Chapter 7 #2
In what could only have been a few seconds, her senses, heightened by caution, took all of this in.
Then there was the soft scuff of earth under hoof as the leader moved forward from the others on his massive black stallion.
She raised her head and boldly met his eyes.
He carried himself proudly, and an almost palpable aura of dangerous strength and power swirled around him.
It made her want to get closer, to touch him, to see if she could feel it.
She did not know this man; she certainly had never met with him before this day, because she surely would have remembered that face.
He was beautiful, ruggedly handsome and achingly sensual at the same time.
And since she knew him not at all, she thought it strange that she felt no fear as she looked at him.
None. She would have expected it, the fear.
A woman alone had better be wary of men; there were as many bad as good, and despite everything she was as vulnerable as any other.
But it just wasn’t there; its absence nearly as alarming to her as if she had actually been frightened.
But she knew that this man would not hurt her; it was not a vision, which unlike Malcolm, she had only rarely, but a calm certainty.
Her chin tilted up higher as she continued to study him.
A wide, full mouth, strong dimpled chin, high cheekbones, slightly wavy chestnut brown hair tied back at his nape, and his eyes…
a fathomless deep blue-green. The color of the sea.
She was still studying him when he spoke, his voice deep and hard and demanding; the voice of a born leader of men, she thought. He was used to being in charge.
“Who are you, lass?”
“Ella”, she said simply, not dropping her gaze from his steady glare.
His eyes roamed boldly and unapologetically over her form before returning at last to her face. “Where are your kin?”
She paused, unsure of how to answer, then said truthfully, for she knew the best option when one had to be deceptive was to come as close to the truth as possible, “I have few kin to speak of, and none nearby.”
He narrowed his eyes at her, but she stood her ground.
She tilted her chin up just a little more, meeting his gaze even more boldly than before.
He was trying to intimidate her with dark looks.
It doubtless worked well, on most people.
She, though, was on a mission, and a few dark looks would not get in her way.
“And why would a lass be wandering in the forest alone, with no escort?” he asked calmly, but his eyes snapped with suspicion.
Wandering in the forest? He made her sound like some silly child! “I am not wandering in the forest”, she said, “I am following this path, er… road. And I had an escort, but they abandoned me some time ago”. She shrugged slightly, as if being abandoned was of no matter to her.
Actually she had been left alone only moments ago, but she did not want these men chasing down Malcolm and Duncan, as much as they might deserve it for deserting her with no explanation.
Wait… She drew a quick breath as it suddenly dawned on her that Malcolm must have known these five men were ahead of them.
He had stayed with her until the last possible moment. The raven, the omen.
And then he had left her in their hands.
It had all been planned! It must have been.
Carefully planned, how could she not have guessed?
The scoundrels! They could have told her, she would have gone willingly enough to do her duty.
Men and their scheming! Now she had no idea who had found her, or what she should do next.
Was she meant to go with them? Ask them the way?
The leader’s gaze snapped back to her at the small sound of her indrawn breath; he had been scanning the trees behind her.
She looked up at him, and he met her eyes for a moment before he spoke again.
There was something about his eyes… as if she should remember…
if she could only look long enough, deep enough.
“Are you so much trouble then, that your escort would leave you here unprotected?”
Distracted again from her thoughts, she gave him a wry half-smile, she just couldn’t help it. “Apparently, I am.” She thought she saw a brief flash of amusement in his remarkable eyes, but she couldn’t be sure.
“Perhaps she’s a spy,” offered another of the men helpfully, the first any of them had spoken.
She realized with a start that she had forgotten the other men were even there.
The leader shot him a look, but turned back to frown at her contemplatively.
She looked back at him. She was finding his air of darkly brooding strength strangely intriguing.
And something more… her mind struggled to bring it into focus.
There was something she should know, just beneath the surface.
It eluded her. She stole glances at each of the other men, but there was nothing so remarkable about any of them. Her eyes were drawn again back to him.
“Search the forest”, the leader commanded, “She may not be as alone as she claims. And be on the lookout for an ambush.”
His men obeyed immediately, slipping off into the trees.
She knew they wouldn’t find anyone, her friends and her horse were long-gone.
She really was alone now. Except for the man who was scowling at her as if she were a problem he hadn’t anticipated this day, and now only wished would go away.
He looked fierce, so strong, more than a little dangerous.
Several tattooed bands circled his upper arms; reminders of battles fought, and no doubt won.
She took a brazen step closer to him, unaccountably curious now, irresistibly drawn, and he flinched slightly as if surprised by her boldness.
Turning slightly from his gaze, she put her upturned hand out to the stallion and the huge horse blew from his nostrils and nuzzled her palm.
She already missed Sindal, her lovely white stallion.
She hoped Malcolm would take good care of him while she was away.
He had better, or she would make him pay!
Smiling, she reached up and rubbed the soft black muzzle.
She looked up to see the warrior watching her, his eyes thoughtful, his mouth a grim line.
“A beautiful horse.” She said, taking a step back so that she could see him better. “You know my name now, but what may I call you?”
His scowl deepened, if such was possible. “Perhaps you already know exactly who I am.”
“If you are implying that I am some sort of spy”, she replied lightly, turning her attention back to the horse, “then I am certainly not a very good one, because I have no idea who you are. I told you, I was abandoned here. For reasons I’d rather not discuss.”
“Aye, we’ll see about that,” he said.
She sighed impatiently. She really would be a horrible spy, being sneaky and devious was not her strong suit.
Anyone who knew her would see right through it.
She was usually very good at reading the thoughts and feeling of others though, often understanding their motives better than even they themselves did.
But she wasn’t sure about this man, he hid his thoughts well, and no emotion showed on his face, besides the obvious irritation, of course.
She could guess, however, that he wasn’t about to let her just walk away, especially since he was clearly suspicious of finding her here alone.
She wouldn’t be running off into the woods.
Although she knew she had all of the skills to survive on her own indefinitely, she couldn’t outrun five men on horseback.
No, running wasn’t an option, especially, she reminded herself, when she was fairly certain Malcolm had intended her to meet up with these men, though why, she couldn’t imagine.
If she went willingly, they would probably at least feed her.
And she would have shelter from the coming rain, most likely.
The first of the other warriors reappeared, shouting to the leader from across the small clearing. “Ceann! The tracks of three horses! Stopped just over there, then turned back. Naught else. Do we go after them?”
Ceann shook his head. “No, they could be long gone by now, we’ll not waste our time. We’ll take the girl. If they want her back, they will know where to look. In the meantime, we’ll learn what her game is.”
Ella glared up at him, offended. Did he really think her just a lass playing a game?
But at least now she knew his name. Ceann.
A strong name. It suited him. Before she knew what he was doing, he had urged his horse forward a little and grabbed her around the waist, lifting her easily, if a bit roughly, onto the saddle before him.
She tensed instinctively at the sudden contact and tried to pull away, but he held her firm and settled her between his thighs, his arms encircling her as he leaned forward and picked up the reins.