choice do you have now? You have betrayed one of your own. You will be hunted and punished.”
He laughed. “I am no fool. You were seen freely leaving Hellewyk land with me. You did not protest or scream that I was abducting you. We rode off together in a common cause. And if you should die in pursuit of that cause?”—he shrugged—“heroes are born from less.”
Her green eyes glistened with a tangible fury and she raised her tied wrists, shook her fisted hands at him. “You will bring destruction.”
“Blackshaw clan will gladly unite with the clan Hellewyk and seek revenge against the Wolf clan,” Odo said with pride. “Of course, if Tarr should die in battle the Hellewyk clan would have no leader; my nephew being a strong chieftain and following my wise opinions, would take leadership and unite the two clans.”
“It will never happen. Tarr is no fool, he will not believe you.”
“My brother, his wife, and my nephew Raynor would never doubt me. They know I serve the clan with honor.”
“Your own deceit will be your defeat. Tarr knows I would not ride off without first—”
“What makes you think Tarr will live to hear an explanation of your sudden disappearance?”
She glared at him, gritting her teeth to prevent spewing oaths at him.
“I know he follows; I counted on it.” He pounded his chest. “It does my heart good to see that young men remain foolish when it comes to love.”
“Raynor will know you are traitor to your people when you murder Tarr.”
“I will raise no weapon against him.”
His intentions dawned on her and fueled her already boiling anger. “You plan to make the Wolf clan look responsible for his death—”
“Do not forget yours,” he chuckled. “Between both your deaths, there will be no man, woman, or child of the Hellewyk clan who would refuse to battle the Wolf clan. Add the Blackshaw warriors to the mix and victory is guaranteed.”
Fiona wanted to shout, scream, cry out her rage but that would only please him, instead she chose words that would strike doubt in him.
“You forget one thing.”
“I forget nothing; it will all come to pass.”
She snickered to herself, pleased that she was about to land a solid blow to his confidence. “Will it? You forget the prophecy.”
“Why would Odo take Fiona to the land of the Wolf?” Aliss asked, pulling the hood of her wool cloak up on her head, the wind having whipped it off for the third time.
“Perhaps he learned something that would help us to—”
“You refuse to believe your uncle a traitor,” Tarr accused.
“He could be protecting Fiona.”
“Why not tell us his intentions?” Tarr asked, appearing as unsettled as his stallion that snorted and pawed the ground. “Why did he not seek our help? Why sneak off without a word?”
Raynor remained firm in defense of his uncle. “I am sure he will have a good answer when we confront him.”
“Can you tell how far they are from us?” Aliss asked.
“If we keep a swift pace, we may be able to meet up with them by midday.”
“They will be expecting us,” Tarr said.
“There you have answered Odo’s intentions yourself,” Raynor claimed. “He does not hide from us; his trail was easy to follow.”
“For you his nephew.”
Raynor reared up in his saddle. “You accuse me?”
“I take no chances with Fiona’s life.”
“You think I do?”
“By refusing to admit that your uncle may be culpable for your sisters’ abduction then, yes, you take a dangerous chance. You risk your sister’s life.”
“Tarr is right, Raynor,” Aliss said. “We must assume and prepare for the worst, and if we are wrong we hurt no one, but if we are right—”
“We rescue Fiona and finally bring an end to this madness,” Raynor finished.
“You stand with us or against. I need to know,” Tarr demanded.
“I would die to keep my sister safe.”
“You may get that chance,” Tarr said. “I have a feeling Odo has planned well and I think he involves the Wolf clan.”
“We should hurry,” Aliss urged. “The weather does not bode well for us. We must attempt to beat the approaching storm.”
Tarr’s dark eyes narrowed. “I will unleash a storm far more destructive than you have ever seen if Odo hurts Fiona in any way. Let us go. I grow tired of the hunt; it is time to attack.”
Fiona had worked the leather ties loose that bound her wrists without anyone being the wiser. She would be able to slip her hands free when she was ready. She took stock of