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“So, they actually work in the army? Are they witches?”
Mallory nodded, focusing on folding the shirt she was holding. “Most, yes. I mean, some elves and faeries can do magic to heal. But yes, a lot of medic nurses are witches. That’s the only loophole for witches to be part of the army.”
I dug in my memories for even a sliver of the information I was currently being provided. Maybe it wasn’t even the fact I had never really paid attention. Perhaps nobody had ever bothered to tell me. I knew how my father felt about me wanting to fight. He might have done something to make sure I didn’t find out about this, to give me even a sliver of a chance to join the army, even if it was through a loophole. But if he’d told me this, maybe I would’ve taken healing more seriously.
“How hard is it to get in?” I asked and then looked over my shoulder. “Were we supposed to leave on the ship too?”
“We?” Mallory teased but shook her head, growing serious as I turned to glare at her. “No. They get the medic nurses from the big cities. We’d have to go there. Only the ones who survive training stay. Anyone can join and sign up to be a medic nurse. The ones who survive training get to move on.”
I hated healing, but it was a good starting point if this was my ticket into the army. Maybe I was a little conceited in thinking I could pass training. Or maybe it was just that I knew I could get closer to what I wanted. My mother’s blood ran through my veins, which had to account for something.
I handed her the last clothing item and stood as Mallory finished wringing and folding the last remaining items. I pointed to the basket they belonged to and watched as she placed them within before picking it up. I fell into step next to her, leading her to the hut the clothes belonged to. An elderly woman that couldn’t wash clothes herself these days. That was where me and the other washers came into play. We didn’t wash clothes for people who were capable of doing it themselves—youngsters like me, mothers of children that could still run around. No, we did it for the elderly who could no longer see or those who hobbled, unable to keep their weight up. There were a few exceptions for younger people, though. Ones who were disabled for whatever reason or those who paid for theirs to be washed because they were simply too lazy to do it themselves. Only two people in the village had enough money to pay for their clothes to be cleaned because they worked in the nearest city and made just a bit more than the rest of us.
Today, I was washing one of their clothes. When I’d left, they were lounging out in their yard, enjoying the sun's rays on their day off. I hated how the workers of the city showed off. It was so irritating. I’d had the opportunity once to work as a healer in the city. But Dad needed me here so he wasn’t left alone with his drinking.
Nearing the hut, the guy who had been lounging was gone. Taking the basket from Mallory, I approached the door and set it down in front of it, flicking open the box next to it. I took out my pay and counted, wrinkling my nose. It was the exact amount to pay for it, but no tip. The workers of the city never tipped for being cheapskates. Pocketing the money, I dropped the lid back on the box and returned to Mallory.
“Let’s go start your training,” I told her, leading her away.
“That’s a really nice hut,” she commented, eyeing it for a moment before following me. “What does it take to live in one like that?”
I shook my head, dismissing her question. “What do we do in the city to join the medical nurse training?”
“Just leave with them, by what I understand. Like I said, you have to survive the training to become a medic nurse.”
“Mmhmm. When is the next surge?”
“They usually do it about a fortnight after soldiers are taken on the boat.” She shrugged. “But we have a lot of training for me to do, right? That’s not enough time.”
“The training as a medic nurse could help you learn,” I pointed out offhandedly, glancing around.
The town had a lot of sand and water. Huts and cabins dotted the land, and so did a few small stores with merchandise from the cities. They did well enough off the people who couldn’t travel every single week. But you had to pack up the wagons and head out to the cities for bigger or more supplies. It was a whole two-day trip there and a whole two-day trip back. It was exhausting and long but so well worth it if you needed things. You just had to make sure to grab everything while there because going back wouldn’t happen for a while after. Especially since you had to rent out the wagon. Those things charged by three days at a time, and considering it took eight in total to and from, not counting the stay in the city, it wasn’t cheap by any means.
“You aren’t training me?” Mallory asked, and I heard the deflation in her voice.
“Of course I am,” I told her, then turned to face her. “I’ll teach you, and we’re going to become medic nurses together.”
Her eyes widened, and she inhaled sharply. “Seriously?” she choked, bouncing on her heels, then her face fell as her shoulders. “Mama doesn’t want me doing that, though. She said I’m good here that there’s no reason to go off and become a medic nurse when I can just be a healer here. Maybe… maybe your apprentice in the long run. Especially when Timothy comes home, you must step aside while….” She bit her lip, but I didn’t need her to finish the words to know what she wasn’t saying.
Everyone assumed that when Timothy returned, I would settle and start popping out his kids. First-time mothers weren’t expected to do anything within the first two years. That was enough time to pop out two or possibly even more kids with twins or triplets. But definitely, at least two kids.
Irritation flared through me, and I rolled my eyes dramatically. “Do you want to be a medic nurse?”
Malloy nodded vigorously, bouncing on her heels, pressing the tips of her fingers together. “It’s my dream.”
I stepped up to her and lowered my voice. “And I want to fight, but witches aren’t allowed to fight. Becoming a medic nurse will get me in the door. I don’t know how I will pull it off, but I’ll figure it out when we get there. This is what I need to do. This is what you want to do. So, we’re going to do it. Together. Understand me?”
Mallory bit her bottom lip and nodded.
I pressed a finger to my lips. “You can’t tell anybody. You have to promise me that, Mallory. We can’t let anyone know. Your mother won’t allow either of us to leave, and we both know that. Nobody can find out.”
She nodded enthusiastically. “Nobody will.” She exhaled, her body trembling visibly.
“Carli, too,” I suddenly stated. “She’s a forester. We’re going to need her help.”
“Carli?” Mallory asked, taken aback. “I didn’t take her for someone who would want to leave the village. She seems so happy.”
I knew Carli the best. I knew the show she displayed to society was just a façade. We’d grown up together having the same ideas about the village, both desperate to get the hell out one way or another. We wanted more. Of course, we each wanted a different path, but we both wanted out of this wretched place.
