Twenty four
1009 Words
DENI’S POV
As they approached closer, he held his reins.
“Keep your eyes downcast.” He said.
“Why should I do that?” She argued.
She looked at him and she was sure that if they were left alone he oils have throttled her by now.
She remained silent and looked down.
A few seconds, she heard the men come up to them.
They were speaking in very fast and fluent Gaelic.
She heard them ask how the journey was, offer them food and water and even shelter which Alaric turned down.
Then they proceeded to tell him off any frequent occurrences among their clans.
They were still have issues with his enemy and he had come to meet them and request that they join allies in plans to defeat him.
At the tone of that, Alaric’s face became cold.
She felt them all looking at her.
She played with her fingertips and she was all of a sudden timid.
As much as she wanted to look up at them, she did not.
Then she heard one of the men ask who she was.
Alaric simply said she was his prize.
Prize? She was his prize?
Had he not complained and scowled over and over that she was a pest and that he was only taking her because he had been asked to and now he referred to her as his prize.
She felt so ashamed of herself.
As if he had gone off to a competition and won her at the prize Centre.
Then she realised it.
Alaric was ashamed of her.
That was why he had told her to keep her head downwards. He did not want his men knowing that he had taken an English for his wife. If she spoke then they would be able that she was an outsider
If knew, then surely they would ridicule him.
That was why he had called her his prize.
Then one of the men said something which she had not really caught.
And she heard him clearly say in Gaelic.
“Mine and only mine to keep.”
Before the men eventually went on speaking but about other things and they went in their way.
After the encounter with the men, they went on their way and she remained quiet.
She could see him eye her from his side view.
As much as she would have liked to lash out at him and call him a heartless monster that he truly was, she could not.
She did not want him knowing that she could understand Gaelic.
In fact if he happened to discover that she could he was going to throttle her she knew for sure.
“How long before we reach?” She asked him in exasperation.”
“Are you already tired?” He asked her.
“I have been on the road for over a week now.” She said. “I rarely ever travel this far . It is quite tiresome.”
“Do not worry we shall be home by sundown.” He said and kept on riding ahead.
Home.
The only home she knew was the home back in England.
The question was whether she could ever call this new place home. If she could even consider it as her home.
She had no one.
Her husband was quite annoying, she doubted but hoped the women of Scotland would accept her, and she had no friends.
To show how difficult it had been, she was not even friendly with any of his men.
Even after she had treated Bard, they kept mute.
And she still had no idea who had undid her saddle and almost killed in the process.
She shivered just remembering that amongst them was someone who wanted her dead so badly he would execute before they even made it to Scotland.
All except Richard Only Richard and that was because he had been quite nice to her from the onset. He had been the one to even approach her.
She had tried being friendly with the rest and they had simply ignored her, not even raising a conversation with her.
Although for that, she suspected that Alaric had something to do with the attitude from the men .
“I wish to rest.” She told him.
“You complain about the journey and yet you ask to rest.” He asked her.
“I am quite tried.” She complained.
“The more we stop, the longer it would take for us to get home.” He said.
He said it again. Home.
“If we stop for rest, we shall reach home quite dark and we might be game for our enemies.” He said.
Then she remembered their previous attack and she shivered in fear.
She said nothing and they continued the silent ride.
She was going to mad if the silence continued like this.
And just like that, she felt herself become very dizzy.
She started to see doubles and soon triples.
She held her head and tried to clear her head, but she could not seem to clear away the multiple figures and just there and then she felt herself fall down.
* *
Alaric heard a loud thump to the ground.
He turned around and saw that his wife’s horse was walking empty and she was conveniently on the ground.
He swore and hurriedly came down from him horse and gathered her in his arms.
She was still unconscious
His men had now all stopped.
“Would she be alright?” One of the men asked.
“Aye.” Alaric said gently set the locks of her hair that was set over her face. “That she would be.”
“Leo take her horse.” He said. “She shall ride with me.”
Then Alaric put his wife over his horse and he soon joined her on it.
He saddled her and held his arms around her so that she would not fall off and the journey resumed.
- Writer
