A Warrior’s Heart by Misty M. Beller
29
Evan stayed out of the way while the two men secured Hugo on the fur pallet, binding his legs at the ankles, then tying the straps at his wrists and feet together. Evan didn’t envy the man who would be tasked with guarding this mouthy lad. The more they trussed Hugo, the louder he denied his guilt.
No one wasted their breath to argue with him. Hugo may be guilty of nothing more than letting a fiend drip poison into his ear, but that would be up to the council to determine.
When they were done, Brielle motioned for Wesley to stay and guard Hugo, then waved Evan and Leonard with her as they left the room. She didn’t speak again until they reached the Durand chambers, where Philip paced by the fire.
He spun to face them as they entered. The room held no sign of Brielle’s father or anyone else. Had the senior Durand taken his younger children away to allow them privacy to plan?
Brielle motioned the three of them around her and quickly brought Philip up to speed on Evan’s release and Hugo’s capture. She skimmed over the reason why Hugo and Gerald needed to be apprehended. “Now it’s time to ready things to take in Gerald. He’s out hunting now, and one of the elders is watching for his return. He’s not expected until dusk, but he may come back early to ready things for his plot tonight.”
Packing for his escape, no doubt.
Brielle’s gaze shifted between them as she spoke, but it seemed to hover on him more than either of the others. As much as he tried to push aside his feelings and focus on the work at hand, he was having trouble making his body obey.
“There are several ways we could take him into custody, but I’d like a vote. It’s critical we’re all of the same mind for this to succeed.” She looked at each of them in turn. “We could have a lookout posted outside the gate or in the gatehouse to alert us when he’s coming. Then the four of us can take him there at the gate.” She narrowed her gaze as she spoke. “Or we could wait in his chamber and capture him there.”
That sounded like the safer option of the two, giving Gerald less of a chance to escape. If he made it out of his chamber, he’d still have to flee to the outer walls to be free. Not likely he could accomplish that with the four of them giving chase and others watching. But if Gerald did get away, could he survive out in the cold on his own? He would have his hunting gear and winter clothing, so he might manage it.
But they wouldn’t let him get away. Evan would have his gun and could stop the man with a well-placed bullet. Not that he relished shooting anyone, but he would do what he had to for Brielle’s safety.
“A third option would be to wait for his return and have him summoned, as we did with Hugo.” Brielle’s mouth settled into a firm line as she waited for input. He couldn’t read in her manner whether she preferred any of the suggestions over another.
“Do you think Gerald is likely to obey a summons? Or will he be suspicious?” Evan asked. From what he’d seen of the man, Gerald seemed the suspicious type, especially if he was in the middle of carrying out a traitorous plot.
Brielle raised her brows. “I suspect he’d try to avoid it, even if the command came from the council. He’d have little reason to pacify our leadership.”
Just as Evan had thought. It felt good to be of the same mind as her.
“Your second plan seems like the best way to ensure he doesn’t escape.” Maybe Evan should give one of the others the chance to offer an opinion, but neither man seemed eager to speak up. He turned to them. “Do you think it likely someone else could be injured if we took him captive in his chamber?”
Philip still seemed to be absorbing the entire situation, but Leonard drew his brows low. “Gerald lives in the smaller homes, where some of the unmarried men reside. I doubt any of them would get in the way. There’s a slight chance he would try to sway some of them to help him. I can’t imagine any would, once they saw he was resisting arrest. Most people see through Gerald’s bluster.”
Evan nodded. Leonard spoke like he knew the young men, possibly better than Brielle, which made sense. “So, there’s a good chance of success with that plan?”
Leonard’s nod came slowly. “That seems the best approach to me.”
Brielle turned to Philip. “What say you?”
The man gave a single nod. “I agree. The whole situation is unfortunate, but I think that’s the best way to do what has to be done.”
Brielle cast her gaze around the group. “We’re agreed? Any opposed?”
After receiving an affirming nod from each of them, Brielle laid out the specifics that she must have already plotted in her mind. He couldn’t help but admire her leadership skills. No wonder these men submitted to her authority so well. She gave each person a voice, even when she probably had already planned every detail. Her methods had likely been successful in the past, or they wouldn’t agree as easily as they did now.
When they’d discussed everything Evan could imagine needing to know, Brielle stood and moved to the door, then peered through a slot. “Dusk will be on us soon. We should take our places.”
Brielle was glad she’d assigned Evan to wait with her inside Gerald’s apartment. A few quiet moments to talk were certainly in order.
Yet they couldn’t do more than whisper, for they had to make sure Gerald didn’t hear anything until he entered the room. Philip was hidden outside, and Leonard in the chamber next door where he could watch for Gerald through a crack in that room’s door, then signal the man’s approach.
It would be up to her and Evan to capture Gerald while surprise still gave them the upper hand. Philip and Leonard would come behind as reinforcements, if needed.
She glanced at Evan, who stood on the other side of the entry door. He met her gaze, his eyes searching. The room was too dim to see if he found what he was looking for on her face.
She wanted to ask why he hadn’t come to her when he first overheard Gerald’s plot, but such a question shouldn’t be whispered across the space of the doorway. She needed the full volume of her voice to make her feelings clear on the topic. She wanted to see the truth in his eyes.
Yet she couldn’t let him see her hurt. He hadn’t trusted her with the truth, but she had to put this behind her. Or at least make sure she could keep her thoughts hidden. Hurt feelings didn’t belong in the mind of a warrior, especially not when she needed all her senses and instincts for the mission at hand.
She pulled her gaze from Evan, casting her focus around the small room. Gerald’s housekeeping skills were worse than she’d expected, with bits of clothing and weaponry scattered across the floor. The walls contained a host of nails that were likely intended for organization, but not one of them was being used as such.
