Fresh hope welled up inside.
I glanced over my shoulder to gauge my situation and swerved to miss an arrow. As I pivoted in my saddle, I was surprised to see Isabelle charging into the battle instead of retreating. Sir Darien and the other knight rode alongside her. Why would they do such a thing? They needed to take her back to Pitt’s camp where she would be safe.
She unsheathed her sword and pointed it forward in readiness for battle.
At that moment, I realized two things: the tall knight with the broad shoulders was none other than my brother, Sir Bennet, and the woman by his side wasn’t Isabelle. It was Olivia.
A deadly chill coursed through my blood. I tried to shout at her to retreat, but again, my gag stifled my words. Olivia had switched places with Isabelle to protect her sister. She’d apparently hoped the veil in combination with ducking her head would keep her identity a secret. Now that the battle was raging, it was clear she planned to take part in my rescue.
Bennet was steering her out of the worst of the melee toward the sidelines all the while fighting off advancing soldiers. Darien was doing the same. But an arrow came flying too closely, missing her head by only a foot.
The chill inside seeped deeper. Suddenly all that mattered was getting to Olivia and shielding her. She was a strong, capable, brave woman. Of that I had no doubt. But she had no place on the battlefield.
At the pounding of hooves behind me, I shot a glance over my shoulder and caught sight of Eldridge riding after me. He’d ushered the earl away from Pitt and had been leading him back to the castle. But now, likely with strict instructions to make sure I didn’t get away, he rode low and fast. With every long stride, he closed the distance.
I kicked at my mount’s flank. But before I could gain the momentum, pain pierced through my back and into my shoulder. I’d been hit. The slice of the arrowhead, in addition to the pain of my other injuries, was too much to bear. I lost my grip on the pommel and fell from my horse, slamming against the ground with such force that I couldn’t breathe.
Chapter
23
Aldric was down and Eldridge was almost upon him.
I shouted another command to my horse, dug in my heels, and flattened my body against the charging beast. I had to get to Aldric. His hands were chained, he was weaponless, and he was too weak to fight. He needed my help.
Unfortunately, Eldridge was closer and reached Aldric first. The stocky commander hopped from his horse and swung the hilt of his sword toward Aldric’s head, likely intending to knock him unconscious so he could control him more easily.
Thankfully, Aldric’s reflexes were still quick enough that he rolled away. At the sight of the arrow embedded into his shoulder, my blood spurted with new dread.
“He took an arrow to the shoulder,” I called to Sir Bennet, who’d been doing his best to keep me from danger.
From the moment he’d found me sneaking toward Lord Pitt’s camp and pricked me with the tip of his sword, I’d seen the resemblance to Aldric in his handsome features. When Lord Pitt had introduced him a short while later as Aldric’s brother, I hadn’t been surprised.
Apparently as soon as Lord Pitt had discovered that my father captured Aldric, he’d sent news to Sir Bennet. Aldric’s brother lived on the family estate at Maidstone Castle, which was in the neighboring vicinity to Lord Pitt.
Sir Bennet had answered the summons with all haste and had brought with him a small army of his own, including a long-time friend, Sir Collin, who was an expert bowman. Added to Lord Pitt’s men, they provided a formidable foe. I’d since learned that Sir Bennet and Sir Collin were a part of an elite group of knights trained by the Duke of Rivenshire, the king’s brother.
When Sir Bennet had ushered me into Lord Pitt’s presence, I’d informed him of all that had transpired since the boar hunt. I’d even revealed to him my father’s desire to have the Holy Chalice and his intentions of torturing Aldric to learn the location of the relic.
After I’d shared my news, Lord Pitt had conversed with Sir Bennet and Sir Collin before issuing numerous orders to his men and initiating a plan to counterattack my father. I’d insisted in taking Isabelle’s place, and thankfully Lord Pitt had agreed to it without a word of argument.
Now as I raced toward Aldric, I had only one thought in mind—I needed to keep Eldridge from capturing Aldric and dragging him back inside Wigmore. I wouldn’t let Father take Aldric hostage again.
Even if Eldridge had overpowered me in the dungeons, I’d find a way to defeat him this time. I was at a disadvantage without my armor, but I’d do anything to protect Aldric.
I loved him. The powerful truth coursed through my body. I no longer had the will to pretend or the strength to deny the love that had been pulsing through my veins with growing intensity so that now it drowned out all else.
Eldridge lifted the blunt end of his sword toward Aldric’s head again. I was close enough that I rose in my saddle and leapt from my horse. I crashed against Eldridge and knocked him to the ground hard. I rolled, my skirts tangling. Wrenching them free, I jumped up. Before Eldridge could catch his breath and move, I pounced onto his chest with both feet. Then I pointed my blade against his throat.
“I shall not allow you to hurt Aldric ever again.”
Eldridge gasped for breath but stared up at me with his hard, impassive expression.
From the corner of my vision, I saw that Bennet had dismounted next to Aldric and was beginning to cut the binding that gagged him.
“Help him onto my horse,” I ordered Bennet even as I moved my boot to Eldridge’s arm to prevent him from going after any hidden weapons. “Quickly.”
“Is she always this bossy?” Bennet asked Aldric, a hint of humor in his voice.
“Always,” Aldric said as he spat the rag from his mouth.
Bennet grabbed Aldric and assisted him to his feet. At the jarring motion, Aldric sucked in a hissing breath.
At the sound of his pain, I glanced at Aldric. Our gazes connected long enough for me to see his fear—the fear that something would happen to me. I could tell he wanted to order me to leave, to retreat somewhere safe.
Instead of doing so, he nodded his thanks for helping to save his life. In that simple nod, I loved him even more. He was a humble and strong man, one humble enough to learn from his past, and one strong enough to break the shackles and move forward.
I started to nod back but felt myself falling from Eldridge. He’d used the moment of my distraction to his advantage. In an instant, our roles were reversed. He flipped me to the ground and stood over me, his boot grinding into my chest and cutting off my breath.
From nearby, Aldric yelled something and Bennet replied. But before I could gather a new strategy, Eldridge swung the hilt of a sword toward my head. The blunt edge slammed into my temple and pain exploded into a thousand bright lights before all went dark.
Chapter
24
The moment Olivia landed on her back and Eldridge took a swing at her, I roared and barreled forward. I didn’t care that I didn’t have a weapon or that I was injured with an arrowhead still embedded into my shoulder.
Like an enraged wild boar, I put my head down and tackled Eldridge, taking him down to the ground. The moment our bodies collided, I swung my chained wrists into his head with a strength borne of my desperation and anger. The clank of the metal crunched against his skull.
Even with so heavy a blow, Eldridge fumbled against me, attempting to get a solid grasp of his sword.
I roared again, releasing my anger at him for hurting Olivia. I swung my shackled wrists once more, this time bringing them harder against his head. I pummeled him, until at last he grew still underneath me.