Page 44 of The Guardian's Witch

“I will take your good counsel into consideration—the next time.”

“So I’ll ask you again, Alex—what brings you here?”

“I’ve come for Lisbeth.” The hair on the back of his neck stood up. He fought to keep the casual tone in his voice and a smile on his face, but the mood was anything but congenial.

“I can’t let you take her.” Bryce drew out his reply. “She’s here under my protection.”

* * *

Lisbeth rested, at Bryce’s suggestion, while he got a man to take her back to Glen Kirk. She must have nodded off. She woke to the sound of clattering hooves on the cobblestone. She rushed to the window. Relief flooded through her when she saw Alex and his men ride into Ravencroft. She grabbed her cloak and searched for her pouch. She didn’t remember taking it off. Did she have it with her on the ride to Ravencroft? No, she must have left it at the lodge. She opened the bedroom door and was startled when she found Ramon standing there scowling at her.

“Your Alex is here.” Ramon grabbed at her arm. She winced and pulled it away. Great welts sprang up where he scratched her but Lisbeth ignored the pain. Free of the old man’s grasp, she dashed to the top of the stairs. She had an odd sense of being liberated for in truth she had always felt uncomfortable at Ravenscroft. This time was no different. Her stomach was clenched tight but she forced herself to calm down. Alex stood facing Bryce below in the hall. She looked at Bryce. He had made a miraculous recovery from the morning. She would never have known he’d suffered so severely.

“Be that as it may, Bryce, Lisbeth is mine, given to me by the king no matter what you think or what she wants. The king has given her to me along with Glen Kirk. I will take her now.”

Bryce stole a glance at her, an arrogant sneer on his face. Still in his cloak, he touched the spot where his clasp had been.

Ramon stepped behind her and poked her shoulder to encourage her down the stairs. Stumbling, she grabbed the railing to prevent from falling.

She stood in the large room feeling lost, alone, but more than anything, betrayed. Anger began to take the place of self-pity. She raised herself to her full height, determined not to let her reaction to anything he said register on her face; rather she gave the appearance of not caring.

How he must have laughed at her foolishness. For a few moments she thought she could be happy and safe. She never imagined the king would barter her off.

Alex turned and left. His men followed. He motioned to Gareth. “Bring her.”

* * *

Outside they mounted up. He had her sit on his lap. She worked hard to maintain an air of indifference. It wasn’t until they had gone a comfortable distance from Ravencroft that she let her rigid back finally relax.

“Lisbeth, why did you leave the castle? I gave orders everyone was to stay on the grounds.” His voice was devoid of emotion. It hammered at her and beat her down.

“In retrospect I used poor judgment. It will not happen again.” They rode on. “Is the king coming to witness our wedding, m’lord?”

“No.” Wasn’t he going to explain himself? Didn’t she at least deserve that?

She felt his muscles harden and turned to face him.

“We were married by proxy. The king stood as witness. And before you ask, Bryce knew. He was a witness along with the rest of the court.”

She turned away and closed her eyes. She was silent and defeated. “Is the king planning to take his bridal rights?”

“Lisbeth, of course not.”

Before his words were out she continued, “Will the court witness our marital bed to ensure I’m an innocent?”

“Stop, you go too far. I would never agree. Surely you know I wouldn’t.”

She refused to look at him. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of seeing her pain or the dried tracks of tears that had run down her face. “I’m sorry, m’lord. I don’t know any such thing. You see, I didn’t realize I was nothing more than part of your winnings from the king.”

They rode on in silence. She sat stiffened with dignity but inside, inside she was an empty shell.

* * *

Alex brought the small troop to a halt. He moved Prime away from the others and dismounted. He put his hands around her waist, helped her down, and walked her to a grove of trees. “From where are you bleeding?”

She looked at him with her head tilted. “Why would you think...”A picture of the blood by the hearth flashed in her mind. “I’m not bleeding.” Ice was in her voice. “It was Bryce’s blood you found.”

“What were you doing at the lodge?”

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