Page 78 of Wolfehound
“How much do you want for a male?”
“Three pounds.”
“Threepounds?”
“Five for a female.”
His eyebrows lifted. “That is tidy sum, my lady.”
“My dogs are worth it,” she said. “Do you want one or not?”
He pretended to consider it. “Possibly,” he said. “But I’m interested in something far more intriguing.”
“What?”
“You.”
Her brow rippled in confusion. “Me?” she said. “My lord, if you think to woo me, know that I have been betrothed for years. I am to be married imminently.”
He nodded. “I know,” he said. “I heard about the wedding. To Liam Herringthorpe.”
“Aye,” she said, eyeing him. “Know that I have sent for him, so if you do not wish to buy a dog, you should leave me in peace.”
It occurred to him that was why the servant had run off so fast, the one she’d whispered to. Tyrus had an assortment of daggers at his waist, as he always did when he traveled, so it was a simple thing to put his hand on the hilt of a big one that was ina sheath. He wanted to make sure she saw it as he took a couple of steps closer.
“Then we have little time,” he said, lowering his voice. “I know who you are, Gwenllian. You are the daughter of Llywelyn the Last, the granddaughter of Simon de Montfort, and the great-granddaughter of King John. I have been sent to bring you to London, and if you scream, I can cut your life short faster than anyone can get to you. They may kill me in the end, but you will still be dead, so unless you want that scenario, you will do as I say. Come to me now.”
Her expression was full of anger and fear. “You are from Canterbury,” she spat. “You are that knight!”
“I am,” he said. “And you are now my captive. Come to me.”
“I willnot!”
“If you do not, I will kill half of these dogs before you can stop me.”
That was the only threat that meant anything to her, and she stiffened up. “Do not touch them,” she said. “You will leave my dogs alone!”
“Then do as you are told.”
“I am not going anywhere with you!”
He began to move, a big and imposing presence, heading straight for the dog pen, and she ran at him, fists flying.
“Stop!” she shrieked. “You will not hurt them!”
She was close enough now that he could grab her. He clamped a hand on her soft arm in a grip that was like a vise. “Thank you for complying,” he said, which sounded oddly out of place given the situation. “Now, we are going to walk to the stable and you are going to get on my horse.”
Cambria wasn’t one to go peacefully. She began to struggle against him, trying to hit him, but his grip tightened to a painful point and she was forced to stop purely because he was causing her agony. But she was still trying to pull away, even as theywalked. That was her only plan until they passed by the big iron pot used to boil down hides. There were two large iron rods leaning on it, both of them used to either stir the pot or stir the fire, and she grabbed one of them. The next thing Tyrus realized, she was swinging the iron rod at his head.
He was forced to let her go as he dodged the rod. With a scream, Cambria took off running, but he was faster. He threw himself at her, tackling her legs, and they both went down.
That was when Kyle Herringthorpe walked into the yard.
“What is…?”
He couldn’t even get the words out before he was throwing himself on top of Tyrus, trying to pull him off Cambria, who managed to get a hand up and poke Tyrus in his right eye. He grunted, grappling with both her and Kyle, so she poked him twice more until he put a big hand on her head and rammed her face right into the ground. By this time, Kyle had him around the neck and was choking him, pulling him off Cambria, who managed to scoot out from underneath him. Kyle was strong and had a good grip on Tyrus’ neck, and the man was starting to feel faint. But he retained his wits enough to grab at one of the daggers around his waist and ram it backward, stabbing Kyle at the base of his neck.
The young knight immediately fell away.
