Knight Fall (The Champion Chronicles Book 1) Read Free Page A

animals of the woods.  But unfortunately for Conner and Elissa, they had made straight for an almost full circular curve of the river.  They were now almost completely surrounded by the river, so they would either go back the way they came and stay dry, or make their way across the river.  It was a cold river, and Conner had no way of starting a fire, unless he was fortunate enough to find the right flint stones along the banks.
    The Meadow River wasn’t a fast moving river, but it had cut a big cliff into the woods right where they came out.  Conner looked down directly into the water, about thirty feet below him.  Another hundred yards farther downriver, the ground sloped to a small beach.
    “Maybe we should head there to cross,” Conner suggested, pointing down river.
    Elissa had not said a word since they had last stopped.  Now she had sat down and yawned.  “I think we should just rest for a while.  Right here.”
    Conner looked around, knowing that it wouldn’t be long before they were caught.  They just couldn’t move fast enough, and if the soldiers who had kidnapped Elissa were halfway intelligent hunters, they would easily track them through the woods.  “We should at least get across the river before we rest.”
    She furled her eyebrows and pursed her lips.  “No.  I say we rest right here.  I am tired.”
    For a moment, Conner was going to argue.  But the girl was clearly beat.  Her chest was heaving up and down, and her shoulders were slumped.  Her clothes were torn and ragged, dirty from running through the woods.  He sat next to her. 
    “We can rest, but only for a few moments.  The sun is just about to fall below the trees and it gets dark really fast in the woods.”
    She nodded.  The spark that had been in her eyes was gone.  She looked hardly the princess she claimed to be.  She looked more like the dirty peasant girls who carried the harvest from the fields to market.
    “What happened?” Conner asked.
    “I am not really sure, I guess,” she said after a minute of reflection.  “One minute we were riding through the forest, me in my carriage, and my Royal Guards leading the way.  And then there was yelling and screaming.  Raymond, my personal guard, pulled me out of the carriage and …I…”  She looked away, a tear falling from the corner of her eye.  “I tripped over Tory.  I see now that he was not alive.  Then I ran.  There was yelling behind me, but I just ran.  After I could not run any more, two of them caught me.  I think they were going to kill me.  Until you came.”  She placed a hand on his arm and smiled up at him.
    He smiled back, seeing the spark back in her eyes.  Her hands were warm and sent an odd tingle up his arm.  He had never been touched by such a pretty girl before, much less a princess.
    “You have nothing to worry about,” Conner said.  “I will get you back to the city.  But not tonight.  It is late and we will be in complete darkness soon.  On the other side of the river are some caves where we can hide through the night.”
    They sat in silence for some time.  Elissa sat on a fallen tree, playing with her hair, trying to brush it out with her fingers.  Conner listened carefully, hoping that he would not hear any rustling of the underbrush that would signal that their pursuers were upon them.  Their only route out was across the river, which would be a cold and dangerous swim.  The river was deep and the water was cold.  Conner knew he was a good swimmer, but he had no idea as to how well the girl could swim.  Even if she could swim, would she be able to have the strength to fight the cold water to keep from drowning?  With the sun dropping below the trees, and the shadows of the forest getting longer and darker, Conner stood up to lead Elissa along the river’s edge towards the small beach where they would cross.
    With darkness inching through the forest, it wouldn’t be too long until they were in complete