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

blade from his hand, but she had already fallen too far off balance to catch it. Befo re she could right herself, a third man entered her peripheral. She threw her arms out instinctively to block another attack, but she was surprised when the third man held the rifle in his hands high in the air, bringing it down hard into the throat of the man with the knife. With a sickening, choking sound, he collapsed into a writhing heap.
    Not bothering to look up or even question what had happened, Arissa struggled to free herself from the thicket where the two men who had attacked her lay. Feeling disoriented and confused, her eyes darted behind her and saw the horse she had been forced to let go of. In an attempt to flee, the horse’s equipment had snagged on a tree limb and now the bay mare stood, stuck and helpless.
    Suddenly remembering the third man, Arissa whirled, her dark eyes wide with terror and adrenaline. He stood no more than five paces before her, completely covered in a dark, billowing cloak, the hood drawn low over his eyes. His shoulders heaved, as if winded and didn’t move an inch while Arissa pulled herself to her full height. The binding around her wrists had loosened enough that she simply slipped it off over her hands.
    Not knowing who the stranger was, she braced herself for another attack, regretfully feeling the small part of her that dared to hope. She shoved it down, under the pain and torture and resentment she felt. Feeling unnerved by the figure’s lack of movement, she suddenly reached down for her knife.
    Her knife was gone. She had forgotten that she had used it to kill one of the men at the camp. Now she was totally defenceless.
    Finally, he reached up and gripped the edge of his hood. Feeling her heart racing, pounding viciously in her ears, Arissa choked down her air, her muscles bunched and tensed to spring.
    The hood fell from his face, completely revealing his identity and immediately, Arissa felt herself crumpling inside. For a moment, she felt everything and nothing at the same time. Neither her mind nor her body could comprehend what was happening, but in the next moment, a smile struck over her dampened face.
    His expression seeme d to match what she was feeling exactly and when he returned her look of relief and sorrow and joy and defiance, Arissa clapped her hand over her mouth, hardly able to control her emotions.
    He took a haggard step toward her and all within a split second, Arissa could tell how different he looked. He looked worn and tired, as if he had literally been to hell and back. Multiple bruises and cuts marred his face , and his hair was a lot longer than she remembered, but it was still him. It was who she had been searching for months to find and he was here now. And he was alive.
    “ Cayl,” she gasped, raggedly when she met his weak and trembling embrace.

Chapter Twelve
    Escaping the Varkland mountains had not been as difficult as it was finding a settlement that lacked security enough for them to sneak through without being recognized. There had been no hesitation in descending the treacherous mountains on the nervous bay horse, but the same feeling of tension and paranoia that Arissa had been feeling for weeks still lingered. She never let go of his hand once during the entire journey to the village they were in now, and she was sure that her heart rate would never again return to a normal pace. Several times she had to close her eyes for a moment and concentrate, thinking hard enough to make sure that she wasn’t just dreaming.
    The village they were in was not so much a city as a small clearing with several burned and dilapidated buildings. Only a handful of people were around, obviously travellers stopping to take shelter, like Arissa and Cayl. The most they had for a guard was one older man with a machete standing at the top of the path that lead to the spaced building. He grumbled in an unintelligible speech and, after they showed him that they held no