Captivity

A rough hand shook her awake. The sun beamed through the cloudy sky as her eyes opened, seeing the brigand from the night before. His face was still dirty, though not quite as caked with mud as it had been hours ago. He pulled her to her feet and she stumbled against him, forgetting that she had no shoes. He rolled his blue eyes and lifted her again to one of the horses before climbing up behind her.
Hours passed as they rode, keeping to the forests mostly. She was silent the entire time, not forgetting his warning. If her instincts were correct, there was no telling what this man or any of these men were capable of. She shook her head, remembering that if it weren’t for them, she probably would’ve been returned to her husband by now. She wouldn’t have lasted the night alone. She turned her head, trying to look at the stranger, wondering his name. Silently, she thanked him for getting her away from there.
They slowed along the river, further north in the highlands now. Two of the men worked on setting up camp as the other two left to hunt. Her stomach growled against her hand as she looked out to the water, trying to stay out of their way. Her stranger sat beside her, tearing off pieces of bread, sharing with her.
She gave a weak smile, grateful as she ate the food, her aching body finally able to rest for a moment. He moved to build the fire, handing her his plaid as the air grew colder. She took her hood down, letting the wind take her soft curls over her shoulder as they danced. She could see him sneaking glances at her between his movements; she avoided his eyes, pretending not to notice him. Darkness began to fall and all the men were sitting around the low flames as they passed the dried meat and bread.
One eyed her from across the fire, talking to the other men. She focused on her lap, tearing the beef into pieces before eating it. The flask was offered to her and she took it, preparing for the ale that had surprised her the night before. Sure enough it was there again. She shook her head, swearing she’d get used to it. The man chuckled at her, taking his flask back. Her cheeks burned from embarrassment but she laughed along, knowing it must’ve looked hysterical to make this brute give any emotion.
“So what were you doing?” he asked, popping the bread in his mouth.
“What do you mean?” She asked, looking over at him.
“Last night, what were you doing when I found you?” he asked. She brought her hand to her mouth, dropping her eyes. “Why didn’t you fight?” He asked.
She took a long swig from his flask before meeting his eyes. “I was running away. It was safer to go with you than to fight and be discovered by the guards that were after me.” She drank again, watching his eyes focus on hers before drifting over her. They landed on her hands.
“Running from your husband?” he took her hand in his, running his thumb over the smooth gold ring on her left hand. She nodded, taking her hand back. The ring wouldn’t budge from her finger. Alana tugged at it, hurting her finger the harder she tried. “Let me.” he said, taking her hand again, raising it to his mouth.
Her eyes widened at the odd sensation as his mouth lowered over her finger. His tongue circled over her and his teeth nibbled against the ring, loosening its grip, sliding back. He pulled the ring from between his teeth, handing it back to her. Her heart raced, taking the small ring from him, meeting his eyes.
“Thank you,” she gave a weak smile, staring down at the symbol of her marriage. Anger rose inside her as she clenched her fist around it. She shook her head, looking over at the crackling flames before tossing the ring into the pit, wanting it destroyed. She wasn’t going to be held back by him anymore. “What’s your name?” she asked, looking over at him.
He stared at the fire, folding his hands as he leaned over. “Kai,” he answered slowly. “No more talking tonight,” he said, watching her nod in compliance. He stood, taking her hand, leading her to the cave. “You’ll sleep here tonight, I’ll be in in a while.” He said, turning to leave her. She sat in the darkness against the stone wall, wrapping the plaid tighter around her. Another fire pit was built in the cave, embers burned low as she held her hands over the heat, feeling her eyes growing heavier.
Thunder sounded over the sky, waking her. Alana sat up, feeling the plaid fall to her lap. Two of the men were sleeping against the wall, knives in hand. The fire was put out as she scrambled to her feet, padding towards the cave entrance as lightning flashed. The other two men sat, carving little blocks of wood with their knives silently. Kai was nowhere to be found. She shivered as the wind roared. One turned his head.
“We’ll be leaving soon,” he said, turning back to face the river. She nodded, pulling the plaid back around her shoulders. A horse raced up to the cave, coming to a quick stop, kicking up mud as Kai dismounted, passing a sack to one of the men. He stepped into the cave, kicking the boots of the other two to wake them up. He turned to Alana, reaching into his cloak to pull out another bag.
“Here,” he said, pulling out a pair of riding boots. “I can’t have you barefooted anymore.” He said, handing them to her.
Alana looked up at him, rain dripping from his dark curls down his face. She studied his face, seeing it more clearly now. Ragingly blue eyes lined with dark long lashes, a crooked nose, possibly from multiple breaks in battle and perfectly bowed lips. He was clearly older than her by at least ten years. Faint wrinkles could be seen around his eyes and mouth along with small scars. He hadn’t shaved in a few days.
“Thank you,” she smiled lightly, averting her eyes to keep from staring. She laced the boots over her dirty feet and they left.