Pivoting around, he squatted and threw his sword at the man. The Mutah stepped away, believing Lucien was aiming for his legs. But he was totally unprepared for the battle prince to let go.
The razor-sharp blade winked in the moonlight as it twirled toward the big man. At the last second the Mutah realized he needed to jump, but Johna’s body was an added weight his body couldn’t compensate for.
The sword struck the man below the knees, embedding itself sideways into both legs. The man screamed and dropped the young woman onto the rocks. Lucien glanced at her, then at the rapidly departing figure in the distance as the big man collapsed.
“Who?” Atty’s voice whispered beside him. Simultaneously, the tip of an arrow appeared at the corner of his eye.
Lucien pointed to the runner. “Him.”
She didn’t question why. The arrow softly sang as it whizzed through the air, and the figure pitched forward, face down, into the water.
Dropping to his knees, he reached for Johna, turning her over to find a large lump above her left eye. He started to call for Iain, when the physician hurried up, breathing heavily.
“What’s happened?”
“Take care of her,” he ordered, and rose to his feet. His father was already standing over the wounded Mutah moaning in pain. Yulen gave his son a questioning look.
“I heard some unusual noise and discovered these two making off with Johna after they’d cold-cocked her. I overheard them say something about drowning her and dumping her body downstream.”
“Why?” Yulen demanded of the man. The guy eyed him but didn’t reply.
Hobron joined them, as did several other Mutah. The battle lord’s soldiers stayed in the background, but Lucien noticed how they circled him and the others, in the event there was another attack. In which case, the Mutah wouldn’t stand a chance.
“Lomas Mortigan, explain your actions,” the councilman commanded.
The Mutah remained silent as he glared at those around him. He didn’t dare move, not so much because of the armed guards surrounding him, but because the sword remained jammed into his lower legs. Blood soaked through his pants and was already pooling on the ground. From the pain crossing his face, Lucien knew the man was in agony.
“How is she?” Yulen’s question alerted him to where Iain knelt beside the huntress.
“I can’t tell, and I won’t be able to give you any sort of answer until she awakens, if she awakens. There’s another sizeable swelling at the back of her head. My guess is someone tried to knock her out as she slept, but didn’t succeed, which was why he had to hit her again.” The physician pointed to the wounded man. “Want me to address his injuries?”
Hobron took a step back and turned to the battle lord. “Since we are under your authority, and you are graciously allowing us to seek sanctuary under your banner, I concede to your judgment as to this man’s fate.”
To Lucien’s surprise, Yulen motioned to his son. “What punishment should we give this man? I leave the decision to you.”
Personally, Lucien knew what his first impulse was. But he was being called on in his capacity of battle prince. His final word would either condemn or save the man. And his actions would reflect to the soldiers and Mutah watching him what kind of leader he could be.
“Remove my sword but don’t tend to his wounds,” he instructed. “He will not be taken back to New Bearinger with the rest of the group, nor will he accompany us. He will be left here, alone and weaponless. It’s a better fate than what he’d planned for Johna. At least he has a marginal chance of survival.”
Yulen nodded. “Very well. Follow through, Dr. MaGrath.” Sighing, the battle lord glanced around at those gathered. “And since we’re already up, we might as well strike camp and head out. Let’s go.”
Chapter Nineteen
Explanation
“She’ll need to ride with you,” Atty informed her son. “I’ll help you tie her onto the saddle so she won’t fall off.”
Lucien thanked his mother and gently lifted Johna into his arms to carry her over to where a soldier had brought out his horse for him. Another soldier came up behind him with Lucien’s sword he’d removed from the Mutah, wiping it off before handing it back to the battle prince. Lucien was also vaguely aware of Paas trotting up to Atty to hand her the arrow she’d used to shoot the other Mutah. His mother had always been frugal in that regard, and reused her ammunition whenever possible.
Yulen was already mounted and waiting for them to join him. As Lucien hoisted himself into his saddle, he noticed his father staring back at the injured Mutah who hadn’t moved from where he’d fallen.
“I’m impressed.”
“Oh?” Lucien noticed the smile on his father’s face, and wondered what had put it there.
“I want you to know I highly approve of your decision. You showed compassion, yet at the same time, you condemned the man for his actions and intent.”
“It wasn’t my first decision,” Lucien admitted.
“Of course not. Very rarely do we ever get the luxury of acting on our first impulse.” Yulen turned to him and cocked his head. “I’m still confused as to why you threw your sword at him.”
Lucien shrugged. “That was definitely an impulse. He was using Johna as a shield. I felt that if I tried to cut him down, I’d hit her instead. Besides, he’d beat my ass within seconds if I tried to face him in hand-to-hand combat. Not to mention what his good buddy might try to do.” Seeing a strange expression cross his father’s face, he hurried to add, “I know you and Mattox and everyone else have repeatedly told me time and again never to give up my sword, and I apologize. But I—”
“I think it was a wise move, and the only option you had,” his father countered, ignoring his son’s astonishment. “I don’t think I’ve ever thrown my sword at someone, and I certainly haven’t used it like a scythe, but in this instance it worked.”
“Maybe his skill is not so much how well he wields a weapon, but how he uses it,” Atty remarked, and climbed up into her saddle. She gave Lucien a smile, then glanced at the woman tied behind him. Johna’s cheek rested against his back; her arms hung limply by her side.
“Do they remind you something, beloved?” she asked, turning to Yulen.
He gave his son a bewildered stare, when it dawned on him. “When Liam and I took you away from Wallis.”