Here She Rules: The Chronicles of Erla: Book 1 (31 page)

“I believe we now know why the women were taken,” Nyles said softly.
 

Kara’s face was a ghostly white. Having left the fallen warrior, she sunk into a chair, holding her head in her hands. The men watched in amazement as the strong warrior cried bitterly.

“This is my doing! I am the biggest fool! I left Erla vulnerable! Gods, I am not fit to fight for my country. All is lost.” Hysteria clutched at Kara. How she wished she could have Cassandra’s counsel, to have her friend beside her now!

Nall knelt before her, and, taking her face in his hands, he lifted her gaze to his.
 

Unused to seeing her in such a state, he said gently, “Lady, you must pull yourself together. We
will
liberate Erla and we
will
restore the Queen and the Lady Cassandra to their home and rightful positions!”

Kara sniffed and wiped her eyes. Her momentary weakness, which had been brought on by incessant worry and fatigue, had passed. She straightened her shoulders and smiled at Nall.

“Forgive me. I am better now. Let us free Erla!” She stood, and they all walked out of the tent together.

Cassie’s men entered the Inn’s common room and sat at a roughhewn table. A serving girl quickly came round, nearly tripping in her haste to take the orders of her handsome patrons.
 

Mika and Aidan rose and walked about the room, asking questions of the people at the surrounding tables. When the girl came back with their drinks, Arn smiled at her and flirted lightly, making her blush and stammer, and Taylyn ran his hand caressingly down her arm.
 

The girl was overwhelmed by them. They were the most beautiful men she had ever seen and they were so kind and respectful. She would have done anything for the smiles which they bestowed upon her, and all they wanted to know was about the caravan that had passed through the town not long ago.
 

When Arn kissed her hand as she left to get their food, the girl nearly swooned.

Mika and Aidan rejoined them when the servants brought out the food.
 

They quickly shared the information the girl had given them, and as the little serving girl leaned over Mika to set a plate before him, he turned the full force of his sexy golden eyes upon her. She gasped like a fish out of water and then her breath caught when he smiled.

“Tell me what kind of place Ambria is, sweet one.” He cocked his head and smiled warmly into her eyes, and she melted, telling him of the cold climate and how her sister had married an Ambrian man. Mika thanked her, and she floated away on a cloud of fantasies inhabited by a beautiful golden-eyed man.
 

The men ate their meal in silence until they noticed three rowdy men harassing the young girl who had served them. The men were drunk and were pushing her back and forth between them, grabbing at her breasts and trying to lift her skirt up over her head. The girl swatted at them and tried to get away, but she lacked the strength needed to extricate herself from their hands.

Arn rose and strode over to the men, and seizing the girl, he placed her behind him as the rest of Cassie’s men joined him.
 

One of the drunks roared and threw a punch which connected with Arn’s shoulder, and Arn was stunned by the assault, rubbing the aching place on his shoulder. Taylyn, having had some experience with brawling, came around Arn and drove his fist into the man’s face and watched him crumple to the ground. When the other two rushed them, it soon turned into a free-for-all.
 

Cassie’s men (save Taylyn) had never hit anyone in their lives, but they were quite strong and in excellent condition, so, fairly quickly, they won the day. The landlord came to them after it was over and helped them drag the drunken men out into the street.
 

Settling up with the landlord for their meal, Mika left him five extra gold pieces for the damage the fight caused, and the man smiled greedily, wishing them a good evening.
 

The little serving girl threw herself in Mika’s arms sobbing, saying how she would do “anything” to repay him for saving her, but he assured her nothing was required and extricated himself from her clinging arms to go upstairs.
 

As they readied themselves for bed, they joked with each other about the bruises and scrapes they had acquired in the fight. Garen had a particularly livid bruise on his cheekbone where he had been hit by a chair, and the others had various marks on them.
 

They lay in the dark for a time. They were too stimulated from the night’s events to go to sleep easily, but they knew they needed to rest for their journey the next day.

The men rose early and visited a merchant to purchase clothing for the cold weather. They bought more traveling food and the necessary equipment for the cold trek ahead. As they mounted their horses, Mika pulled out the map the old man at the mercantile sold him. Looking at it, he pointed north, and they set out—once again—on their quest.

XX

In the days following King Ston and his brother’s departure, Cassie and Nera carefully plotted their escape. The women familiarized themselves with the running of the household (under the guise of helping the housekeeper) and slowly began acquiring the things they would need to sustain them on the way back to Erla. Dried food, fire-lighting material, and furs filled the knapsacks hidden deep underneath their beds.
 

Cassie found fur-lined leather pants and shirts as well as insulated parkas with hoods in Sern’s closet. The clothing would be a bit large, but it would serve. They
did
, however, spend part of an evening shortening the pants. They planned their escape for a night some seven days after the men left.
 

The women gave the house slaves no reason to suspect them, so no one was vigilantly watching what they did, and to the guards, they were nothing more than the King’s whores.
 

Nera and Cassie waited until the great house was dark and quiet as they pulled on the warm clothing and parkas, slinging the knapsacks on their backs. Cassie had taken two eating daggers from the kitchen while the cook was distracted that evening. They completed their ensemble by arming themselves with them.
 

