The War of the Grail (40 page)

‘Let me see.’ He raised her hand and saw a bullet hole in her sari. The wound was weeping blood.

He put her hand back and lowered his head. It was as bad as he’d feared.

J
ack felt as though he were walking through a dream. The darkened ruins about him, the black sky, the distant reverberations of the guns were not real. The Fortress of the Djinns had always been a figment of his imagination. He would wake up soon.

But then he looked down at Sonali lying on her back on the makeshift stretcher and suddenly he was back in the material world.

Sonali was dying. She looked pale and her skin was bathed in sweat. Someone had tied a length of cloth around her waist but it was doing little to staunch the flow of blood. Her eyes were open, but they were glazed and she stared at the heavens in silence.

He’d seen wounds like that before on the battlefield. Most soldiers shot in the abdomen would die within minutes. A few might survive for longer, if the bullet miraculously missed any vital organs. A very few might recover completely, if a Rajthanan doctor treated them. But here, in the fortress, there were no Rajthanan doctors.

Jack couldn’t see how Sonali could survive. But he knew he mustn’t think about that. He couldn’t think about that.

He gripped the stretcher more tightly. Saleem was carrying the other end, while Mark and Elizabeth were scurrying alongside.

The villagers had held the breach in the wall and the rest of the crusaders, once they’d finally been roused, had managed to drive the enemy troops from the fortress. The remaining soldiers had retreated down the slope and returned to the European Army camp. The gunners on the ramparts were continuing to fire warning shots but, for the moment, the enemy were not responding.

The crusade was still alive. Jack’s people had not yet been crushed.

But any happiness he felt about that evaporated when his eyes strayed to Sonali.

The hospital loomed ahead. It had largely been spared from the bombardment – the enemy batteries having concentrated their fire on other parts of the fortress. The glow of lanterns spilt out from the many apertures in the walls. In the dim light, Jack made out scores of wounded lying on blankets outside in the open. Many more people were swarming around the building or approaching from the darkness. And now Jack heard the chilling groans and cries of the injured inside the hall.

He swallowed hard and his skin crawled. When he glanced at Elizabeth, he saw that her skin was pure white and her eyes were glistening.

He and Saleem wound their way along a track through piles of rubble and finally drew up to the hall’s main entrance. They only managed to go a few paces inside before they had to halt. The floor was completely covered in a mass of dying people. Their sighs, shrieks and bellows wafted through the giant chamber. The stench of rotting flesh struck Jack’s nostrils. The monks were overwhelmed and clearly could do little beyond offering prayers.

A man lying on a filthy mat tugged at Jack’s ankle, whispering, ‘Water.’

Jack saw maggots crawling within the gaping wounds on the man’s shoulder and chest.

Jack turned to Mark. ‘We can’t leave Sonali here.’

Mark was gazing at the tortured bodies sprawled about him, many of them clutching the air or scratching at the ground in their agony. ‘Where will we take her?’

‘Back to our camp.’

Mark seemed to shake himself from a trance. ‘We have a dozen other wounded.’

‘They can stay at the camp too. There’s no hope for anyone in this place.’

Jack told Saleem to turn round, and they headed back out through the entryway and strode as quickly as they could away from the hospital.

Jack could still hear the screams long after he and the others had plunged back into the ruins and were well on their way back to the Folly Brook camp.

A fireball slammed into the roof above Jack’s head. The impact made the air quiver and Jack heard the flames hissing over the stonework. A tiny puff of dust wafted down from the ceiling.

Jhala had ordered the bombardment to continue. No doubt he would be enraged by the fact that the rebels had managed to repel his forces.

Jack crouched down beside Sonali. She was lying in a side chamber in the palace, along with the twelve other injured villagers. Mary was bustling between them all, tending to them as best she could and dispensing a drink of mandrake, which she said would ease the pain.

Sonali’s face glistened with sweat in the candlelight. Her head was propped up against the wall using a rolled-up blanket. Mary had pressed a herbal poultice to the wound and tied a fresh length of cloth about Sonali’s waist. Jack doubted the remedy would help, but Sonali had said she wanted to try it.

Jack took Sonali’s hand. ‘You stay strong. You’ll get through this.’

Another fireball smacked into the roof and the floor rocked slightly. A larger trail of dust guttered down in one corner of the room.

Mark ducked through the doorway and gave Sonali a tight smile. ‘The lads have asked me to tell you they’re all praying for you, Lady Sonali. They’re praying hard.’

Sonali’s eyes moistened and she whispered, ‘Thank you.’

Mark squatted down. ‘Is there anything I can do for you? Anything you need?’

‘I’m thirsty,’ Sonali said.

Mark’s eyes flicked across to Jack.

Jack knew what the lad was thinking. They’d all had their ration of water for the day. ‘She can have my share for tomorrow.’

Jack’s mouth was so parched it burned, but he didn’t care. If Sonali needed water, she was going to have it.

‘No,’ Mark said. ‘She can have my share.’

Jack smiled and patted Mark on the shoulder. ‘Good lad. But give her mine first. She can have yours later, if she needs it.’

Mark nodded, retreated out of the door and returned a moment later with a tankard.

Jack helped Sonali to sit up and take several gulps of water. Once she’d finished, he eased her head back down and placed the tankard beside her.

