One more time, God. He rubbed his hands together. He spit on them and rubbed again. He grabbed the bars, took a deep breath and — Give me the strength — pushed, then pulled, with all his might.
He wanted to believe he’d felt them give way just a tiny bit. But he couldn’t lie to himself. They hadn’t budged at all.
“The duchess threw Gabe in the dungeon!”
Sophie stared at Petra, who had just burst into the kitchen, her eyes big and round. Sophie sat down heavily on a stool near the stove.
She would have to save him. She needed Gabe to help her get to Valten, who may not believe she was his betrothed if she simply showed up at his castle declaring she was Duke Baldewin’s daughter. Besides, Gabe had done nothing worthy of death, and Sophie refused to allow the duchess to kill another innocent man. But she’d have to make her escape at the same time. If Sophie helped Gabe escape, the duchess would find out it was her and kill her. It was now or never. The only problem was how to steal the key to the dungeon.
Sophie stood and hurried toward the corridor — and almost ran face-first into Lorencz.
Something about the look on his face — sober and cool, his eyes vacant but intent — made the skin on the back of her neck tingle. She took a step back.
“Sophie. I need you to help me with something.” There was no sign of flirtation in his tone, and his face wore a blank expression.
“What?”
“There’s a dog, a puppy, trapped in the woods. I need you to help me rescue him.”
“Why don’t you rescue him?”
“Because I’m too big to crawl into the hole after him.”
“I don’t believe you.” Besides, she remembered the kiss the huntsman had forced on her, remembered what Darla had boasted about, and knew she’d be a fool to go with him.
The set of his jaw let her know he was angry. “Very well, then. The puppy can stay trapped and starve.” He turned to leave.
“Why don’t you ask Darla to help you?”
He practically sneered. “Jealous, are you?”
I don’t have time for this! “What is it you really want?”
“If you come with me, I will help Gabe escape from the dungeon.”
“Why would you do that?”
“Oh, would you?” Petra spoke up, clasping her hands and looking pleadingly at Lorencz. “I am afraid the duchess will kill the poor boy if you don’t help him.”
“Exactly. She will kill him. But I will let him out — if you come with me.”
“How do I know I can trust you?”
“Have I ever harmed you, little Sophie?” He raised his brows and held out his hand to her. She stared at it.
“When have you ever cared about a puppy?”
He took a deep breath, his chest slowly moving up, then down. He shrugged. “I admit, I don’t care that much. But I had promised the puppy to a child in the village who asked for a pet.”
“You don’t care about the village children.”
“How do you know that? I have a sister who lives in the village. She has three children, and her children have friends. Why would I not care? Will you help me or not? Gabe is in the dungeon, bleeding and in need of care, and you are wasting time.”
She ignored his hand and gave him a curt nod. He turned and headed out the door, and she followed him out of the castle and into the woods. She felt for her knife, always in her dress pocket, and clasped the handle.
Sophie felt more and more uneasy the farther they walked. She had finally decided to turn back when Lorencz stopped. They were at the clearing where they’d had their picnic.
“The puppy’s over here, on the other side of this tree.”
The cold look on Lorencz’s face made Sophie’s stomach sink. Something was definitely wrong. She clutched the handle of her knife as Lorencz turned away. He took two more steps, but she didn’t follow, only watched as the huntsman walked just past a large tree and fell to his knees.
“Here it is.” He motioned with his hand, staring down at the ground.
He does seem to be peering into a hole. Sophie stepped closer. Lorencz stood and slowly turned to her. A hairbreadth of a second later, his hand flew out and grabbed her throat. She drew the knife out of her pocket and slashed at his arm, but Lorencz blocked it with a blow to her wrist.
“I have no choice,” Lorencz said through clenched teeth. “The duchess will kill me if I don’t do as she commanded.”
Sophie struggled, clawing at the hand that was choking her. Her heart slammed against her ribs. God, don’t let me die. I have to save Gabe. Don’t let me die.
Lorencz grabbed her wrists in one of his enormous hands. She had to get away. She struck at him with her knee, hitting his groin.
