Page 37 of Knight of Havoc
“You will not rob me,” he said as if this was their intent.
“Nay, we shall not take any goods that are rightfully yours. But we believe you have something that does not belong to you,” Oswin sneered, holding out his own sword. From his height advantage, the driver of the cart dropped his blade whilst Reynard jumped from his horse and carefully entered the cart from the rear. He began fumbling around, moving the hay when he at last heard her muffled cries.
Tossing hay from the wagon, he began inspecting every inch of the bed of the cart. He finally found Elysande, tied and gagged, buried beneath the weight of the hay. Blue eyesswimming with unshed tears gazed at him in happiness. The first thing he did was untie the linen from her mouth.
“Reynard,” she sobbed. “I knew you would come for me.”
Working on the knots at her wrist, he finally decided to slit the ropes and drew a knife from his belt. “I will always find you, Elysande.”
With the ropes cut at her wrists and feet, she flung her arms around his neck whilst crying into his shoulder. “I was so scared.”
He held her close, caressing her hair as he tried to soothe her worries. “Shhh, Elysande. I have you now.”
Once she had cried enough that the shoulder of his tunic was soaked, Reynard helped her from the cart but continued to hold her close. There was no way she was leaving his arms.
Constantine came and gave her a short bow. “My lady,” he began. “I am pleased to see that overall you are well.”
“Lord Constantine,” she replied in surprise. “You are the last person I expected to come to my aid.”
Constantine shrugged. “We were headed in the same direction so I thought I would join Norwood and his friends on a little adventure.”
Reynard gave a grunt of displeasure. “A little adventure? Is that what we are calling this?”
“The lady is well and now in good hands.” Constantine pointed to Elysande’s raw wrists. “Name the whoreson who took you from Oxford and visited these indignities upon you.”
“The one who captured me from my chambers was unknown to me. I only caught a glimpse of him before he put a cloth dosed in something over my face. I passed out cold once I was hoisted over his shoulder,” she replied, putting her arm around Reynard’s waist.
“And then…” Reynard urged her to continue.
“The next thing I knew I woke up in some rundown inn tied to a chair. I was alone until Gerold Morcant strode into the room,” she answered softly. “He taunted me with his plans to force me to marry him.”
“’Tis clear he was behind the whole plot to take you. The rat bastard!” Oswin snapped.
Blake’s hand covered the hilt of his sword. “He has no honor. We need to head back to the inn and take him into custody.”
Elysande began to tremble in Reynard’s arms. “I cannot face him again,” she pleaded, looking up into Reynard’s face.
Constantine stepped forward. “I believe the last thing Lady Elysande needs is to face her abductor at this time. Do you not agree, Norwood?”
Reynard pulled Elysande closer and kissed the top of her head. “Aye. I agree. I will take Elysande and quickly return her to Oxford. You and the rest of the men can head back to capture Morcant. I’m certain he is still probably eating his fill thinking he is safe.”
Kingsley frowned. “And who will watch your back whilst you travel? Richard will kill us if anything should happen to you.”
Reynard lifted Elysande onto his horse and then put his foot in the stirrups. He adjusted her so she was sitting on his lap, given that he didn’t have a pillion to put on the rump of the horse, and he refused to have her further injured by riding without the extra cushion. Besides, he liked having her as close as possible.
“I will be careful. ’Twill not be the first time I ride alone. If you all are capturing Morcant and ensuring he does not make any more trouble, then Elysande and I will be perfectly safe.”
His friends protested and argued whilst Constantine only had a grin upon his face. In the end, Reynard and Elysande left on their own and put the road behind them as they trotted offtoward Oxford. Reynard was more than happy to have Elysande to himself with no one else vying for her attention.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Elysande snuggled closerto the warm body that held her close. The steady gait of the horse beneath them had gently rocked her into a slumber a short while ago. ’Twas only when the beast began to slow that she awoke. She peered into the darkening sky, knowing they would never arrive at Oxford before the gates were closed for the evening.
Reynard adjusted his cloak around her, and she clung to his body as though he was everything she needed to support her after her ordeal with Morcant. And he was… He had saved her just as she knew in her heart that he would. A smile formed on her face knowing she was safe in his arms.
“We shall have to spend the night either in the woods or in a nearby inn if you can manage more time in the saddle,” he murmured softly.
“I do not care where we rest our heads as long as I am with you,” she said playing with the edges of his dark brown hair.
