Beguiled (The Fairest Maidens #2) - Jody Hedlund Page 0,43

He gave a nod to the soldiers guarding the women. They unlocked and lifted the top boards of the stocks so the prisoners could free their legs from confinement.

The women hurried to obey the command to stand. But because they’d been sitting for so long, they struggled to push themselves up, gaining kicks and rough prodding from the soldiers. The oldest of the three, Joan, fell to her knees every time she tried to rise, until Felicity stooped and slipped an arm around the woman’s waist.

Now that the women were temporarily unbound, we needed to act. My attention shifted to Mikkel, and my muscles tensed. He’d already jumped up onto an overturned crate and tossed back his hood, revealing his handsome and yet commanding features. He stuck his fingers into his mouth and produced a piercing whistle that silenced the crowd and drew the gazes of everyone present.

Immediately, from opposite sides, Irontooth and Toad began to weave through the gathering toward the women.

“Citizens of Fife.” Mikkel’s voice rang out, the authority of his tone garnering even more attention so that no one paid Irontooth and Toad any heed. “What kind of city and nation have you become to sentence three women to death without the benefit of a fair trial?”

Murmurings arose from the crowd, and the Inquisitor’s eyes widened as he took in Mikkel.

“If you judge by appearances alone and refuse to see deeper into the heart, you will only condemn yourselves to more judgment. Eventually, you will soon find yourselves standing in this very place, waiting to be burned at the stake. For who amongst us is without a flaw?”

The women had stopped the moment they heard Mikkel’s voice, but thankfully Felicity was smart enough not to show her surprise. Instead, she kept her expression neutral and casually glanced over the crowd. I could tell the moment she glimpsed Irontooth by the way her back straightened.

I prayed strength would return to their limbs, allowing them to make their getaway quickly. Their lives would depend upon it.

“Who are we to say what is unnatural?” Mikkel continued, drawing the Inquisitor’s scowl. “If you can revile one woman for a mark upon her face, then how could you not denounce another for a mark, only smaller? And if you condemn someone for pale skin and hair, then what’s to stop you from casting judgment on a person with dark skin and hair?”

The Inquisitor motioned toward his guards, indicating they should silence Mikkel. But they were distracted by his speech. And they were also too distracted to see Irontooth and Toad drawing ever nearer to the women.

“How can we discount the value of this older woman who cannot speak, and yet nurture a wee babe who is guilty of the same?” Mikkel’s impassioned pleas stirred the crowd, drawing choruses of agreement. “If we judge a person based solely on the way they stand apart from others, then why not judge the Inquisitor? He is taller and thinner than most.”

At Mikkel’s declaration, the Inquisitor’s visage darkened, and he barked out more urgent orders to his guards, finally drawing their attention.

“Will you arrest me then also?” Mikkel was regal and every inch a prince. “Perhaps because I have blue eyes instead of brown?”

The agitation amongst the gathering was growing, just the way Mikkel had predicted it would. They began to jostle and push forward, which aided the momentum of Irontooth and Toad as they attempted to get next to the women.

“Rather than condemning some to be outcasts,” Mikkel continued above the commotion, “let us recognize we are all unique and imperfect in some way. Let us find no shame in that and instead value each other for our differences.”

With the Inquisitor’s displeasure ringing in the air, the guards hastened toward Mikkel, though their steps were impeded by the surging crowd.

“Let the women go free!” Mikkel’s cry rose strong and clear. “Do not make them suffer any longer for the superstitions of the Inquisitor.”

I drew the bowstring taut. Mikkel had warned Humphrey and me not to shoot unless absolutely necessary. He hadn’t wanted to draw attention to my position on the roof, which would make my getaway all the more difficult.

Even so, my muscles contracted with the need to protect Mikkel. If any of the soldiers threatened him, I doubted I’d be able to hold back, especially if he was in any danger of being captured.

Mikkel scanned the crowd. Seeing the guards fighting their way through the crowd in his direction, he hopped down from his