Hidden Knights (Knights of the Realm #3) - Jennifer Anne Davis Page 0,86

travel with this large of an army. That’s why it’s important to be vigilant.”

“I understand.” However, they’d split the army into two groups, and she was currently with the smaller one. If there was going to be an attack, striking the group she was with would be most effective.

“I always worry before a fight or a battle.” He rubbed her arm. “I’m always afraid I missed something. It’s normal to second guess yourself.”

“How do you feel right now?” she asked. “Are you nervous?”

“Of course. I’m worried something will happen to you, my mother, my brother, my men. I’m responsible for everyone here. If something goes wrong, that’s on me.”

In the darkness, she could just make out the outline of his face. “Being in a leadership role is tough.”

“Yes, it is.” He kissed her shoulder. Then his lips trailed up her neck to her own lips.

Rolling her onto her back, Dexter slid his leg over her thigh. Her hands roamed over his shoulders. Something hard poked her back. “Hang on.”

“That’s not what I want to hear right now,” he murmured between kisses.

“Something is under my bedroll.” She reached below her bedding, searching for the stick or whatever it was digging into her back. Her fingers came across metal. “Did you seriously put a dagger under my pillow for me?” She withdrew her hand, half amused he’d left her a gift like that.

Dexter went unnaturally still. “No. I have one beside me, but I didn’t put one over by you.”

“Maybe Gytha put it there?” When she went to reach back under to withdraw the weapon, Dexter grabbed her wrist.

“Wait.” He lit a candle.

Reid moved off her bedding, kneeling on Dexter’s while he examined the area around them. He pulled back the blankets, revealing the dagger. When he placed the candle closer, Reid hissed. Thorns were carved onto the hilt, a rose etched on the crossguard, and an intricate pattern covered the blade.

“What is it?” Dexter demanded.

Yanking up her sleeve, she revealed her tattoo. “It’s the exact same,” she whispered. “What do you think it means?”

Grabbing a discarded sock, he used it to lift the dagger from the ground. “There’s a piece of paper.” He set the dagger down. “Do you want it?”

Reid wasn’t sure.

Dexter gingerly lifted the paper, unfolding it. “It says, Don’t forget your oath. When the time comes, I expect you to do your job.”

“Where’s Victor?” she asked.

“He’s with Ackley. Why?”

“Do you think she did this?”

“Anna?”

Reid nodded.

“I don’t know.”

If Anna could sneak in, plant the dagger in Reid’s own tent, and slip away unnoticed, Reid had no hope of ever being safe with Anna alive.

“Do you think she intends for you to kill me?”

“Yes.” Anna wouldn’t stop until she eliminated the entire Winston family. The problem was that now Reid had married Dexter, she was a Winston as well. Did Anna intend to kill Reid, too?

Dexter snuffed out the candle, then poked his head outside the tent. Reid heard him talking with the two posted guards. When he came back inside, he informed her that he’d requested two additional guards so there was someone on each side of the tent. He then wrapped the dagger in his sock, placing it in Reid’s bag.

He laid down. “Do you remember the night we announced our engagement to the City of Radella?”

When Reid stretched out next to him, he wrapped his arm around her body, her back resting against his chest. “I do.”

“I told you I didn’t want to fall in love because then I would be a slave.”

Reid remembered him saying something along those lines.

“I feared if I loved a woman, she could be used against me.”

Now that Reid was in her current predicament, she realized he had a valid point.

“What I never understood is how the opposite can be true as well.”

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“As scared as I am of something happening to you, I feel more empowered because I have you by my side. You make me stronger. You make me a better man.”

Reid had no idea what to say to that.

“I promise that once Eldon is dealt with, we’ll face your mother together.”

She squeezed his hand, feeling a sense of comfort, peace, and happiness she’d never felt before.

The following day, the duchesses each expressed a desire to learn the art of weaponry. Dexter jumped at the chance to teach the women some basic moves with a sword and dagger. That evening, after the sun set, most people turned in early. Reid and Dexter crawled into their tent,