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

sword blows with another intruder. And behind me Gregor was doing the same. A quick look told me all I needed to know. Irontooth’s band was assailing us.

Of all the threats facing us this morn, I’d neglected to consider our rivals on the island. In truth, I had no issue with the other group of outcasts. I’d never met them, had only seen the several Blade had recently captured and enslaved. From what I could tell, they were no different or worse in their physical limitations than anyone in our group. And yet, the bands had been warring with each other for years.

Now with one of Irontooth’s outcasts within my grip and arms pinned at his back, I was loathe to hurt the poor soul. If not for fate, he could have been my companion during my Testing instead of Fowler. Gregor and I had just happened to land on the area of the island closest to Blade’s camp and had been intercepted by his men instead of Irontooth’s.

The clang of metal and the grunts of fighting rose into the fog. I needed to put an end to the skirmish to prevent anyone from sustaining serious injury.

“Hold your weapons!” I repositioned my blade against my captive’s neck, which was covered with a strange black material. “And your man will remain safe.”

“Man?” said a decidedly feminine voice from the person I was holding.

I dropped my gaze to find a pair of beguiling green eyes peering at me. Even though the black silky material rose above my captive’s nose, leaving the top quarter of the face visible, I was left with no doubt that this was a woman—a very comely woman.

“Unhand me.” She spoke smoothly, though her voice was somewhat muffled behind the veil. “As you can see, I am no man.”

Yes, I could see that. This was no mere peasant or tradesman’s daughter. Something in her tone and the way she held herself told me she was a woman of some bearing, perhaps of noble birth.

I let my knife fall away. I would have released a poor woman too. I wasn’t predisposed to the rich. Was I?

Before I could figure out my next step, the woman twisted out of my grasp and elbowed me with a force that left me gasping for breath. Then before I knew what she was doing, she bent, grasped me from behind, and flipped me over her back. I landed in the hull with a crack that knocked any remaining air from my lungs.

An instant later, she was standing upon my arms, this time with her knife pressed against my neck. “Hold your weapons.” Her bright eyes captured mine as she mocked me with the words I’d spoken moments earlier. “And your man will remain safe.”

I attempted to move my hands to protect myself, but the heels of her boots ground into my wrists, and excruciating pain shot up my arm.

From the quiet at the back of the boat, I could tell Gregor had stopped fighting his opponent. But ahead, Fowler continued to battle a man twice his size with an abnormally big head and enormous ears.

Even though Fowler fought valiantly, he lurched about and bumped into the side of the boat. The rocking motion threw him off balance, and he started to fall overboard. His opponent grabbed him, placing a swift blow across his head and knocking him out.

The woman on top of me didn’t let up on the pressure on my wrists, and I gritted my teeth to keep from shouting at her.

As though recognizing my self-control, her eyes flashed with more mocking humor. “See that you and your manservant cooperate.” She nodded toward Gregor. “Or you will both be rendered unconscious too.”

My servant? How did this woman know Gregor was my servant and not my master?

She gave a disdainful bow. “My lord, you do not belong on this island. And Irontooth aims to find out who you are and why you are here.”

Chapter

2

Pearl

My prisoner was handsome. I don’t know why that fact stood out to me, but it did nonetheless. Strands of his shoulder-length fair hair were plaited into small braids on one side of his face. The scruffy layer of stubble on his jaw and chin was slightly darker in coloring, making the blue of his eyes all the brighter and more alluring. The rest of his features—his nose, mouth, cheekbones—were flawless, almost regal.

While spying, Toad had heard the eye-patch man calling his companion Mikkel and ordering him around. In return, Mikkel