Legacy of the Mist Clans Box Set (82 page)

“God speed!” he called after them and spun his horse around.

The men of the army gathered in great numbers at the edge of the large bowl-shaped field. They continued to cheer Kenna and her riding as she and her horse cavorted across the field.

Aidan exhorted his mount to a gallop, charging straight for Kenna. He glanced at the eastern skies and saw a brightening gray, but dawn was at least an hour away. Aidan knew the excitement of the game would not last much longer.

“Kenna!” he bellowed, pushing his horse harder.

She ignored him. Blast her! Then to his horror, she pushed her horse deeper into the camp, her horse dancing around huts, weapon racks, and stacks of supplies as if they were nothing . . . as if they were not obstacles that could kill her in a heartbeat.

“Kenna!” he bellowed again.

She darted between a group of buildings, and he lost sight of her for a moment.

Barked orders sounded through the camp. The men still roared their approval, but it wasn’t as loud as before. Aidan looked to the tower house and saw guards forming up. Then he saw Sir James Douglas, and next to him, the Bruce.

“Kenna!” His heart in his throat, Aidan felt the dangerous game he played would come crashing down around his ears and Kenna would pay the price for his folly.

Suddenly, Kenna galloped from between the buildings, lying over her mount’s neck, asking for all the speed it could muster. In an instant, she was feet away from him and charging closer. Aidan took a breath to call to her, but she looked at him and her gaze flattened.

“Move!” she snapped.

She shot past him, her horse running for all he was worth.

Then Aidan saw the mounted patrol behind her headed straight for him, also at a dead gallop. “Bloody hell!” he snarled. He sat in the saddle and hauled back on the reins.

His horse squealed and slid, its back hooves carving straight lines in the grass. Again Aidan spun it around, but the mounted patrol was almost on top of him.

He urged the beast forward and the horse responded, lowering its head and driving with its hind legs. He saw Kenna looking back at him. “Ride, Aidan!”

“Ye dinna have tae tell me twice,” he muttered. He glanced at the mounted patrol, noting they had lost a bit of ground. He had almost caught up with Kenna when they again reached the crest of the hill.

“Split up!” she cried, pulling her horse violently to the left.

“Kenna, nay!” But Aidan did not dare hesitate, the mounted patrol would be on him in an instant. He yanked his horse to the right and it dove into the shale, sliding downward toward the trail. “Ye bloody bastards!” Aidan snarled at the patrol. “Ye think a wee lassie can give ye a run? Try me!” He spurred his horse faster.

The patrol divided in half, five riding after him, the other five after Kenna. Hellfire and damnation! What was he going to do now?

HHH

The gray light of dawn brightened the eastern sky a little more. Kenna clung to her horse’s mane as it charged down the loose shale. The distance between her and Aidan widened until she lost sight of him completely. But there were five of the Bruce’s men still pursuing her. The thrill of the chase pounded through her being, both terrifying and exhilarating.

Kenna was certain she would die at any moment, but she spotted a rutted road leading away from the camp and into thick woods. Keeping her horse in the middle and away from the ruts created by wagon wheels, she pointed his nose in the proper direction and let him gallop as fast as he willed. This was what the horse was bred for, and he stretched out, running with all of his heart.

She glanced over her shoulder. Her pursuers had lost a bit of ground, but it wasn’t as much as she would have liked. They had reached the road and had an easier time keeping pace with her. Kenna looked at the thick trees surrounding her. It was still murky, but with the rapidly growing light of dawn, she could see about a hundred yards ahead of her. She was going to have to use the woods if she wanted to baffle the men chasing her.

But before she could find an opportunity to dart off the road, her horse lifted his head slightly, pricking his ears forward, his stride hesitating as if he might stop. Kenna’s heart pounded. The horse sensed something ahead of them. In the growing light, Kenna spotted another trail intersecting the one she galloped upon. What if the men chasing Aidan had given up and now tried to cut her off?

She was just about ready to pull her horse to a stop and make her own way through the trees when she spotted movement on the intersecting trail. Although spring was close, the trees were still winter bare, allowing her to see through them. Had it been summer, the undergrowth would have blocked her view. Kenna instantly recognized Aidan’s form as he balanced on his mount. He was riding back toward her, and their paths would cross again at the intersection. He too looked back over his shoulder for a moment, then ahead, his gaze searching the trees.

