Return to Caer Lon (4 page)

Already on her mount, Sacha spoke softly, “Remember, Agnes, you have to buy us as much time as possible. If someone asks about me in the morning, inform them
that
I had a bad night and I am resting. As
for
Prince Derek, should anyone wonder, simply say you don’t know, or suggest he might have gone hunting.”

“I will, my l
ady. Be careful!...”

Sacha nodded and kicked her horse, immediately followed by Derek.

The moon
had
finally set, which would cover their departure. The path to the northern door was unpaved and the bare ground muffled the noises from their horses’ shoes. Once outside the castle Sacha immediately turned toward the woods
,
hoping the canopy would cover them. They progressed slowly until they reached a good distance from the walls. Then she urged her mount forward.

To ask where they were going was irrelevant. Derek knew where
he
wanted to go and apparently, Sacha had the same idea. They headed toward the Dark Woods.

Chapter 4

Elwyn
returned to consciousness and
instantly
wished he had not. His entire body ached, from his wrists clasped in iron to his ankles, which felt like they were forming some unnatural angle with the soiled ground. He was pretty sure his chest was a rainbow of bruises
;
even breathing was painful.

Blinking several times, he was surprised to find out he could actually distinguish forms through one of his eyes. The other was too swollen and
throbbed alarmingly when he tried to open it
.

His prison was exactly what he could have guessed. It had bare ston
es
walls, including the one he was chained to, absolutely no windows, and a massive iron fence forbade him to go visit the dungeons
i
f he
ever
felt desire to do so
.
Only a rat would pass through that fence. A slim rat that was.

Without windows, he had no means to tell if it was day or night. The dim light seemed to come from torches outside his cell. He had no idea how long he had been here. All he could tell was that he was hungry; and maybe thirsty too. His tongue felt like parchment paper in his mouth.
Sacha
’s trademark smirk crossed his blurred mind while her laugh echoed in his head.

‘You are always hungry and thirsty.’

“Well, this time,
Sacha
, I really am.”

Probably speaking
aloud
to his absent sister meant he had started to
lose
his mind
,
too. Words croaked out in a
n
excruciating cough and he did not recognize his own voice. When he found his breath again,
Elwyn
was quite sure he might
have
sustain
ed
a broken rib or two, in addition to the rest.

The past events were a fuzzy blur. He recalled discussing with
Sebastian
the plunder they had come across
,
while
the cook complain
ed
the wood was too
damp
for a good fire.
And t
hen darkness had fallen upon them
. Afterward,
he
remembered
only pain.

oOo

“We never saw them coming. I am not even sure how many they were... Men dressed
in
animal furs and armed with short axes... They killed half of us before we even realized we were under attack... I recall the horses were terrified and they broke free, at some point…
Elwyn
…
Elwyn
and I tried to reach Erik, but we were cut off
from
the group, and… I don’t know what happened afterward... I remember being dragged on the ground. But…”

Ylianor
helped
Sebastian
up and brought a cup to his lips. He gulped some of the liquid with difficulty. The tentative grin on his battered face looked like a grimace.

“I am sorry to say, it smells better than it tastes, Lady
Ylianor
…”

She smiled at the poor banter, trying not to wince as her heart squeezed for the young man.

“You will tell that to
Derek
when he
-”

Geraint
snorted loudly and
Ylianor
lost her smile.

“We let you rest now,
Sebastian
. You did well.”

“I wish I had done better, Uncle, I
-
”

“Shush… Rest…”

The smooth caress on his forehead
lulled him to
close his eyes, and the young man lay back on his pillows without a protest
, helped by
Ylianor
. Soon, the painkiller acted, and he dozed off.

Geraint
glanced at his nephew from the door,
before he
escorted
Ylianor
out of the room. They walked in silence to the Great Hall, where a few knights were waiting. The
d
uke quickly gave his orders and then turned to
Ylianor
, visibly fighting to keep his calm.

“I
cannot
believe
Derek
threw precautions to the wind like this! Does
your
son have any idea how much it has cost us to keep both of you safe all these years?”

Igraine faced him calmly.

“I am sorry,
Geraint
… I fear that when his friends are concerned,
Derek
tends to listen to his heart rather than his head.”

Geraint
breathed heavily.

“Please do not hear me wrong,
m
y
l
ady.
William
and I were as close as brothers
in
arms could be, and I will never regret giving you sanctuary, never.
Derek
is brave and honourable, just like his father was, and a great warrior. But my priority must be the security of this land and its people.”

