A Dishonorable Knight(53)

Elena returned a few minutes later but instead of moving to her bedroll, approached him and asked, "Is everything alright?"

"Oh, fine."

"You don't sound terribly convinced."

"It's just that I have this feeling..."

"What sort of feeling?" Elena asked as she sat on the ground at his feet.

Gareth struggled to explain it. "Sometimes I get this feeling in the pit of my stomach. It's like my insides are tied in a knot that grows tighter and tighter. My father used to call it my sense of doom because I was sure it meant something bad was about to happen."

"And did it?"

"Usually, no. But sometimes it was right and it saved my hide each time."

"When was the last time that happened."

"The day Richard's entourage was attacked."

Elena rubbed her arms and she quickly glanced around her, trying to peer into the dark of the forest. "What do you think is going to happen?" she whispered.

Gareth gave a soft, self-deprecating laugh. "Unfortunately, my stomach never tells me that." Sensing that Elena was frightened, he sat on his heels and said reassuringly, "Actually, I'm sure nothing is going to happen. In my whole life I've probably had this feeling a hundred times and it's been correct exactly twice. Since it worked last month, I'm not due for another right premonition for at least a couple of years."

Elena nodded her head and was about to speak when a horse whinnied far off in the woods. She jumped when Gareth put his hand over her mouth, but remained still, shaking slightly. He leaned close to her and for a moment, in that crazy way the brain has of conjuring abstract images, Gareth wished he could kiss her. Instead, he pressed his mouth against her ear and whispered faintly, "As quietly as possible, stand up and tie your skirts up so they won't be in the way. Then I want you to wake Bryant. Cynan always grunts and moans when he awakes so have Bryant put his hand over his mouth when you wake him. I'm going to get the horses."

He started to move away but Elena grabbed his arm frantically. In the darkness of the forest, her face was no more than a pale blur, but Gareth sensed her fear. Squeezing her hand reassuringly, he helped her to her feet.

Elena hitched her skirts to her knees and secured them as tightly as possible. Turning, she crept over to the nearest sleeping form. To her relief she saw that it was Bryant and she laid her hand on his chest, gently shaking him. His eyes opened immediately and when he saw her he sat up. Before he could speak she put her finger across her lips and whispered Gareth's instructions in his ear. Bryant nodded and quietly rolled to his feet. Elena quickly gathered up the blankets and rolled them into tight bundles. Turning, she discovered that Bryant had been able to awaken Cynan without so much as a peep. They all jumped when the crack of another twig was followed by the sound of bushes being brushed aside. Joining Gareth who had managed to saddle the horses, Cynan gestured behind them where they had heard the last noise. Gareth nodded as he took the blankets from Elena and strapped them to his saddle. He pointed in the direction of the stream and indicated that they should walk rather than ride. Cynan and Bryant took the reins of their horses and disappeared into the blackness of the trees.

Gareth put Isrid's reins in Elena's hands and whispered in her ear, "Follow Bryant and walk as quietly as possible." Elena was about to object but Gareth put his hand to her mouth and said, "I have to see if it is the English. We may be fleeing from a family of rabbits." With a quick kiss to her forehead, he turned and was gone. Elena tugged on Isrid's reins and set off after Bryant's horse, trying desperately to worry about her own safety rather than Gareth's. Low-hanging branches scratched her cheeks and caught at her hair but she simply gritted her teeth and pushed on, wincing at the rustle of leaves underfoot, terrified that whoever was behind them could surely hear her heart thumping in fear. They pushed on for what Elena felt must have been hours but was probably only a couple of minutes when a hand came out of the gloom and clamped itself over her mouth. She was about to struggle when the owner of the hand whispered, "It's me, Gareth." Nearly faint with relief, Elena allowed him to pull her along after him as he caught up to Cynan and Bryant.

"I didn't hear them say anything, but if they're not soldiers, I don't know who they are. There are at least a dozen of them and they're all heavily armed," he whispered.

"Do they know we're here?" Bryant asked, looking worriedly at Elena.