Lorencz roared, his eyes wild, his teeth bared. He roared again as he slammed her head against the tree trunk behind her.
No, God, was the only thing she could think to pray before her world went black.
Duchess Ermengard felt a tingle of excitement all the way down to her toes when Lorencz walked into her private chamber. He carried a small bundle wrapped in a dark cloth. The day she had dreamed about had finally come. Why had she kept Sophie alive so long? Her husband was never coming back — the coward — so it wasn’t as if she needed to keep Sophie as a bargaining tool. He couldn’t take Hohendorf away from her any longer.
“What do you have for me?” A gleeful giggle escaped her. She clasped her hands to her throat as Lorencz came closer and extended the cloth bundle toward her. She felt like a girl at Christmastime.
“Your Grace, I have brought you the girl’s heart.” Lorencz looked flushed. His eyelashes were wet and his green eyes glittered.
The man was pathetic. She’d thought he was of harder stock than that. He quickly bowed his head, no doubt to hide his unmanly weakness.
She took the bundle in her hands and unwrapped it. It was still warm and wet. Perhaps she could have it dried, like a piece of fruit, and keep it in a prominent place. Maybe in a decorative box on a shelf. Or if that didn’t work, she could burn it and keep the ashes. She’d also heard of barbarians who ate their enemies’ hearts, believing it would give them their enemies’ strengths.
Not that Sophie had any strength for Ermengard to inherit, but still, she would think about it.
“Thank you, Huntsman. You may go.”
“As you wish, Your Grace.” He bowed out of the room.
Duchess Ermengard walked over to her looking glass hanging on the wall, still holding the heart in her hand. She stared at her reflection, admiring her own beauty. Each feature was perfectly symmetrical and proportionate. Her nose was small but strong. Her lips were plump and red, her teeth straight and white, her eyelashes stained black, and her face and neck powdered a fashionable white. She was beautiful. And there was no one anywhere — not anymore — who rivaled her beauty.
Perhaps she would rid herself of the huntsman now that he had done something he so obviously detested. Besides, he was straying. He had been with that tart Darla. The duchess couldn’t have that. Yes, she would find a new … huntsman. Someone younger and more exciting. After all, the most beautiful woman in the region deserved the best.
Later, after she’d had her meal and her wine, she would tell Gabe of Sophie’s death. She would taunt him and laugh at him and show him the proof that Sophie was dead, that he hadn’t been able to save her. How would that make him feel? Would he cry like a baby? And eventually, she would kill him too, of course. But for now she needed to rest and build up her strength. It was going to be a full day and night.
Chapter
8
God, please get me out of here. Gabe pressed his forehead against the wall as he prayed. His arms ached from tugging on the bars of the window, and his shoulder throbbed from throwing himself against the solid wood door. If you give me another chance, I vow I will not fail Sophie again. I’ll get her out of here and get her safely to Hagenheim. Please help me.
Metal scraped metal on the other side of
the door to the dungeon, then the hinges squealed as the door opened.
Thank you! Gabe sprinted toward the door. When he saw Lorencz, he hesitated. Would he need to fight this man to get out? Whatever he had to do, he would do it. And now. This might be his only chance. He prepared to lunge at the huntsman.
To his surprise, Lorencz’s face was flushed. Gabe had never seen him looking so agitated.
“Well?” Lorencz barked. “Come on, man, make haste.”
Gabe took the steps two at a time and leaped out the door, holding up his fists, ready to fight. But Lorencz was already preceding him down the passageway that led out of the castle. Gabe ran after him.
“What is happening?” Gabe asked.
Lorencz didn’t answer until they were outside. Gingerbread was already saddled and standing nearby, placidly grazing beside a second horse, a black stallion he presumed was Lorencz’s.
“I don’t have time to explain everything. Sophie is in danger. If you don’t get to her now, the duchess will kill her.”
“Where is she?”
“You should know the area well, seeing as you likely followed us there when Sophie and I picnicked.” Lorencz raised one eyebrow. “She’s tied to a tree in the clearing.”
“What do you mean, ‘she’s tied to a tree’?” Gabe grabbed the front of Lorencz’s tunic and clenched his fist.
