FicWad

Following her attack, Kerrigan takes many steps to prevent the enemy from realizing that Jack is missing. She instructs various spies and informants to give them incorrect information about a Senate meeting in Bridgeton and leaves Crosspoint herself in order to ensure that her lie seems true, at least long enough to find Jack. She journeys to visit with her husband so that she can explain any pregnancy that may have arisen from Jack’s attack. It is far from the first time she has experienced such action against her, though previously it was her husband’s older brothers, whose motive was to hurt him by hurting his wife. Morietur, who is delighted to see his wife, suspects nothing, and they spend a pleasant week together, which does not become violent until she tells him that she must return to Crosspoint. When Kerrigan arrives in Crosspoint station, Generals Callahan, Malone, and O’Casey meet her upon the platform. They bear only bad news. They are Southern Army Generals, but Kerrigan did not confide her situation to her own Western Army. Despite the fact that four of Kerrigan’s five Generals were taken from the Southern Army at the end of the Revolution when professional soldiers and revolutionaries reconciled and the new five Armies were established and the fact that all four of them know Jack personally, she requested the services of three of his own Generals in finding him because, despite being dishonest in their business dealings, they are usually very effective at finding Jack, whom they know far better than anyone else in Crosspoint does, and they can be trusted to only reveal necessary information, not allow alcohol to loosen their tongues, and use any means necessary in order to finish the task at hand without arousing suspicion, not stopping until it has met a satisfactory ending.

“Ma’ Kerrigan, are ye alright?” asks General O’Casey, by far the youngest of the three.

“If you are referring to what my husband did to me when I informed him that I was obligated to return to Crosspoint, it is nothing out of the ordinary and will heal quickly.”

“We’ve no good news, I’m afraid, Miss Kerrigan,” says General Callahan. “We couldn’t find Jack.”

“Do you have any idea of where he might be?” asks Kerrigan, genuinely concerned.

“We think he went back to Bridgeton, in fact, we know he did,” says General Callahan.

“Me da’s seen him,” says General O’Casey.

“Did Saxen take him in for a time?” asks Kerrigan.

“No, jus’ seen him in passin’ an’ didn’t know he was missin’,” replies General O’Casey. “Told me ‘bout it in a letter sayin’ he thought it odd.”

“Thank you, gentlemen, you have been most kind.”

“Least we could do ma’am,” says General Malone.

Kerrigan sits alone in the cabin and begins to write a series of letters. She writes a letter to General O’Casey’s father requesting that he inform Jack’s old friends in Bridgeton that he is missing and reported to be somewhere in the city. She then writes a letter to Lynn with which she will send Jack’s belongings to his home. She feels that Lynn must know that her husband is not present. She also writes a letter to her own sons, most especially Death, asking him to inform her if he sees Jack while claiming souls and to begin a search together with War, Pestilence, and Famine if she does not give him word within three weeks that she has found him. Kerrigan then saddles her horse and travels to see Liam. He is feeling much better, but he is not yet entirely well. She brings Jack’s horse with her. He left Spectre in Crosspoint, and Liam has no mount of his own. Liam is avoiding drinking establishments after his recent blunder. He is putting forth a concerted effort to repent his sin and change his ways. He is drinking much less than he once did, and he now habitually drinks with Captain Fitzmaurice, Doctor Sparrow, Captain Boland, Lieutenant Morrison, Lieutenant Coffey, Private Callahan, and sometimes Captain Fitzmaurice’s fiancée, Lieutenant Barrett, none of whom have his tolerance for liquor, in an effort to prevent excess. He still makes poitín for sale, but he abstains from drinking it himself. Kerrigan asks him to come to town with her so that she may speak with him in private, excusing it to everyone else as meeting him for a drink. He is very concerned, but she will not breathe a word about the situation until they are in the cabin.

“Liam, your father has gone missing,” says Kerrigan, pouring him a drink.

“What happened? He off drinkin’ again?” asks Liam.

“No. He has the same propensity to lash out in drunkenness as you do, and he raped me on Samhain Eve.”

“He did what!?” asks Liam, who is shocked to hear such a word, particularly in relation to a man who he knows cares deeply about women.

“He raped me, Liam. Only General Callahan and Doctor Sparrow know that, and they are both sworn to silence. There is another fact of which I have not spoken to anyone. I am pregnant with your father’s child. Even he himself does not know this. I have taken steps to divert suspicions. He will see no repercussions other than that which he does to himself. Generals O’Casey, Callahan, and Malone searched for him, and they found evidence that he has returned to Bridgeton. I need to ask a favor of you.”

