Rachel Rossano - The Theodoric Saga (4 page)

“Try to avoid that one, Eve. He is trouble.”

She nodded. Tears rose unbidden. She was so intent on not letting them fall she jumped when Labren’s hand closed around hers.

“Come to bed. The rest can wait until tomorrow.”

Obediently, Eve lay down the scrub brush and dumped the water out of the pot. She didn’t want to let the kettle rust again considering the elbow effort to clean it initially.

After stumbling up into the wagon with Labren’s help, she fell asleep before he blew out the lantern.

A patrol passed the wagon train in a cacophony of yells, hoof beats, and swearing. Perched on the seat, Labren hunched deeper into his scarf and coat and prayed they didn’t look back.

“Are you certain they are still searching for you?” Eve asked from her place next to him.

“Positive.”

She turned to watch one of the children running to catch another.

He almost heard the unanswered inquiries whirling around her brain. His grip tightened on the reins. After four weeks of marriage, she should have asked one of the questions, but she didn’t. Instead, she avoided his gaze and concentrated on knitting something. One of the other women taught her a week ago. Now she hid behind a skein of wool, wooden needles, and a growing knot of something.

Closing his eyes, he sighed. Every night she clung to the distance between them until she relaxed into sleep. Each meal swiftly became a study in stunted conversation. He wanted more, but he feared there never would be. At least she treated the whelp, Ulysses, the same way.
No
, he corrected himself, s
he treats him worse.
Her reception of his advances grew downright frigid.

“How much farther?” she asked.

Shaking off his grim mood, Labren glanced around. The long dusty road lay out before them, winding through rolling hills covered by forests and fields. “What was the name of the town at the last crossroads?”

“Overkan, I believe.”

“Then we have another month.” He glanced her way to judge her reaction. She frowned and stared up at the grey sky.

“The snow will not hold out that long.”

“Making camp!” Ulysses called out as he rode back along the line of wagons. Their wagon brought up the tail of the caravan. “Camp is in sight,” he informed them as he pulled up next to them and flashed Eve a brilliant grin. He then heeled his tired horse, forcing him to lunge forward half mad into a gallop and leave them in a cloud of dust.

“Inconsiderate fool,” Labren muttered.

“Idiot.” Eve coughed.

Labren’s chest warmed with hope as he guided their vehicle into its place. She wasn’t a fool or interested in a fool. The sensation lived a very brief life.

Not an hour later, his stomach tightened like a vice. With sharp eyes he scanned the camp. Eve approached their fireside with their daily ration of water. Ulysses hid behind the wagon closest to theirs. The leer of the wagon master’s son made his hands itch for a weapon.

Eve’s face brightened and she smiled at him as she crossed the middle of the circle. Labren tried to force himself to smile and not show his worry. He knew he was not convincing her.

“What is the matter?” She poured some of the water into the kettle.

“I will tell you later.” He made a big show of walking to the tethered horses. He struggled not to limp although it aggravated his leg. Just as he expected, once his back turned, the scoundrel eased his way over to where Eve stirred their supper. While Labren checked the hooves of his animals, Ulysses offered to cut the bread for her.

To Eve’s credit, she pushed strands of loose hair back behind her ears and coolly declined his offer. Not to be rejected completely, the man insisted on lifting the kettle from over the fire. Deciding he had seen enough, Labren hobbled the horse and turned back to his wagon. Long before he arrived, Ulysses left.

Taking in Eve’s pale cheeks and lowered eyes, Labren decided he would deal with this problem before bed. Even if it meant they parted with the caravan, he needed to speak with the wagon master about Ulysses. He would wait until a private moment to speak with Eve.

His wife’s hands shook when she handed him his stew.

Eve worked at cleaning up the meal mess as Labren walked over to the main fire that always burned in the center of camp. Her mind raced and her hands moved by rote.

All attempts to block out Ulysses’ face from her memory proved futile. The way he leered at her twisted her stomach. She gulped back the bile in her throat. The proposal he offered made her want a bath.

Labren’s silence did not comfort her at all. An unreasonable feeling that she shamed him grew in her chest. She tried to occupy her mind elsewhere, but found herself dwelling upon the tight panic growing in her stomach.

She finished the chores more quickly than usual and dumped out the dirty dishwater while the dying fire still glowed. Even though Labren did not return from the main fireside until most of the stars appeared, Eve climbed into their wagon to begin making their bed for the night.

After lighting the lantern, she placed it on the top of their clothes’ chest. Its golden-red glow deepened the shadows behind the various boxes and trunks filling the floor. She began to wrestle their mattresses out from their wooden box when she heard a sound. She paused mid-motion to listen.

The stride of the person approaching was clear in spite of the distant scolding of the mothers calling the children to bed. Somehow she knew the man outside the wagon was not her husband.

Avoiding making shadows on the canvas, Eve slipped behind the half empty chest. Moments before he began to hoist himself over the wheel hub, she tucked herself under the partially unpacked mattress. She stopped breathing as he pushed aside the flap and entered.

For what seemed like an eternity to Eve, Ulysses stood and surveyed the room before him. He stepped toward her. Eve swallowed a gasp as her heart thundered in her ears.

“I saw you come in here, Eve.” Annoyance tinged his tone. She had forced him to seek her. “There were wild animals wandering the camp. I came to check on you.” He took two steps to the middle of the floor. The toes of his dirty and scuffed work boots appeared near her head.

She needed to breathe soon or pass out. What would he do then? She did not want to find out. Timidly she let some of the stale air out her nose. Then he surprised her by moving toward the mattress. The remaining air rushed out.

With a cry of triumph, Ulysses lunged for her. “I have you!”