Ylianor
considered his declaration for a moment before she put a friendly hand on the man’s arm. His posture was still the one of a soldier, strong and rigid. His thick hair had greyed
over the years
, but the blue eyes were still alert and piercing. He had said nothing of
Sacha
, but she knew the father worried for his daughter, for both his children, just like her heart trembled for her only son.

Foolish, foolish
Sacha
who always did what she thought was right, and damned the consequences. She had little doubt
that
the impetuous lady was the mastermind behind their disappearance.
Derek
was quick-tempered, but he
valued obedience and
generally
followed
order
s.
Geraint
had clearly commanded him to stay put.

The former queen gave a tight smile. That
Sacha
had managed to convince
Derek
to come with her was of little surprise. He never resisted a challenge from the fierce
L
ady of
Haven
, and if she had chosen to ply his resolve with coy eyes and trembling lips, there w
ere
even less chances he denied her anything. Especially if it meant going to his best friend’s rescue.
Ylianor
wished she had not advised her to charm instead of demanding to obtain what she wanted.
A
t any rate,
w
hatever the weapon
Sacha
used,
now
both were gone.

The
d
uke silently covered her hand with his before he glanced up to the blonde woman by his side with a humo
u
rless grin.

“I fear our children chose the worst moment to finally give into each other.”

Finding nothing to answer,
Ylianor
nodded courteously before she took her leave. The memory of
Sacha
’s dream worried her.

oOo

They stopped by midday to eat some bread and dried meat, and water their horses.
Derek
took a few minutes to check on their supplies. Sooner or later, he would have to ask
Sacha
about her plans, but he was not in a hurry to discover she had none. She always rushed head first toward whatever waited ahead, and thought later
-
generally too late
-
about trouble. The only difference was that generally, he let
Sebastian
deal with her.

In some ways,
Elwyn
was the same troublemaker. Except that
Elwyn
used to drag him along
-
mostly
-
against his will, and this time he had
agreed
to come. Correction
:
she had tricked him into agreeing. He dismissed the
thought
with a
frown
and focused on their packing.

Her maid had bundled about three days
' worth
of food
; they'd have
more if he was lucky on the hunt or they bought more supplies in the way. Examining the second bag,
Derek
found a map, visibly older than the ones
Sebastian
had shown him the week before, and several phials he recognized.

“Did you go through my mother’s stock?”

Sacha
put away her gourd.

“I did not know what we… What
Elwyn
would need.”

He uncorked one and smelt it, suspicious.

“Well I hope you know how to distinguish cure draught from poison.”

Her eyes
gleamed
dangerously, but
Sacha
kept her mouth shut. They were only a few hours from
Haven
and she could not afford to alienate him just yet
.
O
r ever. If
Derek
did not accompany her, her chances of success were null. The young woman pursed her lips, irritated, and stood to stretch her legs before she walked to her horse to caress its soft nose before she mounted it.

Surprised by her silence,
Derek
put his discoveries back in the bags, save for the chart
, which
he unrolled.

“We
should reach Worth Hall in about two hours;
I prefer we avoid villages
afterward
. We will stop by a farm for the night.”

“We could go farther
.
I
t is barely noon and
-
”

Derek
let the chart roll
up again, and cut in.

“We are tired and I have to draw our courses of action. You have a lot to explain
,
too. We will stop in three hours.”

Sacha
felt annoyance prickle the hair on the nap
e
of her neck. Of course
,
he assumed the lead was his. It did not matter to him that
she
had organize
d
their getaway by a safe road, nor did he prize her thinking about the food, the chart or the medicines. He simply implied she had
stolen
from his mother
-
borrowed with
out
permission
, if you please
-
and considered that being the male
,
he
was in charge.

“Fine.”

One word was all she could give him without shouting her frustration.
She
was not
-
that
-
tired.
She
had nothing to explain. They had to go to the
Dark Woods
and then…
Of course
,
because he was talking about resting, she needed to yawn.

Derek
shot her a quick glance, maybe astonished by her docility then he climbed on his horse.

oOo

It took them nearly the rest of the afternoon to reach the small town, and another hour to find a farm
that
Derek
deigned
to consider.

The first two were dismissed because of their proximity to the small city, while the third looked more like a ruin than a farm;
“
T
he perfect trap for unwise trave
l
lers
,
”
he declared, when they trotted away. The woman weeding the land
near that one
had a rooted
smile that
disclosed
that
more than half of her teeth were missing.

The fourth building they saw more than half an hour later was small, but apparently in good shape. The farmer nodded briefly at them before resuming his work, and his sober attitude suited
Derek
, who finally stopped.
A man more interesting in farming his lands than
in
travellers felt safe.