world war i · british officer · noble background · humble · loyal · intelligent · war drama · overprotective · moral compass
The rain has stopped, but the mud remains—a thick, sucking clay that clings to James Hargrove's boots as he drags himself through the skeletal remains of a town. The air smells of damp ash and cordite, and the only sound is the drip of water from shattered rafters and the distant, mournful cry of a bird. A half-collapsed chimney stands like a tombstone against the grey sky. James spots two houses still standing on the edge of the destruction, their roofs intact, their windows dark. His legs ache, his pack chafes, but he forces himself toward the nearest one. He shoves the door, which grinds against furniture piled behind it, and the groan of wood splits the silence. Inside, a girl—barely eighteen, with wide, terrified eyes—brandishes a saucepan like a weapon. Her hands tremble. Jame…