The Archer's Daughter by Melissa MacKinnon Read Free Book Online Page A

should die next to a man as fine as Owen. Honorable and certainly handsome, dying in his arms would be a fine way to go. Indeed. She had taken down her fair share of men and knew someone would rise in her stead.
    Clear your thoughts, Cate. There will be no dying today. There will be no dying today. She repeated the words until she believed them. “Bane, we are going to perish right here if you do not release me.” She tugged against her restraints. “You have to trust me. You cannot fend for the both of us. Remove the fecking shackles.” The chain jingled. “ Now , Bane. The shackles!”
    Owen opened the small pouch on his belt and dug for the key.
    “Hurry!” Cate rocked forward in anticipation
    Upon finding the key, he fumbled with the chains as he turned the lock. The rings dropped to the ground and she was free. She rubbed the irritated skin for a moment before hastily picking up a nearby the fallen sword.
    Owen’s grip on the hilt of his own sword visibly tightened.
    Cate rolled her eyes. “Be calm. We fight together or we both die this day.”
    “So we call a truce, then? You shall not try to kill me, and I shall try not to kill you?”
    “For the time being, yes.” She tested the weight of the sword with a small half-arc swing.
    Owen shifted his hunched stance but didn’t completely turn his back to her, even though several head hunters charged at them from behind. She understood the distrust. Cate wouldn’t allow herself to be vulnerable to anyone, especially not to the man seeking her arrest.
    Bracing for attack, Cate took a deep breath, tightened her grip on the crudely constructed sword, and waited for impact. Without her armor and her bow, she felt entirely exposed. Not used to the weight of the metal, the first swing missed her intended target completely, and she nearly lost her footing in the fray. She compensated by shouldering the man in the gut, knocking him back just enough for Owen to slash him across the chest.
    “We must head for the trees. We are too exposed here.” Owen leapt to the side, dodging a jab from his opponent.
    She attacked the man from behind, thrusting her sword through his side. The aggressor gurgled then slumped to the ground. Removing her blade from the body, she said, “I agree. I am more useful with a bow. I grow tired of this sword nonsense. Duck.”
    Owen dropped to the ground as Cate swung wildly above him, severing the neck of another head hunter. Blood sprayed in a wide fan as the man’s artery continued to pump while he fought for breath. Rolling out from beneath the dying enemy, Owen thrust his sword into the man’s belly, finishing him.
    Wiping the sticky substance from her face, she sucked in an exhausted breath. “To the trees, then?”
    Owen staggered forward, nearly crashing into Cate. He gained his footing and quickly swept his vision over their surroundings. Taking Cate by the hand, he led her further up the road until they found a spot to cross. Small skirmishes flourished all around them, neither party willing to give up.
    Win or die. Those were the only choices.
    The pair scurried through the trees, leaping over fallen branches and deflecting low lying tree limbs as they made their way to safety.
    Pausing to catch her breath, Cate kneeled beside an old decaying log slick with green moss. “What of your men, my lord? Do you not fear for their safety? Or yours?” She wiped her brow with the sleeve of her tunic, staining it a muddy red.
    Owen collapsed beside her. “They are trained well enough to regroup and fight. And what of your men?”
    Cate rose, standing tall above Owen. “This is where our leadership differs. We fight to survive, to protect one another at all costs.” The tip of her sword balanced precariously close to his chest. “At all costs.”
     

CHAPTER FIVE
    At the sight of her men emerging from within the refuge of the trees, Cate withdrew her sword, stepping away from Owen. “I am sorry for this.” Her lips tightened into a