Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 98745 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 494(@200wpm)___ 395(@250wpm)___ 329(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98745 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 494(@200wpm)___ 395(@250wpm)___ 329(@300wpm)
Noble took the reins in one hand and reached behind him to snag the rolled blanket tied there.
Leora, seeing what he intended, took the blanket from him, and untied the straps that held it closed in two places. Their hands worked together to unwrap it and wrap it snug around her.
“It is not much but it will at least offer some protection against the rain if it should start before we reach our destination,” Noble said.
“And you? You have no protection against the rain.”
“I have survived worse weather,” he said, surprised to hear concern in her voice.
Leora sighed softly, his shoulder offering the comfort her head needed. “Where do we go?”
“An abandoned croft,” he said glad to feel her relax in his arms.
“A croft will not shelter us all.”
That she thought of others besides herself surprised him, and he was pleased to know that she did.
“It has more places to shelter than a usual croft,” he said and tightened his hold around her waist when she jumped, another crack of thunder piercing the silent woods.
Thunder never bothered Leora but then she was always safe in the keep with her parents and sisters during a thunderstorm. Here, in the woods, wounded, and in the arms of a husband she barely knew, she was more vulnerable, and she did not like that. She had to remain strong if not for herself, then for Sky. And yet her strength felt like it was waning, and she wanted nothing more, at the moment, than to rest comfortably in her husband’s arms and rely on his strength.
Noble grew concerned when her body grew far too limp against his and the sky continued to grow dark. She was fast losing her strength and he needed to get her to safety from the storm so she could rest. To do both, he would need to set a faster pace, which could worsen her already waning strength, but he had no choice.
He signaled Finley to pick up the pace and his men appeared relieved. They had had their fair share of getting stuck in a thunderstorm and it had been no pleasure. Everyone would be pleased to reach the abandoned croft.
A clash of thunder woke Leora, having drifted off in her husband’s arms. She thought she had slept for hours it was so dark.
“We’re here,” Noble said, glad they had reached the croft, a downpour about to unleash on them at any moment.
Leora glanced around and spotted several buildings. The croft looked to have been a thriving farm at one time and she wondered what happened that it was now abandoned and neglected. There were two thatched-roof cottages, both weathered by time and neglect. Patches of untended land surrounded both, and at one time were probably vegetable and herb gardens but now were overgrown with wild foliage. Remnants of fencing that had probably housed livestock lay in disrepair, tools used to once mend them scattered about decayed or rusted with age. There were several barns that horses or other farm animals had inhabited in need of repair, but for now would serve the horses and men well.
Noble stopped in front of the smaller of the two cottages, sending Finley ahead to the larger cottage for the men to share while some of the other warriors went to the barns with the horses.
Leora went to slip off the horse, but Noble’s firm hold prevented her from moving.
“You will wait for me to help you off the horse,” he ordered.
She did not argue, feeling a raindrop hit her.
Noble hurried off the horse, then reached up to grip her waist and ease her off the horse. One of his warriors quickly appeared to take the reins and lead the horse to shelter after handing a small sack to Noble.
It was as if the dark sky suddenly broke open and released a flood of rain, Noble closing the door against the downpour the best he could since it hung on a lone metal hinge.
The rainstorm brought a chilly wind with it that whipped at the cottage and after seeing Leora deposited on a bench and dropping a small sack on another bench that had survived the decay, he gathered pieces of broken furniture scattered about and started a fire in the small hearth that had seen better days but thankfully still worked well enough to warm the small place.
Leora shivered seeing the vines that had crept through the cracks in the walls and where the wind found passage. She wondered if the place was sturdy enough to hold together or if time and the weather had battered it so badly that it was not strong enough to survive another beating.
“It will serve us well enough for the night,” Noble said, seeing the worry on his wife’s face along with fatigue and possibly— “Are you hungry?”