‘I’ll be going, then,’ Mark said to Sonali. ‘If you need anything, you just call for me.’

Sonali nodded feebly and Mark stepped back out of the room. A round shot pounded the ceiling and a line of grit trickled onto his shoulder as he left.

Jack took Sonali’s hand again. Her skin felt cold and she was shivering.

‘I’m all right,’ she said. ‘It’s not so bad.’ She lowered her gaze. ‘I’ve been through worse.’

Jack’s eyes drifted to her arm. Her shawl had been removed and draped over her as a blanket. Her left arm hung outside the cloth and he could see the criss-cross of scars on the skin. Mahajan had tortured her. She’d hardly spoken about it and Jack had never raised the subject, although he knew she still had nightmares about it sometimes.

She seemed to understand his thoughts, because she said, ‘I was sure I would die in Mahajan’s castle. Everything that’s happened since I got out has been an unexpected blessing. I’ve been so lucky.’

‘And you’ll carry on being lucky.’

She shook her head sadly. ‘I’m not so sure about that.’

‘Don’t say that. You have to have faith. You’ll pull through.’

‘You know that’s unlikely.’ She took a deep breath. ‘Listen, I might not have much time. I …’

A series of shells battered the roof and sent iron screaming against the masonry. Several of the injured lying nearby whimpered and one woman, who’d received a bullet in her chest, groaned and wept. Mary rushed to her side and dabbed her forehead with a cloth.

‘It’s noisy in here,’ Jack said to Sonali. ‘I could move you to the storeroom.’

She shook her head. ‘It’s all right.’ She swallowed. ‘Listen. I wanted to tell you that … that I think very highly of you. I wanted to make sure you knew that. In case anything I’ve said or done might have made you think otherwise.’

Jack’s throat tightened so much it was hard to swallow. Tears brimmed in his eyes, but he kept them at bay. ‘You don’t need to say all this now. You’re going to live.’

‘Please. I have to tell you these things, in case I don’t get another chance. You see, I’ve found it difficult … It’s difficult for me to …’ She frowned, seemed to search for the right words.

‘It’s all right. You rest.’

‘You remember I said I ran away from my family?’

Jack nodded. She’d mentioned it to him once or twice, but had never gone into any detail.

‘The reason I left,’ she said slowly, ‘was that I was due to be married. It was arranged, you see. I was to marry a rich old man. My parents believed it was a good match. Good for our family. I would be looked after, my father said. I didn’t want to marry this man, but my father pressured me into it. On the day of my wedding, I climbed up onto the roof of my parents’ house with my sister. I could see my future husband’s wedding party coming up the road. And I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t go through with it. So I ran away. I ran to the nearest city, and I never went back.’

A round shot pounded the roof and she flinched, but then continued. ‘Since that wedding day, I’ve found it difficult to … give myself over to someone. I’m always somehow holding back. I just wanted you to know that, in case you thought I didn’t hold you in the highest regard … that I didn’t …’

Tears welled in her eyes, and she struggled to continue.

He squeezed her hand. ‘I understand. You mustn’t worry. You just get better now.’

She nodded and blinked back the tears. Finally, she composed herself and gave him a slight smile. ‘I have something for you.’

He frowned. ‘What?’

‘In my bag there.’ She nodded towards a small embroidered pouch she often carried.

‘What is it?’

‘Take a look.’

He drew the strings on the bag. Inside, he found a silver box which he opened to reveal two paans wrapped in gold leaf.

He grinned at her. ‘We’ll share this later.’

‘You have it now. You don’t know when you’ll get another chance.’

He fought back the tears. He didn’t know how he was going to be able to speak, but somehow he managed it. ‘When you’re better, we’ll sit in the sunshine and have these.’

He placed the box back in the pouch.

Then he heard a woman clear her throat behind him. When he turned, he saw Elizabeth standing in the doorway. Her face was pale and shone in the candlelight. Her cheeks were streaked with dirt and her eyes were glassy as they stared at Sonali.

She bit her bottom lip. ‘May I sit with you?’

Sonali nodded weakly. ‘Of course.’

Elizabeth crouched down. She met Jack’s gaze for a moment, before looking back at Sonali. She lowered her eyes. ‘You saved my life.’

Sonali frowned. ‘I just did what anyone would do.’

‘No. You risked your own life to save mine. I don’t know how I can ever thank you.’

A shell roared overhead and the guns continued to pound in the distance. The other wounded villagers were sighing and moaning again.

Sonali shut her eyes and grimaced as pain racked her. Then she lifted her eyelids again and gently touched Elizabeth’s hand. ‘You don’t need to thank me. You would have done the same for me.’

Tears streamed down Elizabeth’s cheeks and she said in a squeaky voice, ‘I’m sorry for what I said about you. I’m so sorry. I was wrong.’

Sonali raised her hand and touched the side of Elizabeth’s face. ‘Hush. I understand.’

Jack felt as though he were drowning. And yet he was happy. Elizabeth had apologised. She and Sonali were finally at peace. That meant he could be at peace himself.

He muttered a Hail Mary and crossed himself. He could have sat there for hours – days, even.

But Saleem scurried into the chamber, saying, ‘There’s a messenger here, Jack. The earl wants to speak to you. At once.’