Page 317 of Redemption Arc Romance

Ellowyn took a few steps towards him. Then, she reached out and took his hand. Their touch was filled with sorrow. Brandt brought her hand to his lips and kissed it tenderly.

“I am sorry,” he said. “I wish this had turned out for the better.”

Ellowyn was deeply grieved. His touch made it worse. She clasped his big hand in her two soft, warm ones.

“I do not want you to leave without me,” she said, her throat tight. “I am afraid I will never see you again.”

He kissed her hand again. “Of course you will,” he promised. “This is only a small setback. It is not the end.”

She was starting to tear up, wiping at her eyes. “My father is very stubborn,” she whispered. “I am afraid he will never give in. The more you press him, the more he will dig in.”

“Then what do you suggest?”

She gazed up at him, eyes brimming. “I will go with you when you leave on the morrow,” she said. “We will be married at the first church we come across and that will be the end of it.”

He wasn’t surprised by the suggestion. Truth be told, he had been thinking the same thing but wasn’t sure she would agree. “You would defy your father?”

“I would. For you, I would do anything. I cannot stomach the thought of being separated from you, not even for a moment. Please, Brandt, let us leave here and never look back.”

He gripped her hands tightly, kissing them gently. He gazed into her eyes as he caressed her fingers.

“Sweetheart, you must understand that defiance of that magnitude would render you separated from your family, perhaps for eternity,” he said softly. “I cannot stomach the thought of being separated from you, either, but I am not sure defying your father’s wishes is a good idea.”

“He would forgive me, eventually,” she said with a shrug. “My father only has one child that he recognizes. He has disowned my brother but he will not disown me. If he does, then he is the fool you have accused him of being. Perhaps… perhaps all of these years I have been viewing him through the eyes of an adoring child. Now, I view him through the eyes of a grownwoman and I do not like what I see. I cannot believe he would say such things to you without basis.”

Brandt sighed, still caressing her hands. “They are not entirely without basis,” he muttered. “Your father was correct in some aspects. I use ruthless tactics to gain my wants and the wants of Edward. I have looted, burned, and pillaged. I have killed innocents. It does not give me pleasure to say that, but it is true. They call me the Bringer of Death for a reason, Wynny. You must not be fooled by romantic notions. I have killed my share.”

She gazed up at him, her expression even. “I realize that,” she said. “I do not have silly romantic notions. But what you did, you did in the course of war. War does not always protect the innocents. I am sure you did not go out of your way to kill them, did you?”

“And if I did?”

She averted her gaze thoughtfully as Brandt watched her anxiously. “I cannot change the past, I suppose,” she finally said, looking up at him. “But perhaps… perhaps for the future, you would reconsider killing those who are helpless, even if it is in the name of the prince. Would you at least consider it? I would like to think that you are a man of mercy, Brandt.”

He regarded her a moment. “Perhaps,” he said softly. “But the idealistic concepts of chivalry on the battlefield are unrealistic. Chivalry can get a man killed. We must do as we must in order to survive and achieve victory.”

Ellowyn cocked her head. “That is logical thinking.”

“It is indeed pragmatic.”

They gazed at each other for a few moments as Brandt continued to caress her hands, buried deep within his massive mitts.

“I will go with you,” she whispered. “To the Devil with my father.”

He sighed. “I am not entirely sure that is wise.”

“If you do not take me with you, I will simply follow you. It is your choice, in your caravan or behind it.”

He cocked an eyebrow. “You would, wouldn’t you?”

“Aye.”

He sighed, long and slow. He might have even rolled his eyes at her. But beyond that, he didn’t put up much of a fight. He wanted her with him, too, in the very worst way. The feel of her, the visual sense of her, filled him up like nothing he had ever known before. Already, she was becoming what was most precious to him.

“Very well, then,” he agreed. “Be ready before dawn.”

She grinned. “And we will be married at the first church we come across?”

“Do you know any nearby?”