Page 74 of While Angels Slept
“Is she well?”
“She is well, Father.”
The knowledge helped Tevin’s state of mind tremendously.She is well, Father. He found himself muttering a silent prayer but in the next breath, he was seized with the overwhelming desire to find her. She was here, somewhere, and he had to get to her. As he approached his charger, Myles came thundering up. His fair face slackened as he recognized Arabel.
“Lady Arabel,” he sounded relieved and surprised. He looked at Tevin. “Where did you find her?”
Tevin jerked his head in the direction of the darkened shack. “She was in there,” he said. “But Hunt is missing. Apparently, he ran off to find help. He is out here, somewhere, de Lohr. Find him.”
Myles was even more panic-stricken than Tevin was at the thought of Hunt wandering around the dangerous settlement. He bolted off, calling Hunt’s name, as Tevin mounted his daughter on his war horse and mounted behind her. He didn’t particularly want to take her with him as he hunted for Cantia but he had little choice. He wasn’t going to let her out of his sight.
The settlement was in complete bedlam by the time Tevin and Arabel rode into a clearing in the center of the encampment. There were two massive bonfires blazing with the remnants of supper cooking on them. Word had spread that Lady Arabel had been found, but Lady Cantia and her son were still missing. Three hundred armed men could do a lot of damage, and they certainly did as they ruthlessly searched for Lady Penden and her son.
Tevin stayed directly out of the search purely because of Arabel. He lingered near the bonfires as his men searched around him. He wasjoined periodically by his senior men, bringing him reports of sections searched that had turned up nothing. He tried not to let his apprehension get the better of him as time went along and still no Cantia or Hunt.
Eventually, he dismounted his charger and began to pace, watching his men rip the place apart in their quest. He wanted them to rip it apart even more. If Cantia and Hunt didn’t show up soon, he was going to have them burn it for good measure. Fury and fear were fully entrenched in his chest, like great claws, threatening to tear him asunder.
But those emotions were doused when he heard someone call his name. It was a female voice, a familiar call, and his panic evaporated.
Tevin spun around in the direction of the voice, so swiftly that he nearly lost his balance. His gaze found Cantia walking towards him out of the darkness, her beautiful face full of disbelief. Here they were, in the middle of madness, and she was walking towards him as easily as if she were out for an afternoon stroll. She was looking at him as if she could hardly believe her eyes and Tevin found that he couldn’t breathe. All he could do was run at her.
Cantia ran, too, and suddenly she was up in Tevin’s arms, sobs of relief and joy bursting out all over the place. She had her arms around his helmed head and somehow, he ripped his helmet off and still managed to hold her tightly, now kissing her furiously as she sobbed. His lips were all over her face, tasting the salt from her tears.
“Sweetheart,” he gasped in between kisses. “Are you well? Have they harmed you?”
Cantia shook her head, her hands in his long hair, returning his kisses. “Nay,” she wept, finally pulling away from his furious mouth so she could breathe. “I have not been harmed. I am well.”
Tevin couldn’t seem to stop kissing her but when his movements slowed, he hugged her so tightly that he heard her spine pop. He eventually set her to her feet, his enormous hands cupping her face simply so he could look at her. Heart pounding as he tried to calmhimself down, his dark eyes drank in every beautiful line.
“You are sure you are well?” he asked, his voice trembling.
“I am sure.”
“Swear it?”
Cantia nodded, running her fingers across his lips and watching him eagerly kiss her flesh. “They did not harm us,” she stressed, becoming increasingly aware of the screams and shouts going on around them. “Please call your men off, Tevin. These people have not been cruel in the least.”
He was confused, suspicious. “But they abducted you and killed two of my knights,” he said. “How can you say they have not been cruel?”
Cantia’s features paled. He could see it even in the moonlight. “Dear God,” she breathed. “Val…?”
He shook his head. “Val is alive,” he assured her. “I was referring to Dagan and Gavril. Val made it back to Rochester to tell us what happened. She is injured but she will survive.”
Cantia breathed a heavy sigh of relief. “Praise God,” she said sincerely. “I was so worried about her. Dagan hit her very hard.”
Tevin’s brow furrowed. “Daganhit her?” he repeated. “What do you mean?”
Cantia’s features hardened with anger and disgust. “Exactly that,” she said. “It was Dagan who betrayed us, Tevin. He hit Val on the head and then killed his own cousin so they could not interfere with his plans. It would seem that Charles promised the knight my hand in marriage. He was planning on taking me to the nearest church to be married and then he was going to ransom Arabel to you in exchange for Charles’ freedom. He had all manner of grand and terrible plans to marry me and become a wealthy man, all thanks to Charles’ scheming.”
Tevin stared at her. “What madness is this?” he could hardly believe what he was hearing. “You are certain that is what Dagan told you?”
Cantia nodded. “He threatened to hurt Hunt if I did not comply,” she said, thinking back on that horrible moment in time. “Just as he was preparing to take us away, Gillywiss and his people came out of thewoods and put an arrow in him. Then they spirited us away so, in a sense, they really saved us. You owe them much.”
Tevin was furious, confused and overwhelmed by the entire story. After a moment’s hesitation, he turned to a couple of soldiers standing nearby and barked orders for them to cease the raid. Those two men disbursed, calling out commands to the group as a whole, and the entire force began to wind down their assault.
Tevin watched his men for a moment to make sure they were obeying before returning his attention to Cantia.
“Who is Gillywiss?” he asked. “Is he the leader?”
