Free The Deed of Paksenarrion by Elizabeth Moon

I visited Paksenarrion in the cell, I realized that she had taken more damage than was at first apparent. It seemed to me that her injuries made the story told by Korryn—the other recruit—inconsistent or even impossible. Her story made more sense.” Stammel repeated what Paksenarrion had told him, and then reviewed his own reasoning. “This story fit her injuries better than Korryn’s. Paksenarrion has been, until this, an outstanding recruit, honest and hardworking. Korryn has a grudge against her; she has refused to bed him.”
    “What is her background, Sergeant?”
    “She’s a sheepfarmer’s daughter, from the northwest. She ran away from home to join us.”
    “And this—uh—Korryn?”
    “He joined us in White Creek; claimed to have been in Count Serlin’s guard, but wanted more—action, I believe he said.”
    “And his record?”
    Stammel frowned. “He has not done anything that would require his expulsion.” The unsaid “yet” trembled in the air. “However, he has been the subject of complaint by Corporals Bosk and Devlin, and Armsmaster Siger.”
    “That’s not fair!” Korryn’s face twisted in anger. “You favor her; you always have! A pretty face—I’ll warrant one of you has bedded her—”
    Bosk and Devlin each took an involuntary step forward; Stammel was rigid and white with fury. Before he could say anything, Kolya Ministiera stepped toward Korryn and looked him up and down.
    “Hmmph!” she snorted. “A fine—man—you are.” She spat at his feet, and turned back to the captain with a swirl of her brown robe. “I suppose we must hear his testimony, just to keep things straight.”
    “He’s out, whatever he says now,” growled Stammel.
    “Nonetheless,” said the captain. “He must speak. And keep to the truth—” he said to Korryn, “—if you can, recruit.”
    Korryn’s eyes slid from side to side. “It is the truth—what I said. She went crazy, and started hitting this corporal, and I thought he could take care of her, and I guess he did hit her a few times. Then she got a grip on his throat, and I decided to help him out and pull her off. He’ll tell you—” Korryn gestured at Stephi. “I—I thought it was just a bit of fun at first, and then—I did what I thought was right,” he said, pulling himself erect. “Maybe I made a mistake—but you can’t punish a man for doing what he thinks is right.”
    The captain and witnesses received this in tight-lipped silence. “Is there,” the captain asked Stammel after a pause, “any other witness to all this?”
    “That recruit we met coming out of the door—the one who said he was going for help—he should have seen something.”
    “Where is he?”
    “Corporal Bosk,” said Stammel. “Escort Jens to the front, please.”
    “No!” came a squeal from behind Stammel. “I—I don’t know anything—I didn’t see—I—I just came out—”
    “He’s a friend of Korryn’s,” said Stammel, as Bosk half-dragged Jens out of formation to the front.
    The captain beckoned to two of the guards. They took Jens’s arms and forced him upright. “Now then—what’s his name, Stammel?”
    “Jens, sir.”
    “Jens. I expect you to tell us the truth, right now. Did you see a fight involving Paksenarrion, Korryn, and Stephi, or any two of them?”
    “I—” Jens looked frantically from side to side; when he met Korryn’s fierce gaze he flinched. “I—I saw a little tussle, sir—sort of—”
    “A little tussle? Be specific now: did you see it start?”
    “N-no—I was—was—uh—cleaning my boots. Sir.”
    “Did you see any blows struck at all?”
    “Well—I saw—I saw Paks and that man rolling on the floor, and then Korryn said—said go look at the door—” Jens was staring at his feet.
    “At the door ?”
    “Yes, sir. He—uh—said I should—should look for the sergeant, sir.”
    “Oh? And did you?”
    “Yes. I looked, but I couldn’t see him—I mean, until you came.”
    “And just