Eve screamed. She burst forth. Not bothering with circumventing the obstacles between her and the back of the wagon, she leaped for the opening in the canvas. She made it only to fall to the hard ground about five feet below. She scrambled to her feet and plowed right into her husband’s arms.

Labren had been walking back from his brief talk with the wagon master. He informed the older man of his intention to turn off the trail at the next crossroads. The wagon master refused to refund any of the money they paid. In the end, Labren decided the argument was not worth the effort. He had changed their plans and the new destination would hopefully offer them room and board for the winter in exchange for his services.

The events of the afternoon gave him no choice. They could not travel over the mountains by themselves. Danger hunted both of them if they continued with this group much longer. Besides, his body demanded rest. His injuries were healing more slowly than desired. He needed a break from the draining work of travel.

His speech to the Professor ran through his head. Then Eve’s cry startled him out of his thoughts. His legs quickened their pace. The wagon’s looming shadow touched his feet when Eve crashed into him. His arms encircled her as his bad leg complained at the sudden strain. By sheer determination, he stayed upright.

While holding the trembling body of his wife, he spotted the figure of Ulysses creeping away. A knot formed in his stomach.

Tonight Eve required all the comfort he could give. Tomorrow, he intended to have a ‘talk’ with that boy. The rascal would never pursue another man’s wife again. Then they were leaving. The school was only hours away. He remembered where to go and how to get them there.

Soothingly Labren ushered his Eve into the wagon.

Much later, he lay on his side watching her sleep. As he watched the rise and fall of her shoulders, he wondered at the swiftness his job of cherishing and protecting his wife had changed from duty to delight. She was an amazing woman. A strange combination of intelligence, caring, and stubbornness, she constantly surprised him with her strength. He glimpsed her immobilized by fear. The same fear, until tonight, distanced her from him. How ironic she clung to him for comfort and protection. He hoped she would trust him more now.

Adjusting his pillow and turning to his other side, he settled his aching limbs into a better position. He rubbed his injured thigh. As exhaustion claimed the last of his tired thoughts, he grew dimly aware of Eve curling her small warmth against his back. For the first night in almost thirteen years, his sleep was dreamless.

The next morning Labren woke to the sounds of camp breaking. Thankfully Eve still slept. He extracted himself from bed and dressed. By the time he swung down, the women around them were up to their elbows in the morning’s dishes and the men occupied preparing their horses.

Finding Ulysses took him ten minutes.

“Ulysses,” he said as he approached the wagon of a young family with a pretty daughter. The boy turned from flirting to grimace at Labren.

“What?”

“I have business with you.”

“What business could you have with me?” His tone oozed confident bravo for the benefit of his audience. The girl watched doe-eyed. “You broke off with my father, as I understand.”

“I did. The issue isn’t with him. It is with you. You assaulted my wife.”

“She asked for it.”

A harsh laugh tore from Labren’s throat. “She didn’t.”

“Don’t be so sure, old man. Just because she is married to you, you think she is dead to the charms of men her own age.” Ulysses ran a hand through his long hair and looked pointedly at Labren’s weaker leg. “She needed a real man, someone who doesn’t need to be waited on or assisted in and out of a wagon.”

“I will only warn you once. Prepare to defend yourself.”

“You wouldn’t dare.” Ulysses presented his back.

Labren didn’t pause a second. He stepped forward, grabbed the young man’s shoulder, and let his fist fly. It collided with the boy’s jaw with a satisfying crack.

The girl screamed.

“See here.” Her father protested as he rounded the wagon.

Ignoring them both, Labren applied his second fist. Pain sluiced up his arm, but he bore it.  The boy wavered before sitting heavily in the dirt. Blood dripped from his broken nose and off his chin. He stared up at Labren in shock.

“I told you once to leave Eve alone. That should have been enough.” Satisfied, Labren limped away with the sound of Ulysses’ angry howl in his ears.

“Move out!” the wagon master called from the front of the line. The caravan began to roll. Labren glanced over his shoulder in time to catch the young woman’s father rushing her away. Within moments their wagon joined the formation. Ulysses, still nursing his oozing face, scrambled after them.

Labren returned to his wagon. Isolated in the barren expanse of an abandoned camp, he savored the overwhelming wave of relief. His leg throbbed and his arm screamed, but Eve was safe again.

They needed to start soon to reach the school before dark. Considering and rejecting the idea of waking Eve, he decided to prepare breakfast. He would save Eve the work and get them moving faster once she woke. Besides he needed to work off the adrenaline high thrumming through him.

Eve opened her eyes to yellow brightness. Morning sunshine touched the canvas above her face. She stared at the ceiling for a moment. Then it occurred to her that she had overslept. Before she could wonder why Labren did not wake her, he climbed between the flaps.

“Oh, good.” He stood to his full height in the center of the wagon and smiled down at her. “Glad you are awake. I wanted to ask where the kettle is. The fire is perfect for boiling water, and I need a large cup of moracca.”

Eve pointed out the beaten copper pot. He disappeared, and she hurried out of bed and into her clothes. She rushed to pack away their bedding, silently scolding herself for sleeping late the whole while. As she grabbed her wraps, she wondered why she didn’t hear the other wagoneers or their animals.

When she straightened from her jump to the ground, she realized the reason for the silence. They were nowhere to be seen. Swallowing a sudden panicky feeling, she turned toward the reassuring sight of the breakfast fire and her husband.

“They left at dawn.” Labren fixed his attention on the oatmeal as he poured it into their wooden bowls. “We were leaving their company soon anyway. I figured it best if we parted sooner than planned.” He looked up briefly as he handed her the steaming bowl. “I settled accounts with the wagon master last night. I dealt with the loose ends this morning.”

When Eve did not comment, Labren paused in his movement, spoon suspended. “I did not realize until now that I had not discussed any of my plans with you.”