If My Heart Could See You by Sherry Ewing Read Free Book Online Page B

ordered to all within his hearing. He grabbed a torch from a wall sconce and strode from the hall into the cool evening night.
    Clansmen and serfs alike walked outside not knowing what was to come as they followed their lord to the outer bailey. Villagers had also been summoned and had already gathered. Smoking torches had been lit and illuminated the area with a golden flickering glow. They watched as several of their lord’s guardsmen stood in a long line and, as they parted, they saw Hugh of Harlow stretched out on a pole with back bared. ’Twas then they knew what they would witness this night.
    Dristan motioned for Aiden to step forward to stand beside him whilst he handed a coiled whip to one of his men. The rope was released with a mighty snap that cracked into the evening air, causing those within its hearing to cringe and flinch. They stared in horror at the rope made of many lengths of braided leather, each holding a ball of metal tied to its end. ’Twould ensure that hideous pain would be inflicted on one’s back. Only a fool would not learn his lesson after even one taste of such a lash landed upon one’s flesh.
    Dristan watched the boy’s face turn ashen whilst his man readied his arm, awaiting his command. “Someday, you, too, shall have to issue the settling of scores so all under your care are treated fairly,” he whispered for the boy’s ears alone.
    “Stand forth and witness the punishment of this man and understand justice will be swift,” he bellowed loudly. “Know whether you are English or Scot, in the eyes of my laws I set forth, all will be dealt with equally. I expect loyalty of my subjects as I claim these lands in the name of King Henry II. You are now subject to the King of England. As you serve me, remember you are serving him, as well.”
    Dristan took a moment to rest his eyes upon his people to ensure his meaning was clear to all. “Hugh of Harlow, I find you guilty of one of many transgressions; speaking on my behalf without my leave, not following directives in the taking of this keep, and striking one of my vassal’s with no right, to name but a few,” he declared, so all could hear his words. “A score of lashes.”
    The Devil’s Dragon of Blackmore gave a brief motion with his hand and the whip unleashed with the first blow. Hugh remained tight lipped, yet fury at this public display blazed in his angry eyes. As the leather struck Hugh’s flesh for the fifth time, he finally gave way to the agony and began to scream in a torment that echoed eerily into the cool night.
    When the last stroke had been laid, Kenna was allowed to see to the man’s back. For Hugh, it made no difference by that time what the count had been. Long afore the executioner’s whip had made the halfway point in its lashing of his flesh, Hugh had succumbed to the torturous pain being inflicted on his bleeding, raw skin. Beyond caring, he had slipped mercifully into a total state of unconsciousness where he felt the sting no more. The same ’twould not be said with the rising of the sun the next morn.

 
    Seven
    Dristan jerked awake instinctively reaching for his sword in reflex from years of living on edge. He was prepared to meet any unknown danger afore him even subconsciously, thus the soft feather mattress of the bed beneath him surely gave him pause. He had not felt such comfort in quite some time. His gaze searched the grand chamber he found himself in and relaxed once he realized where he slept and for how long. Since the fire within the hearth had long since died down to but a few red glowing embers, he presumed he had slumbered several hours.
    Laying his sword aside, he rose naked from beneath the warm coverings still unsure of what had caused him to rouse at such an early hour. Kneeling afore the hearth, he took bits of dry kindling and placed it on the small embers of coal. It took but a few breaths to have the wood ignite with a crackle, and Dristan at last was able to put several logs