Chapter Nine
Luke stood to race after Nessa, but the act of getting to his feet sent a wave of dizziness cresting over him. He was in no shape to run. He took a moment to regain his balance and stood straight. His side ached. It had been a good cut, but he was certain he would recover. He walked toward the door. He hadn’t meant to hurt Nessa, he had only... He had only wanted to kiss her, to touch her. Her horrified look was not the response he had hoped for. But he knew now. He knew he was not in love with Mel, if he ever had been. He had to find Nessa and speak to her. He made his way to the door.
He heard a stifled cry and froze. The small cat suddenly raced inside the barn, running at full pace. It passed him and disappeared into the darkness.
Prickles raced along the nape of his neck. He quickly moved back to the stall and shoved the hay aside where Nessa hid his sword. He found it immediately and picked it up, hurrying to the door. Lightning split the sky in a fork, lighting the lands in a dim white light. The scene Luke saw sent terror through him.
A man held Nessa’s arm and was pulling her toward a horse.
Luke walked with a determined gait outside to intercept them. “Let her go!”
Nessa turned, reaching a hand toward him. Her eyes were wide in fear, her mouth partly open.
An image of his mother’s hand uplifted in defense flashed in his mind. His father stood over her, his fist raised, a sneer on his face. He had not been able to save her, but he would save Nessa. He clenched his jaw.
The man behind her lifted his weapon.
“No!” Luke cried and his determined stride turned to a full out run as he recognized Urien.
Urien brought the handle down. Nessa dropped to the ground.
Luke crossed swords with him immediately. Sparks flew from the collision of the blades. Luke swung, again and again, driving him back from Nessa.
Urien blocked the blows and retreated with a grimace.
Luke rained blow upon blow down on Urien; his only thought was to get to Nessa. Desperation washed over him. He slammed his sword against Urien’s, but was blocked at every swing. Luke couldn’t afford to take his eyes from Urien, but he wanted to look at Nessa. He blocked one of Urien’s strikes, before attacking again, ignoring the pain in his side.
Luke shoved Urien back with a kick to his chest. He heard a noise behind him and glanced over his shoulder to see Nessa sitting up, rubbing her head. Relief speared through him until he saw the strand of red snaking down from her hairline. He turned to see Urien rising to his feet. Luke’s hand tightened in fury over the pommel of his sword and he approached Urien. “It’s not enough you had to push her down, but to make her bleed.”
“And I will make you bleed, too.” Urien attacked, swinging his blade in deadly arcs and targeted thrusts.
Luke blocked them all, moving purposefully. He would not give ground to Urien. Nessa was behind him. He held his left arm against his wound to stabilize it as much as he could. But Nessa’s life and his own depended on him ignoring it. Urien was a skilled fighter. But he was not a knight. His skill came from practice and the occasional brawl. He had never fought in a war. He had never fought for his life. Luke was relentless; blocking and dodging Urien’s attack and then going on the offensive. Thrusting. He caught Urien’s blade and swung his hand around, almost disarming him. But Urien backed away at the last moment.
Lightning flashed in the sky above them as Urien laughed. “You’ve improved since I last faced you.”
“We were boys then.”
Urien grimaced. “But you were always the favorite.”
“You refused to follow the code of chivalry. If you had tried instead of using your strength against those weaker than you, you would not have been banished.”
Urien’s lips curled in a sneer. “Always defending those weaker than yourself.Youare weak. You were weak then and you are weak now. You can’t protect her.”
Luke fought down the panic. Urien’s words echoed his own fears. If he failed to protect Nessa, Urien would kill her. Just like his father had done to his mother. Luke pressed his arm to his wound. The cloth was becoming moist. “And you will kill her? She was your friend when you were young! We all were!”
“No one was my friend!” Urien howled. “Only Melwyn.”
“What did you think would happen when you kept pushing Nessa?”
Suddenly, Nessa was at his side. “He didn’t just push me. The last time, he struck me. Father found out. That’s why he banished him.”
Urien stepped forward, raising his sword. “You told him!” he spat with hatred.
Nessa shook her head. “No. I didn’t. I never told father. Mel did. She was trying to look out for me.”
“Liar!”
Luke pushed Nessa back as Urien rushed forward. They locked swords.