The women crept quietly out of their rooms and down the hall. Their hearts nearly stopped when they heard muted voices. They slowly moved forward until they saw a guard with a slave on his lap, whispering in her ear as his hand moved rhythmically under her skirt. Her moans covered the sound of their feet as they moved behind the couple, out the door, and into the cold night air.
 

They kept to the shadows around the buildings, deciding not to risk taking horses as the noise would surely give them away. The women ran the last few yards into the forest. The nearly full moon lit the path well and they moved quickly through the brush, moving as quietly as possible.

They ran through the night, stopping only briefly so that each could to catch her breath and swallow some water. They knew very well to put as much distance between themselves and any potential pursuers as was possible. Surprise was on their side and they needed to take advantage of the time they now had before they were missed. To that end, Cassie kept them off of the worn path, knowing the snow would display their tracks and that they would be camouflaged much better in the bushes.
 

As the sun rose, she scanned the landscape for a safe place to sleep for a few hours. Her gaze lit on some boulders to her left, and they trudged over to them, exhausted. There was a niche behind the three boulders which held a cave-like opening, so the women dropped their heavy packs and laid out the furs. They then ate some of the traveling food before exhaustion finally took its toll, and they huddled together, wrapped in furs, and fell asleep.
 

Several hours later, Cassie woke up and shook Nera gently. It was time to get moving again. The women relieved themselves in the forest before grabbing their packs and starting out again.

They covered a good amount of ground at a steady trot for most of the morning. Each woman was grateful for the conditioning that made their joint escape possible. When the sun reached its zenith, they stopped and ate, resting on a covered ledge. Each woman’s breath plumed out in the cold air as they took in the magnificent landscape.

“Nera, I do believe luck is on our side. This appears to be a safe place to rest. I don’t believe we would be seen from here, and if you agree, then we could sleep now. This way, we can travel throughout the night instead. Personally, I would rather be moving in the dark, than sitting still acting as wolf bait!”

“That’s a good idea, Cassie, and to be honest, I am exhausted!” Nera smiled wanly.
 

The women made camp and lay together in the furs, sharing their body heat to warm each other as they fell asleep.

Cassie woke with a start; her Queen was shaking her awake urgently.
 

“We slept longer than we intended, Cassie! The sun is going down.” Cassie got up and stretched.
 

Without speaking, the women ate quickly, hoisted their packs, and started running again.
 

The forest darkened as the sun dropped and the women kept a steady pace, running side by side. By the time they stopped for a drink, it was almost completely dark. They were sitting on a rock, sipping at the water and each trying to catch her breath when Cassie’s eyes were drawn to a glow in the trees a short distance from them. Standing, she placed her hand on Nera’s shoulder, whispering for her to stay put while she investigated.
 

Nera tried to insist upon coming, but Cassie convinced her to stay as Erla needed its Queen safe.

Cassie crept silently through the trees towards what turned out to be a campfire. As she neared, she could hear men’s voices and the clank of cookware as they made their evening meal. She eased a bit closer, wanting to hear what they said when a man walked within a foot of her. Quickly, she positioned herself behind a large tree.
 

Cassie held her breath as he stood merely inches away relieving himself. She eased the dagger out of her parka and readied it. When he refastened his pants, she made her move. Coming up behind him, she reached up and around, placing the blade at his throat.

“If you move, I will cut your throat. Do you understand?” she growled. The man nodded slowly and swallowed.
 

“Who are you?” she asked. The man startled and turned his head slightly, only stopping when the blade nicked his throat.

“Mistress, is that you?” Aidan’s sweet familiar voice shot through her, and she was so shocked she dropped the knife, staring at him in the moonlight like he was a dream come true. Tears came to her eyes as she pulled him into a tight embrace.
 

“Oh my God, Aidan, what are you doing out here? Who are those men?” She was nearly sobbing with relief and joy.

“Mistress, when you were taken we—the others and I—had to do something to help find you, so we set out on our own. Please do not be angry!” Cassie laughed a bit too loudly due to her emotional state, and before she knew it, she was surrounded by all of her men.
 

Each man hugged and kissed her, holding her as long as he could before the next man took her for himself.

“So, this is what you were doing while I was worrying and freezing? Making love to these beautiful men?” Nera’s cheerful voice broke their reunion and she joined them in the hugging and laughter.
 

When Nera could stand it no longer, she had left their packs behind and followed in Cassie’s footsteps, dagger at the ready in case she should be in need of assistance. Grateful for their change in fortune, Nera asked Cassie to send one her men to retrieve the packs. Arn quickly volunteered and he and Kai returning quickly with both of the heavy knapsacks.
 

Meanwhile, the women had been led to the campsite the men had just setup outside of a cave—complete with a very welcoming fire. They sat them down on soft furs and ladled out deliciously hot stew. The men sat back and listened with rapt attention to the story the women related of their escape. Their relief at having finally found their Mistress was plain to see on their elated faces. After the telling, Cassie decided she could no longer wait to satisfy her own burning curiosity. She was truly astonished to find her men there, so far from home.