by LeRoy Clary
The dog had followed them to the fire and spread out where some of the warmth would reach him. He snored softly, the bandage still wrapped around his leg.
Both ignored the dog as they spread their blankets and went to sleep. Tyler remained awake for a short while, thinking of their decision to desert and knowing there was probably still time to change his mind if he went back and told them a good story. He compared the snoring of the dog and that of Bender, and allowed a slight smile to form. They sounded alike. He hadn’t been smiling much for the last year or so. It felt good.
CHAPTER SEVEN
A warning in the form of a low-throated growl came from the yellow dog just before full dawn. Bender and Tyler sat up and exchanged wary looks in the growing light. The dog stood to one side of the clearing and peered off into the gloom, the hair on the back of his neck stood up, and the soft growl came again.
Bender and Tyler quietly gathered their belongings and slipped deeper into the forest where they could still see the small clearing, but escape unseen. However, nothing entered their sight. When the sun came up, they moved to the path a few hundred steps away and found fresh footprints left by several men walking single-file, all wearing military-style boots.
Bender said, “They passed right by us.”
Tyler glanced at the dog and remembered the usual snoring of Bender, and from what others said, his own. “The dog may have saved us, no matter which army the troops were in. They might have heard our snoring, yours for sure.”
“No doubt they would have heard you first.”
Tyler didn’t bother answering. It was probably true. They followed the boot-prints because one of the safest places to be is behind those who are searching for you. They’d used that trick many times in the last five years. As usual, Bender went first because he was the better tracker, and he watched the trail and footprints to make sure the patrol remained ahead. Stumbling onto them would be embarrassing and hard to explain.
Near mid-morning, the dog that had walked behind them all morning, growled again, as softly and as menacing as the first time. Bender and Tyler stopped and listened. A voice floated on the morning air. It had the sharp air of military command.
Bender glanced at the dog and smiled. Later, they clearly heard the snap of orders issued, and the patrol moved off. When Bender reached the next path, one that turned back in the direction of the river, he took it, while the patrol continued marching on the other path.
Tyler kept watch on the sides and behind them again, and also kept eyes on the dog. It limped behind but otherwise seemed much better today. The wound on the shoulder no longer wept yellow pus, and the swelling looked less than the day before.
He didn’t want a dog. The army does not allow them unless they are trained for tracking, and even then, they are tools maintained by a special group similar to the Dragon Corps, but less prestigious. Tyler remembered the little family dog from when he was a child. It was lazy, ornery, and had bitten him twice before he learned to stay away from it. Ever since then, dogs were not his favorite animals.
This dog was different. A larger breed and smart. It had possibly saved them from discovery twice, already. It might do it again, or it might run off at any time, and that wouldn’t offend Tyler, but considering the help it had already provided, it had earned a place with them. Maybe he should talk to Bender.
It was not like he had found the dog. The dog had found them. But without it, they may have had problems with the troops in the forest, they might now be prisoners of war. Having the dog with them made sense. They should try to encourage it to remain. At least, for a few days.
As he thought about the advantages and disadvantages, they continued walking silently through the dense forest, and Tyler almost missed the shift in weight of his backpack. He adjusted the straps without thinking, and then it struck him. Its center of weight had shifted. His egg had moved as if alive. Just like Bender’s had.
As he realized that, he felt a soft poke in his ribs as if someone wanted his attention and touched him with a finger, not a jab, but just enough to draw his attention. It touched the same rib the egg rested against through the material of the backpack.
“Oh crap, Bender, my egg just moved. Not shifted like before, but it moved.”
“Mine did that some of that earlier. How do we fit a pair of tiny dragons into our story of going home to help our Mama? I only ask that because they’re getting ready to hatch, if you ask me. And soon.”
“Hold on a minute. They haven’t hatched, yet. We’ll worry about that when the time comes, just one more item to add to our list. But, I thought we’d take the dog along with us. Feed it and care for it.”
Bender nodded. “Agreed, unless it runs away, then we won’t chase it. We don’t cage it up or tie it to keep it near us. The dog deserves the freedom of choice.”
The response was expected. Bender had always believed that if you treat an animal correctly, feed and care for it, why would it leave? Bender didn’t like fences or anything else that tied a man down, especially women that tried it with him. Bender was simultaneously attracted to, and away from, such women, especially if they were pretty, at least, that was what Tyler experienced in their history.
But dogs don’t think. No matter, he nodded and smiled agreeably, as if Bender made perfect sense. After the deaths of their parents, they were taken from their homes to train for the army, Bender had refused closeness with anyone but Tyler, who he considered family. He pushed other friendships and relationships away, sometimes offending people on purpose who wanted to become closer. Tyler always hoped he would get past that, but there were no positive signs indicating any changes.
Tyler had taken the opposite approach for a few years. He had sought out any affection or friendship, especially from women. He had believed every serving-wench waited for him to appear, and then she fell in love, ready to live a lifetime with him—or until the next serving-wench winked in his direction.
