Page 62 of While Angels Slept
“Well and good for you, my lady,” he said. “You scream like a stuck pig.”
Cantia rubbed her throat, eyeing the man who had at least two surcoats pulled over him, one belt around his head and another around his neck. He had found her small and precious glass hand mirror wrapped up in her satchel and was using it to look at himself. All the while, Cantia’s eyes never left him. She had no idea what the man was doing or, furthermore, what he planned to do. She was on edge every single second, watching and waiting.
Finally, Gillywiss began to take everything off. He carefully rolled the surcoats, tucking them back where he found them. The belts were cautiously put back and the mirror was wrapped up in the heavy linen he had found it in. Everything went back as nicely and neatly as when he found it. When he was finished, he stood up and faced the three captives.
“You did not see me do this,” he instructed.
Cantia understood he meant the entire episode with the clothes because he was pointing to her bags with a wagging finger.
“As… as you say, my lord,” she said, somewhat confused.
Gillywiss put his hands on his hips and approached her, pensively. “And the screaming,” he said. “If anyone asks, you will tell them I ravaged you thoroughly. Is that clear?”
Cantia nodded. “Aye, my lord.”
Gillywiss’ gaze lingered on her a moment before looking to Hunt and Arabel, both children gazing up at him with some puzzlement and fear. “You both,” he pointed. “You will not tell what you saw here today. Do you understand? If you tell, very bad things will happen.”
Hunt and Arabel nodded apprehensively but said nothing, and Gillywiss returned his attention to Cantia. It looked as if he wanted to say more but refrained. Suddenly appearing rather depressed, a far cry from the animated man of earlier, he turned for the door.
“I will send you food,” he said.
He quit the hut, shutting the door behind him. Cantia stood there, staring at the panel, wondering what in the world had just happened. It was the strangest thing she had ever seen. Baffled, she sat down next to Hunt on the dirty pallet.
“Mam?” Hunt tugged on her arm. “What will we do?”
Cantia drew in a long breath as she looked at her son. “I do not know.”
Hunt’s little brow furrowed in thought. “We should esthcape,” he said firmly. “We should run away.”
Cantia had thought of that, too. She ran a hand over her son’s blondhead. “We cannot,” she said softly, looking to Arabel, who was lying beside them. “We cannot leave Lady Arabel behind, and we cannot carry her with us, so we must stay here to protect her.”
Arabel was gazing up at the pair. “Please,” she said softly, “if you escape and run back to my father, you can bring help.”
Cantia smiled faintly at the girl. “That is very brave, but I will not leave you,” she said. “Until we can think of something else, we will all stay here together.”
Arabel was coming to feel guilty, as if she were holding Cantia and Hunt back. “You cannot put yourself in such danger, my lady,” she insisted. “They will not harm me, but I fear they will do terrible things to you. You must escape and you must take Hunt with you.”
Cantia reached out and grasped the girl’s hand, squeezing it. “I will not leave you,” she said softly. “There is nothing more to discuss. Meanwhile, we must figure out how we can get word to your father.”
Hunt had all manner of ideas on how to send word to Tevin, not the least of which was catching a bird and tying a note to its leg. Then he thought they could catch a fox and tell it to run to Rochester. As Cantia gently shot down every idea Hunt had, Arabel was making plans of her own. She may have been crippled, but she wasn’t to be discounted in their quest for freedom.
She would get them out of there.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“And I told youthat I forbid you to go search for them at this time,” Geoff snarled at Tevin. “It is your fault they were abducted in the first place so I will not allow you to use my resources to hunt down a woman who is nothing more to you than a possession. I have had an entire patrol of men wiped out near the Dartford Crossing and have commanded you to drive back those who have now commandeered the bridge. I want it back.”
Tevin was as close to striking Geoff as he had ever been in his life. Had de Lohr not been standing between him and Geoff, he more than likely would have ripped the man’s head off. Instead, he took a step back when Myles gave him a gentle shove on the chest, pushing him back and away from the confrontation. In the solar of Rochester, tempers were running high as precious time was wasted with Geoff’s delays.
If Geoff knows of your feelings for Cantia, he will see this as a game.Val’s words were rolling over and over in Tevin’s mind and he struggled to keep his mouth shut about anything with regard to Cantia. Geoff could not know she meant more to him than anything on earth. In fact, Tevin did not use Cantia as the focus at all. He used someone else.
“It is not Cantia I am after,” he rumbled. “I have explained this to you. My daughter is missing, Geoff, and I will find her. I am going in search of my child and you cannot stop me.”
“I can!”
“Then you shall have to kill me. Shall we retreat outside and face off against one another?”
Geoff backed down, but only slightly. He was still red about theface, twitching with fury. He had been pulled out of a dead sleep to face a problem he should not have to be facing, and he was very angry at his cousin for creating the situation. High and mighty Tevin always thought he knew best. Geoff was both thrilled and angry that his arrogant cousin had made a mistake.
