Free Sweeter Than Sin by Andrea Pickens Page B

of honor and integrity.
    Unlike me.
    What possible pain could be tormenting his peace of mind?
    He gave her no time to ponder the question. His smile firmly back in place, Rafael kept up a light-hearted commentary on all the sights, peppering his explanations of the various sections of the markets with droll observations that kept her chuckling despite her inner turmoil. By the time the last items on Rafael's list had been purchased, they had navigated nearly all the twisting turns of the produce section.
    "Sorry," he apologized. "I fear I have worn you out chasing down these vanilla pods from New Spain."
    "Not at all," responded Kyra, though fatigue was starting to slow her steps. When she grew tired, her injured leg ached abominably, but she was determined not to show it. "I have learned more about New World botany from the last two fruit sellers than I have from a shelf of my Father's scholarly books."
    "I don't know about you, but I am famished." Rafael spotted a nearby costermonger hawking his wares. "Ah, meat pasties! Just the sort of sustenance we need after trekking through the stalls."
    Kyra was about to protest that she wasn't hungry when she realized that she was. Indeed, the scent wafting up from the man's barrow was making her mouth water. She started to follow Rafael when a sudden tangling of her skirts nearly caused her to trip.
    Looking down, she saw a dark shape wiggle free of the muslin folds. With its matted fur, torn ear and oversized paws, there was nothing remotely cuddly about the gangly, overgrown pup, but as their eyes met, topaz mixing with emerald in the wink of sunlight, she felt a lump form in her throat.
    "Oh, sweetheart. You're hurt..." As her fingers grazed its mud-encrusted tail, a stone thumped against the dog's ribs.
    "Cripple!" An urchin, nearly as filthy as the animal, scampered around one of the stalls and hurled another stone. "Cripple!" Two other lads appeared as well, and added a peltering of rotten apples.
    "Stop!" cried Kyra, shifting to shield the dog as the leader of the pack raced in and aimed a kick at its rump.
    The blow glanced off her shin, causing her to lose her footing and fall to the ground.
    With a frightened yelp, the dog bolted off and squeezed through a gap between two big wooden casks just as its tormenter lunged for its tail.
    "Don't let it escape!" yelled the urchin to his friends. Slippery as eels, they darted through the gathering crowd and chased after their quarry.

Chapter 7

    Rafael spun around at the sound of Kyra's cry. He saw her tangle with the urchin and go down, but what with the jumble of crates and the press of onlookers crowding in, it took him a moment to reach her side.
    "What happened—" he began as he reached down to help her up from the muddy ground.
    She brushed away his hand. "Never mind me—please, you must save the dog!" she gasped. "They mean to harm it!"
    "Those little spawns of the devil are always making trouble," added the man at the neighboring stall. "They hared off that way." A wave of his pipe indicated one of the alleyways heading toward Seven Dials and the rookies of St. Giles.
    "Please!" repeated Kyra.
    Gentlemanly scruples made him hesitate, but the note of emotion in her voice persuaded him. It was far more than anger, far more than outrage.
    It was desperate need, as if saving a forlorn little animal was a sort of penance for the past.
    "Stay here," he ordered. Dropping the heavily laden basket beside her, he turned and pelted off after the urchins.
    Pushing his way free of the crowd that had gathered around them, Rafael swerved through the parade of shoppers, ignoring the aggrieved curses and the pain shooting through his own injured limb.
    Dios Madre , it if would bring a smile to her face, he would run to the very depths of Hell and back.
    The alleyways began to narrow and twist like the Devil's own tail. Clenching his teeth, he lengthened his stride. The uneven cobbles gave way to malodorous muck, making it even harder to