget to eat something." I almost smiled. "You sound like Kael." "Then perhaps you should listen to me."

Under different circumstances, I might have teased her for that. Instead, I carried another bucket of water toward the soldiers. There was still work to do, and I couldn't spend the whole evening waiting for news that might not come.

By nightfall, the village hall had become a place for the wounded and the families who had nowhere else to go. The local guards had begun organising food and supplies.

Women carried blankets from their homes, while older children helped distribute water. Those who could still walk were being directed toward the safer villages farther south.

I helped wherever I was needed. I carried bread, cleaned empty bowls, and sat beside a frightened little girl while her mother spoke to one of the guards. Her name was Lila. She couldn't have been more than seven.

"Are the soldiers going to come here?" she asked me. I looked down at her. "I don't know." "Will they hurt us?"

I wanted to tell her no. I wanted to promise that the guards would protect everyone and that the enemy would never reach our village. But I had already heard too many promises that no one could guarantee.

"The guards are here to keep us safe," I told her. "Stay with your mother, and listen when they give instructions." She nodded, though she still looked frightened. I gave her a piece of bread. She took it with both hands. "Thank you."

I watched her join her mother before returning to the other families. The thought of children growing up in a war they hadn't chosen made my chest ache.

None of us had asked for this. We had been farmers, merchants, mothers, fathers, and wives. We had spent our days worrying about food, work, and the small troubles that made up ordinary life. Now we were counting soldiers and wondering which of our loved ones would return.

A loud voice interrupted my thoughts. "Make room! We need space for the injured!" I moved aside as two guards carried another man into the hall. He was conscious, but barely. His clothes were torn, and he kept asking for water. I hurried to help.

As I knelt beside him, I noticed a strip of dark blue cloth tied around his wrist. It was the same colour used by the king's northern guard. "Where did you come from?" I asked. "The road," he managed. "Were you with the reinforcements?" He nodded weakly.

"Did you see Kael?" The question escaped before I could stop myself. The man blinked at me. "Who?" "Kael. He rode north this morning." "I don't know."

I looked away. It was becoming the answer I feared most. Nobody knew. Nobody could tell me where my husband was, whether he had reached the battlefield, or whether he had even received the same orders as the other soldiers.

I stood and went to fetch more water. I had to keep moving. If I stopped, I was afraid I would begin thinking about everything that could go wrong. And I didn't know how to live with those thoughts.

The following morning, the sound of shouting woke the village. I rushed outside and found people gathering near the main road again. This time, a group of soldiers had arrived on foot.

Their captain was speaking with the village guards. His armour was scratched, and he had a deep cut across one cheek. I moved closer, trying to hear what he was saying.

"The enemy has taken the northern road," he announced. "They are moving toward the river crossing. We must prevent them from reaching the southern settlements." "What about the king's army?" a man asked. "The king has sent another force to meet them." "Then why are you here?" "To gather supplies and organise additional men."

His gaze travelled across the crowd. "Every able-bodied man with military training must report to the village hall. We need men who know the land and can help defend the crossing."

My stomach tightened. More men would be sent north. More families would be left waiting. I looked toward the road, half expecting Kael to appear among the returning soldiers. He didn't.

Instead, I noticed a familiar face standing near the captain. It was Tomas, a man who had served alongside Kael before our marriage. I hurried toward him. "Tomas!" He turned, surprised. "Amelia?" "Have you seen Kael?"

His expression changed. "When did you last hear from him?" "Yesterday morning. He was sent north with the reinforcements." Tomas rubbed a hand over his face. "I wasn't in his unit. We were assigned to different roads." "But you might have seen him." "I haven't."

I searched his face for any sign that he was hiding something from me. "Do you know where his unit went?" "They were meant to meet the northern guard near the river crossing." "Then he's there?" "I didn't say that."