“Anythin’, Miss Kerrigan.”

“I need you to wear his uniform and stay with me in battle, as is his habit. I have already spoken with Colonel Callahan about temporarily assigning you to me. He has consented, as I expected he would, as it is a matter of national security. No one must know that Jack is not here.”

“But I’ve no beard.”

“It is not unusual for him to shave it from time to time. You look similar enough to your father that the illusion will be sufficient to hide the truth from the enemy. You will be staying here and riding Jack’s horse. You will return to your camp tonight to fetch your belongings.”

In battle, the illusion works too well. Liam is unaccustomed to being saluted first by higher ranks than his own. He is unaccustomed to being shown respect and to duties like inspecting troops. Kerrigan thanks him continually for maintaining the illusion despite his ill health. One day, while participating in a battle with Liam’s own unit, an enemy sniper fires his rifle, and the bullet grazes Liam’s skull. He is knocked unconscious immediately and falls off Spectre. Spectre is a true war horse, not spooked by the loss of his rider or the sounds of gunfire. He stands protectively over Liam, keeping him safe from being trampled. Kerrigan signals Captain Fitzmaurice and asks to borrow his rifle. She lifts it and shoots, having calculated the direction from whence the bullet that hit Liam came, and she shoots and kills the enemy sniper, earning Captain Fitzmaurice’s highest level of respect as he sees the sniper’s dead body fall out of a tree in the distance. Kerrigan returns Captain Fitzmaurice’s rifle to him and sends Private Callahan to fetch a cart. Upon his return, she dismounts and hitches the cart to her own horse. Captain Fitzmaurice and Conan lift Liam into the straw on the cart, tucking his arms gently next to him, and Kerrigan bandages his head with gauze that Conan brought from camp in an effort to prevent infection or further injury. She leads Pryo and Spectre back to camp and summons Doctor Sparrow immediately.

“It don’ look good. I ain’t gonna lie,” Doctor Sparrow says.

“Please, Doctor, do not admit defeat.”

“I won’t, but he weren’t exactly in the best o’ health to begin wi’, an’ now this. Sometimes these injuries heal well, an’ other times it’d be kinder to let ‘em die. If I didn’t know ‘twas Liam, I could swear he was Jack.”

“Jack has a stronger jaw line and rougher hands.”

“I know. I see Liam every day. Your illusion won’t work anymore. I need to shave his head in order to see his injuries properly.” Doctor Sparrow first cuts Liam’s hair as short as he can with a pair of barber’s shears, then he shaves his head completely with a straight razor. Kerrigan insists upon collecting some of Liam’s hair and putting it in a small pouch for safekeeping. “I’ve some good news. The bullet merely grazed his skull.”

“Does that mean that he will recover?”

“Unfortunately, only time will tell. Blood ain’t much help. Most it’ll do is keep him alive if he don’ wake up an’ can’t eat. He can’t be moved further now, not even to town. I will bring my own cot into his tent, that way he’ll be watched o’er by those closest to him. I’ll have the Colonel send for his things when the unit returns. I’ll send Jack’s uniform back to ye later. He’ll be in his nightshirt ‘til we can move him back to Bridgeton when we’ll put him in his dress uniform. He’ll need to recover as far from here as possible. I trust he’ll be able to stay at Jack’s house.”

“I have no doubts that Lynn will care for him, but if the burden is to great or if she must care for Jack, I have space in my own home, either the one in Highton or in Court City in my primary residence, and I will devote myself to his care.”

“Ye’re a damned saint.”

That night, once the work for the day is done, dinner is silent, and everyone is wearing their dress uniforms, as per the Colonel’s request. One Lieutenant, a priest by profession, says a prayer for Liam’s recovery and blesses him. With a sixth cot in the tent and Liam laying corpselike on his bed, his arms upon his chest, a crucifix in his hands courtesy of the Lieutenant who is a priest, the tent is very crowded. Captain Fitzmaurice and Lieutenant Barrett changed their original plan of going to town to a restaurant to staying in camp. Conan Callahan, who was promoted to the rank of Corporal upon another’s death that evening does not celebrate his promotion. He walks to the woods to Liam’s still and empties its entire contents into several jugs. The tent is crowded with men in their dress uniforms. Generals Callahan, Malone, and O’Casey are there; as are Colonel Callahan; Majors Moynihan, Considine, and Callahan; Captains Fitzmaurice, O’Dowd, McEvoy, Barrett, and Boland; Lieutenants Callahan, Coffey, Morrison, Killane, Gaffney, Lawless, Hayes, and Kiersey; and Corporal Callahan. Lieutenant Barrett and Kerrigan are the only women, as well as the only two members of the Western Army, present. Despite the large crowd in the tent, it is strikingly silent, resembling a funeral.