He was still too quick in making emotional attachments, but also blamed that on Bender, who never made them. He had tried overcoming Bender’s weaknesses with personal relationships by compensating at the other end of the spectrum. He’d come to realize it was just another way to deal with the same problems they both faced.
“You’re sure you want to keep this mutt with us?” Tyler said as if the idea had been Bender’s, to begin with.
“I said so, didn’t I?”
“Yes, you did, and I want you to know that I’ll go along with you this one time.” Tyler tried to catch Bender’s eye to see if he was smiling or he believed it was his idea, but Bender didn’t make eye contact by accident, or design. He was again lost in deep thought.
They came to a small road, or wide trail. Either name would fit the winding opening through the trees, bypassing the larger ones and following the easier terrain which seemed to be an old stream bed. Trails and roads often followed the routes water had carved out, always flowing over the easiest routes until they reached larger streams or rivers.
Footprints and hoofprints abounded, some old, others fresh. None were from distinctive military boots. Bender raised his eyebrows as if to tell Tyler they were getting close to the village and would be making more decisions that would change their lives. Neither of them spoke.
Today was the day that would define the rest of their lives, and he liked that thought. Tyler sensed it on a level of consciousness he’d seldom achieved, and allowed his mind to dwell on the implications. But, his mind refused to cooperate with the initial implications. No matter what Tyler tried to force his mind to consider, it always returned to the basic fact that the Unity Army would lose the war, and thus his entire future would change today.
If captured, Queensland wouldn’t be kind to a pair of soldiers who had fought against them for five years. Another consideration forced its way into his mind. Instead of the war dragging on for many more years, as he had always expected, it might end today. He didn’t know what that would mean to him.
&nb
sp; Tyler finally said, “We’re not the only ones to figure out the Queensland invasion means Unity will lose the war.”
“What do you mean?”
“Others must also see it. I’ll wager there are deserters scrambling around here already. And when more men, even those men in our division realize what’s happening, there will be more stumbling around in these woods searching for supplies to buy or steal. The desertions will be massive, maybe even a revolt.”
Bender said, “About the only place for them to run is downriver. Just like us.”
“It’s going to get crowded on the river if others figure this out, too. And boats will get expensive, along with supplies.”
“More likely, all the supplies, boats, and anything else that might help soldiers who are deserting will disappear. The supplies will either be hidden by owners or be stolen. Things are going to turn ugly with the influx of soldiers trying to get down the river.”
I agree. Changing the subject as his nose twitched, he said, “I think I just smelled wood smoke.”
“About time. I caught the scent a while ago and assumed you did too. I’m disappointed in you not noticing sooner.”
“Well, the dog smelled it a long time before that, but I didn’t say anything,” Tyler said, casting a fond glance at the dog for helping him come out ahead in the war of words, even if it was a lie. He hid his grin.
“Then the damn dog should have said so sooner, or done something to warn us. Can’t you train him better than that?”
Do not continue with this. Bender’s setting you up, again. Tyler peered through a break in the trees and found a meadow with three milk cows grazing, with a boy watching over them. The boy sat on a stump, whittling on the end of a stick furiously as if he needed to get the point on it quickly, or maybe he was upset and working off frustration. Tyler had watched his family’s cow, goat, and three sheep in a similar fashion. It gave him one of his first perspectives on how people see things differently. For many people, the job allowed him to be outside where he could do little but relax and enjoy the sunshine. The presence of a human kept predators away from the stock, and the work couldn’t have been easier.
At least that’s what several people had told him. His personal reality was different. The job was the same boring expanse of time from sunup to sundown every day, with nobody to talk to, nothing different from the day before, and the same outlook for tomorrow. He couldn’t wait to turn the job over to his younger brother when he was old enough.
Bender looked content to continue skulking along the path, hidden from the boy, but Tyler said, “Hold up. I want to talk to him.”
He raised his arm in a friendly wave to draw attention and worked his way through the brush, ignoring the clinging briars until he entered the open meadow. The boy lifted his eyes, wary of the intrusion.
The boy climbed to his feet and waited, ready to race off if Tyler presented a danger. His fingers wrapped around the hilt of the knife so hard his fingers turned white. He let the stick fall into the strings of white wood he’s whittled on the ground.
Tyler called across the expanse of the meadow in a voice he hoped sounded friendly, “I used to watch our family cows and carve little animals to kill time.”
“Did you like it? Herding?”
“Nope. Too boring and I dreamed of other, more exciting things I wanted to do. How far away is your village?”
“You’re almost there. Did you really watch cows?”
“And an ornery goat and three sheep that wandered off when I didn’t keep an eye on them.” Tyler joined the boy in laughter, then asked, “Have you seen any soldiers dressed like us?”
“Nope. I just see the ones dressed in green around here.”
Tyler saw Bender react by turning his head to search the area. Tyler asked, “Are they still here?”
“They were this morning, so I guess so. They came from upriver about ten days ago, and have been taking the animals from the village and eating them without paying. They also take about everything else they can find to eat. Nobody has anything left in their gardens.”
