Page 73 of Forced to Marry the Earl
Sir Leon sheathed his sword but did not take his eyes from his daughter. “Did you meet Sir Althalos?”
Her mind raced, but she could think of no reason to hide the truth. “I killed him,” she answered simply.
Surprise finally showed on Sir Leon’s face, closely followed by an unmistakable look of respect. It was something she had never seen on her father’s face before. At least, not aimed toward her. A gust of wind lifted his thinning hair from his lined face. “You did what I should have done.”
Ariana swallowed down a new swell of emotion. Was her father verging on an apology? “No doubt,” she said.
Sir Leon inclined his head towards the river. “Shall we walk?”
Ariana was in no mood to place her trust in one who had so recently betrayed her, but she reasoned that lingering so close to the mouth of the passageway was not in her best interests either. Even now, her enemies could be inching their way through the darkness towards her.
Folding her arms, she preceded Sir Leon down a winding path to the shore of the river, where birds darted for insects and white water foamed around rearing stones. Sir Leon leaned back against a rocky outcrop, but Ariana simply stood, braced to flee at any moment. She had played here as a child; thispart of the forest was as familiar to her as her own hand. If Sir Leon showed the slightest sign of animosity, she would race away from him through the pair of willow trees standing across a grassy clearing.
“You owe me an apology, Father,” she said eventually, resolved to say what was in her heart.
Sir Leon shook his craggy head. “I have always acted in your best interests, Ariana.”
Her cheeks flushed with anger. “How was it in my best interests to plot behind my back with my husband’s enemy? To have men kidnap me away and then lock me up? I trusted you when you told me you sought peace with Darkmoor, but it was all a lie.”
“Aye, it was a lie.” Sir Leon leaned towards her, his eyes belligerent. “Darkmoor has long been a thorn in our sides. They have the best land and a better yield come every harvest. Plus, a fortress that even the Scots have failed to penetrate.” He spat with disgust into the long grass. “I saw an opportunity to take it for myself. For us,” he amended, seeing the fury in his daughter’s face.
“You wanted it for yourself. And you didn’t care whether I lived or died.” Ariana’s voice cracked on the final words.
“That is not true.” Sir Leon shook his head with vigor. “You are Countess of Darkmoor. You were essential to my plan.”
“Your plan to furnish your coffers with Darkmoor gold.” Ariana could feel the dampness of the grass seeping into her goatskin shoes and making her shiver. “With me as the sacrificial victim.”
Her words had pierced whatever remained of Sir Leon’s heart. She watched as an array of emotions played out across his face. “It’s true, I put my trust in the wrong person.” He stretched out an open palm towards her, but she deliberately looked away.“I was a fool to believe in Sir Althalos. And now I have paid the price.”
“You have lost what little power you had,” she stated. “And that is what upsets you now. Not the harm you caused your only daughter.”
“What harm?” Sir Leon pushed himself away from the rocks and took a step towards her, making Ariana newly aware of her vulnerability. Her father was aging, but he had once been a trained warrior, and his sword was kept as sharp as any knight’s. “You are alive and well, are you not?”
“No thanks to you.” Ariana kept her tone icy, even as she inched backwards towards the trees.
“You are alive and well,” Sir Leon repeated, his pale eyes flickering over her. “And no doubt, when your husband finds out about his uncle’s treachery, he will ride out to rescue you.”
Ariana’s heart beat wildly inside her ribs. Too late she saw that her plan to outrun her father was ill-conceived. Sir Leon bore no trace of weakness or injury. If she sought freedom, her only hope was to appeal to his reason, and that faint glimmer of humanity he had so recently shown.
“So you will compound your crimes against me by taking me hostage for a second time, is that it?” she demanded. “Have you no care at all for me, father? Do you doubt that your own blood runs in my veins?”
Sir Leon stopped in his tracks, gazing at her as if seeing her for the first time. “You are your mother’s daughter,” he all but whispered. “You resemble her in so many ways.”
“You mean my druid ancestry?”
“I mean her strength and determination.” Sir Leon put his hands on his hips and looked up towards the sun. “She was taken too soon, from both of us.”
“On that, at least, we can agree,” she said, her breath jagged and uneven. Was this her moment to flee, while Sir Leon was sodistracted? Could she place any amount of trust in a man who had drawn his sword against his own kin?
“Don’t move,” hissed Sir Leon. His face screwed up in concentration, and even as Ariana reeled in surprise at this sudden turn of mood, he strode towards his daughter and grasped her firmly by the arm.
“What are you doing?” She struggled against him, but his grip was firm and unyielding. A faint smell of stale ale wafted from his body.
“Listen,” he hissed again.
Ariana forced herself to stay still. If she strained her ears, she could make out a distant sound of rapid hoofbeats, coming closer. She swallowed hard. Had they been found by Althalos’s men?
“Get back,” Sir Leon ordered, ushering her towards the rocky outcrop he had leaned against just moments ago. His fingers bruised the tender flesh of her arm, but she dared not cry out. Would her father hand her over to the knights? Or would he finally act as her protector? As she mulled over this choice, he clamped a firm hand over her mouth.
