A VOW TO KEEP (The Vengeance Trilogy) (4 page)

“Nicholas!” Alyna cried out.

Nicholas looked at Alyna as though to make certain she was all right before he looked back at the knight. His little face held a fierce expression, and he kept the stick pointed at the knight. “Don’t hurt Mama!”

Alyna scrambled to her feet and put herself in front of Nicholas. “Don’t you dare draw that sword!”

The knight dropped his hand, shaking his head. His confused gaze took in the pair of them before lighting on Alyna. “You have a son?”

Alyna reached for Nicholas. The little boy needed no urging and jumped into her arms to bury his face in her neck, holding her tight. “Aye.”

The man shook his head as he paced before them. “I was not told you had a child.”

Alyna ignored him as she kissed Nicholas’s head, her arms trembling as she held him tight. “What a brave boy you are, Nicholas. How did you get here?”

The boy shrugged in response and cuddled closer. “You needed me.”

The knight shook his head once again. “Who else should I be on guard against?” He glanced warily at the bushes and trees nearby.

The expression on his face nearly made Alyna smile. She could hardly believe that Nicholas had managed to escape the guards and find her, let alone strike the knight with the stick. He might only be just past four years, but he was an amazing little boy.

The knight offered her his hand. “Let us go.”

“I need to fetch my servants and our things.” Alyna took his hand and rose with Nicholas on her hip. Her grandfather had obviously returned home and gotten her message even though he’d chosen an unorthodox way of responding. The accompaniment of a knight would make their journey far easier. This was more than she’d hoped for. “We’ll be ready shortly.”

The knight kept her hand in his. “Nay, my lady. We leave now.”

Alyna pulled her hand away. “Nay. We do not. It will only take a few minutes to gather everything.”

“I have enough for all of us. A little one such as he can’t eat much.” The knight bent over until he was eye to eye with Nicholas. “I mean your mother no harm, so no more sticks. Understood?”

Nicholas stared at the man for a long moment. He lifted his hand and touched the knight’s cheek, his expression solemn. “You won’t hurt Mama?”

The knight startled at Nicholas’s touch. “Nay. But both of you must come with me. Now.”

Nicholas dropped his hand and looked at Alyna. He nodded, as though giving his permission.

“After I fetch my servants and our things,” Alyna repeated.

“You can send for them later if you wish.”

Scared, Alyna pulled Nicholas closer, unsure what to do. Unsure she had any choice in the matter. “Where is my grandfather?”

“He awaits you at his holding, Northe Castle. I will take you to him.” Sir Royce grasped her elbow. “We must leave now, my lady. After you’ve spoken with Blackwell, you can send for the others.”

Fear pulsed through Alyna. Just when she thought her problems were solved, he refused to cooperate. “I will not accompany you unless my servants come with me. I must have some sort of escort. Surely my grandfather would agree with that.”

***

Royce stared at the determined lady, uncertain how to proceed.

Her chin rose a notch in response.

Nothing she could say would allow her out of his sight. Too much was at stake if she deceived him. He would not risk it. He already had more than he could handle with her and the boy. If he had to tie them up and stuff them in a bag, they were coming with him now.

However, it would be much easier if he could convince her to come with him willingly. He summoned what he hoped to be a smile full of charm and reassurance but it felt stiff on his face. “I fear we must go to your grandfather’s with all haste. There’s no time to summon anyone else. He feels this matter is urgent and needs to be resolved at once. There is more at stake than you might know.”

She frowned. “Now you sound like my father.” She shook her head, her frustration obvious. “I assure you I’m most anxious to hear what my grandfather has to say. It will take no more than a few moments to gather Charles and Enid and meet you here.”

“If your father or someone else sees you leaving, what will you do?”

She looked at him as though considering his comment. “It’d be easier if we left after everyone has retired for the night.”

Royce nodded as if she had just agreed with his point. “My horse is nearby. The sooner we arrive at Northe Castle, the quicker you can send for the others if that is what you desire. After speaking with your grandfather.”

“A
bit longer
will make no difference. If I’m delayed for any reason, I’ll send someone to advise you when to expect me.” With the boy still on her hip, she took a step in the direction of Montvue.

Royce gritted his teeth. Somehow, he’d known this wouldn’t be easy. Nothing involving women ever was. He held her elbow to stop her, then plucked the child from her arms. He lifted the boy onto his shoulders, well out of the lady’s reach. The boy giggled in delight. “My horse is this way, my lady.”

CHAPTER TWO

“Celery seeds are effective in sweetening the

blood but should not be harvested the first year.”

Lady Catherine’s Herbal Journal

Alyna stared in horror at the knight’s retreating form, hoping he spoke in jest.

Nicholas looked back at her. “Come on, Mama,” he demanded.

“Wait!” She hurried after the pair, her heart pounding with fear. “Sir Royce, please wait!”

Though she knew the knight heard her, he didn’t slow his pace. His long strides covered more ground than she could match. “Nicholas!”

Nicholas merely beckoned her to hurry.

How dare the man use her son against her! Outrage gave her speed, and she quickly caught up with them. She grasped the knight’s arm, but still he ignored her. “I insist you stop at once.”

“I’ve told you we must go now.”

“If you refuse to listen to me, then I have no other choice.” She screamed loud and long.

Royce halted immediately. His gray eyes burned into hers, cutting her scream short. “If you persist in that noise, I will have no choice but to render you silent.”

Alyna thought for a moment, but couldn’t think of a way he could silence her that wouldn’t hurt.

“Mama?” Nicholas said. He held a finger alongside his nose mostly missing his lips. “Shhh.”

Alyna stared at her son, wondering whose side he was on. “I want Charles and Enid to come with us.”

Nicholas nodded. “They’ll come soon.”

While she pondered his odd comment, Royce continued walking. Alyna’s head pounded with frustration and fear. She had no choice. If help hadn’t arrived by now, it wasn’t coming.

“Oh!” Nicholas gasped in delight as they came to the knight’s horse. “Mama, look!”

A huge gray destrier with a mane as black as night stood before them. The horse nuzzled his master’s hand, but merely snorted in Alyna’s direction. Though she looked around, no other horses were nearby. They were going to ride this beast all the way to her grandfather’s?

The knight settled Nicholas on the horse and made certain he held tightly onto the horse’s mane, then turned and offered Alyna his hand, but she made no attempt to take it. She looked up at him, his features barely visible in the darkness of the cool spring night. “Please, let me fetch my servants. They’ll worry so if we don’t return.”

For a moment, her hopes rose that he understood. “Your wish is not mine to grant, my lady. We must get to your grandfather’s with all speed. Others depend upon us.”

“I already have people depending on me, and they are waiting for me at Montvue.”

“I’m sorry to part you from your servants,” he said, his tone dripping with sarcasm as he took her arm to pull her closer to the horse. “Perhaps you can make do with me to care for you and the boy for a few days.”

She held her ground and wrenched her arm from his grip. “They will be punished if my father finds me absent. Punished until they tell him where I am.”

“They don’t know where you are, so they will be safe enough.”

“You obviously don’t know my father.”

“I cannot delay, my lady. Your grandfather’s orders were most clear. We must leave now.”

Nicholas looked down at her from his tall perch and smiled. “Let us go.”

Despair filled Alyna. She guessed it would take at least two days to reach her grandfather’s. And another two days or more to send some sort of message to Charles and Enid. In the meantime, they would be worried sick with no idea
to
where she and Nicholas had disappeared. She could only guess at her father’s reaction to her absence, and what he might do to the two servants most loyal to her.

The knight placed his hands on her waist, prepared to lift her onto the horse. He paused for a moment and looked down at her, his gaze holding hers. “All will be well.”

Alyna wished she could believe him. “I don’t see how.” She hated to upset Nicholas by fighting the knight further. In reality, there was nothing more she could do.

Still Sir Royce looked at her, his hands warm on her waist. For a heartbeat, he stared at her mouth
,
and unfamiliar warmth curled through her.

He bent closer, and her breath caught in her throat. Suddenly she was in the air and then sitting on the horse behind Nicholas, confused by the moment and the knight.

He mounted behind her. As she settled her skirts, her chin brushed her veil which had caught in her cloak. Casually, she pulled the veil free and it fluttered to the ground. If anyone happened to find her basket along the path and her veil here, perhaps they’d realize she hadn’t left of her own free will. She wasn’t sure what good it would do, but she had to try something.

The horse set off at a brisk pace, much to Nicholas’s delight. He was thrilled with the ride and seemed to think she should be as well. She couldn’t help but smile at his pleasure but still held him tightly.

Darkness had fallen in full and with it came a chill that made Alyna wish for a heavier cloak. She pulled her thin wrap around Nicholas, though he seemed oblivious to the cold.

How the knight could tell where they were going was a mystery to her. The moon was not quite half full, and the darkness made the forest unwelcoming. Lords and villeins alike were tucked inside on a dark night such as this, the better to keep ill-meaning spirits away.

She kept her back ramrod straight, as far from the knight as possible, anger stiffening her posture. The man had complicated things beyond measure. She’d had a solid plan of escape and now the situation was completely out of her control, a feeling she did not appreciate.

The swaying of the horse soon put Nicholas to sleep, his weight heavy in her arms. Her own weariness tugged at her and as time passed, she caught herself leaning back against the solid form behind her, fatigue overcoming her resolve. Annoyed, she sat up straight again and pondered what might be happening at Montvue.

By now, Enid would’ve told Charles she hadn’t returned from Sarah’s. Charles would look for her. He’d speak with Sarah. Would he find her basket? Not in the dark. Mayhap he’d find it and her veil come morning. Then what?

Somehow, she couldn’t think past that. She had no idea what Charles and Enid would do or how her father would react to her disappearance. If she’d left with them as planned, her father would’ve known why she was gone for she’d made her unhappiness of her betrothal quite evident. She remembered well the day he’d summoned her to inform her of the upcoming marriage.

She’d stood before him at the high table as a servant would, braced for a reprimand. His countenance was stern, as always. He looked every one of his fifty years, the lines on his face a testament to the displeasure he wore like a cloak. His blond hair was streaked with white, and bushy eyebrows a shade darker than his hair loomed over his cold blue eyes. “Mayhap you’re not so worthless after all. I’ve finally made a match for you. I found someone who’ll look beyond your appearance and take you to wife.”