Siege of the Heart (Southern Romance Series, #2) Read Free Page B

for death.
    He was terrified, and a sudden stop brought to mind vivid images. He was hauled down from the horse, immediately falling to the ground as his tired legs gave out below him, and he heard the snickers of the men watching him. Sudden anger suffused him, gave him life. He stood tall for a moment, having struggled to his feet, and he looked in their direction, jaw clenched.
    “Who are you?” he asked them, and there was laughing again. He knew he must look a mess, disheveled and exhausted. He was trembling where he stood, but he still had dignity, dammit.
    It was the crying that broke him. He knew those cries. He had heard them enough in the past. How long? Days? Hours? He had lost track of time, and yet it must only have been hours. They had not stopped for food and water, he was sure of that. How far had they gotten?
    “Don’t cry, little miss,” one of the men said roughly, and Cecelia, bless her, paid them not a moment’s thought. Jasper felt their discomfort as she sobbed onwards, and the muted anger, the feeling that perhaps they had done something wrong. He looked towards Cecelia, anguished.
    “That’s right,” one of them told him angrily. “Your wife is here too.”
    “My...?” For a moment, Jasper felt his throat constrict. They thought Cecelia was his wife. Oh, no. No. If they thought....
    “Let her go,” he said quietly. “Whatever there is between me and you, leave her out of it. She is not a soldier. She’s a civilian. A casualty of war.”
    “Oh, I don’t think so. You see, she’s here to ensure your good behavior.”
    “If you hurt her...” But he could do nothing about it, and they all knew it. It was on the tip of Jasper’s tongue to tell them she was not his wife, but if she was not, then she would still be a woman who had seen Confederate soldiers creeping around in the forests of Virginia. She would be a liability. Would they let her live? He closed his mouth on the words.
    “What do you think of us?” one of them asked him, voice low and angry. “That we’d hurt a woman?”
    This was a rather disingenuous statement after they’d kidnapped her, but Jasper knew better than to argue about it. He clenched his jaw to stop himself from answering.
    “No, she’s here to make sure you don’t do anything stupid,” the stranger said.
    Jasper closed his eyes on a rush of relief. “And you’ll release her?”
    “When we’re done with you?” A Confederate soldier scoffed. “Maybe.”
    Cecelia started crying again, and a new voice broke in.
    “That’s enough.”
    Jasper froze. He knew the voice.
    Robert Knox had served in his regiment.
    Jasper turned his head sharply, noting that the men had gone silent. The stupid cloth on his head would not come off and he could see nothing but blurriness through it.
    “Don’t scare the lady.” Robert paused, perhaps turning to Cecelia. “Miss, would you like something to eat?”
    Cecelia’s sobs abated somewhat, but there was no answer.
    “Miss, please. You have to eat something. It’s been hours.”
    “I don’t want to eat,” Cecelia whispered, and Jasper’s heart broke. She was so frightened, and trying to be brave, trying to be defiant. Clara had no knowledge, truly, of how self-possessed her sister had become.
    “Some water, then. Come now, miss, you know you’ll be in trouble if you don’t take some water at least.”
    “It’s not poisoned?”
    “I promise,” Robert said gently, but the edge in his tone made Jasper think he was staring down the other men angrily, daring them to comment. No one did.
    Jasper waited while he heard Cecelia drink something.
    “That’s good,” Robert said encouragingly. “You should try to eat something if you can. We have dried meat, see—”
    “No!” Her voice was soft, but emphatic. Some of the men laughed, and the sound was hastily bitten off; Jasper could just imagine, though, the thought of a woman who had just seen army rations for the first time. He could not blame her for