Avelynn: The Edge of Faith (36 page)

He was tall, rising a head and shoulder above me, and broad, but not so large as to make it impossible for me to best him in a fight. He hadn’t unsheathed any weapons, and I took that as a sign. It gifted me options and the possible opportunity to escape. I continued to back up, assessing the situation, until I bumped against the wall.

He stopped in front of me, his body obliterating any semblance of personal space. “I’m going to enjoy this.”

“Better leave something for Demas and Osric.”

“Oh, I won’t kill you. I want to watch you suffer.” He grabbed my wrist.

I swung. My free fist connected with his nose. He cupped his face.

I used the opportunity to slip past him and bolt for the door. His hand seized my forearm and yanked me backward, wrenching my arm up and behind my back. He grabbed a fist full of hair, pulling it tight. “You filthy little bicche.” He spun me around and pressed my stomach into the wall. I tried to jerk free, but a quick thrust of his arm smashed my forehead into the thick oak planks. My legs gave out. Pain rendered me dizzy and disoriented. Wetness trickled down my cheek.

“Demas didn’t get the pleasure of breaking you, but I’m going to rip you in two.” He let go of my hair to fuss with his belt. I pushed back from the wall, my elbow connecting with his cheekbone. He grunted and stepped backward, his grip loosening. I pulled my arm free of his hold and spun to face him.

He lunged. Leaning into the charge, I used his body weight and momentum to propel him up and over my side as I flipped him to the ground. He hit the ground hard and groaned. I’d hoped for a few seconds’ gain, but he swiped at my legs, knocking me down. He scrambled on top of me, pinning me. I drew my arms down my sides and used my legs to shake him off, rolling him sideways onto the rushes. In the ensuing grappling and squirming, I landed a strong knee lift to his face. His nose gushed blood. “You foul whoreson.”

I found my feet and reached for a chair. His fist connected with my kidney, and I crumpled, falling into the table. Given his awkward positioning, the blow hadn’t been enough to knock the wind out of me, but it had caught me off guard, and he’d pulled me down. I attempted to block the worst of his knuckles from finding my face, but my head exploded in pain.

“Enough!” Rhodri’s muffled voice cut through the ringing in my ears.

As though dunked in a frigid lake, Sigberht froze.

“I suggest you leave off,” Rhodri said.

Sigberht stood and brushed down his tunic. I rolled into a ball.

“This is none of your concern.” It was as close to a warning as Sigberht would be able to muster under Rhodri’s roof.

“It is my concern. As long as this woman is under my protection, she is my guest and will be treated with respect.”

“Then I will take her aboard my ship. To save you the inconvenience of having to witness the end of our lively discussion.”

“As a foreigner here, on my soil, it will be you who will wait aboard your ship. In accordance with our arrangement, she will be delivered to your safekeeping in the morning.”

I couldn’t see what was going on. I was too focused on breathing and managing the pain.

Sigberht broke the standoff. “Very well, I will collect her at dawn.” Footfalls receded from the room.

“Avelynn?” Angharad’s voice lit like a caress on my broken skin. Her hand rested on my shoulder.

“Get her to bed.” Rhodri voiced the order, and hands lifted me. I winced when they set me down.

“You cannot turn her over to those beasts,” Angharad hissed.

“I have no choice. The deal is struck.”

“What if I asked you to spare her? As a gift to me. Let her go, and I will give myself to you freely.”

I tried to reach out to her. “Angharad.”

She grasped my hand. “I’m all right, Avelynn.” She turned to Rhodri. “What say you?”

“I am sorry.” Footsteps faded away.

She said something in Welsh and the door closed. Angharad clicked her teeth as her finger traced my chin, turning me to look at her. My right eye was swollen. I could hardly see out of it. Her face appeared a watery blur.

“Bastard.” Her eyebrows creased with concern.

“He was kind compared to what Demas and Osric will do.”

“I won’t let that happen.”

