Rain Drops

Chapter 27

"My legs and my arms..." I responded quietly, glancing at Grandma, the old King and the others while speaking. Grandma and Grandpa stepped forward to hold us, preventing Josh and me from getting away from the group of people. Josh examined my legs carefully before saying:

"Your knees are cut, too. You'll need stitches."

He reached into the bag he was carrying and brought out a small medical kit. He started searching for the necessary materials and asked:

"Do you have a needle and thread?"

"Of course I do... why?" I replied.

"Well, you have to stitch your wounds together with these materials first, then we can take care of them. Don't tell Grandma or the others what you have just seen, okay?" Josh advised, smiling at me reassuringly.

He then proceeded to sew up my wounds, while I remained silent throughout the entire procedure. After everything was done, I gazed around me with confusion, still not having fully recovered from the traumatic experience. Grandma put a hand on my shoulder while Dad kneeled down beside me.

"Everything is going to be fine, Mia. It looks like you were in quite the danger, however. That wasn't your fault. So you don't need to feel guilty," said Dad comfortingly while stroking my hair. He looked worried and slightly worried.

After he said that, he turned towards everyone else with a stern expression on his face. The others bowed respectfully and returned their gaze to where Josh was crouching over the wounded soldiers.

"Now please excuse us. We must hurry and find a place where we can hide Mia."

As we walked out of the village, Grandpa turned back to say:

"We are leaving today and we want you to stay here in the palace while your father and I are gone. Please do not move from this location. Stay there and try not to cause any trouble, okay?"

"Yes sir."

With a nod, Grandpa started walking away again. I stared at him in surprise. He didn't even turn to look back at me as he ran away, not caring whether I was following him. Mom, Grandpa and Josh all stood in front of me. Mom was looking worried and anxious, whereas Grandpa looked troubled. I didn't understand why, nor what was wrong. Why wouldn't Grandpa let me come with them? Didn't he say that I couldn't go outside anymore? If Grandma and Daddy were allowed to go outside and meet with those rebels without me, then I should be able to do it as well.

Mom looked at me and smiled kindly. Grandpa looked at me seriously before asking:

"What did you see Mia?"

"I didn't see anyone attacking us," I replied, "And we only saw the rebel soldiers for a moment..."

Grandpa sighed sadly before asking:

"Did you see anyone else besides the rebel soldiers?"

"No. Only the army, the men from both sides."

He nodded before turning his attention towards Josh and Mom, saying:

"They will take care of Mia. Now, we are heading home and taking no prisoners. Those who come with us shall be punished severely."

Josh lowered his eyes in silence. He then whispered something to Mom, and she nodded slightly. He gave me a last glance before leading the others away. I didn't say a word; I was too afraid that they wouldn't listen to me. As soon as they had disappeared further away from us, I turned back and headed towards home with Grandma and Mom.

The palace was quiet. No one was around. Everyone was probably still waiting for the rebels to attack, because no one was coming to warn them about the invaders. I felt tired and dizzy. Even though I knew that they wouldn't let me come along, I longed for a chance to be with the other rebels. They were strong, smart and brave. They fought the invaders and won. If I came along too, I would just be a burden to the rebels.

Once I entered the palace again, I went to my room as fast as possible. My legs were trembling like I had just run a marathon. Grandma, Mom, Dad and Josh were talking quietly among themselves in the main hall when I arrived. Grandma noticed me and gave me a warm smile, patting her knee gently. I approached the table and sat down across from her.

She studied me for a few seconds, then looked over to Josh and said:

"You told me you would take care of Mia. You haven't let me down yet."

I looked into Grandma's eyes and nodded silently, feeling ashamed of how I had behaved earlier on. Grandma patted my knee and smiled warmly again.

"That is enough. Get some rest. We won't start discussing your future decisions tomorrow. We will talk about it after we eat something," said Grandma.

I nodded once again before grabbing one of the food packages on the table and tearing open the packaging to remove one of the sandwiches inside. It was one of my favorites and I ate every time I got hungry. While I waited for the sandwich to finish filling itself, I listened to what Josh was telling Mom.

"Dad wants to take all of us on a trip. To the mountains to collect herbs and gather firewood. Maybe even some of them would be able to use the help of an herbalist like yourself," Josh said.

My heart skipped a beat upon hearing those words. I had always wanted to go on a trip somewhere exotic. Maybe I was being selfish but I didn't care. I loved traveling. I loved to discover new things, see new places, learn new ways. I was excited to finally get to know where I lived, but also scared at the same time. I had only known one person who could give me information on where I lived and even that person had disappeared. I swallowed and tried to suppress my emotions. Josh noticed I was nervous, so he said:

"Don't worry, you're going to like it. We'll have plenty of adventures to have fun."

He grinned broadly and I managed to force myself to smile too. Mom joined in the conversation and continued:

"It sounds like fun, Mia. What do you think, Grandpa?"

Grandpa looked surprised by the suggestion. He looked at me, obviously confused. I bit my lip nervously before answering:

"I love adventure... but I am scared... I have never travelled before. Do you know about the mountain bandits?" I asked hopefully.

"Bandits?" Josh exclaimed, his eyes widening. He shot a sideways glance to Grandpa before saying: