Page 76 of A Rose Among Snakes

“How about this instead?” The man used the tip of his sword to gesture to the laceration on his face. “Does this refresh your memory?”

Velian crossed his arms and tilted his head to the side. “Should it?” His charade was tying my stomach in knots.

The man was seething, his teeth bared as he spat, “You killed my brother and gave me this scar back in Canderren!”

“Ah,” Velian said, “that’s right. The man who was attacking an innocent woman. I also remember you wanting to rob us.” He narrowed his eyes. “Should we have rolled over and showed you our bellies instead?”

The man growled and launched his horse forward at Velian, who sidestepped and grabbed the man’s pant leg and belt, wrenching him backward off the horse. He fell to the ground with a thud, still clutching his sword in his hand. He leapt to his feet and wheeled around to face Velian who pulled out one of the daggers tucked into his belt.

The other two men dismounted, but as their feet hit the ground, the man with the scar yelled, “No, he’s mine!” They shared a wary glance as they stayed put, replacing their swords in their scabbards. The man charged at Velian, and with an upward swing over his head, brought the blade down in a diagonal sweep. My heart stopped as Velian waited until the last moment to leap aside, then struck out with the dagger, making a small cut in the man’s sleeve. Velian retreated a few steps, and the reins shook in my hand as I watched him calculate the exact timing of sidestepping the man’s vicious attacks.

My attention was pulled by the sight of the other two men stepping forward, their hands poised on the grips of their swords, ready to jump into the action.

I had to do something. These men had attacked us. These men had haunted my dreams, filling me with fears I’d never known before. I recalled the promise I’d made to myself, that I would not allow myself to be a victim.

Never again would I be weak.

Never again would I let myself be taken advantage of. I’d been taught better than that.

From where I stood on Eamis’ far side, I planted my foot in the stirrup and pulled myself up into the saddle. The men were too engrossed in the fight to notice when I spurred Eamis forward right next to Zavi, who was still grazing. I used the end of my reins to slap his rump and he lurched forward into a trot, moving closer to Velian. Hoping it was enough for Velian to reach his sword, I removed my own from its place on the saddle.

With a yell, I waved my sword above my head and charged at the three untethered horses. Nostrils flaring, two of them turned and fled in the direction they came, and I followed a few extra paces for good measure. But as I turned back to the field, I saw one of the other men astride the horse that hadn’t run, his blade in hand. Without a second thought, I dug my heels into Eamis’ sides and urged him forward, my sword held firmly in my hand.

Our blades met in the space between our horses with an ear-splitting ring as we rode past each other. I swung Eamis back around, but I saw the man still on foot rushing toward us. My breath stuttered as I realized I couldn’t fight them both off at the same time. I decided to move our skirmish further away and the man on horseback raced after me. Eamis was faster, but his hooves scrambled over the loose rocks on the road and his body jolted to the side, almost throwing me from my seat. If I hadn’t grabbed the pommel, I would have tumbled over the steep cliff edge bordering the road. I slowed our pace when we reached a wider section and spun us around to meet the man.

My wrist strained as I took the brunt of the blow toward the tip of my blade. Turning again, we exchanged strikes, keepingenough distance between us to not let either gain the upper hand. With a grunt of impatience, he made a sudden move forward, jabbing his sword at my shoulder. I dodged it, leaning into Eamis’ neck, and pulled back on the reins. Swinging his hindquarters to the side, Eamis placed himself in the perfect position to give me an idea.

I nudged him forward again, and the man found himself nearly against the ascending rock wall bordering the road with no choice but to back up his horse. While examining his surroundings, I stood in my stirrups and thrust my sword forward, grazing his bicep. The man hissed through clenched teeth and took a diagonal swipe at me, but I had already pulled back out of reach. Again, I pushed Eamis forward, parrying every strike.

The other horse pinned its ears back, snorting loudly. The whites of its eyes showed as its head tossed in distress. Only a few steps away, the cliff edge loomed behind them. Together, Eamis and I pushed them back until the horse squealed as its rear hoof slipped over the edge. Alarmed, the man brought both hands to the reins to steady the horse, just as I’d hoped.

In his distraction, he didn’t register my blade going for his neck until it was too late. His horse surged forward, but he toppled backward, clutching at his throat as he disappeared over the cliff.

My stomach turned, but there was no time to feel remorse. I wheeled Eamis around and galloped back toward the field, my body humming with the anticipation of what I might find.

Relief flooded me when I saw Velian had retrieved his sword, but that relief evaporated when I realized he was fighting off bothattackers now. Without hesitation, I swung my leg over the saddle as Eamis slowed enough for me to make a running dismount. I rushed forward to deflect a blow intended for Velian’s back from the other man I’d left in the field. He turned to look at me, mouth agape before twisting into a snarl.

I used my smaller stature to duck and dart around him, confusing and frustrating him more. He was losing focus and swinging wildly as I continued to evade him. My father had taught me the key to winning a sword fight was not simply brute strength or flawless technique, but observing your opponent’s weaknesses and exploiting them for your advantage.

The man favored swinging downward at an angle, trying to remove my head from my neck. I parried, deflecting each strike and keeping out of his reach. With every attack he growled like a rabid animal, his technique becoming sloppy. As he lifted his blade over his shoulder and swung for my neck again, I stepped back instead of parrying, and his momentum had his body leaning toward the ground, his balance disrupted. That was when I stepped inside and delivered a ruthless blow to his jaw with the pommel of my sword.

My opponent staggered back and fell to one knee. I used the tip of my blade to swat the sword out of his loosened grip.

Stay down,I silently begged.Don’t make me-

Bellowing, the man got to his feet and wrapped his arms around my waist. Before I could defend myself, I was on my back in the grass, pinned beneath his sweaty body. He sat up and frowned in confusion, glancing down at my bound chest. Panicclutched at my throat, but his hesitation gave me all the time I needed to reach for the knife on his belt I’d noticed earlier.

“What-” was all he managed to say before I jammed the hunting knife between his ribs and punctured his lung. He froze, inches away from my face, coughing and spluttering blood onto my cheeks. My breath was ragged in my chest as we stared at each other. He struggled, but I drove the knife in deeper, twisting it to ensure more damage. His face contorted with pain, but my mind was blank as I watched the life slowly drain from his eyes.

My arm that wasn’t gripping the knife began to shake as I held him up. Then I heard Velian cry out in pain. My heartbeat stuttered as I glanced over and saw him kneeling on the ground, a hand held to his side, and the blond man standing over him with his boot planted on Velian’s sword.

I yanked out the knife and rolled the man to the side, letting his blood stain the grass crimson. I tossed the knife onto the ground and picked up my sword, not sparing his corpse a second glance. My only thoughts were of protecting Velian, no matter the cost.

The blond man still stood over Velian, his blade pressed against Velian’s exposed neck. “Just think, if you had given us what we wanted in the first place, none of this would have happened, Blaise.”

He didn’t notice my swift approach from behind, and he grunted as I drove my sword through the back of his leather jerkin. I pulled the blade out, and he stumbled forward as he turned around to face me, his arms dropping to his sides.

Anger still burned in his eyes and with blood on his lips he said, “Sneaky boy.” He stepped forward and raised his sword with feeble arms, but fueled by a bloodlust foreign to me, I batted it away and brought my blade to his neck.

---