Her compassion and vehemence touched me, but I couldn’t fathom how to escape now. “There’s no time.”

“Mistress. The lord bade me fetch you a cauldron of warm water and some linens.” A maid stood in the open doorway.

“Set it on the table and go.”

The girl deposited her bundle and all but tripped over her feet to exit the room.

Angharad wiped my face with a warm, damp cloth. I hissed when it touched the raw bits.

“You look terrible,” she said under her breath.

“At least I got a few good strikes in before he got me on the ground.” Wulfric would have been furious with me for getting into that position in the first place. I’d reached for the chair, wanting to use it as a weapon, but I’d left myself exposed. Up until that point, I’d been doing fine with what the Goddess had given me.

“True. He didn’t look much better.”

“Good.” I sucked in a breath as Angharad poked and prodded my cheek and the bones around my eye.

“I don’t think anything’s broken, but you’ll be a sight for a while. Drink this.” She handed me a cup. I squinted at it.

“It will help manage the pain.”

“I can’t afford to be groggy. I need my wits about me.”

“I’ve had it countless of times for aches of the head. It helps deaden the sharp pulses that stab with each heartbeat.”

I drank half the contents and pushed it away. “I need a knife.” I gripped her hand. “I won’t go with him. I can’t.” I knew my bad eye was tearing, but so was the good one.

“Shush now. We’ll come up with something.”

“I mean it. I will not go with him. If it comes to it, he will not take me alive.” If I couldn’t escape, I would take matters into my own hands. No matter what happened, I would not be on that ship tomorrow. I yawned.

“If you could get away, where would you go?” Angharad asked.

“Bangor.” My limbs felt like iron weights. My head became fuzzy. “How often do you take that tonic?” I could feel the pull, luring me to close my eyes. I wanted to sleep.

“At least once or twice a week. Why?” Angharad’s weight lifted from the bed.

When I woke, sometime later, the room was empty. A platter of cheese and salted meat lay on the table. I sat up and groaned as my body resisted the idea. I tried to open my right eye but gave up. The swelling clamped it shut.

I tested my range of movement. Other than specific points of tenderness and an all-over ache to my muscles, the damage was superficial—a collection of welts and bruises.

In light of this information and the full trencher of food now settled contentedly in my stomach, my survival instincts galloped to full speed.

By the time Angharad returned to check on me, I’d come up with a rough plan. So, fortunately, had she.

She cut the preamble. “The guards outside the cottage have been called away. You have precious little time.” She handed me a cloak.

I threw the heavy wool over my shoulders and took the broach Angharad held out for me. I clasped the fabric at my shoulder.

She dropped two satchels on the table. “I filled one with food, the other coins.”

“Where did you get these?” I asked, tying them to my belt.

“Let’s just say my betrothed decided it important I receive a fair bride price.”

“He’s to help us?”

“Help, no. But he will not hinder you. I’ve moored a curragh along the shore, south of the harbor.”

“How far is it from Sigberht’s ship?”

“Stay to the shadows along the treeline. You will be nowhere near him.”

If I could slip into the sea unnoticed … get a head start. Hopefully, they would search by foot when they noticed me missing, assuming I wouldn’t be able to make it far without a horse.

“If you can’t make it to the strait, get yourself overland. There is a main road that runs through Anglesey. At its end, ferries will take you across to Bangor.”

“Did you manage to get hold of a knife?”

She lifted the hem of her skirt. I caught the flash of soft, pale skin. She withdrew a knife and scabbard from inside her boot, untying it from around her calf. “It’s the best I could do.”

“Thank you.” I examined the point and slid it back in the scabbard. While small, the blade was deadly. Following Angharad’s example, I tucked it down the side of my boot and tied it around my leg. I wished I had a sword. There was no way of knowing what manner of people I would meet along the way, including the possibility of running afoul of Sigberht.

