The Baker's Boy by J. V. Jones Read Free Book Online Page B

horse around tree and over ditch.
The hounds led the party on a twisting path into the heart of the wood. The
trees became so dense that the party was often forced to slow down. The king
hated to be slowed. The cry of the hounds urged him to go faster, to take
risks, to pursue his game at any cost. Lord Rolack was at his flank and
threatened to take the lead. Lesketh dug spur into horseflesh and pushed ahead.
The men were gaining on the hounds. Over stream and fallen log they leapt,
through glade and brush they charged. Then suddenly, unexpectedly, they caught
a glimpse of a huge and fast-moving form.
    "A
boar!" cried the king exultantly. That single vision had sent a shiver of
fear through him: the beast was massive, much larger than was usually found in
these parts.
    The horsemen
closed in on hound and boar, and the archers loosed their first arrows. Most
went wide as the boar dived once more into the bush. However, when the boar was
spotted again, it was sporting two arrows: one on its neck, the other in its
haunch. The king knew that the first hits would actually quicken the boar,
filling it with a dangerous blind rage. He turned his horse quickly and pursued
the game deeper into the bush.
    The hounds smelled
blood and were wild with excitement, their cries reaching a fever pitch. The
men responded to the sound; blood had been drawn, the hunt had now truly begun.
    The king had no
time for thought. He survived on his reflexes and those of his horse, which
seemed to know when to jump and turn without any prompting from its master. The
boar was sighted again. This time its escape route was cut off by a deep gully.
The archers fired once more and the boar was hit a further three times. The
beast let out a piercing squeal. One of the arrows went astray, striking a
hound and puncturing its eye. In the confusion, the boar turned on the party
and blazed a path through them. The king was furious. "Put that hound out
of its misery!" he said through clenched teeth. He spun his horse round,
drawing blood with his spurs, and charged after the game.
    The boar did not
slow down. Pursued by the hounds, it fled into the depths of the forest,
leaving a trail of blood in its path.
    Finally the boar
was cornered by the hounds; it had run toward a still pond and could go no
further. The dogs kept it from moving by forming a half-circle around it. The
mighty beast kicked at the earth, preparing to charge. The men readied their
weapons. The king moved closer, his eyes never leaving the beast. One wrong
move, one hesitation could lead to death. Lesketh knew he had only an instant
before the boar charged. He neared the beast, raising his spear and, with all
the force in his body, thrusting the weapon deep into the boar's flank. The
beast sounded a chilling death cry and hot blood erupted from the wound.
    One moment later,
all the lords were upon the beast, stabbing it countless times with their long
spears. The boar's blood flowed onto the ground and down to the pond. The
houndsmen called the dogs off; the party was jubilant.
    "Let's have
its balls off!" cried Carvell.
    "Off with its
balls," repeated Maybor. "Who will do the honors?"
    "You should,
Maybor. It's rumored you're skilled in the art of castration." Everyone
laughed, relieving the tension of the hunt.
    Maybor took his
dagger from its sheath and dismounted his horse. "By Bore! I don't think
I've ever seen such huge balls."
    "I thought
you had a looking glass, Maybor!" quipped Rolack. The lords guffawed
loudly. With one quick slice, Maybor relieved the dead beast of its testicles
and held them up for his companions to admire.
    "On second
thought," he said with mock seriousness, "I think mine are
bigger!"
    As the men
chuckled in response, the king thought he heard a familiar whirring sound. The
next instant, he was knocked off his horse by the force of something hitting
his shoulder. As he fell he saw what it was ... an arrow. The instant of
recognition was followed by the forewarning of