Strike at Midnight(32)

The crossbow whipped around my body as I threw it over my head so I could have the use of both hands. I reached out and grabbed the edge of the wagon, hoisting myself off Ginger’s back and onto the side of it. It was a bit precarious trying to hold on, but I managed it. The wagon wasn’t very big, and I only had to take one big step to get to a mounting bar at the front. Drivers used them to pull themselves up, but now I was using it to avoid being thrown off the side. Oh, and to steady myself while I punched the driver twice in the face.

“What the—,” he said at the sudden onslaught, and his partner who sat next to him grabbed the reins as my third punch knocked him out cold.

“Stop the wagon,” I said, and I held on with one hand so I could reach for my crossbow with the other. The guy completely ignored me until he saw the crossbow being cocked at his face. He didn’t need to know that there were no more arrows left in it to fire after his quick glance at it.

He looked worried, and then he let out one big curse word before throwing the reins at me and jumping off the other side of the wagon.

I pulled the unconscious guy off, knowing he would probably land better than his partner, and I could deal with them later. Right now, I needed to stop it before we crashed into the bushes.

The reins almost slid off where the guy had thrown them, and I caught them just in time. I yelled at the horses to stop and pulled at them in a way where they wouldn’t get any more overexcited than they actually were.

“Whoa!” I shouted again, and thankfully they pulled to a stop.

Ginger did the same and trotted around to stand in front of the horses. She did the horse head shaky thing where it looked like she was sneezing, but in a way, I suppose she was telling them to keep their asses still. Good girl, Ginger.

There was a yell of “come on” in the distance, and I jumped from the wagon to see what was going on.

The guy who had jumped off was now pulling the one who had been unconscious to his feet. He was awake and unsteady, but his partner dragged him along regardless.

I should have chased them. I knew it. But leaving a person out here alone and tied up was just asking for trouble.

Moving to the back, I could see there was a catch on either side of the rear of the wagon that I needed to release. I undid them and lowered the back of the wagon down.

“You’re safe now,” I said, still on my guard. This guy may still be an enemy, tied up or not. He was on his back when I finally got to him, and he groaned a little as he tried to sit up. I helped him—seeing as he was hindered with his hands tied behind his back—but he pulled back slightly when I did so as if he was in pain.

“Sorry,” I said about hurting him and the fact that I might have caused it by him being thrown around in the wagon. “Let me help you up.”

He did so, and I could tell from the shirt he wore that this wasn’t a man from Lower City. It looked far too expensive for that.

The dark shadows of the wagon only gave me a slight profile of his face, so I helped him shuffle to the edge where we had a bit more light. He still had the gag on, so as soon as he was at the edge, I decided to help him a bit more and remove it.

“There you go,” I said, looking up to humbly accept his gratitude, but then his face came into view and I finally registered who it was.

“You!” I said, my heart beating rapidly in my chest as I saw exactly who it was in front of me.

“You?” he repeated as he took my features in. A gigantic smile of relief and happiness beamed across his face.

I had only just gone and rescued my Lemonade Guy.

Holy crap balls on a cracker.





CHAPTER ELEVEN

Surprise!





“You!” I said again, and I could have sworn my eyes were on the verge of popping out of my head.

“I’m so pleased I’ve found you,” Lemonade Guy said, his smile never dropping once. “I have your slipper.” His smile dropped then. “But they took it.” His smile returned. “Wait…”

He turned around and leaned across the wagon floor.

“They took it off me and one of the men wrapped it into his jacket.” He unwrapped the bundle he now held in his arms. “See?” he asked, and as sure as snow the slipper was staring me back in the face. But that wasn’t important right now. The fact that this stupid idiot had gotten himself kidnapped was making my blood boil. It also made me feel a little bit nauseous at the thought of him being hurt, but he didn’t need to know that.

“What the hell are you doing out here?” I asked, but it came out more like a growl.

“My sincerest apologies,” he said, putting his hand on my arm then dropping it. “But you rescued me. I’m highly honored.” The beam of a smile was back.

“You could have gotten hurt,” I said through gritted teeth. I was barely holding on to my temper here. “You could have gotten yourself killed.”

“I’m sorry,” he said, pushing the slipper into my face. “But I had to return this to you. I’ve been trying every which way and failing, and I was worried about you. I just wanted to make sure you were well and that you got this back. It’s a very beautiful shoe.”

I pushed at his hands and he had to catch the slipper before it fell.

“I do not care about that right now. Do you hear me?” I asked, needing him to understand that what he had done was the most harebrained thing I had ever heard of. A scream of frustration lodged in my throat, but I pushed it back.