Chapter 14 #2
She contemplated his large, strong hand, and tingling shivers made the hairs stand up on her entire body.
She couldn’t help but remember what those lips felt like against hers.
She shook her head. She was there to find her father, not fall for a knight.
Sure, she would stay for a while to get to know Garlain, but she had to return to her time, to Garrett and Laura and their little baby girl. She promised Garrett she would.
Bree didn’t think it was a good idea for any part of her to touch him again. She nodded and got up herself.
Why was she thinking about Horland like that anyway?
He kissed her, that was it; a kiss, nothing more.
In fact, he never even mentioned it. Just because he was attracted to her didn’t mean he wanted a serious relationship.
Knights probably had the pick of women, and while she wasn’t ugly, she knew she wasn’t the fairest of maidens.
She let out another snort. Not with her frizzy red hair and freckles.
“We’d better get going,” Bree said.
Horland repositioned his pack over his shoulder and watching where he placed his feet, walked down the path. He said over his shoulder, “Watch where you step, there could be more traps.”
Bree hurried up to walk alongside him. “You keep an eye on that side and I’ll take this one.”
They’d only gone about thirty paces before Horland threw his arm out and her upper chest slammed into his arm of steel.
“Ouch, you could have just said stop.”
He grinned. “I didn’t have time to go into a long explanation as to why I wanted you to stop.”
“Very funny. I would have understood and stopped immediately.”
He kinked his head to the side and raised his brow. “Is that right?”
He pushed her to the side of the path and pointed at some rope peeking out from under leaf mulch. He said, “I couldn’t take that chance.”
It looked like another snare that would have hoisted one or both back into the air. A shiver of excitement trailed along the place where she’d run into his arm. Being smashed against Horland in a trap again wasn’t the worst thing Bree could think of. She eyed him. His eyes twinkled with humor.
“Ooh,” Bree said. “Let’s just go, okay?”
They skirted the trap and continued, examining anything that may have looked manmade.
Walking in silence, both focused on examining the landscape, and although finding the little girl was foremost in Bree’s mind, she couldn’t remember when she enjoyed being with a man as much as she was enjoying being with Horland.
He was funny, sometimes too funny for his own good, but he was great company.
Maybe she should ignore all the mind-bending reasons for not getting involved with someone like him and just enjoy his company.
After all, it wasn’t as if she had fallen in love him, not like her cousins all had with the people they met in the pasts.
She just liked him. He was different and he was someone she trusted to walk through a scary dark forest with.
Bree paused in her thoughts. She realized she hadn’t seen any more threads.
“Have you seen any more threads?”
Horland rubbed his chin. “I have not.”
“Do you think whoever took the girl, caught her leaving a trail?”
He hummed a yes, not pausing in his search for traps.
Bree went back to her surveillance. “I hope she’s okay.”
Horland paused and gave her arm a quick pat. “I’m sure she is safe and well.”
Bree glanced at him to smile a thank-you, but he didn’t take his eyes off the side of the road.
Two miles on, they finally descended the last slope and were once again on flat ground. The road widened into a cleared dirt area big enough to fit three large wagons and their horses. They stopped and scanned the area. One covered wagon was parked to the side, but no horses were in attendance.
“Hang on, this wagon tells me we could have driven or rode here. Why were you walking?”
“I wanted to surprise Garlain.”
“You mean you wanted to sneak up on him.”
He grimaced. “Perhaps.”
Bree shook her head and wandered over to the wagon. She pulled up the back and looked inside. It was completely empty. She let the cover drop and walked around the front. A narrow track left the parking area, and she was about to step onto it, when Horland stopped her.
“Let me check first.”
“I’ve already looked, there’s no traps, at least none that I can see.”
“Garlain would have been more careful with hiding any he set so close to the ruins.”
Bree shrugged and let him go ahead while she gazed over the bushes and spotted the head of an old statue.
She scampered up onto a tree branch just high enough to see over the bushes.
The statue was a woman with a small boy hanging onto her skirt, emptying a bucket into a dry pond.
Although dirty, the statues were still intact and beautiful.
The fountain would have been stunning when it was working; in fact, the whole courtyard would have been amazing. Most of the blue and white tiles that covered the floor area were broken or chipped and covered in dirt and leaves, but Bree could imagine what they once looked like.
