Riley swung in an upward arc. She felt her blade score the boy. The skin of his trousers tore, then his skinny gut and chest. A red line welled from his right shoulder to his left hip. He screamed.
“First blood,” Riley said automatically, as though she was on the training sands.
All around her she could feel movement. Her eyes were locked on the pooling red line on the lanky boy’s body.
How deep, shit. Shit. Shit. She screamed internally but no sound escaped. The voices around her dimmed into a murmur and all she could hear was her heartbeat.
Cora lifted Lissie from the flames.
Is she hurt? How bad is she hurt, Riley thought. How bad is this kid hurt?
He had doubled over, and his friends surrounded him.
Alexander’s hand was on Riley’s shoulder, and she felt herself being nudged toward a stump, but she couldn’t sit down.
“Go!” Riley screamed at the cluster of boys, “Get out of here, now!”
“Riley, he needs help,” she heard Lissie’s voice from somewhere. Riley turned and saw that Lissie’s dress and boots were charred. She looked back at Riley with fierce eyes. “I can help him. I just need to find some yarrow. Alexander, do you know what yarrow looks like?”
Alexander met Lissie’s eyes, “I have a salve. He’ll be fine.” He looked at the boys, “Just wait, I’ll get it out.”
Trevor had Jon’s arm around him. Paul and Pole looked at each other and bolted like rabbits. Trevor shifted under the weight of the boy and said, “Alright, go get it.” He edged further from Riley.
Riley’s sword point wavered and fell. She went to sheathe it, but the sheath was behind her. She stared at the blood on the shining edge.
I’ll need to clean it. The thought came to her unbidden.
Alexander came back with a jar. The split logs, which had been neatly stacked, were scattered in dull, glowing piles, casting shadows on everyone.
Cora’s voice startled Riley, “I saw what happened. It’s ok. It’s not that deep.” Cora reached out a hand and put it on Riley’s shoulder. Riley shuddered.
Riley watched without moving as Lissie and Alexander tended to the boy. He didn’t look angry, he didn’t look at Riley at all.
Trevor kept shooting her furtive glances. They cleaned the blood away with a cloth and water, then covered the wound in a paste that shined like a silver river.
He is supporting his own weight now at least, Riley thought.
“Are you boys going to be able to make the walk back to Dunkirk? Explain to him how Jon here hurt himself in the wood.” Alexander directed, “Hopefully he’ll find mercy for shirking your duties when punishment has already been rendered by the forest itself.”
“Uh, yeah,” Trevor mumbled with one last glance at Riley. The two made their way off into the wood.
Alexander turned to Riley and said, “I honestly wasn’t sure if you knew how to use that thing.”