Knight Fall (The Champion Chronicles Book 1) Read Free

goes for all of you.  She is to be unharmed.  Capture her as planned, but if she returns harmed, you will get twice what she got.  And if you do not return, I will hunt you down and you will regret that you were ever born.”
    The mercenaries were as arrogant and confident as any, but the tone of his voice, the inflection of his words, and the fierceness in his eyes caused them all to simply sulk away and return to their hunt.
    Brace watched them leave, regretting everything that he must do, but knowing it was only for the best.
     
    ***
     
    “I do not think they are chasing us anymore.”
    The words caught Conner by surprise, and he let go of the girl’s hand.  She was bent over, gasping for air.  Although Conner was sweaty and tired from their sprint through the forest, he was breathing easily.  He could have run faster, but the girl kept pulling him back, slowing him down.  Conner knelt to the ground, closed his eyes and listened.  He ignored her heavy breathing and focused solely on the forest.  The trees.  The wind.  The animals.
    All seemed normal.
    He looked back at the path that they had made and frowned.
    She noticed the sour look on his face and asked, “What is it?”
    Conner pointed back towards the way they had come.
    The girl looked, and then looked again.  She said, “I do not see it.”
    “We have made a path that a five year old could follow.  We will need to be more careful.”  Then he looked around more closely to his surroundings.  “And I have made a grave error!”
    She chuckled.  “Grave error?  You do not speak like a peasant hunter.  Who are you?”
    Conner stood and realized he was still holding his bow and two arrows.  He returned the arrows to his quiver.  “Conner.  My name is Conner."
    She smiled.  “Pleased to meet you, Master Conner.  I am Princess Elissa.  And thank you for saving my life.”
    Conner was too stunned to say anything.  He knew the name as well as anyone else in the kingdom, but never dreamed that he would come face to face with the king’s only child.  She was as beautiful as they had said, even after being kidnapped and hauled through the forest.  Her eyes were bright and full of life, like someone who lived in a high tower and never saw the pain of real life.  Her blonde hair was now dull and matted, but he could just imagine what the flowing, curly locks could look like.  Her mouth was turned into a smile, showing her white teeth.  He could only stare back in fascination.
    “You said you have made an error?” She asked.
    Pulled from his trance, he corrected her.  “No, I said I made a grave error.  I have led us in the wrong direction.  Just past those trees is a river that we must cross.”
    “Very well, then, lead on,” she said with a flip of her hand.
    Conner chuckled at her innocence.  She had no idea the trouble that she had avoided, and if she did, then she had a very short memory.  “It is going to be dark soon.  We will need to find a safe place to hole up for the night.”
    She stood silently for a moment, and asked, “Should we not return to my carriage, I am sure that my guards are searching for me.  If we return there, they are sure to find us.”
    “If they caught you, it is likely that your guards are dead. Anyway, the guys who kidnapped you are between us and your carriage.  And it is getting late.”
    “Dead?” She said.  Her eyes welled up in tears and her bright red lips quivered.
    “Yes, and we will be if we don’t move on,” Conner said.
    They moved quietly through the trees, fast enough to keep moving, but not too fast to make it easy for anyone who was following them to see their trail from far off.  Conner zigged and zagged his way towards the river, mentally kicking himself for not realizing where he was.  The Meadow River eventually dumped into the greater Tyre River, but it didn’t take a straight course.  It bent and bowed as it cut through the forest, giving water and fish to the