Free The Storyspinner by Becky Wallace Page B

moment.
    What he received—methodical attacks to areas exposed and undefended—was a thousand times worse than what he’d done.
    “Please.” Johanna turned to the duchess and grabbed her hand. “Please make this stop.”
    The older woman’s face was streaked with tears, and she gripped Johanna’s hand tightly but continued watching.
    The eleventh hit landed and Rafi’s knees buckled. The rope swung slightly, supporting his weight, the top of his boots scraping the floor and catching on the drain. Captain Alouette didn’t wait for him to regain his feet, winding up for another strike.
    The muscles in the lordling’s arms corded as he tucked his knees toward his chest, an unconscious effort at protecting himself.
    “No more.” Johanna came to her feet, but the Punisher pulled back his arm and slammed Rafi in the stomach.
    “That’s enough!” she shouted, but was ignored. A hand grabbed her wrist but she wrenched away.
    The Punisher didn’t seem to hear her, either locked into the moment or refusing to take commands from a peasant. He circled Rafi again, looking for a new place to damage.
    Johanna leaped across the room, putting herself between the Punisher and his victim. “I. Said. Stop.” She wrapped her arms around Rafi’s torso, ignoring the sweat and bruises, and forming a human shield.
    Voices were raised; the other men in the room and Lady DeSilva all called her back to her seat.
    “Johanna.” Dom stood, looking between her and his brother. “He won’t thank you for your interruption.”
    “I will not stand by and watch as he’s beaten senseless.” Rafi panted near her ear, each breath whistling with anguish. “Cut him down. Now.”
    “No,” the lordling whispered. “Finish it.”
    Johanna looked into his face, seeing the sweat that beaded his brow and the veins that had broken in his dark eyes. “You’re a fool. And I refuse to be responsible for the injuries of someone so mentally incapacitated.” She nodded to the knife sheathed at the Punisher’s belt. “Cut him down or I will stand here and block every blow you intend for Lord Rafael.”
    Captain Alouette’s arms dropped limply to his sides and he looked between his liege lady and the strange, commanding girl.
    “Alouette.” Lady DeSilva’s voice echoed in the stone room, a note of plea edging the sound.
    Johanna wasn’t sure if it was an appeal to continue or to quit.
    The Punisher made the decision without a second thought. In one smooth move he raised his knife and sliced through the rope.
    Rafi fell heavily into Johanna’s arms, bearing them both to the cold stone floor. She grunted in pain as he crushed her bruised ribs.
    “No,” Rafi said, and raised one arm so the captain could help him back to his feet.
    Captain Alouette shook his blond head, his mustache pulling down in a frown. “You owe her boy, twice over. Serve her and regain your honor.”
    Johanna could feel Rafi’s heart pounding against the skin inside her elbow, and the heat from his fevered body seeped through her dress.
    He made eye contact again, the fire in his gaze renewed. “I’d rather take double the Punishment than ever see you again.”

Chapter 20

    Leão
    The five-day ride to Belem’s estate was uneventful. Once they’d crossed out of the rugged terrain around Roraima and into the valley of Cruzamento, the landscape—rolling hills, prairie grass, the occasional vineyard or sheep herd—was beautiful in its relative monotony.
    Leão was strangely disappointed. His mind had conjured images of a stark landscape, bereft of greenery and trees, as if it had been warped by the evil of the people of Santarem.
    Jacaré tried to convince him that what they’d witnessed at the Citadel wasn’t the norm, that he shouldn’t base his opinion on a few wayward soldiers, but the girl’s screams haunted his sleep.
    He’d heard of such things happening, but he hadn’t thought he’d ever witness them firsthand.
    It wasn’t that Olinda was completely