Orphan of Destiny by Michael Spradlin Read Free Book Online Page B

Maryam startled me and I ducked down again.
    The clouds were backlighted by the rising moon, which was almost at its highest point in the night sky. Unfortunately the shadows along the buildings lining our side of the street were beginning to shorten. If Sir Hugh and his men did not ride off soon, we were surely done for. They would see me if they came toward us, and Robard and Maryam would not be hidden for much longer either. My breath came in short gasps and the blood pounding in my ears made it difficult to think.
    The sound of horses cantering down the street was a welcome relief. I peered out at the street from beneath the cart. The column rode into my view with Sir Hugh at the lead and the brothers following two abreast, and I was overjoyed to see they were heading away from us. I was about to stand up when everything went sour.
    The building secreting Maryam and Robard was a small inn. During my time in Dover it had been a raucous place filled with revelers and drunks. It had fallen on hard times like the rest of the town. No sound came from within and its windows were dark. From all appearances, it looked deserted.
    Yet it was not.
    Before Sir Hugh and the brothers reached the end of the street, a man opened the door and stepped out carrying a bucket full of ashes, which he must have intended to dump in the street. The door had hidden Robard from his view, but he nearly trampled Maryam. Then he spotted me lying on the ground beside the cart. He bellowed, “What is this? What are you doing here?”
    Robard pushed the door shut and grasped the man with one arm, clamping his other hand over the man’s mouth. The man gasped and dropped the bucket, which made a loud clanging sound when it struck the cobblestone street. He thrashed and kicked, and tried to shout out. Robard’s hand muffled his cries, but not enough.
    “Quiet!” Maryam whispered. “We mean you no harm!” She tried to reach out and calm him, but he continued to struggle and moaned even louder.
    Keeping my eyes on Sir Hugh, I watched in horrid fascination as he raised his hand and called his horsemen to a halt. He turned his stallion and cantered back toward us.
    “Run!” I shouted.
    I sprang up from my spot on the ground and starting sprinting away. Robard and Maryam did not have to be told twice, and their footsteps pounded on the street behind me.
    “Thieves! Thieves!” the man shrieked.
    “Stop!” Sir Hugh commanded. “I demand that you stop!”
    Not bloody likely.
    When we reached the corner, we turned onto the main thoroughfare leading to the marketplace.
    “After them!” Sir Hugh shouted. Robard and Maryam had quickened their pace and were running beside me. Every step brought burning pain down my entire leg. I would not be able to keep this up for long.
    “Better think of something quick, squire!” Robard gasped. We were no match for men on horseback, and indeed, judging by the sound of their hoofbeats, our pursuers were gaining on us.
    “This way!” I shouted, darting down a narrow alley that cut across our path. This area of town was mostly shops. The alley was full of barrels, small carts and other assorted implements, which required us to carefully pick our way through. But it would make it difficult for someone on horseback to follow.
    The alley twisted to the right and we kept running. The sound of hoofbeats dimmed, and for a brief second I thought we’d already lost them, but I could hear shouting coming from in front of us. “They’re trying to flank us!” Robard whispered.
    We skidded to a stop a few paces from where the alley cut across another street.
    “What now?” Maryam asked. The wound in my side was throbbing. Horses were heading toward us, but I could not determine from what direction.
    Still gasping for breath, I hopped onto a nearby barrel. I could almost reach the roof of the building.
    “Help me up,” I said.
    Robard held his hands up over his head, making a platform, and I stepped into them with my left