~1918~

Mud coated my boots so thickly that my gait turned into a rolling limp as I picked my way down the train tracks. The oozing damp of the unceasing snow penetrated my woolen socks, melting the fibers into my skin so I didn't even dare take them off anymore. I was too afraid to see the damage, and so I put it out of mind while sneaking through the grim winter night toward the motionless transport car at the rear of the train.

The wood smelled of mildew as I pressed my back against the side of the car and slid down to a crouch. With aching knees, I scooted underneath, dodging the metal wheels. Gruesome thoughts of the train starting early and catching me beneath its wheels flashed through my mind, but I quickly replaced the bloody images with thoughts of rested legs, sleep, and no more mud. These seemingly impossible miracles bolstered me enough to crawl across snow-covered pebbles toward the other side of the train car. I paused just on the threshold, clamping a hand over my mouth to stop the thick clouds of white breath from filling the black night air in front of me.

A handful of guards stood around a small fire, two cars up the track. Though they all wore large fur coats and hats, it was the bitter cold that had driven them down from their perches on the tops of the cars. The train didn't travel fast, but the wind was enough to steal a man's nose and ears if he wasn't careful. Scheduled breaks let the guards warm their extremities every eight hours, and it had taken me many weeks to work out where on the line our paths crossed.

Now I watched the guards as they stomped around and smoked, telling stories of friends that fought in the city. I couldn't hear their words exactly, but I knew enough of the soldiers of Prest and Lenotsakaya to know that any man could talk of nothing else but their brave comrades fighting in Rumonin.

Using the cadence of their conversations to mask the creaking of metal and old wood, I slowly pushed open the long door to the train car. The dusty smell of grain filled my nostrils immediately, and I wouldn't be surprised if I looked like a dog drooling over a steak. It had been days since my last proper meal, and countless hours since I'd eaten even a scrap of crust or the marrow from a frozen bone. Here was a food supply fit for an army, and I was about to bury myself in it. But I still had one more task before I'd rest my feet and fill my belly.

Ducking back into the shadows beneath the car, I crept to the side I'd come from, and stuck my hand into the moonlight. My skin glowed as white as the snow, and against the inky sky it was as good as a beacon. I waved it around a few times and then retreated to the open door. My heart beat oddly, and I clenched my rough skirt in my fists. There wasn't much time before the guards' break ended, and seeing a wide open grain door wasn't exactly inconspicuous. Seconds ticked away until finally I heard shallow breathing and looked down to see a scruffy head of blonde hair crawling out from under the train.

I offered my hand, and Ferdinand took it to help himself to his feet. The hunger-hollows of his cheeks caught the shadows of the night, lending him a look of death that made my stomach turn. He needed the grain more than I did. He'd been wasting away for far longer, and should he finally lose all his strength, I knew I wouldn't be able to carry him far.

I jerked my chin at the open side of the train car, and Ferdinand caught on. He hoisted himself into the dark recesses with shaking arms and only a few grunts. After following him, I waited a moment for the guards' conversation to pick up before sliding the door shut.

We plunged into heavy darkness. It pressed down like harsh hands, paralyzing. I took a few shaking breaths, trying to calm the hammering of my heart, before I crawled toward the sound of Ferdinand in the back of the car. His arm brushed against my leg and I felt my way down to sit by his side. With his breath heating the air against my cheek, I leaned into his shoulder.

A few moments past where we shared warmth in the darkness, and then I pulled away to rummage among the cargo that surrounded us. Thankfully, everything was in burlaps sacks and not nailed-shut boxes, so I drew the tiny blade I'd nicked from a farmhouse a few days earlier, and cut a slice toward the neck of one of the giant sacks.

The grain fell icy against my palm and left dust when I dumped it into Ferdinand's hand. As he ate, I stuffed a handful in my mouth and tried not to gag as all the moisture from my mouth vanished with the raw grain. It tasted slightly of mold, but it filled the gaping holes in our stomachs. I managed only two hands of grain, and Ferdinand even less. I imagined a full meal of chicken and bread and fruit, and wondered if I'd ever be able to eat that much again.

Ferdinand fell asleep against my arm, his hand draped over one of my legs and his breath creating a damp spot against the wool of my shawl. I ducked my head to rest against his just as the train whistle blew into the night sky, and the sound of whooshing steam brought only a few seconds warning before the train lurched forward. Ferdinand, exhausted beyond the point of caring, didn't even flinch as the car shook and rattled along the tracks. I did it all for him, cringing at the sudden barrage of noise that echoed around the space until it clashed in my bones.

Out the slight crack between the sliding door and the wall, the countryside passed in slivers. Rumonin lay far behind us, but yet the signs of war had not abated. On the road running parallel to the tracks, deep ruts caused by soldiers and their vehicles filled with ice. As we went even farther, the glow of orange campfires in abandoned fields spoke of soldiers still being shipped in to fight the Vigilant Men.

I shivered and shut my eyes. Sleep eluded me, but I kept the feeling of emptiness from crawling up my throat by pressing my fingernails into my palm as the hours progressed deep night into coal-gray morning.

A moment later and the train came to a wheezing stop, and the sound of soldiers' boots clattered across the roof. They'd be off to warm up and try to chat to keep themselves awake, and this was as far as Ferdinand and myself were to go. If the pattern I'd observed before was anything to go off, they'd be changing guards soon, and they'd take a quick inventory of the cargo at the stop.

I shook Ferdinand until he groggily came back to life, and while he stretched and winced at the pain returning to his wounds, I dug around in the grain sacks and stuffed my pockets. I dusted my hands off on my skirt and then dipped down to help support Ferdinand as we sneaked to the door and slid it open. A blast of icy snow slammed into my face, instantly chilling my blood and burning my ears and nose. Ferdinand coughed gently, and I quickly glanced toward the fire where the soldiers clustered. No one paid attention, but with the sun slowly rising over the pine trees, it wouldn't be long before we would be far too obvious against the falling snow.

With painfully slow steps, we ducked beneath the train and slid out the other side. I glanced once toward the top of the train, glad to see no one looking out of the engine, and then we crept along the rise of the track bed. Beyond, the fields stretched toward a road, where a signpost announced that the capital city of Flauns, called Ètrevay, was just a few dozen miles to the north.

Potholes riddled the dirt road, and Ferdinand and I soon spent all our time dodging the nearly invisible ankle-snapping traps in the snow. Ferdinand leaned into me, and his limping gait soon made my shoulder burn with the lopsided weight. I didn't complain, though. I'd never complain. He was safe and by my side. We escaped from Rumonin and were now headed toward somewhere much greater. There was nothing to find fault with. 

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It's hereeeee! The rewritten sequel to The Price is finally going to be available to read! I'll be posting a new chapter every week whenever it is possible. I'm still working on the last 1/3rd of the book, but I couldn't wait any longer to start sharing it. Not going to lie, I'm a bit nervous, but hopefully you guys will like it! I tried my hardest to make it true to what I imagine for the characters, but also to be satisfying and fulfilling to my readers. Let's head on this journey together, and it's going to be so much fun bringing Nadia and Ferdinand back to life one more time! <3 Thank you to everyone who expressed interest in a sequel, and thank you to everyone who loved The Price so much that you're going to read The Toll. You guys are the greatest!

If you stumbled on this book and didn't realize that it's a sequel, you can get to the original story by following the link below, or by going to my profile and looking for "The Price". 

https://www.wattpad.com/118859353-the-price-completed-prologue