“Maybe not, but I should have.” Braxton continued to stare at the imprints, fighting off a clutching sense of horror. He finally motioned to Dallas. “Return to camp and assemble the men. We ride in search of Gray before this trail gets cold.”
Dallas nodded and was gone, leaving Braxton on his knees beside the soft earth. He was struggling tremendously against his panic, telling himself that it would serve no purpose. He needed to focus, to find Gray. Moreover, he would have to explain to Brooke that her mother had disappeared and, if for no other reason, had to remain strong for the young lady’s sake.
He stood up on weak knees, feeling an odd stinging in his eyes. He rubbed at them, realizing it was tears. He allowed himself a painfully brief moment to feel his emotion, letting the tears fill his eyes. He could not believe this had happened. It was beyond comprehension. What made it even more painful was that he had never seen nor heard anything; as a knight, his life had depended on his senses. But they had failed him at a critical instant for his senses, at that very moment, were consumed with the woman in his arms. He had been blind to all else. But he sought comfort in the fact that there was no blood anywhere, which more than likely meant Gray was still sound and whole. He could only pray that it was true.
“God,” he muttered. “Please keep her safe until I can get to her.”
Wiping his eyes, he pulled himself together and made his way back to camp.
*
She was not going to go easily.
Gray struggled against a man twice her size, kicking, punching, anything she could manage. But he was still able to get her on to his charger and ride off, tearing through trees and bushes, across streams and through mud to wipe out their trail. He finally managed to get her by the hair, which effectively ensnared her as they rode at break-neck speed into the sunset.
De Aughton was no fool. He had a good grip on her, and for good reason; he did not want her to injure herself in the struggle and he furthermore did not wish for her to escape. At some point, the lady relaxed out of sheer exhaustion and when he relaxed slightly also, a hand came up and nearly gouged his eyes out. It was enough to cause him to lose his grip and topple off the horse, nearly taking her with him. But not quite; Gray stayed mounted and, with actions fed by terror and exhilaration, turned the big bay charger back in the direction they had come. It was a split second decision made in a wink of an eye. She saw the opportunity and she took it.
The horse was exhausted and excited and she kicked it as hard as she could to make distance between herself and de Aughton. She could hear the knight behind her, yelling, but the sounds were growing fainter. The charger was grunting as it galloped, foam flying from its mouth as she urged it down the road. It had been a good hour since she last saw Braxton. She prayed that he was all right after the blow he had received to the head. It was all she could think of.
Gray turned to see if de Aughton was following them; she could not see him back down the road, which would have been likely impossible given the speed the horse was traveling. Still, she was terrified. She had to get away from him and back to Braxton. As the trees sped over her head and the horse grunted loudly, she leaned forward on the beast and showed him the end of the reins now and again. She was, in fact, fortunate the charger was responding to her at all. Most chargers were one-man horses and would only respond to their owners. But this horse was young and apparently not yet fully trained. It was Gray’s saving grace.
She followed the road and did not go back into the brush the way the de Aughton had originally taken them. Gray was astute enough to know that they had originally camped on the outskirts of Milnthorpe; when de Aughton had grabbed her, he had headed east into the setting sun. She was now traveling with the nearly-set sun against her back. It would be very dark soon and she did not want to be caught out in the dark. Since the road was so wide, she assumed it would run into Milnthorpe at some point. There would be no other town in this area that would warrant such a well-traveled path.
She was right.
Gray passed straight through the heart of Milnthorpe, fully oriented as to where she was. The charger was wet with exhaustion, but she pushed the animal through the town and onto the road heading east. Her heart was thumping against her ribs and she choked back the sobs as the road narrowed into a heavily wooded area that she finally recognized. Just through the trees to the south was the area where Braxton had set up camp. As the charger heaved and snorted, she pushed the animal across a small clearing and through a hedge of trees. Immediately, she saw Braxton’s camp and the great fires burning around it. Then the tears came.