Captain Fitzmaurice stands and makes a toast. “Some among us have recently gotten medals an’ promotions, some jus’ joined an’ promised five years to the army, an’ some have become engaged. We’re not here to celebrate our own achievements. We’re here to celebrate the sacrifice o’ one we held dear. We don’ know yet if he’ll recover, an’ surely we all hope he does. There’s one person who ought to be here but ain’t, an’ I’m sure oul’ Jack’d be proud o’ him too. William Jackson Shepherd, I salute ye, an’ ye knew all too well ‘tisn’t a gesture I take lightly. To your health an’ may your good fortune come true yet.”

Colonel Callahan bows his head and begins to pray, everyone joining into the chorus. “Ár nAthair, atá ar neamh, go naomhaítear t'ainm, go dtaga do ríocht, go ndeintear do thoil ar an dtalamh mar a deintear ar neamh. Ár n-arán laethúil tabhair dhúinn inniu, agus maith dhúinn ár gcionta mar a mhaithimíd do chách, agus ná lig sinn i gcathú, ach saor sinn ó olc. áiméin.

“Sé do bheatha, a Mhuire, atá lán de ghrásta, tá an Tiarna leat. Is beannaithe thú idir na mná agus is beannaithe toradh do bhroinne, Íosa. A Naomh-Mhuire, a Mháthair Dé, guigh orainn na peacaigh,anois agus ar uair ár mbáis. áiméin.

“I n-ainm an athar, agus an mhic, agus an sprid naoimh, áiméin.”

As the crowd slowly filters out, each person stops and kneels next to Liam’s still living, yet seemingly dead, body. They all raise a glass to him in silence, kneel before him, bless themselves, and kiss his cheek, and salute him before leaving. Typically, at a wake, the forehead of the corpse would be kissed, but Liam’s forehead is covered by bandages, rendering it inaccessible. Even the men who share the tent leave him for a time. Captains Fitzmaurice and Boland and Doctor Sparrow leave to smoke, and Captains O’Dowd and McEvoy have laundry that needs to be washed. Captain Barrett’s unit has suffered high casualty rates over the last two weeks and is depleted of personnel and resources, so she need not return that night, as they are not currently in battle. She decides to stay with Captain Fitzmaurice in the hopes that she might be able to comfort Liam should he wake, but she must return to fetch her bedclothes and tell her superiors where she will be. Eventually, only Kerrigan remains by Liam’s side. She left her own horse in the stable, having returned to the cabin after the battle in order to change into her dress uniform for the evening affair, and she rode Jack’s horse back, attempting to symbolically make it seem that Jack is present by proxy. She personally stands at attention and salutes Liam, a gesture that she never uses. She typically returns salutes in the Western Army fashion, which requires the little finger to touch the forehead and the palm to be facing outward, but she salutes Liam in the Southern Army fashion with the index finger touching the forehead and the palm down. She then sits on his bedside and begins to sing gently.

Dún do shúile a rún mo chroí
A chuid den tsaol is a ghrá liom.
Dún do shúile a rún mo chroí
Is gheobhair féirín amárach.

Beidh do fhear ag tiocht gan mhoill ón g'cnoc
Agus cearca fraoch ina lámh leis.
O codhladh go ciúin a rún mo rún
Agus gheobhair féirín amárach.

Dún do shúile a rún mo chroí
A chuid den tsaol is a ghrá liom.
Dún do shúile a rún mo chroí
Is gheobhair féirín amárach.

Tá an Samhradh ag triall le grian is teas
Agus duilliúr glas ar phrataí
Tá an ghaoth ag tiocht go fírinneach
Is gheobhaimid iasc amárach.

Dún do shúile a rún mo chroí
A chuid den tsaol is a ghrá liom.
Dún do shúile a rún mo chroí
Is gheobhair féirín amárach.

Kerrigan bends down to kiss him on the cheek and sheds her tears on his face. They are a mother’s tears, though he is not her own son. She is determined to care for him as if she were the mother that he never had, compensating for Jack’s absence. She makes Liam a whispered, solemn promise, the same promise that she made to her son Lyritur many years earlier. “No matter your fate, I will care for you. No matter the obstacles, I will never abandon you. No matter the cost, I will not fail you.”