Chapter 31
Chapter Thirty-One
Courage Comes at a Price
And Destiny Takes Hold
Three days on the road had left everyone eager to see the journey done. Only two more days remained before they reached Caerith, home of the king.
Driochmor was well behind them now.
The road wound through familiar forests and rolling hills, the sort of countryside Bria had known all her life. There were no floating lights among the trees, no strange creatures watching from the shadows, and no sense of ancient magic lingering in the air.
It should have felt safer. Instead, Bria had learned that danger cared little where it lived.
A spy from Drogath had walked Scotara’s roads. A witch had plotted against Driochmor. And somewhere ahead, a king waited who trusted few and suspected many.
Nay, safety was not determined by where one stood, only by who stood beside them.
She sat comfortably in front of her husband while he held the horse’s reins. Not by her choice, by his insistence.
“You are perfectly capable of riding your own horse,” she reminded him for perhaps the tenth time since they had departed Driochmor.
“Where is the fun in that?” he asked as he gave her side a playful pinch.
“Truly?” she asked. “Do you really think anyone will believe that?”
He shook his head. “I do not care if they do or don’t. Here is where I want you and here is where you will stay.” He kissed her quickly at first, then more slowly, more deliberately.
Naturally, she responded, she had to. She wanted to, though there was danger in that, for his kisses always tempted and more often than not stirred her desire for him.
“Not fair,” she bemoaned after ending the kiss.
His arm tightened around her waist. “This journey cannot end fast enough for me and the king better be welcoming and offer us safe haven and a comfortable bed.”
Bria smiled and settled more comfortably against him. “I wholeheartedly agree.”
Silence settled comfortably between them for a while.
Wynn traveled ahead with several of the Hunters while Fiora darted through the trees, disappearing and reappearing whenever it suited her.
It did not take Bria long to feel a change in her husband and realize something troubled him.
The tension had come and gone ever since they left Driochmor. Today, it seemed determined to stay.
She turned her head slightly. “What troubles you?”
Kaelan remained silent long enough that she wondered if he intended to answer.
Finally, he said, “Something does not feel right.”
Bria had expected as much. “Tell me.”
His gaze swept over the Hunters leading the way on the road ahead. “I still cannot understand why the king sent this troop.”
“He wanted the Wise woman brought to him.”
“Aye, the Wise woman but how did he know that was Wynn? The Hunters we met did not know of Wynn only that they searched for a Wise woman. How did the king suddenly find out about Wynn and get a message to Dar to escort them to the council so fast?”
“When you say it that way, it does sound suspicious,” Bria agreed. “You think something else is at play.”
Before Kaelan could answer, Fiora appeared suddenly in front of them.
The tiny fairy flew backward while facing them. “I am so excited.”
Kaelan groaned.
Bria smiled. “About what?”
“The king.” Fiora clapped her tiny hands. “The castle. The people. Everything.”
“You may wish to reconsider your excitement,” Kaelan warned.
Fiora frowned. “Why?”
“The king is not known for kindness toward magical beings.”
Fiora waved a dismissive hand. “That will change once he meets me.”
Kaelan snorted.
Bria pressed her lips together, already knowing what was coming.
“I am irresistible,” Fiora announced.
“You are delusional,” Kaelan corrected.
Fiora shook a tiny finger at him. “Just you wait—”
Suddenly, her head snapped to one side, and she flitted in place.
Bria immediately noticed the change.
So did Kaelan and the amusement vanished from his face. “What is it?”
Fiora tilted her head, listening and for a moment said nothing. Then she pointed toward the trees. “Did you hear that?”
Kaelan’s gaze sharpened and he listened. At first, there was only the sound of hooves and the wind moving through the trees.
Then… faint at first and distant, not at all a natural part of the forest.
Fiora backed away slowly. “I am going to find out.”
Before either of them could stop her, she shot into the forest.
Kaelan watched the trees for several moments after she vanished. The uneasy feeling in his gut only grew stronger.
Something was wrong, very wrong.
A shrill cry erupted from the forest. “Kaelan!”
Fiora burst from the trees so fast her wings were little more than a blur.
Every Hunter immediately reached for a weapon.
“They are here!” she shouted. “Lots of them.”
Kaelan was already moving. He swung down from the horse and reached for Bria, his hands grabbing at her waist and swinging her off the horse, planting her on her feet beside him.
“Stay close,” Kaelan ordered.
She nodded, planning to do just that.
