Page 65 of Enamored
I nodded. Maxim was right.
More shouts rose around us, voices filled with urgency. Our time was running out, and my pulse pounded with indecision. I didn’t want to abandon my country or the king in their time of dire need. “I do not want to run away from trouble, Maxim. Not if I can be of aid.”
“You will be of greater aid to your country if you stay out of Rasmus’s clutches.” The shadows in Maxim’s eyes told me he was speaking to himself as well.
“If the king returns to Vordinberg, will he not also be in danger? What if Rasmus continues to plot against him?”
“I’ve alerted Ansgar of Rasmus’s threat. And Lis knows. We must trust them now to keep the king safe.” Maxim’s grasp tightened against my arm, and he tugged me away from the longboats upriver.
I didn’t resist as he led me down the steep riverbank to the water’s edge where Halvard was already waiting with our horses. Packs of supplies were tied upon each of the saddles. Apparently, Maxim and Halvard anticipated a long journey ahead.
Halvard nodded at me gravely, and the reality of the situation smacked me hard in the chest, making my breath catch. They were protecting me so that no one could take the throne from me. I wanted to protest, to shout out that I still didn’t want to be the next ruler of Norvegia. It was too much pressure. Too many expectations. And I wouldn’t ever be ready for the challenge.
If I survived, I would much rather spend my days advancing my Erudite training alongside Maxim and someday becoming a wisewoman, a Royal Sage. Was that too much to hope for? Or should I leave my secret dreams buried?
Maxim’s hand slid down into mine. Though we wore gloves, I could feel his warmth and strength. He squeezed gently, clearly sensing my inner turmoil. When I glanced up, I found him watching me, his eyes reading my thoughts with such keenness.
“You rose to the challenge on the battlefield and showed your inner strength with all that you accomplished.” His tone was soft and assuring. “If the time comes for you to do so again, you’ll go forward, knowing you have the strength to do anything God asks of you.”
My thoughts raced back to helping the wounded and the king. Ihaddone much more than I’d believed myself capable of doing.
“God always gives us the exact amount of courage we need to face whatever task he puts before us.” Maxim’s quote of a wise old saying resonated within me. Yes, God had given me exactly what I’d needed at the right moment. No more, no less. Would he do so the next time? I could only pray Maxim was right.
I released his hand and crossed to the horses. “Where to, Halvard?”
Instead of helping me into the saddle, Halvard handed me the reins, his expression still grim. “We’ll be swimming upstream a ways, Your Highness.”
“If we stay low”—Maxim waded in ahead of me—“hopefully, Canute’s forces won’t notice us.”
I followed him in, the river water soaking through my leather boots and weighing down my skirts.
Some of the longboats had already launched, and the rowers were digging in deep, attempting to get out of range of King Canute’s archers.
Halvard and Maxim plunged in deeper, urging their horses to move as swiftly as they could against the rushing water.
The frigidness of the water nearly robbed me of breath. But I pushed myself anyway, allowing the horse’s momentum to drag me forward. “Do we have enough time?”
“Using the distance-speed-time formula, the speed is the distance divided by the time.” Maxim detailed his mathematical equations, listing off several approximations. Each one left me with the same conclusion. We needed a miracle if we hoped to get away before someone from among Canute’s forces spotted us.
Chapter
25
Maxim
Elinor’s teeth chattered.Her skin was pale. And she could hardly move. After only nine minutes in the river, she was already freezing.
Urgency prodded me. We had to find the caves Lis had mentioned. Soon.
I pulled Elinor along more rapidly, my hands and legs numb and prickling with the pain of being frozen. “See anything?” I called to Halvard, who slogged a step ahead of us.
He shook his head.
Elinor stumbled, her legs too cold to help her any longer.
If my calculations were correct, we had less than two minutes left before Canute’s army reached the river. It wasn’t enough time. Someone on the edge of Canute’s line of soldiers would spot us all too easily.
Ahead, the riverbank rose into cliffs. Once we reached the rocky area, we wouldn’t be able to climb out anywhere nearby on either side of the river and attempt to outride the enemy. We would be stuck moving upriver.