Lorencz pushed him away, and Gabe stumbled back into his horse, who whinnied and tried to nip his shoulder.
“The duchess ordered me to kill her, but I didn’t. Now get on your horse, untie Sophie, and ride as fast and as far from this place as you can.”
“I need to get a horse for Sophie.”
“No.” Lorencz seized his shoulder roughly and turned him around. “Get on your horse and set off. Now. You can’t go near the stable without being seen, not with all the guards milling around there. And as soon as Duchess Ermengard finds out you’re not in the dungeon and Sophie’s not dead, they’ll be hunting you. You have to get Sophie to safety.”
Lorencz practically shoved him into the saddle, then mounted his own black horse.
Gabe caught his eye. “Thank you. For your help.”
Lorencz looked back at him grimly. Gabe wondered where the huntsman would go, with just his horse and the clothes on his back.
As Gabe was turning his horse around, Petra came running out of the kitchen.
“Wait!” She thrust a cloth bag into Gabe’s hand. “If you run into trouble, there is a safe place you can go. It’s about three days’ ride from here, to the north. Locals call it the Cottage of the Seven. It’s in a glen on the east side of the river.”
Gabe nodded.
“Ask for Dominyk the Wise and the Cottage of the Seven if you get lost.”
Gabe was already riding across the yard and into the woods. Her words followed him away from the castle.
In a few moments he was at the clearing.
Was this a trap? Or had the huntsman actually set him free from the dungeon in hopes he’d rescue Sophie? God answered prayers in the strangest ways sometimes.
But there was no scullary maid tied to a tree in the clearing. The only sign that Lorencz may have been telling the truth were ropes at the base of a large tree.
“Sophie?” he called quietly, keeping alert in case the duchess had planned an ambush. “Sophie, where are you?”
Now that you’ve given me another chance, God, please don’t let me fail. I can’t fail again.
Sophie trembled from behind the tree as she watched Gabe frantically searching the clearing and calling for her. Until his intentions were clear, she intended to stay put.
Her head still hurt from where Lorencz had slammed her against the tree trunk. She had wakened to find herself tied up and him holding his knife against her throat. The huntsman’s eyes had held the same darkness she’d seen on Duchess Ermengard’s face so many times before, and she was sure he would kill her.
But then Lorencz dropped the knife. He looked at her as if she’d suddenly grown wings and feathers, backing away from her slowly and shaking his head. “I can’t do it,” he whispered. “Oh, God, I can’t do it.” Then he’d turned and stumbled away into the trees.
When her vision stopped spinning, she squatted down, stretched her arm, and managed to reach his knife with one of her fingers. Slowly, she nudged the handle close enough to grasp it. She’d freed herself from the ropes just as she heard a horse’s hooves approaching, and she ran into the woods. When she saw it was Gabe, she’d been relieved — but only for a moment.
What was he doing out of the dungeon? Had he been sent to lure her into the open? She had never imagined Lorencz would slam her head against a tree, tie her up, and hold a knife on her — her mind was still reeling with the thought that he’d actually intended to kill her — so how did she know she could trust Gabe? His kind words and incredible promises could easily be a ruse.
Gabe dismounted from his horse and knelt to examine the ropes. Sophie turned and ran, still clutching the knife. She sprinted as fast as she could, bushes snatching at her clothes, limbs slapping her in the face, leaves temporarily blinding her.
Her foot caught on a root and she fell headlong to the ground, flinging Lorencz’s knife in front of her.
“Sophie, stop! It’s me, Gabe!”
She heard his horse’s hooves pounding toward her. She’d never be able to escape him on foot. She jumped up and whirled to face him, grabbing the knife off the ground, ready to defend herself however was necessary.
“Sophie, it’s all right. I’m here to help you.” He looked bewildered. “I won’t hurt you.”
She wanted to believe him, but her heart pounded in disagreement. The thought of Gabe turning against her, trying to kill her, was even worse than Lorencz’s attempt.
Although that had been enough of a shock.