I swallowed. Tomas stepped closer and lowered his voice. "Amelia, I know you're worried. But the roads are crowded, and the orders have been changing since the fighting began. I can't tell you where he is because I don't know."

I looked down at my hands. "I'm sorry." "You have nothing to apologise for." He hesitated. "If I hear anything, I'll come and find you." I nodded. It wasn't much, but it was the only offer anyone could give me.

Before he left, I caught his arm. "Tomas?" He turned. "Please don't let him take unnecessary risks." His expression softened. "I'll tell him you're waiting for him."

I watched him walk toward the captain. Then I returned to Mara's house, where several families had gathered to prepare for evacuation. We were told to leave before noon. The enemy hadn't reached our village, but the guards weren't willing to wait until they did.

I packed what I could carry: two changes of clothing, a small bag of grain, and the wooden comb Kael had carved for me during our first year of marriage. I almost left it behind.

Then I remembered how proud he had been when he finished it, insisting that it was the finest comb ever made. I placed it carefully inside my bag. It was a foolish thing to take when we didn't know where we would sleep that night. But it belonged to our life. And I wasn't ready to leave every part of that life behind.

By midday, the road south was filled with families. Children walked beside their parents, and older people leaned on relatives for support. Some carried baskets of food. Others had nothing but the clothes they wore.

I walked beside Mara, helping her keep her children together. Every few minutes, I looked back. Part of me expected to see Kael riding toward us, laughing at my worried expression and asking why I had packed half our house. But the road remained crowded with strangers.

We stopped near a group of trees when one of the guards ordered everyone to rest. I sat on a fallen branch and took the folded message from my bag.

Don't worry about me. I'll send word when I can. I had read those words so many times that I knew them by heart. At the time, I had thought they were ordinary words from a husband leaving home for a dangerous assignment. Now they were all I had.

"Amelia?" Mara sat beside me. "Do you think we'll see them again?" I knew who she meant. "Our husbands?" She nodded. I looked at the road behind us. "Yes," I said. The answer came quickly, before fear could stop me. "We'll see them again."

Mara leaned against my shoulder. "I hope you're right." I held her hand. "So do I." A guard called for everyone to move. I tucked Kael's message away and stood. We continued south, leaving our village behind.

I had no idea when I would return to our home, whether the roof would still be standing, or whether the things we had left behind would still be there when the fighting ended. But none of those questions mattered as much as the one I couldn't answer. Where was Kael?

That evening, we reached a settlement several miles from the river crossing. The guards directed us toward a large house where the village elders had arranged temporary shelter. There were already dozens of families inside.

I helped Mara settle her children before finding a quiet corner near the doorway. My legs ached, and I was exhausted, but I couldn't bring myself to sleep.

Outside, soldiers were gathering near the road. Their horses were restless. Their voices carried through the darkness as they checked their weapons and prepared for another journey.

Then a rider came galloping toward them. He dismounted before his horse had fully stopped and hurried toward the captain. I couldn't hear everything he said, but I caught a few words. "The crossing..." "Enemy forces..." "Before dawn..."

The captain's expression hardened. He immediately began calling for his men. A cold feeling spread through me. Whatever news the rider had brought, it wasn't good.

I stepped outside, hoping to hear more, but a guard stopped me. "Return to the house, madam." "What happened?" "Nothing you need to worry about." "Then why are you preparing to leave?" He didn't answer. He simply turned and hurried toward the other soldiers.

I stood in the doorway, watching them mount their horses. They were going back toward the fighting. And somewhere beyond the darkness, beyond the roads and the river, my husband was still out there.

I pressed my hands together. "Please come home, Kael," I whispered.

For the first time since the war began, I allowed myself to admit what I had been trying to avoid. I was afraid. Not because I knew Kael was hurt. Not because I had received news that he was missing. But because I knew nothing at all.

And as the soldiers rode into the night, I realised that the war had already taken away the one thing I had always believed I could count on. The certainty that tomorrow, I would see my husband again.