She removed a piece of parchment from her satchel. “I’m sure Sister Frances will sympathize with your plight, but just in case, take this note. I’ve corroborated your story and asked for her assistance. I’ve given my assurance that the convent will receive a substantial gift from Rhodri upon your safe delivery to the continent.”

I took the note and placed it in one of the satchels. “Thank you, but I don’t mean to go to the continent just yet.”

She looked at me, stunned. “What do you mean?”

“I won’t leave without Alrik.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“He believes me dead. He’ll try to kill Hyffaid and anyone else who stands in his way. If he manages to survive, his brother lies in wait for the outcome. I can’t leave him.” Once I reached Bangor, I planned to appeal to the good sister for help in returning to Seisyllwg undetected. I didn’t speak Welsh, and foreigners—no matter where you lived—were treated with suspicion. If I continued to travel on foot over such a formidable distance, with no idea of where I was going and without any means to ask the locals how to get there, people would take notice. If by the grace of the gods I managed to elude Sigberht in Gwynedd, it would only be a matter of time before someone discovered my whereabouts. Even without those trivial concerns, time fought against me. I had to find the means of reaching Alrik quickly. Every hour spent trying to get to him was too long.

“For all you know, they could have waged the battle against Hyffaid. Alrik could be dead.”

She’d said it as a matter of fact. My stomach constricted. It was possible, but I refused to believe it. I shook my head. “We’ve been gone only two days.” I prayed that worked in my favor rather than against me. I searched her beautiful eyes. “I have to go back. He doesn’t even know I’m alive.”

She seemed to be weighing her next words. I made the decision easy for her. “I have to go to him. Nothing can change my mind.”

She pursed her lips but nodded. “Be careful.”

I hugged her. “I don’t know how to thank you.”

She brushed my cheek with the back of her hand. “Find Alrik and make it away from Wales. Do that for me.”

“I will always remember you.”

Her eyes misted.

I leaned in and kissed her softly on the lips.

She held me tight before drawing away and opened the door. “Hurry.”

Darkness enveloped the manor. Only the glow of a weak gibbous moon guided me. I had to take its light moment by moment as the clouds skimmed by, blocking it from view. There were twenty paces between the back wall of the cottage and the stables. After the stables, it was wide open to the harbor.

If I thought I could make it over land without attracting notice, I would have grabbed a horse and run. Going by sea was equally foolhardy. If Sigberht caught on to my escape, I would never outrun a fully manned ship.

Fortunately, I didn’t have to beat him; I just needed to float by, right under his nose, and get a head start. But I had no idea how long it would take for one person to row that distance. Could I make it to the strait before first light? I wasn’t optimistic of my chances, but what choice did I have? I couldn’t stay there.

I studied the distance between the stable and cottage. I didn’t see anyone coming, but twenty paces was a lot of ground to cover when you had to be invisible. I sent a silent plea to the Goddess and ran.

Blood pumped in my ears, and my back pressed tight against the wood, safe on the other side. I crouched, panting, trying to catch my breath. Sweat pooled along my forehead and dripped down my temples. The moon shone visible now, the courtyard empty. A band of silver ocean rippled ahead of me. Inching my way closer to shore, I kept to the line of trees that skirted the harbor. I searched the bank for the small boat Angharad had promised would be there. Groping blindly, it was easy to trip over rocks and driftwood. In the weak light, I could make out only shapes and outlines. After several panicked and fruitless minutes of searching, I stumbled across the boat’s frame.

I removed my cloak and set it inside the shallow-hulled vessel. I hitched my dress above my waist and secured the fabric with my belt. A brisk wind whipped around my legs. Careful to avoid noise, I dragged the boat into the frigid water until the waves lapped at my naked thighs. I lifted myself into the wobbling craft and clambered over the side. The boat tipped dangerously with my weight, but once I flopped into the center, the rolling settled.

Dress righted, I grabbed the oars and rowed out to sea. My heart pulsed with each slap of the oars. Would someone hear it?