Page 17 of Always
Among the people coming out of the eastern gate, my gaze snagged upon a woman with a child braced on her hip. At first, I almost dismissed the pair. They appeared to be with a larger group of peasants who were likely returning home to the countryside with their unsold produce until the coming turmoil passed. As the woman walked, however, even with her head down and the burden on her hip, she held her shoulders too straight, and she moved with too much grace to be a peasant.
Relief swelled into my throat almost choking me. I slid out from the rock cropping where I’d hidden the wagon and started toward her. She glanced up occasionally, and I could tell she was attempting to search for me. But with the darkening evening, as well as the hustling of people leaving the city, she hadn’t spotted me. I was almost to her before she finally saw me.
Her brilliant green eyes connected with mine before I could drop them. The sadness there drove into my chest like the tip of an arrow. What had happened?
This was neither the time nor place to get the details of her escape with the princess. Not when the other peasants were eyeing us, likely wondering who we were. Even attired in my plain garments and with my head covered with a straw hat, my warrior status was difficult to disguise, every bit as much as Felicia’s nobility was.
“Wife,” I said loudly enough for onlookers to hear while allowing the accent from my peasant upbringing to lace my voice. Silently I encouraged her to go along with my pretense. “Where have you been? You’ve worried me.”
I tried to glimpse the face of the crown princess, but the little girl burrowed against Felicia. Either the child was frightened or Felicia had instructed her not to let anyone see her face. Whatever the case, we needed to get away from the crowd before someone guessed this was no ordinary little girl.
“My dear husband.” Felicia forced a smile.
Before I realized what she was doing, she lifted on her toes, braced a hand on my chest, and pressed her lips to my cheek. For a second, I was so startled I forgot to playact. I’d never been kissed, and I’d most certainly never entertained the thought of kissing a woman. A strange heat poured into my gut, stirring me so that I could only think about how soft and warm her lips were.
Before I could figure out how to respond, she broke the sweet, tender pressure and took a step back. Her lashes came down to hide her eyes, almost as if she wanted to cover up her embarrassment. And that’s when I saw the dampness on her lashes. She’d been crying.
I felt as though I ought to draw her into a hug or pat her arm or something. But of course, I was once again entirely inept at knowing how to interact. And I had no wish to frighten the princess with my closeness.
Instead, Felicia took the lead and slipped her hand into the crook of my arm. “I am ready, dear husband. Let us go home.”
Home. The word struck me. Neither of us would ever be able to go home. At least not as long as Ethelwulf claimed the throne of Mercia. We’d be hunted fugitives, never again safe, never again able to live a normal life.
My chest constricted at the prospect of what would happen to my mother and siblings if Ethelwulf ever learned of my name and my involvement in the rescuing of the princesses. I could only pray that the many men present in the king’s chamber wouldn’t reveal my identity, but I feared Ethelwulf would employ every method possible to glean information from them. I needed to send a message to my mother and siblings, warn them to move, change their identities, and count me as dead.
As Felicia’s fingers trembled against my arm, I realized with sudden clarity that her family would endure threats as well, if not worse. The women in the queen’s chambers had known Felicia was running away with the princesses. Under pressure from Ethelwulf, they’d reveal her name. Her family, as nobility, wouldn’t be able to disappear among the masses like my lowly family. They’d surely suffer and die.
My admiration of the strong young woman at my side swelled. And as I led her to the secluded place I’d left the wagon, I knew that I could no more abandon her than I could the princesses.
Once we were away from the crowds, I retrieved a crock from the wagon. “We must cover ourselves and the children in grease,” I said, removing the lid from the pig’s lard I’d purchased when I’d gathered the supplies we’d need in our travel to the abbey.
In the process of peeking into the satchels and showing the babes to the crown princess, Felicia paused and raised her eyebrows at me.
“It will prevent tracker hounds from locating us.” At least I hoped so. If nothing else, it would buy us a head start, which we so desperately needed.
Again, Felicia did as I asked. Even if she wrinkled her nose the entire time, she slathered Princess Constance along with the babes and didn’t raise a word of objection. Surprisingly, neither did the little girl. Although her big eyes were filled with questions and sadness, she cooperated with Felicia and was quiet.
“For the rest of our journey, you must pretend you are a poor peasant child,” Felicia spoke to the girl in hushed tones as she coated herself. “And you must pretend I am your mother and Lance is your father.”
I’d shed my cloak and shirt and was in the process of rubbing the grease across my chest from a spot behind a thick bush, giving both of us privacy. Felicia’s words brought to mind her brief kiss and made my stomach flip. Although I should simply consider the playacting as part of the plan, I couldn’t stop a burst of anticipation from coursing into my blood at the prospect of Felicia continuing the pretense of being my wife—
A sudden shrill scream rent the air, followed by harsh shouting.
In one swift motion, I grabbed my garments from the ground where I’d dropped them. I rounded the bush, my mind and body slipping easily into warrior mode. “We must go now.”
I didn’t waste time putting my shirt back on. Instead, bare-chested, I tossed the discarded clothing into the cart, lifted Felicia and the princess next to the babes, and then jumped onto the bench while at the same time cracking the reins to send the horses into a trot.
I didn’t look back at Everly as I drove the wagon hard and fast to the east. I didn’t need to. I knew what the screams meant. Ethelwulf’s men had arrived. They would search the city. When they didn’t find the princesses there, they’d start the hunt elsewhere. I prayed we’d have a day’s lead, but I suspected it would be much shorter.
“Let me drive for a while.” Felicia’s voice startled me from my dazed stupor. I blinked and tried to focus on the same blackness of night that had accompanied the past two hours of traveling. The faint haze of moonlight was erratic, coming out only when the cloud cover thinned.
Again, like last night, my inner direction guided us along the paths that crossed the wide-open Eastern Plains. The long canals cutting into the farmland for irrigation flowed from the Cress River but were too narrow and shallow for boats. The only way to traverse the plains was by foot or wagon, and I’d chosen a solitary route, one that would keep us away from the main traffic fleeing from Everly.
I shook my head, more to waken myself than to contradict Felicia. “Nay, I’m fine.”
“Please, Lance.” Her voice was like warm honey, too hard for me to resist. “How many days have you gone without slumber?”
I counted backward but couldn’t remember when I’d last had a sufficient amount of sleep. During the past fortnight of battle, I’d slumbered and fought in four-hour shifts like the rest of my comrades. And of course, I hadn’t slept at all last night or all day. It was no wonder my eyes were heavy.