Her little brother had left his garments and toys in haphazard piles like this in his younger years, but he’d finally started listening to her and Charlotte’s nagging. Now, he did a better job of hanging things up. It seemed Gerald’s habits had suffered from his lack of older sisters.
“Can we talk?” Evan’s voice drew her focus back to him. “After this is over?”
Yes. They desperately needed to talk. She had to know what he was thinking. Wanted to hear in his own words that he’d kept the secret from her for her good, and not because he didn’t trust her. Wanted to know there was nothing else he was hiding from her.
She worked hard to keep the desperate yearning from showing on her face as she nodded. “Yes.”
He returned the nod, and his Adam’s apple bobbed like he was preparing to say more. His mouth parted, but he didn’t speak. Did his heart ache as much as hers did?
A cough sounded from the chamber beside them, then another. Philip’s signal.
She crouched against the wall, knife poised. While keeping her gaze honed on the crack between the door and frame, the edge of her vision registered Evan with his gun at the ready. Hopefully he wouldn’t have to use that weapon, but it would stop Gerald if nothing else did.
The latch string raised the bar on the door, and the crack widened to reveal a sliver of dusky light.
Gerald’s body stepped in to block most of the light as he pushed the door open.
His gaze locked on her before he’d placed more than a single foot inside, and he reacted instantly, even before his face registered surprise.
He stepped backward, pulling the door with him, but she grabbed the wood before he could slam it shut.
A shout came from outside. Leonard’s voice.
Gerald reversed directions, pushing the door open with the force of his shoulder. She released the wood and raised her blade high. “Arrêtez! Halt! You’re under arrest.”
Gerald didn’t stop, just plunged into the room, ducking away from her blade. She gathered herself, preparing to fling the blade into the fleshy part of his arm.
In the split second she took aim, her gaze registered Evan standing right behind Gerald. The possibility that she might hit him froze her.
She focused her aim tighter. The shift took only half a heartbeat, but it was enough.
Gerald swung around with speed she wouldn’t have credited him with. He reached a beefy arm around her neck, positioning himself behind her, and gripped her knife with his other hand.
Her instincts took over and she stomped hard on the inside of the man’s foot, then plunged a fist upward to strike his nose.
Men’s yells sounded around them, but her world narrowed to only the man whose thick muscle was cutting off all breath. He was so big, and he had her arms pinned so she couldn’t get a good angle on his face. She tried to use her elbows in his side or gut, but he had her strapped too tightly to his body. With her moccasined feet, she didn’t seem to be causing any pain to his knees or feet. Probably the thicker leggings he’d worn on the hunt gave too much protection.
With his greater strength, he jerked the knife from her hand and strapped both arms to her side. Then the sharp cold of a perfectly honed blade pressed into her neck.
Lord!Brielle froze as the pain registered in her mind. The man’s arm no longer locked off her breathing, but her lungs still wouldn’t expand as fear held them constricted. This couldn’t be the end. Not after everything she’d already been through.
She scanned for the others, and relief eased her body at a glimpse of Evan with his gun aimed at Gerald. The dark hole of the barrel peered at her too, but she didn’t let herself linger in the fear. Evan’s aim was likely good enough that he could hit Gerald instead of her at such close range.
Through the open doorway, Philip and Leonard stood frozen, Philip with his knife raised, and Leonard’s hatchet poised to strike.
She soaked in a bit of renewed bravery but had to be careful not to draw much breath, or Gerald would slice her neck without even trying. “You’re outnumbered, Gerald. Let me go. There’s no use fighting more.”
His humorless chuckle vibrated through her back, and his breath burned her ear. “But I have captured the queen, and that makes me greater than all of you.”
The pompous cad. “Slice my neck open if you want, but these three will still arrest you. And you’ll hang for sure, then.”
“For killing the chief’s daughter? Of that you’re right. But I have a feeling these men would do almost anything to save your pretty little head . . . and the rest of you.” His thumb caressed a line down her side, pressing parts no man had touched. The motion probably wasn’t visible to any of the others, but she had to work hard to hold in a shudder.
“The only way to save your life is to let her go.” Evan’s voice rang strong.
“You think I’m a fool? You’re the fool, you foreigner. There’s not a doubt in my mind that her papa will string me up now that I’ve taken arms against Laurent’s favorite.” Another huff of hot air blew across her ear, and the pressure at her neck tightened, burning the skin there. A drip of something slid down her neck, itching as it went. She had to bite her lip to keep from jerking with the sensation.
“The only way I’ll go free is if the three of you escort me to the gate yourselves. And I’ll be taking the wench with me to make sure you don’t follow after me. If you’re lucky, I’ll let her go in a day or two.”
She caught the flare of Evan’s eyes, but with her attention distracted by the increasing pain at her throat, she couldn’t tell if it was fear or anger that drew his reaction.
Don’t worry about me. She tried to send Evan the message with her eyes, but his attention was split also, shifting between the knife at her neck and a spot above her head. Gerald’s face, no doubt.
She had to get away. If Evan did something foolish in an effort to save her, they might lose Gerald completely. Or worse, someone else could be hurt.
“You all stay put while I get a few things, then we’ll be off.” Gerald tugged her backward, clamping even tighter around her chest as he hauled her back a step with him. “Don’t even think of moving.”
The knife pulled away from her neck as he reached for something behind him. She tried to suck in a deep breath, but the solid band around her chest wouldn’t allow much air to pass.
Before she could form a plan to use this reprieve for escape, Gerald had grabbed whatever he needed and pressed the knife against her neck again. The man could move far quicker than she’d ever thought his bulk could muster. This time, the knife blade pressed farther to her left, even closer to an important artery. Her neck would look like a cutting board once they were through this.
If she made it through.