Nearby, one of the Hunters hurried to help Wynn from her mount.
“What did you see?” Kaelan demanded.
Fiora pointed frantically toward the trees. “Men. More than twenty. Maybe more. They are spreading out.”
A curse erupted from one of the Hunters.
Another immediately barked orders.
The Hunters moved with practiced efficiency, steel flashing free of their scabbards.
The forest suddenly seemed far too quiet, and Kaelan felt the familiar warning ripple through him.
Danger and it was close.
The forest exploded with movement.
Men poured from the trees.
“Protect the old woman!” a Hunter shouted just before the road erupted into chaos.
Steel clashed against steel. Men shouted warnings that were quickly swallowed by the violence.
Kaelan never moved far from Bria. He struck down every warrior that came his way. One man fell and then another. A third barely raised his weapon before Kaelan cut him down.
“Stay close,” he shouted to Bria behind him.
Bria had no intention of doing otherwise.
Nearby, Hunters engaged the attackers while Wynn was hurried toward safety.
It did not take long to know the Hunters would not prevail. There were too many warrior mercenaries from the look of them. They had been paid to see the mission done. They would see every person there dead, except for Wynn and Bria.
Kalean did not intend to let that happen. No one would take Bria from him or harm Wynn.
He took three more men down and then he spotted him… Braden.
A Northlander of the Thornek Tribe just like him fought among the attackers.
For a moment, Kaelan could hardly believe it. No Thornek would dare kill another. It went against their beliefs.
Braden met his gaze, a slight smile appearing on his face as if letting Kelan know he proved wiser than him.
There was no mistaking the truth now. This had been planned.
Rage surged through Kaelan that he would dare go against his own kind but worse, that he would dare separate a Thornek husband and wife, knowing the tremendous pain it would cause both.
His roar carried over the battle. “Braden!”
Braden hesitated, but only briefly. Then he turned away and a warning exploded through Kaelan… too late.
Several attackers rushed him at once and he cut down one after the other, losing count of how many.
The delay lasted what seemed like forever, but it was only moments. But moments were enough.
“Kaelan!”
Bria’s cry ripped through him and he spun.
A warrior had Bria by the arm, and he had already put distance between them. And he continued to do so, dragging her even further away as she fought like a wildcat. She elbowed him, kicked at him, twisted her arm in an effort to break free of his grip, refusing to surrender.
Pride and terror struck Kaelan at the same time.
“Bria!” he roared and started toward her.
Three men blocked his path. Three men who died regretting the decision.
Kaelan drove forward, steel continuing to flash and blood spraying. Nothing mattered except reaching his wife.
He continued fighting to get to his wife. Then he spotted Braden again. He had reached Bria. The warrior who held her handed her over to him, his hand closing firmly around her arm. He sent Kaelan a grin, then dragged her off into the depths of the forest.
Kaelan heard Bria scream as he took down two more men.
“Let me go!”
His wife fought as hard as he did and she suffered the same awful ache that came when they were apart.
Kaelan’s fury turned darker and with one swing he cut the warrior down who charged at him, desperate to kill every man preventing him from getting to his wife.
“Kaelan!”
Fiora shot from the trees, her face pale.
“They are taking her to the shoreline! A boat waits.”
The last thread of control snapped.
Kaelan’s eyes flashed gold and he ran.
Bria stumbled as Braden dragged her over the last rise, then her heart sank.
The shoreline stretched before her, further up than where she walked the water’s edge in Willowmere.
The rocky outcroppings, the strip of pale sand, and a cluster of weathered pines all things found along the shoreline she had walked on warm days, searching for shells and collecting smooth stones and bits of sea glass.
It had been a safe place for her, but now seeing the boat waiting just beyond the water’s edge, fear gripped her. If they got her aboard, Kaelan would never reach her in time. He would be lost to her forever, or he would die trying to reach her. She could not let that happen.
Grabbing firm hold of his arm, she dug her heels into the sand.
Braden cursed and jerked her forward. “Stop fighting.”
It came then fast and clear, shocking her. “Ogga is dead. Dreth killed her.”
“She lied to him. She deserved what she got,” Braden said without an ounce of remorse. “Dreth knew there was more to your capture than she said. It was easy to trace your steps and see where you went and learn exactly how beneficial a Wise woman could be to Tharne.”
She cast a quick glance toward the boat. Dreth waited beside it, his grin announcing his victory. And suddenly everything fell together.
“Dreth is using you like he used Ogga. You will meet the same fate as her.”