The soldiers are marching again, with the heavy sound of drums quick to follow.
Everyone in the town who knows what is coming stays silent and tries to hide, praying that they won't stop here, in Woodson.
And it's every week now that they pick a new...
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The sunlight starts to disappear as the tree canopy gets thicker and thicker, so our group walks carefully through the forest.
Being out here makes me uneasy, despite the fact that I used to love to go out and play in the woods by my house when I was little. The landscape has changed drastically, first from the familiar plains of Woodson, to the skeleton trees of Hallie, and now the thick jungles of the southeast.
It is the middle of the afternoon when the sun is at its highest, and our group has already made it a couple of miles far since we started so early in the morning. We should make it to our Woodson legion by the end of tonight, if we keep moving.
"Adeline, are you feeling okay?"
Camillo puts a calloused hand on my shoulder, so I turn around to meet it. He takes steps that are large enough to catch up to me, and stays next to me out of courtesy.
Today, he is still wearing his Nation camouflage uniform, which perfectly frames his shoulders and broad torso, but he seems a little different. Less... unapproachable? Standoffish? I incline my head to look up into his deep brown eyes, wondering why he asks me so many questions. How close is he paying attention to me?
Why is he standing so close to me?
If Camillo can read me as well as I think he can, I need to try harder to control my feelings. He can't know that I am hiding something. He can't know that I am carrying a note that is burning holes in my jacket pocket but has to stay secret until we arrive.
"Sure I am," I deflect. "How is Kade doing?"
Yesterday night when I checked on Kade, his stitches were holding up well, and he only had the remainders of a dull headache left from his concussion. Hearing our conversation, Kade shoots us a grin from the front and sticks out his tongue.
"He's just fine, as you can see." Camilo chuckles.
"Speaking of which, I never asked him about what happened to him that day." I say, curious.
The day I ran after Kade on the war battlefield, I hadn't questioned what caused the injury.
"Kade was dropped on his head when he was a child," Camilo states gravely, with all seriousness.
"Hey!"
Smiling, I shake my head unbelievably. "Oh, so you joke, now?"
Camillo shrugs, grinning slyly. Wasn't it only a few days ago when we were arguing? What is he playing at? I ignore the change in attitude, calling over my brother to find out how he's doing, too. I can figure out Camillo, later.
