It was entirely possible that the approaching army could pass through town and nothing more. It was equally possible that they had something else on their minds. Until he knew, it was better to play it safe.
With two more days until they reached The Paladin, Alexander was too close to their objective to take any chances.
Soon enough, they would know.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
“Those are deShera banners.”
The declaration came from Kress. He, Alexander, Achilles, and Bric were hiding out on the small main street of the town of Longton, High Street it was called, watching the approach of the incoming party from the north. As soon as they entered the town and the gold and black banners could be seen, Kress recognized them.
De Shera had arrived.
“What?” Alexander hissed. “Why on earth would they come here? I told them we would be arriving at The Paladin. They knew we were coming to them.Whyare they here?”
Kress didn’t have an answer. All he knew was that he didn’t like what he was seeing, not by any stretch of the imagination. His men were hidden all over town with the instructions not to move unless they saw the knights move. And Kress had no intention of moving.
At least, not now. Not when they were so seriously outnumbered.
He had to think fast.
Quickly, he motioned to Bric and Achilles, across the street. The two knights, bearing crossbows, swiftly moved across the street and back into the recesses of The Crown and Anchor Inn before the de Shera army saw them. The group was just coming in on the far side of town and had to make a small turn around a bend before the rest of the avenue would come into view for them, so Bric and Achilles made it just in time.
All four knights slipped into the inn.
The common room was empty because Alexander had discussed the approach of the army with the innkeeper, who cleared everyone out. A group of armed men was never a good thing, so the four knights watched from the windows as the de Shera army drew closer and closer.
In fact, it was quite interesting.
“Kress, are you seeing this?” Alexander whispered. “Look towards the rear of the column– those are Welsh warriors.”
Kress strained to catch a look. As the heavily-armed column moved down the street, he could, indeed, see men in long tunics and hose, with crossbows strapped to their backs or pikes in their hands, riding on sturdy, shaggy horses. They appeared sorely out of place among the well-dressed de Shera army, but their appearance wasn’t entirely surprising.
“They have come to greet their Welsh princess, I suppose,” he said after a moment. “It looks like a sizable delegation, but I must admit that I am displeased they decided to come and greet her after we told them that we would bring her to them.”
Alexander was watching the army, slowing as it neared the inn. “They must be very eager to meet her,” he said. “Mayhap they simply could not wait. She has been separated from them for quite some time.”
“That is true. It looks as if they are slowing down.”
Alexander nodded. “Being that this is the only decent hostel in the town, I would wager to say that they will assume we are here. That is logical.”
Kress nodded slowly. Not only was he displeased, he wasextremelydispleased. Even though he and Cadelyn had settled things between them, the truth was that they weren’t settled at all. Not in the least.
He was resisting the urge to take her and run.
He’d separated himself from the woman because he thought it was the right thing to do for them both, but the truth was that it only made him long for her more. For two days, he refused to go into the inn, instead either remaining with his horse in the livery behind the inn or going across the street to the big barn where most of the escort was lodged.
He’d put distance between them.
Even so, he’d lay awake at night, thinking of the feel of her skin or the smell of her hair, or those big, dark eyes when she looked at him. And the dimples… they were positively adorable. It was something that made him smile just to think on. She was young and fiery, intelligent and passionate… there was nothing about her not to love.
And he didn’t want to let her go.
Now, he was facing the de Shera escort and he simply wasn’t prepared for it. Even looking at them made him feel embittered as he’d never felt in his life. The problem was that by all rights, Cadelyn already belonged to de Shera. He knew that; everything about him knew that.
But her heart belonged to him.
He turned away from the window.