She dismounted the exhausted charger and led the beast the rest of the way. Wiping the tears off her cheeks, she entered the main body of the camp and noticed it was oddly vacant. But she heard voices in one of the larger tents and she recognized one of them. It was Brooke.
Dropping the reins, she burst into the tent to find her daughter and Edgar sitting near Sir Geoff’s pallet. Brooke was crying. But one look at her mother and the girl shrieked, throwing herself into her mother’s open arms. The women came together in a great bustle of sobs and tears.
“Mama!” Brooke wept. “Where did you go? Sir Braxton said you had been taken!”
Gray held her daughter tightly. “I was,” she did not want to elaborate further; she was simply glad to be safe. “Where is Braxton?”
Brooke pulled away from her mother, looking her in the eye. “He went out to search for you. They all did.”
“And they left you here alone?”
The girl shook her head. “There are a few soldiers about.”
Gray took her daughter by the hand and led her out into the cooling evening. A massive fire burned in the middle of the camp, sending sparks into the deep purple sky. Gray moved past the fire, calling for the guards that her daughter said had remained. It wasn’t long before two men suddenly showed themselves, having run from the perimeter of the encampment when they heard the distinctly female voice calling.
They were younger men, their eyes wide on the lady. “My lady?” one of them spoke hesitantly. “What are you doing here? Sir Braxton said…”
She interrupted him. “You must find him immediately and tell him that I have returned. How long has he been gone?”
“Not more than an hour, m’lady,’ the other man said. “They cannot search much longer in this darkness. I would expect him to return shortly.”
“Be that as it may, you will please go and find him and tell him that I have returned,” she instructed. “He must know immediately.”
The soldiers nodded smartly and were gone. She could hear them calling to companions in the darkness, letting them know that the lady was in camp. Soon shadows emerged from the trees, men who had been guarding the perimeter that were now back in camp. She counted eight of them. Feeling distinctly more comforted, not to mention suddenly weary, she took Brooke and went back into the larger tent.
Edgar was standing up, his eyes big. Gray looked into the blue orbs and could read a thousand questions in their depths. He was a nice looking young lad, inquisitive and spirited. And she also noticed he had a bruise on his cheek. Suddenly, her abduction adventure seemed far away. She was back where she belonged and she was safe. She wondered at the bruise on Edgar’s cheek. She suspected she knew how he got it.
“Edgar,” she reached out and touched the hot welt. “What happened?”
Edgar blinked, looking like a child who just got caught raiding the sweets. “I… I fell, my lady.”
“Did you have help falling?”
“I do not know what you mean, my lady.”
“Aye, you do. Who gave you that bruise?”
He averted his eyes, his brow furrowed. He was struggling to give her an answer but Gray already knew the answer. She looked at Brooke.
“Did you do that?”
Brooke’s eyes bulged. “I… I….”
Gray shook her head. “Brooke Serroux, what is the matter with you? I told you to leave him alone. Why did you strike him?”
Brooke looked properly contrite, more panicked than anything else. She did not want to lie, but she certainly did not want to tell her mother the truth. “Because… because he said something rude and nasty and I punished him.”
“What did he say?”
Brooke’s eyes welled. “Don’t make me tell you, Mama. I don’t want to tell you.”
Gray wondered what had her daughter so upset. But it had been an upsetting night. Perhaps it really didn’t matter. She sighed again and shook her head, looking around for the nearest stool.
“No more, Brooke,” she told her daughter. “You will leave the punishment to Braxton. If I see another bruise or welt on this boy, I am going to bruise or welt you. Is that clear?”
Brooke sniffled, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. “Aye, Mama.”
Gray found a stool next to Geoff and sat heavily. “Sit down and I’ll hear nothing more from you. We will wait for Braxton to return.”
Brooke sat down on the ground next to Edgar. When Gray turned her attention to Geoff to inspect his wound, Edgar stuck his tongue out at Brooke. She pinched him.