He spotted her in much the same fashion she had just spotted him. “Ride, Kenna!” he barked. “Stay straight on the road.”

“They’re right behind me!” she warned as she spurred her horse forward and flew past Aidan.

“That’s what I’m counting on,” she heard him growl as he bisected her path and kept going straight.

She risked another glance back, and her eyes widened as she realized the men pursuing her and those pursuing Aidan would reach the crossroads at the same time. If one party did not give way—

Horses squealed as one from the group chasing Aidan and the lead horse in the group pursuing her slammed into each other, going down in the middle of the road, rolling, legs thrashing as they tried to rise. A second horse from the group after Aidan was unable to stop and tried to jump the tangle on the ground, but he too fell into the pile.

The road turned slightly and she lost sight of them, but the horses’ squeals and the cursing of men echoed quite a distance. Kenna gave her horse his head, again letting him run as he willed. Aidan had told her to stay on the road. She remembered him saying he knew the trails in this area, and after what she had just witnessed, she realized his plan. He probably knew several small trails that intersected the road.

Sure enough, she heard the crashing of a horse through the woods and looked to her left. Aidan’s mount exploded through the trees, following what appeared to be not so much a trail but a game path. It achieved the road right as she galloped past him. Aidan paused long enough to look behind them, but while the horses’ squeals and the men’s cursing still resounded, no one appeared on the road. Aidan kicked his horse into a gallop again and caught up with her.

“That worked better than I had hoped,” he said and shot her a bright grin.

Kenna’s heart twisted in pain as she reminded herself why she had intended to leave in the first place, but she returned his smile. The dawn grew in strength, but it was still gloomy with the dense trees overshadowing the road. Suddenly, she thought she heard a horse galloping behind them. Scowling, she looked back and blinked in shock to see that one of the Bruce’s men had resumed the chase and gained ground rapidly. A second horse appeared, then a third.

“God’s wounds,” Aidan snarled as he too spotted the riders. “Kenna, remember what I said. Stay on this road.”

“But—”

“It leads back tae the village where I bought the horse from the farmer.” He pointed to the trail ahead of them where a fork split into two smaller roads. “Take the right fork and ride! I’ll catch up with ye.”

They reached the fork before Kenna could think to argue with him. Aidan took the left, and she did as he told her, taking the right. She asked her horse for more speed, but he was sluggish to respond, blowing hard.

“Come on!” she cried, resting her hand on his sweaty neck. “Just a bit more!”

The horse dug deep and surged forward, flying down the dark road.

Again their pursuers split, two following Aidan and one after her. Kenna growled her own curses under her breath. Although her mount carried less weight than the one pursuing her, the one chasing had not been in the midst of a hard ride over hill and dale the previous month. The man behind her steadily gained ground and would be on her in a moment.

Where was Aidan?

Catching her thoughts, she cursed. She didn’t need Aidan to rescue her. If this man sought to return her to the Bruce’s camp, he was going to have a fight on his hands. Dismissing Aidan’s command to stay on the road, Kenna slowed her mount enough to dart into the trees. Following game paths and trails that better suited a deer than a horse, Kenna kept her mount at a fast trot and picked her way through the woods. At least she could see better now in the gray, misty morning. Her horse puffed like a bellows trying to catch his breath. Behind her, she heard the Bruce’s man crashing through the trees, the sound growing louder.

Saints’ blood! He would be on her in moments. She reached a small clearing and leapt from her horse, drawing her biodags. The horse immediately slowed to a trot, then about fifty paces away, he dropped to a walk, lowering his head and breathing hard. Kenna looked around, desperately seeking cover, but realized her mistake as there was none to be found, only dead grass and leaves at her feet and stark, narrow tree trunks.

The mount pursuing her exploded into the clearing. The rider hauled it to a stop and it reared, screaming its challenge. Kenna’s heart raced in terror, and she brought up her biodags.

“Enough!” the rider roared and dismounted. He released his horse, who trotted away a few paces then stopped. “Ye be coming with me.”

