Avenging Death

We stayed that night and woke up early in the morning. We stood near the outskirt of the forest, I sat on my horse and watch Bahara and Tronzey say their partings. As Bahara had promised, she had given us five bags of fruit and vegetables grown from the forest.
“Here precious little one,” Bahara handed Tronzey a small bag. “These are fruits from the Vix tree. Use them wisely,” she put a necklace over her head. “this a queron stone so that if you ever want to find this place again.”
Bahara lifted Tronzey up behind me. “Protect her well. It will take you about half a day to arrive at the village.”
“I will and fulfill our deal,” I assured her.
She nodded and we trotted away. As we continued our journey, I began to whistle one of my favorite tunes that my father used to whistle with me when he was cutting down wood. Surprisingly Tronzey began to hum along with me.
“Do you know it,” I asked, shocked.
She nodded and continued to hum.
Our melody was destroyed, by trampling of hooves racing toward us. We silenced ourselves as five men on their horses surrounded us from all sides.
“What do you want?” I asked in hostile manner.
“You killed one of ours hounds, we want payment,” one of the man said in a stern tone. He had a red patched that covered an eye.
“Your hounds tried to kill a child,” I said fiercely but calm. “It is you who should compensate her.”
I analyzed them closely and realized that they were only crooks and rogues. They all had swords hanging from sheaths around their waist. They must have tracked us after I save Tronzey from their dogs.
“Hinz, what do want us to do with them, should we kill her and keep the girl,” another man asked.
“No,” the man with the masked eye replied. “I think she’s the woman that Leers clan is after. We can sell her to him. Take their stuff and do what you want to the girl.”
“No,” I jumped off the horse. I knew what he meant. They were going to rape her. “Do what you want with me. Do not harm the girl. If you do, Leer will have your heads not your pact. She is his child.”
They were silenced in shock.
“She’s lying,” one man finally spoke. “She’s trying to protect the girl.”
“Check her for the mark,” the man with masked eyed, I was now sure was the leader, now.
They yanked Tronzey off the horse and began searching her body for the mark. She was frighten and trembling.
I let the anger sizzle in the pit of my stomach. “It’s on her neck.”
One of the man push her hair aside and recognized the mark. “It’s true.”
“Tie them up, and let’s go,” Hinz ordered.
They tied a rope around my wrists and tied me to the back of Fuzz as he pulled me forward. They let Tronzey sit on fuzz but they still tied her hands to the rope around fuzz’s neck. Although I had protected Tronzey by revealing she was Leer’s daughter, I had also put her in danger. I knew when they delivered me to Leer, Shrush would killed me but I had no idea what would happen to Tronzey. Many said, Leers children would be put through harsh training and be tested. Some would succeed, others would die. I knew Tronzey wouldn’t make it. She didn’t have a mean bone in her body. That’s why I had to release her.
They had taken all my weapons but one. My dagger under Fuzz’s saddle. When the time came I would release Tronzey and I, both. A couple of minutes passed before they stopped the horse so the man behind me could relieve himself. This was my perfect chance. Tronzey turn to look at me, and I gestures my head toward the saddle and mouth the word ‘dagger’. She nodded her head to me, letting me know she understood. Because her hands were tied, she had to use her legs to try to push the knife out of the pocket under the saddle. Every hour, their dogs would return and leave. I was sure they were checking the perimeter ahead. The men look at us now and then mostly at me. It look like Tronzey was just swinging her legs from boredom. It took her a little while, but she was able to slip her legs under the saddle and kick the dagger out. I quickly dipped down, grabbed with my bonded hands, and stashed it beneath my pants just as one the man turn to look at us.
The man behind returned to his horse and they started the horses again. Since the man in front of me were looking ahead and the one behind me could only see my back, I was able to slowly and slyly cut the rope. Once I finally cut all the way through it, I pretended to faint. I could hear one of the man jump off his horse to see to me.
“It’s hard to believe she defeated shrush in a duel,” he said as he flipped me over. “it hasn’t even been an ho-“
I stabbed him through the stomach, and grabbed his sword. The men pranced but had already jumped up and swiped at the rope breaking Fuzz and Tronzey free. Before I could jump on Fuzz, one of the man threw his sword through my leg.
I tumble into the ground and shouted. “Fuzz go!”
Fuzz galloped off as one of the man chased after him.

Grabbed her the leader said. One man grabbed me by the hair to lift me up.
“Leer is just going to have to settle with a dead trade,” the leader said as he pull out his sword and rammed for my chest.
That’s when a burst of colors slammed into his face and knock the sword out of his hands.
I knew who it was.