Blood Moon Read Free Page B

“And traveling alone? That
seems a bit strange, even for a healer.”
    Aslyn stared into her tea, trying to
quiet her pounding pulse. “I’m on pilgrimage. I travel with others
as I can. Only this morning, I parted company with the group I’d
been traveling with, for they were headed west and I
north.”
    The woman nodded, apparently satisfied.
“You should come with us. It isn’t at all safe to travel alone just
now. And lone travelers this far north are like to be viewed with
suspicion…. Not so likely when you’re a woman, but still…. We could
introduce you around. I know for a certainty they’ve no healer in
Krackensled. The old woman, Gershin, died nigh six months ago. We
heard of it the last time we were there.”
    Aslyn looked at her, torn. In truth,
she would have far preferred to part company with the woman
altogether, but she was weary from her travels and needed to find a
place to stay for a while. She would have to move on before the
moon completed another cycle, but the chance to rest awhile, and
the comfort of a cottage were too great to resist. “You don’t know
me. I couldn’t ask it of you,” she said a little
hesitantly.
    “You didn’t, did you?” Enid responded
tartly. “I offered. Besides, I figure one good turn deserves
another. Anyway, I can see you’ve a good heart.”
    Aslyn might have argued further, but
she was distracted by the sounds of approaching riders. Enid looked
up, as well, rose slowly to look down the road. “Soldiers,” she
gasped, her eyes widening. “The king’s men by their banner. Should
we hide, do you think?”
    Aslyn moved a little closer to the
woman. “Too late,” she murmured. The riders were already bearing
down upon them and had almost certainly spotted them. They couldn’t
outrun mounted horsemen in deep snow anyway, no matter how fleet of
foot, and, in any case, Enid was burdened by her child. Aslyn would
have little chance, Enid none at all. As strong as the urge to flee
was, Aslyn found she simply could not run off and abandon the
woman.
    The man leading the group was not
dressed as a soldier but rather wore the garb of huntsman. Long and
leanly muscular, his build seemed to bear up the image of hunter.
She had no difficulty imagining such a man moving invisibly through
the forest.
    His face, she saw as he came closer,
was long and lean, as well, his strong jaw clean shaven, but she
could see that the long hair fluttering about his face was dark as
sin. He was a man of good birth, no commoner, regardless of his
garb. Or, perhaps, he claimed bastardy. She didn’t believe it. His
bearing alone proclaimed pride and self-confidence, traits no
bastard would possess. This man had secrets … and eyes that would
not miss the secrets others might wish to guard. He bore the
unmistakable look of a predator.

Chapter Two
     
    Enid cried out quite suddenly. “Jim?
What’s happened?”
    Aslyn glanced quickly at Enid then
transferred her gaze to the oncoming riders once more. It was only
then that she realized one of the horses was mounted
double.
    “Now, don’t start yer wailing, love.
It’s scarce more’n a scratch. Tripped over a bleeding root and
caught meself in the leg with me own arrow, fool that I am,” Jim
reassured her as the riders drew abreast of them.
    Enid, apparently, wasn’t convinced.
Shoving the baby at Aslyn, she rushed over even before the horses
had been drawn to a complete standstill, grasping at his leg
worriedly, as if she could lift him from the horse.
    Aslyn remained as she was, frozen to
the spot, her gaze held captive by the huntsman’s golden eyed
stare. He nodded slightly, but his hard mouth did not so much as
twitch on the verge of a smile as he released her at last from
captivity, turning his attention to the soldiers milling around
him. “You men--dismount and see if you can get their cart
righted.”
    Without a word, the men dismounted
almost in unison. The one who had been riding with Jim on his
horse’s rump