“That’s too bad. You’re hiding your cows from the army, I guess.”
“’Til they’re gone, Pa said.”
Tyler crossed his legs and sat on the log facing the boy. “Sooner or later they’ll find them, you know.”
“But we need our cows, especially since those soldiers took all the food Ma put up for winter.” The tone had grown defiant, almost scared. “Maybe I should take them up in the foothills.”
“I have an idea that might help your family, and us at the same time. Where are those soldiers camped?”
“A little north of the village, next to the river.”
“Any of them camped to the south?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Anybody in the village who owns a boat?”
“Pa has one hid under some hay beside the barn. The soldiers put holes in the bottoms of the ones they found, so he hid ours.”
Bender approached and sat beside Tyler but understood to be quiet since Tyler had established a trust with the boy. Tyler said, “I take it your Pa don’t like them.”
“Nope. He says the Unity soldiers never took our food and killed our animals without paying for them. He’s fit to be tied.”
“Maybe I can help him, and he can help us,” Tyler pulled four large copper coins that would pay for enough food to last a small family through a winter, and then he glanced at Bender for permission, and added a small silver coin that would buy a small house. He handed all five coins to the boy. “I’ll watch your cows. You take those coins to your Pa. Tell him we want to buy his boat. Tonight.”
“All this is for an old boat?”
Bender finally spoke, “Does it float?”
“You got to bail a little, but yes.”
“Sounds perfect,” Tyler said. “Run along and see if your Pa wants to do this deal with us. If not, we’ll keep your cows safe while you're gone, and then we’ll go find someone else to buy a boat from.”
The boy leaped to his feet, his fingers gripping the coins so hard they might bend before he found his Pa. They watched him race away, leaping over logs and swerving around bushes and trees to reach the path.
Bender said, “Three coppers would have bought an old boat.”
“It might be the only one around without a hole in the bottom.”
Bender snorted, and said, “Could be. More likely you overpaid because you have a soft spot.”
“Do not.”
“I don’t remember your family ever having a cow and sheep,” Bender said. “And no goats.”
“We did. But, if you reach common ground with someone on a haggle, you can make a better deal, usually. We need a boat, especially if the damn Queensland troops are here. Without a boat, we have a long, dangerous walk ahead of us.”
“I gotta agree with all that. It sounds even more like they plan to stay the winter.”
Tyler said, “And beyond. Let’s get out of sight, just in case they have more patrols in the area.”
They took turns napping while the other watched the animals, as well as watching for Queensland-green uniforms. Tyler stood the first watch, and Bender was awake when the boy skipped into the clearing. Behind him, followed two men, both large, and with eyes searching the clearing for danger. Tyler stepped from under the deep shade under the tree and allowed the men to inspect him before they approached closer.
The larger, older man, hesitated, then strode confidently forward, arms and shoulders swinging loosely. His gait was the solid stride of a man who worked hard for his living. A logger, lumberman, or farmer often walked that way. The smaller man was nearer Tyler’s age, probably the man’s eldest son. They favored each other in their appearance.
He pulled to a stop two steps from Tyler. Bender appeared at Tyler’s side and reached out to shake hands.
The man gave a small shake of his head and scowled as he refused to handshake. “Do you know the trouble I’ll be in if the
y find out I sold you a boat? Either side? I could lose my farm, not to mention my life.”
Tyler did know, and understood their concern. If the situation were reversed, he might not sell the boat, either. However, Bender pulled his hand back and looked at the boy instead of the man. “No matter what happens, those coins are yours. That was our deal.”
“You can’t do that,” the man said.
“Just did it. Now, I’ll ask you a question or two, if you please. Do you have dogs that bark at intruders at night?”
“We do.”
Bender smiled the same smile as when he was about to win a hand at Blocks. “I’ve heard there are men stealing good dogs around here and selling them upriver. You’ve probably heard the same stories. If I was you, I’d keep my dogs safely inside for a few nights.”
The farmer, clearly puzzled, growled, “What are you sayin’?”
As smooth as butter spreading on a hot biscuit, Bender continued, “Well, sir. I wouldn’t want you to get into any trouble if you’re questioned about certain things, so I won’t give my name or what we’re up to, so you’ll never have to tell a lie. But you don’t know who might follow you home and wait until dark to steal that rowboat you have hidden under the haystack. If the barking dogs safely inside the barn or house, how would you even know of the theft for several days?”
The man hooked his thumbs in his waistband and waited, his scowl shifting to something more friendly.
Bender still talked, “Why, you might even feel you should report the theft in a day or two, just to follow all the Queensland rules and such. But whoever stole it would be long gone and not around to say if you sold it to them, anyhow. Because you didn’t. But your dogs would be safe.”
A short period of silence followed. Then the man gave a curt nod and said, “Nobody had better search under the third pile of hay beside the barn and steal my old boat that’s only worth only a small copper. The river is no farther than a hundred steps down the path on the other side of the barn, but you boys already know that so I’m not giving you any information to help you.”
