Read The Boy in the Field for Free Online Page B

further, weighed down the bundle and pushed him into
the lake.
    Choice: 28. Dump Him in the Woods or 29. Dump
Him in the Lake

25.     INTERVENE
    You stepped in front of the two boys. “Don’t speak to them
like that.”
    “Or what?” He stepped forward and shoved you in the chest. “Are
you going to stop me?”
    “Yeah.” You nodded. “I am.”
    “Come on then.” He shoved you again. “I would love to see you
try.”
    As you stumbled, you became aware of other footsteps in the
square, more men shouting and blades being drawn. Ethan and Noah pulled you to
your feet as the argument turned into a brawl, other men from the tavern moving
to your defence, dragging father away from you. As they fought him, more men
joined to fight against them.
    “Come on,” Noah grabbed your hand and pulled. “Let’s go.”
    Ethan was right behind you as you began to run, taking the
shortest streets back to their house, hoping that no one would look for you or
follow. Noah unlocked the door and the three of you bundled into the hallway of
the house, Ethan slamming it shut behind you.
    “What the—what happened?” Adina had her arms crossed over her
chest, but her expression changed as she looked at the three of you, panting
and groaning in the doorway.
    “Her father…” Ethan puffed, putting his hand on your shoulder.
“And a fight… Ran…”
    “Go into the kitchen,” Adina said, starting up the stairs. “Sit
down and wait for me.”
    Your hands stung as you pushed yourself to your feet. Ethan put
his arm around your shoulder to help you into the other room. Noah sat at the
table and laid his head down on his arms. You looked at Ethan’s shirt to see
blood on his sleeve.
    “Are you hurt?”
    He looked down and shook his head. “You are.”
    He turned your hands over to reveal bright orange grazes across
your palms. The blood on his sleeve was a handprint from where you had touched
him.
    A minute later, Adina appeared in the doorway, a small wooden
box in her hand. Inside it was a series of small glass vials and two pale,
pearlescent stones, perfectly spherical in shape, one green and the other pink.
She took out the pink and wrapped it in a kitchen towel before pushing the
bundle against your grazed skin.
    “What is that?” you asked, as the pain dulled.
    “Lenius,” she replied. “Is anyone else hurt?”
    The two boys shook their heads and Adina returned the stone to
the box.
    “What’s lenius?”
    “It’s a kind of radust. You use it to stop injuries from
hurting so much.” Adina cocked her head. “You must know about radust? Surely
your father uses it when…” She trailed off.
    “He’s usually the reason I’m hurt,” you said. “How does it
work?”
    Adina smiled sadly. “Like bottled medicine, I suppose.” She
stood up. “You should wash your hands to make sure there is no dirt in there.
Noah, go and find some blankets. She’s staying here tonight.”
    Noah went upstairs as you went to the sink to wash your hands.
Adina’s sink was one of the best things about their house; it had clean,
running water, cool and fresh. You let the water fill your palms and then
rubbed carefully to get them clean. Back home, whenever you wanted water, you
had to trek down to the farmer’s well and there was never any guarantee the
water would be okay to drink right away. Sometimes it needed to be filtered
several times to remove all the dirt and insects.
    When Noah returned, Adina began setting up the blankets in
piles on the floor, making a bed for you beside the fireplace. She sent the two
boys to their beds and made sure you were settled before she too went upstairs.
You snuggled into the blankets, staring up the ceiling. Part of you wished you
could stay forever, but somewhere, at the back of your mind, you could hear a
little voice telling you to run.
    Choice: 32. Leave Landia or 33. Settle In

26.     TAKE FATHER HOME
    You stepped in front of the two boys. “Leave them, father.”
    “Stay out of