Kenna blinked in shock, recognizing the man who had once been a gate guard. “Ian?”

“I’ve had enough of ye,” he snapped, drawing his sword. “Ye told Jamie about my flask, that I had been drinking on duty. The captain removed me from my post and I lost a day of pay, then he put me on mounted patrol.” He stepped forward, his face florid with anger. “I hate horses.”

Kenna’s jaw went slack. All of her father’s guardsmen had drank while on duty. She never imagined it would be different under another commander, that her words would result in Ian being reprimanded.

“It was only a jest,” she cried, but she crouched in her fighting stance, desperately seeking a solution. There was no cover. She would have to stand and fight.

“Put yer little knives down,” Ian snapped and reached for her. “At least if I bring ye back tae camp, the captain may change his mind.”

She quickly moved out of his reach. “Nay,” she snapped. “I’m sorry for what happened, Ian, but I willna go back.”

His expression turned darker, and he lunged with amazing speed and latched onto her left arm. He jerked her forward, and Kenna reacted instinctively. She cut outward with the biodag in her right hand and sliced open his cheek. Ian recoiled violently, releasing her and snarling in pain.

“Whore!” he bellowed. “Are ye trying tae kill me?” He staggered backward and drew his sword.

“I willna go back! Leave, Ian! Now! Before someone really gets hurt.”

The planes of his face flattened as his face grew red with rage. Blood streamed from the cut she had given him.

“The only one who will get hurt is ye.” He snarled a curse and swung his sword at her in an overhand strike. Kenna leapt out of the way, and the tip of the weapon plowed into the earth where she had been standing only a moment ago.

All of the hours of practice with Raven surged to the fore. She could no more stop herself than she could stop a raging river with just her hand. She lunged, her daggers flashing, moving with the speed of a striking snake. She slammed both of them into his left shoulder. The links of chain mail gave way, and the daggers drove into his flesh. She wrenched them free and jumped backward as he howled even louder.

Bloody hell! All she was doing was making him more angry.

If a man gets his back into the blow, he’ll cave yer defense,
Raven’s warning sounded in her head.

Oh God, what was she going to do?

Ian lunged again with his sword, and Kenna’s eyes widened as she witnessed the perfect example for Raven’s warning. Kenna barely managed to block and sprang away, diving into the dead leaves and rolling to her feet.

“Hold still!” He charged and she jumped away again. She had to keep her distance from him. She had to keep moving. She prayed the clearing didn’t have any holes or obstacles buried under the thick cover of leaves.

Ian continued to pursue, and Kenna could only defend herself, trying to avoid the swing of his sword completely whenever possible, blocking when she had no choice. His fury gave him a terrible strength, and Kenna knew they were long past him returning her to camp. If anyone realized Kenna had handed him these wounds, he would become a laughingstock.

Ian wore a heavy mail vest with a bit of plate and leather armor at his neck and more leather on his arms and legs. He was primarily equipped to fight aboard horse rather than on foot, so the backs of his legs were not covered. Kenna desperately sought for an opening, but it appeared the only way she could truly escape would be to hamstring him.

He continued to charge her, swinging his sword with such power that she was forced to duck lest he remove her head from her shoulders. Her heart pounded in terror. Kenna blocked his return stroke but gritted her teeth as the force of the blow resonated in the marrow of her bones. He flung her backward a good five feet as if she were nothing more than a rag doll.

She hit the ground hard, knocking the wind from her lungs. Struggling to suck in some air, she tried to roll away, but her body refused to obey her. As Ian lifted his sword for an overhand strike, she brought up her biodags in a futile attempt to defend herself. This was no game. He was going to kill her.

Galloping hooves vibrated the earth. She heard an enraged roar. Ian hesitated, his sword still held aloft as he looked to his right. Suddenly, a huge bay horse shot past him, and a giant warrior leapt from the saddle. Still roaring his fury, Aidan plowed into the man, knocking him down and slamming into the ground himself.

“Aidan!” she screamed, hauling herself to her feet.

Aidan turned his fall into a roll, but she heard the air leave his lungs with the hard landing. She abruptly remembered the vicious bruise she had seen on his shoulder and back and realized he had just struck it again.