Arissa's Fate (Redemption Trilogy) by Amanda Daul Read Free Book Online Page A

recent past and the ground was too hard to depict a clear print anyway. Arissa was positive that she had seen him, struggling to keep up as he walked behind the soldiers’ horses, but when the Captain had caught her and they had joined the group again, he was gone. The Captain had been proud of whatever plan he had had, which must have been circling around behind her, knowing full well that she would see him with them. After they were out of sight, they must have left him somewhere. Still, it didn’t make any sense and she didn’t try to figure it out. It only distracted her.
    Growing more frustrated and anxious, Arissa found it more difficult to breathe every second. He had to have shot the Captain, it was the only logical answer. That meant he was armed, so he could defend himself for a while longer. Realizing that she hadn’t even heard the shot that had ended the Captain’s life, Arissa figured it had happened during the attack at the camp, the explosion drowning out the gunshot.
    She was nearly about to turn the high-strung horse around and begin tracking back down the mountain, knowing that was where he would be moving to as quickly as possible. Just before she did, her expert tracker eyes caught a sign.
    Dismounting the horse yet again, her heart beat faster as she rushed to the smooth, white tree she had seen. Holding her hand up to the stained bark, she had to bite her lip hard to keep her emotions completely at bay.
    A vivid bloodstain in the clear shape of a handprint was smeared on the otherwise flawless tree. Quickly surveying the area, it was at the appropriate angle to have successfully shot the Captain, given the way his body sprawled on the forest floor.
    Whatever had happened, the two men had exchanged fire and both had been accurate. Arissa found herself literally praying aloud that Captain Lovett would be the only still body she would find and as for far as she could see into the trees, he was.
    Now that she was aware, a noticeable blood trail was visible. She found clear drips on leaves and more smudged marks on trees and rocks. There was plenty of broken branches and upset undergrowth. Arissa knew he was better than that to leave such obvious signs. He must he hurt worse than she suspected, only interested in finding cover.
    The soldier horse was reluctant to follow Arissa into the thick brush and narrow trees, but her patience and energy were at an all time low and she dragged the horse along with her, fervently wishing she still had Raze. That horse would go anywhere for her and she silently vowed that she would locate him again. She hoped that he was alright.
    Suddenly, Arissa stopped to listen around her and she was shocked to hear a loud thrashing sound to her right. Her heart soared for a moment, thinking that she would see him for the first time in months, just on the other side of that thick bush.
    Pausing for one moment to untangle her ankle from the thickets she was among, it was all the time it took for a looming hulk to charge from the green growth and clasp Arissa into a tight, gripping lock. In an instant, her arms were locked behind her and she saw another strange man advancing from where she had heard the noise.
    In his hand, he gripped a long, curved blade that had very clear signs that it was in recent combat. Nobody spoke a word, none were needed. The second man was already raising his arm to ram the blade forward on her. Her arms were locked even tighter and her foot was still snagged in the root so that she couldn’t even use her feet to defend herself.
    Yet another gunshot exploded through the air and the man holding her from behind collapsed, momentarily knocking her off balance with him. The timing could not have been better, as the second man narrowly missed stabb ing her. The blade barely grazed the edge of her arm, slicing neatly through her cloak and just touching her skin enough so that she could feel a rush of pain shoot through her.
    Arissa attempted to snatch the