*
Braxton briefly inspected the worn bay charger as he thundered into camp. Someone had tethered the animal to a tree. Dallas was ahead of him and had already dismounted, lifting up a hoof to inspect the shoes. As Braxton passed by, he nodded to his liege.
“‘Tis the same shoe markings, my lord,” he told him.
Braxton didn’t say anything, but his gaze lingered on the weary beast. Having been located by one of his soldiers a quarter hour earlier, he had raced like a madman to get back to camp. The lady was back and was apparently unharmed. That was all he could focus on as he dismounted his charger and stormed into the larger tent.
His eyes struggled to acclimate themselves to the weak light. To his right were Brooke and Edgar, sitting on the ground and apparently playing some sort of game between them. He could see sticks laid out in patterns. Looking around, he spied Gray kneeling over Geoff, her lovely face tense in concentration. She must have heard him, or at least sensed him, because she looked up and their eyes met. She bolted to her feet and they came together somewhere at midpoint in the tent.
Her arms were wound tightly around his neck, her face buried in his shoulder. Braxton held her so tightly that he was certain he was squeezing the life from her. It was the most amazing, satisfying embrace of his life. Given the horror of the past hour, he could hardly believe she was actually in his arms.
“Sweetheart,” he breathed. “What happened?”
She was weeping quietly, trying not to disturb the children too much. They were already watching the reunion with big eyes and she had refrained from showing any emotion in front of them up until this point. She hadn’t wanted to frighten them any more than they already were. But the sight of Braxton was enough to dissolve her.
“Are you all right?” she answered his question with a question. “You were hit so very hard and…”
Her hand was moving to the back of his head and he stopped her, taking her hand and kissing it reverently. “I am well enough,” he told her. “But what happened? Who took you?”
She wiped at her tears. “De Aughton. He hit you over the head and carried me off.”
Braxton didn’t know why the news did not surprise him. In fact, he had almost expected to hear that although he was unsure why. All he knew was that he remembered how the man had looked at her the night before. He knew that hungry look.
“Did he hurt you?” he asked softly.
“Nay. But I had to gouge his eyes out to get away.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “You gouged his eyes out?”
She nodded. “I do not know where he was taking me, for he never said much at all. We fought for such a long time, Braxton, I cannot even fathom how long. It seemed like days. I relaxed and let him believe that I had given up, but I hadn’t. He relaxed, too. When he did, I shoved my fingers into his eyes so hard that he fell right off his charger.”
Braxton listened to her with complete, utter amazement. “My God,” he breathed. “And then you stole his horse?”
She nodded. “I had to make it back to you. Oh, Braxton, I was so frightened.”
“But you are sure you are unharmed?”
“Aye.”
He pulled her into his arms again, kissing her forehead, her temple, whispering thanks to God that she was in one piece. She was safe and well, and he allowed those feelings to be his overriding thoughts for the moment. Were he to allow himself to linger on de Aughton, he could very well explode the anger he was trying so hard to bank.
Beyond the relief, beyond the thanks, there was something inside him demanding satisfaction. He could not help it. Niclas de Aughton had made a bold attempt at taking something that belonged to another. Men these days were less likely to do such things as had been the norm in ages past, but it did happen on occasion. Had de Aughton gotten her to a priest to marry her, she would have legally belonged to him and there wouldn’t have been anything Braxton could have done about it. Except kill him, which he would have done without question.
He could not have the constant threat of de Aughton hanging over his head. He wanted to find the man and punish him.
“Where did you leave him?” he asked, hoping she wouldn’t hear the menace in his voice.
Her face was buried in his neck, burrowing, seeking comfort. “I am not exactly sure. To the west of Milnthorpe, along the main road. I traveled that road for quite some time before coming to Milnthorpe. Then I recognized the town and remembered where you had set up camp.”
He snorted softly. “So you took the main road back here?”
“Aye.”
