Taken by the Enemy (18 page)

“What’s this, now? What have you been helping Mathias with? I thought it was Lucian you were
helping
.” Sophie grinned, and Emmie shook her head quickly.

“No, NO! Nothing like that, don’t even
think
that!” she argued and the women burst into laughter as a crimson blush suffused her cheeks.

“Emmie is helping Mathias with reading and writing. She learned in the city.” Lucie filled in the blank and the laughter drew to a quick close.

“
You
know how to read?” Sophie asked.

“And
write
?” Amandine continued.

“Um, yes.” Emmie wasn’t sure it was possible but the blush burned deeper, and she wished she could urge Lucie into silence without speaking.

“She learned how in the city. Used to take down letters for all those fancy people. Mathias was beside himself when I told him!” Lucie patted Emmie on the thigh and she forced a smile for the kind woman.

“Wow, that’s impressive.” Amandine whispered.

“Really nice. I think I still remember my letters, just never practiced!” Sophie laughed, and the women joined. “Maybe you could refresh us when you have a minute?”

“Sure. Of course.” Emmie nodded, and the other women’s looks of interest were clear. “I’d be happy to talk through it with all of you.”

“That would be great!” Lucie cheered, and the other women echoed the sentiment, but Emmie just felt awkward. She wasn’t sure
how
you taught someone to read, but she had noticed a few dirt-covered books in Lucian and Mathias’ homes that she could use if people really wanted to learn. The woman who used to come to her house when her mother was still alive had made it her profession to educate the children of the aristocrats in the city, and it hadn’t been easy even when Emmie
had
focused
.
She was pretty sure Gabrielle had only learned after Sarah had started reading to them when they were all still young.

“You’re so nice, Emmie.” Sophie smiled at her, and Emmie smiled back.

“Thanks,” she mumbled, but her heart wasn’t in it. Would that be her next job in the village? Teaching a bunch of exiles how to read and write?

Maybe
.

“Enough about that! I’m hungry, let’s see if the mid-day meal is prepped. I’m crossing my fingers for no more radishes. I’m so tired of radishes!” Amandine put her basket down in a huff.

“Two of the hunting parties are due back today, we should have meat for the evening meal at least,” Sophie commented, stretching as she put her own basket down.

“Evan will be back today.” Lucie practically glowed with happiness and all of the women made sympathetic sounds.

“Aw, Lucie, my Ariste will be back today too. We can all celebrate tonight,
if you know what I mean
.” Sophie laughed loudly, and this time Emmie laughed too reveling in Lucie’s sweet blush.

“Yes, yes, we’ll all have good nights. Now, can we go get something to eat?” Amandine stood up and the others brushed themselves off as well.

“That sounds good to me.” Emmie smiled and the woman smiled back at her as they all moved towards the village center to see what vegetables had been scrounged up for the mid-day meal.

With her belly full of radishes and spinach, she decided to leave Lucie and the other women to check on Mathias again. Everyone was dispersing anyway and it meant that she could either sit uselessly back with them while they made beautiful baskets, or return and
try
to be of help to the grumpy leader she had become an assistant to.

Instead of knocking like she had that morning, she just pushed the door open and she was shocked to see a group of men standing around Mathias’ table. They turned to look at her and she froze. Mathias, Ben, Victor, Lucian, and two other men she didn’t recognize.

“There you are, girl. Read this out loud for us.” Mathias reached forward and then held a piece of paper out to her. Victor took it and passed it to her as she walked over, her eyes skimming it quickly as she took it.

It was new.
Brand new
. The date just two days before by her own calculations of her time there.

“This is recent…” Emmie breathed, surprised to be holding what she had been asking for from Mathias for a week.

“I just brought it back today, picked it up at the drop point yesterday —” Victor started to speak, but Mathias cut him off.

“She doesn’t need the details, just read it.”

“Fine.” Swallowing, she skimmed the first paragraph and then started back at the beginning.

Brothers,

We are all relieved to learn that you are planning to join us soon. I reviewed the recent guard information as you asked, and I agree that the Southeast edge of the wall is the best point if you come after nightfall. When the clock strikes nine, wait for fifteen minutes and the space should be clear. The next group to join you there will be friendly, and can help you find your way to the gates to open them.

There are many sympathetic to our cause within the city, and although we must always be careful about our meetings to not be a large group, I can safely say that you will not be abandoned once you are inside.

We are spreading the word here, my brothers, and we cannot wait to have you home. There –

“They’re ready for us!” Victor cheered, and the other men started to clasp hands and slap each other on the back. Even Lucian was smiling, pride showing on his face when he looked up to catch her gaze.

“Wait! What else does it say?” Mathias shut down their celebrations, staring at her.

Emmie looked back down at the letter. “It just talks more about being prepared for you all, and wanting for you to create a signal in the woods on the western side to draw attention if there is any need. He suggests a fire.”

“We can do that!” Ben laughed, leaning over to place a hand on Lucian’s shoulder as he grinned. “Looks like we may actually be able to go home.”

“All right, then if we’re aiming for the southeast edge, it looks like this would be the straightest shot to the gates.” Mathias leaned forward towards the table, and the rest of the men leaned forward too, putting their backs to her.