She sighed. How wonderful it would have been to spend time there either sitting and reading or tending the plants that she imagined bordered the courtyard.
From her vantage point, she could see Horland checking every square inch of the track. She snorted. He was thorough, that was for sure.
He turned back and, spotting her sitting on the branch, smiled, and waved at her to come down.
His wide shoulders and stance had her wondering if he thought he was going to catch her.
She wasn’t that high, and she sure didn’t need saving, but it could be nice to fall into his arms. She would be reunited with her father soon and once he told Horland to give the orb back, she would be on her way back to Garrett and Laura.
She eyed the distance between her and Horland. Her pulse quickened at the thought of being so close to him again. I might as well enjoy what little time I have left with my handsome knight. And with that thought, she jumped.
He stepped back and she had to quickly rebalance, bending at the knees as she touched solid ground.
“You nearly fell on my head.” Horland smiled at her bent form.
She straightened. “Well I didn’t, did I?”
She couldn’t believe she was so stupid. He had no intention of catching her; he hadn’t even thought about getting close to her again.
Not wanting to make eye contact, she scanned the area. “Did you find any more traps?”
She could feel his eyes boring into her, trying to figure out what she was thinking. “No,” he said.
Her face heated and she knew she must have been red as a candy apple. She turned away, and looked this way and that, hoping he would think she was still trying to find traps.
Unable to put up with his scrutinizing gaze any longer, she trotted past the wide tree trunk.
The ground gave way under her feet. She screamed as she fell through the air, hands going every which way, trying to find anything to grab hold of.
But the sides were out of her reach and before she could consciously think about that, she hit the bottom.
Hard. Her legs gave way, and she smashed her side against the rocky ground.
Excruciating pain radiated down her arm and she groaned.
Horland’s voice echoed down the hole. “Briana. Briana.”
Bree could hear him, but she couldn’t think above the ache filling her whole side. The pain enveloped her in an agonizing shroud she would never escape.
“Briana, answer me.”
Gritting her teeth, Bree focused through the pain. If she stayed there, gave in to the agony, she would die. She didn’t know how badly she was hurt, but she had to get out of the hole, she had to get help.
Scraping noises seeped into her mind and she looked up. A long branch was edging its way down the side of the hole.
“Briana, listen to me if you can: take hold of the branch.”
Bree held her arm close to her chest and sat up, gazing at the end of the branch. Even if she stood on tippy toes, she wouldn’t be able to touch it, let alone hold on to it. Clenching her teeth, she scooted back until she rested against the wall.
She cried out to Horland. “Too short.”
The branch disappeared over the rim of the hole and now that her eyes cleared, Bree realized the hole was encased with stone. So not a newly formed trap then, but whoever set it cleverly used an empty well.
Using the wall of the well to push against, she stood up and trailed the fingers of her good arm along the stone.
Whoever the stonemason was, he was a skilled tradesman because even after she didn’t know how many years, the stones aligned so well, even if she had two good arms, she wouldn’t be able to climb them.
“It’s no good, Horland.” Tears filled her eyes as she hugged her broken arm to her chest. “The hole’s too deep. I can’t climb out.”
It struck her then that there was a way out. If he gave her the orb, she could use it to go back home.
“Horland. Throw me the orb.”
“What?”
“Throw the trinket down to me. I can use it to get out.”
“That is absurd. How can that help you?”
A surge of anger negated the pain. “I told you, you stupid man, I’m from the future and with it I can get home and get help. I’m hurt, for Pete’s sake, and I don’t know how bad. Don’t you even care?”
His head appeared against the blue sky and while she couldn’t see his face or make out his expression, she sensed his anger.
She had every right to be angry, but he didn’t. He wasn’t stuck down a massive hole, broken and in agony.
Fighting against the pain, she tipped her head back and gazed up. “Please.”
He dropped something down the hole. She couldn’t make out what it was in the dark, but she felt it pass her face.
She snapped out her hand but missed and it fell at her feet.
She groaned and bent down. Her hand found a smooth egg-shaped object and letting out a cry of anguish and mixed delight, she picked it up.
“Thank you,” she called up.