Gabe leaned toward her from the back of his enormous horse. Then she noticed his cheekbone. It was bruised, scraped raw, and swollen. “When the duchess finds out that I escaped and that you’re still alive, she will kill us both. We have to make haste.”
His warm brown eyes looked so sincere, Sophie decided to take the risk. She put the knife into her pocket and placed her hand in his.
Gabe hauled her up in front of him. To remain stable, she was forced to sit astraddle like Gabe. It wasn’t proper, but it was better than getting herself and Gabe killed, and her skirt was full enough that it hid most of her legs. She adjusted it slightly just to be sure.
He slapped the reins and the horse leaped forward. The saddle was roomy, but Sophie was still practically sitting in Gabe’s lap.
“Where are we going? Where will you take me?”
“To Hagenheim, to my family.” His prickly chin brushed her cheek as he bent to speak next to her ear.
“Wait!” Her heart seized at the thought of leaving behind her beloved Gospel of Saint Luke. “I have to get something!” She looked up into his brown eyes. “Please. I need it. We have to go back.”
“We have no time as it is.” After a moment’s pause, he asked, “What is this thing you’re willing to get us killed for?”
“It’s a piece of the Bible, a section from the book of Saint Luke.”
“If we make it to Hagenheim, you can have the entire Bible. I will personally get one for you. But you won’t need the book of Saint Luke if you’re not alive to read it.”
He was right, of course. It made her ache to think of losing her precious book, the words that had comforted her through the past ten years of her life, but not enough for Gabe to lose his life retrieving it.
She turned her head and looked up at him. There was a serious look on his face, which softened when he looked into her eyes. “I’m sorry, Sophie.”
She shook her head, hoping he understood the gesture meant it didn’t matter. She was afraid if she spoke, she might choke on the words.
The bruise on his cheek was quite prominent. She wished she could hurt whoever had hurt him, wished she could command he be t
hrown in the worst dungeon and locked away for as long as Gabe’s bruise remained visible.
She sighed. It was a silly thought. She’d never have that kind of power. Besides, her former priest would scold her if he knew she was wishing for revenge.
As the trail grew more rugged, Sophie was thrown back into Gabe’s chest by the sudden upward charge of the horse. The spot on the back of her head where Lorencz had slammed her into the tree hit Gabe’s breastbone, sending a sharp, shooting pain through her skull. Gabe wrapped an arm around her waist, holding her snugly, and gripped the reins with his other hand. She turned her neck slightly and rested against him.
They were both silent as Gabe guided the huge horse through the dense trees.
“Are you hurt?” Gabe spoke the words by her ear, his deep voice surprising her, his warm breath like a feather against her ear.
“You don’t need to worry about me. I am well.”
“Are you sure? I can’t imagine how Lorencz managed to tie you to a tree. Did you let him do that to you?”
“Of course not.” Sophie bristled. “I was unconscious. My head hit the tree, and I blacked out.”
“You hit your head? Where?” The hand that had been around her waist was now on her head, rubbing, his fingers probing.
“Stop that.” But she couldn’t get away from his examination.
He found her injury, and she winced at the pain his touch caused.
“That’s a bad bump. It’s bloody too. Are you sure you’re well?”
It was strange he should ask, because at that moment she felt as though her last meal was trying to come back up. She closed her eyes and took deep breaths as Gabe’s arm circled her waist again. The horse’s gait jarred her head and every joint in her body. She hung her head.
“Sophie?”
His voice was so kind and gentle. Will Valten’s voice be as gentle as Gabe’s? She rested her head against Gabe’s chest again and breathed deliberately and slowly. Gradually the sick feeling in her stomach subsided. But she didn’t lift her head from his chest. It was too hard to try to hold herself steady against the horse’s jolting gait.
Gabe had said he was taking her to his home, to his family. As she rested against him, holding her hand over the wooden cross around her neck, a sense of joy and peace bloomed inside her. If they were able to escape the duchess’s guards, she would be free from Duchess Ermengard. She would see the sun and feel it on her skin, have the freedom she’d always lacked. Her dream was coming true. And Gabe was taking her to her betrothed. She would marry Gabe’s brother and then they would be family.