Emmie stood still for a moment, waiting for someone to say thank you, or to at least acknowledge her help. The wall of masculine muscle in front of her became increasingly frustrating as they seemed to immediately forget her. Stepping forward, she tried to peek between them at the table, but their arms were pointing at various points as they argued with each other over how many to send to go over the wall and how many to keep at the gate. How many to start the fire, and who to send to which spot. Names she could barely recognize left their lips and her head spun. She was infuriated by her inability to see over their broad shoulders. Finally, she pushed herself past the men to one side, pressing herself against the wall to find a gap on the other side of the table between Ben and a man she didn’t recognize.

The table had seemed much larger when it was just she and Mathias staring at it all day.

“So, they go over here,” Lucian spoke seriously, planting his finger at a point on the wall, and then he dragged it along the outline of a street. “And then move towards the gate this way. Can the guards get us that far? It seems like a long distance.”

“There aren’t many guards on the street from what I know, and they would have alerted us in the letters if that was a concern. They know we want to make it to the gate.” Mathias was focused on the map, and Emmie leaned forward a bit to orient herself and understand what all of the lines and squares and rectangles meant.

“Okay, so if we have their support, we’d just have to keep any people we run into quiet as we moved.” Victor was talking, and Mathias just nodded with him.

Something’s not right
.

“Exactly, but this late in the evening. There won’t be too many out and about. People will be home preparing for the next day, or sleeping already.” Mathias mumbled, leaning closer to the map, and Emmie wanted to shove him back as she stared at the buildings, and the streets, trying to figure out what wasn’t clicking.

“What about weapons? Do we know what we’ll be up against?” One of the unknown men asked.

Why are the markers so hard to read?

“Single shot pistols or rifles at most, and the aim on those is bad. As long as you’re not right up against them, they aren’t very accurate. The real problem is the swords. All the guards carry them, and our knives won’t be much help. The spears will be good, but enough blows with a sword will break one.” Mathias was thinking, and Emmie wished they’d all shut up a minute so
she
could think. “I hate to load anyone down, especially someone going over the wall, but it may be best to strap two spears to their backs. Have a backup if their first fails, but they’ll only need it if they meet up with other guards.”

“How likely is that?” Lucian asked, and Emmie almost screamed as she tried to lean further across the table to read the tiny, faded script on the map.

“Not very —”

“Where are you wanting to go over the wall?” she asked, and Mathias glared at her for interrupting him.

“Sit down and be quiet, girl,” he huffed. “It’s not likely they’ll meet other guards, like I said earlier, at night they are mostly near the city center, the big houses, and on the walls.”

“Just point at where you want to go over the wall again!” Emmie raised her voice, and several of the man glanced at her.

“Be quiet!” Mathias thundered, but Victor leaned forward to plant his finger on the map, and Emmie ignored his outburst to focus on the place Victor had pointed to.

“Wait, that’s —”

“Just go sit down, we’ll talk in a minute.” Lucian leaned around Ben. His voice was clearly meant to be calming but Emmie felt a surge of rage inside her.

“I’m not sure if we should start that far north, wouldn’t it be better to just go along the south wall?” The other unknown man spoke up, and she opened her mouth to speak but Mathias was too quick.

“If there are guards on the south wall, they’d see us and start the alarm. Going here,” he dropped his finger on the map and kept talking, “will mean that we have the cover of buildings to move.”

“But we’ll have to fight at the gate?” Ben asked, and Emmie felt her blood rushing her ears as they blatantly ignored her.

“Yes, we will have —”

“SHUT UP AND LISTEN TO ME!” Emmie screamed and most of them looked at her wide-eyed, except for Lucian and Mathias who just looked angry. “If you go over where Victor pointed, you’re dropping into a suicide mi —”

“Sit
down
, and be silent,” Mathias growled.

“Do you want to know the right place to go over, or not?” Emmie snapped.

“I think we can talk in a minute, just sit down.” Lucian’s voice was deadly calm, and she knew she should listen to it, well-aware of what lay just on the other side of that misleading tone in his voice, but this was too important.

“Fuck off! Mathias hasn’t been captain of the guard in seven years! I was
just
in the city! Barely two weeks ago, and THAT is a fucking death trap. That big building you have labeled as a fabrics factory is now the guard barracks! You want to climb over the wall and land right in front of where half of them sleep at night, go ahead, but
personally
if I’m going to risk my life, I’d like to do it with a little bit of up to date information!” Her rant ended and half the eyes were focused on her, and half were focused on Mathias.

“Is she right?” Ben asked.

“How old is this map, Mathias?” One of the unknown men asked, but Mathias was building towards an explosion – she could see it in the vein pulsing beside the thick scar at his neck.

“You need to go sit down, Em.” Lucian’s voice filtered in, soft and subtly threatening, but she didn’t break eye contact with Mathias.

“Maybe if he could actually
read
half these letters, he would have known about the fucking building, or about his own son trying to reach out to him!”

“EMMIE!” Lucian shouted, and she knew she’d crossed a line.