He shook his head at the irony. “So that’s why I missed you. My men and I set off to find you along every path and trail but the main road. We assumed that whoever took you would not stay to the main highway.”
She pulled her face from his neck, looking up at him. “And he did not. He went through trees and fields, and I truthfully have no idea how we ended up where we did. But I just stayed to the road because I did not know what else to do. I figured that if I kept heading east, I would eventually run into a town. I was just fortunate that it was Milnthorpe.”
He cupped her face in his big hands, smiling gently at her. He kissed her nose, her lips, listening to Brooke giggle off to his right. He turned around and looked at the girl.
“What’s so funny?” he demanded lightly.
Brooke grinned, looking a good deal like her mother as she did. “You kiss my mother the way I have seen women kiss their children.”
“Is that so?” he asked. “And how is that?”
Brooke wrinkled her nose. “Little baby pecks. Like you are trying to kiss her to death.”
Braxton glanced at Gray and they exchanged grins. He dropped his hands from her and faced Brooke. “I am simply glad to have her back safely, as you should be.” When the girl nodded her head, he turned for the tent flap. “Now, I have some things to attend to. Edgar, keep tight watch over the ladies.”
The young lad nodded sharply. With a lingering glance at Gray, who had settled herself back at Geoff’s side, Braxton exited the tent and found Dallas standing over by the massive fire.
The men huddled together. Now that Dallas was to marry Brooke, their relationship had somehow deepened. There was a kinship forming that did not exist before. Now, they were to become family and Braxton was more comforted, more pleased, than he realized. Dallas would be a fine son-in-law.
“It was de Aughton,” he told his knight in a low voice. “Gray said she left him to the west of Milnthorpe somewhere along the road. Since she took his horse, he would have to travel on foot but, I would suspect, his inclination is not to travel back to Milnthorpe. He has to know she would return to me and I would come looking for him.”
Dallas nodded. They were joined by Graehm, having just come from inspecting Niclas’s big bay charger. “Arnside is a town around five miles to the east of Milnth
orpe,” Dallas said. “He could have gone there instead.”
“Or to any number of little villages to the south,” Braxton countered. “Organize the men into groups of four. Send a group to Arnside, Milnthorpe, and have the rest spread out over the countryside. Leave no stone unturned. I would have them report back to me by late tomorrow, whether or not they find anything. But tell them a bounty will be given to the men that find him. I want this man located and brought back to me.”
Dallas nodded smartly and was gone. Braxton watched him march across the dim encampment, fading into the shadows. He turned to Graehm.
“You will find me a priest,” his voice was quiet. “Bring the man here posthaste and pay him well for his trouble.”
Graehm blanched. “Is Geoff…?”
Braxton cut him off. “No, not for last rites. For a marriage. Actually, two.”
Graehm’s eyebrows lifted slightly but he obeyed, disappearing into the darkness to collect his charger. With his men on the move, Braxton went back to the tent and stuck his head in through the door.
“Gray,” he called softly. “A word, please.”
She rose from her position next to Geoff and obediently went to him. He pulled her gently outside, under the blanket of stars that spread across the sky. It was a lovely night in spite of everything that had gone on. He crossed his big arms, facing her as the firelight flickered off his features.
“Surely you understand that with de Aughton’s threat, the event of marriage is even more important than ever,” he said quietly. “I have sent Graehm to find a priest. Before this night is out, your daughter will be married to Dallas and you shall be married to me.”
There was no longer any hesitation or reluctance in Gray’s expression. She had learned to trust Braxton completely. “Then I must tell my daughter she is to be a bride,” she said softly.
He nodded. “Would you like for me to tell her?”
Gray shook her head. “Thank you, but no. This is something I must do.”
He gave her a wink, a supportive gesture, and followed her back into the tent. While he took up station next to Geoff, Gray took Brooke out into the night to tell her of her future. He was not surprised, moments later, to hear the young girl weep.
Noble Line of de Nerra Complete Set: A Medieval Romance Bundle Page 69
