Song of the Heart - Alexa Aston Page 0,63

dark clouds that way. The little mites’ll be soaked to the skin. I don’t want them to catch their death of cold.”

“Don’t worry, Annie. I’ll saddle Ebony and bring them back. Where did they go?”

“Lyssa wanted to picnic by that stream, just beyond the edge of the forest.”

“Then think how dry they’ll be,” he reassured her. “Those trees are a thick covering. I’ll wager they feel but a few drops.”

Garrett strode off toward the stables had Ebony saddled. He mounted the frisky horse and turned him out the gates and across the meadow, heading toward the woods.

The sky had darkened considerably. A streak of lightning tore across the heavens, followed by a noisy thunderclap and he heard Lyssa’s cry from a distance. He spurred Ebony on.

Halfway across the meadow, he spotted the two children scrambling toward him as the rain arrived full scale and a steady downpour began.

Garrett dismounted, alarmed that he hadn’t spotted Madeleine with them. She would never leave the children on their own.

The pair was wet to the bone, shivering with the cold. Lyssa had lost one of her slippers. Both children were in tears. Garrett felt a chill rush through him.

“Me lord!” gasped Evan. “Ye must help.” He bent down and put his hands to his knees, leaning over as he tried to catch his breath.

“What’s wrong?” Garrett demanded. His harsh tone caused Lyssa to burst into fresh tears.

“She’s hurt, Papa.”

Madeleine.

“Maddie fell trying to save Luke, me lord,” Evan added. “He’d climbed in a tree when the storm began and was afraid to come down. Maddie went after him, and the branch broke.”

Lyssa wailed even louder. “Luke was very bad, Papa,” she said. “Now Madeleine’s hurt.” She squeezed the kitten and he hissed, swiping a paw at her. A thin line of blood appeared on the back of her hand. Lyssa burst into new tears and tossed the kitten upon the ground.

Garrett thought quickly. He didn’t wish to leave the children here but he wanted to reach Madeleine as quickly as possible. He knew they were too small to ride Ebony alone. The horse was a handful for even the best of riders.

“Let’s get you home quickly,” he told them. “Come, and we’ll ride Ebony together.”

“No. Maddie’s hurt. She fell in the water. Get her out, me lord. I can walk with Lyssa back to the castle.”

Garrett saw the little boy straighten to his full height. He knew instinctively that the boy would get his daughter back to the keep safely.

“Stanbury is in sight, Evan. Can you see it?”

He nodded. “We’ll go straight there, me lord.”

Garrett knelt and lay his hand on Evan’s shoulder. “You’re a brave lad, Evan. Do me proud and take Lyssa home. Find Sir Ashby and tell him what’s happened. He’ll know what to do.” He squeezed the boy’s shoulder. Scooping up Luke, he handed the feisty kitten back to Lyssa. “Take Luke and go with Evan. Don’t give me a surly face. Luke’s but a kitten and he’s very frightened now. You’ll have to be a brave girl and take him home. Go now.”

They began rushing, hand-in-hand, in the direction of Stanbury. Garrett remounted Ebony and galloped the remaining way across the meadow. He tied the horse to a tree and entered the forest. From Annie’s description, he had a good idea where to look. He’d spent many hours in these woods over the years and he knew them better than anyone at Stanbury.

He found Madeleine immediately but nothing prepared him for what he saw. She’d managed to pull herself partially onto the bank but half of her body remained in the stream. Though late June, he knew the water had to be freezing. There was no telling how long she’d been immersed in it.

He ran to her and saw she was unconscious. He lifted her from the water, her skirts heavy and clinging to her. Her chilled body was deathly pale and still.

For a moment, he thought her dead—but then she gasped. Her eyes flew open and he saw the pain and fear held in them.

“’Tis all right, Madeleine, I’m here.” He brushed the wet hair from her brow. Her skin felt like ice. He must warm her. He couldn’t lose her as he’d lost his brother.

She began weeping and moaning softly. “Oh, God, it hurts. Not again. Please, not again.”

He lifted her shoulders and placed her head upon his lap. “What ails you, Madeleine? What’s hurt?” he asked gently, as he stroked her clammy cheek.

“’Tis broken,” she said bitterly.

“What?”

“My