Along the sides of the pages are little doodles, geometric and symmetrical on either side. In the center at the top is a representation of an eye, with lashes and a thin eyebrow framing it. He was no artist but seemed to add details to it, never quite satisfied with how it stared back at him.
Day 4
It is all sorted. Miss Jocelynn got her money and we are carrying her windows to the settlement. And she sent her good wishes and a little something extra. I hope she likes it. I got a message from Greg to carry on for Emma. It has been four days since we left. Lane is an interesting lady. I feel like if I had met her in the Pony sometime we would have had a drinking contest and she would have whooped my ass. But I am not going to tell her that.
We are heading through the South Downs right now, and up the river to find a better place to cross it. She says it’ll take round a fortnight to get there. Harould was a bit of a wreck when I seen him in town but he seems alright now. I am not sure what his job is to the others. He takes it seriously, but he damn near knocks himself out, getting all worked up.
I cannot stop thinking about the dreams I had over the last few weeks. I do not even know what happened in them, only how they left me feeling like I was punched in the gut. And I been punched in the gut plenty.
And the eyes. I see them with my eyes closed and sometimes even when they are open. Clear, blue, and looking at me as if I am invisible. Like they can see my soul. I do not know what it means. Sometimes I shut my eyes and just stare back, but I always blink first. Wish I knew who it was.
Day 8
The journey has been smooth and the weather has been fine. It is slow going, but Lane says if we go to fast we might break a wheel and it will take days to fix. I guess there is no hurry.
We met a woman who said she was heading north. She almost looked like one of those Rangers that wander just outside of town, dressed all in brown and green. She said her name was Lark and she was patrolling the land and looking for her kin. Must be lonely out in the wild like that without family.
I hope my mum is doing alright. And I should have said goodbye to my brother before I left. Doubt he cares one way or the other.
Day 9
The only thing here is a crude drawing of a kitten, some geese standing around a pond embroidering some cloth, and an upside-down chair and table, with mugs and plates of food.
Day 13
We decided not to light a fire tonight. It is warm enough not to, but Lane is worried it might attract attention. Good job it is a full moon.
The coyotes are out. I can hear them in the distance. Maybe they know something we do not.
The same eyes that were drawn on the first entry are drawn at the end of this one. This time, there is a tear next to one of them.
Day 17
A crown of flowers sits in the corner of the page, sketched in more detail than the others had been. Around it are geographic circles all linked together like chains.
Everything seems bigger here. There seems to be more sky, more ground, more hills. You are not likely to run into someone’s old rundown shack like you might in the Chetwood or Bree-fields. It makes the place seem like no one’s touched it. But ai…is not true neither. The road South that we followed part-way was ancient and crumbled, but someone had to lay the stones. They are long gone, it seems.
I wake up a lot in the night. Things sound different here as well. And I swear I hear voices when I am asleep, like someone whispering in my ear. Probably just a bit uneasy because this is not like home. Not even a little bit. I am anxious just to get there. I feel like something is not right, but I do not know what.
We ran out of meat three days ago. We are not going hungry yet, still have some rations and found some berries while we were out seeing what we could catch. Lane says we will be there in three or four days and it will all be fine. But she still set up a pit trap overnight and put some grubs down in there just to be safe. I hope she catches something.
Day 18
Lane’s trap worked! In the morning there was a fat coney sitting in the bottom of it, munching on what she had left inside. Never had it roasted over a fire before. It was a little chewy, but nothing has tasted better in the last few weeks we been on the road.
And it is a good damn thing as well. Lane said there is a chance no one will be at the settlement when we get there. I think she must be trying to get a rise out of me. They just got there. What could possibly take them away from it so soon?
