Free The Iron Knight (The De Russe Legacy Book 3) by Kathryn Le Veque

necessity. You saw how you were attacked back by Tisbury – outlaws are very well armed, too. It is a violent world in general, my lady.”
    At that point, the patrol was on them, coming to a halt in front of Lucien. One of the men dismounted and greeted Lucien formally.
    “My lord,” he said. “De Royans told us to keep watch for you. He wanted to let you know that Lord de Saix and his daughter have arrived.”
    Lucien’s good mood was shot full of holes in that short statement. The past two hours had seen him forget about the arrival of his betrothed. In fact, for the past two hours, he had been a widower who found great attraction in a widowed lady. He had been a free man, free to dream about a future he never believed possible. His future had been a dark, dreary place until the introduction of Sophina de Gournay, who had been on her way to meet a potential husband.
    Truth be told, Lucien wasn’t going to let St. Michael du Ponte get in the way of what he wanted. He would make a far better husband for Sophina than the criminal, du Ponte. Was he truly thinking of marriage after only knowing the woman for two hours? As impulsive as it seemed, he was. He truly was, for in that brief span of two glorious hours, he could see a future that was no longer dark and dreary. He could see hope and happiness and light. Of course, he didn’t know Sophina well at all but what he had seen, he had liked very much. He didn’t want to let her get away.
    But that was not his choice.
    Now, the reality of his own betrothed, a gift from the king, had arrived at Spelthorne. Briefly, he considered turning around and fleeing with Sophina and Emmaline. He really did. He didn’t want to marry a child bride he knew nothing about. He didn’t want to return to Spelthorne where a hopeless and dark existence waited for him. He didn’t want to go back there, back to darkness. He wanted to wander the roads forever, carrying on a light and delicious conversation with a beautiful woman and watching her sweet daughter chase her ferret about. That was what he wanted. Such a brief, shining moment of delight in a life that had been void of such things.
    Now, reality had hit him.
    He couldn’t run.
    “Very well,” he grumbled. “One of you return to Spelthorne and tell de Royans I am on my way. You will also seek the majordomo and tell him that I am bringing two guests and they are to be made as comfortable as possible. Additionally, tell de Royans to have twenty men assembled, heavily armed, and prepared to ride out with me immediately upon my return.”
    The men were nodding eagerly. “Aye, my lord,” the one man said. “De Royans will want to know where you are riding to.”
    Lucien threw a thumb in the direction of Sophina and Emmaline. “These ladies were set upon by bandits,” he said. “We must retrieve their belongings, which are at the bottom of a lake, before the bandits can get to them. In fact, you’d better have forty men prepared to ride. This may be a big task.”
    The first man nodded smartly and snapped his fingers at his companion, who reined his horse about and took off for Spelthorne. But the first man remained, glancing at the women behind Lucien.
    “Can I be of further assistance, my lord?” he asked. “I can take the girl with me on my horse and we can make haste back to Spelthorne.”
    It made sense. They were still about a half-mile out and it might be better for the ladies to tuck them safely away in the bosom of Spelthorne, the sooner the better. But that would mean the end of the two most blissful hours of Lucien’s life. Still, it would be better for the ladies to get them to safety and food and dry clothing. With a faint sigh, he nodded.
    “Aye,” he replied. Then, he turned and held out a hand to Emmaline. “Young lady, this is Ranulf Gray. He has served me for many years and is a competent and trustworthy man. He will return you to Spelthorne while your mother and I follow.”
    Emmaline was reluctant.