They searched the area, ambling down the muddy road. This was a waste of time. There was no one in the forest. It was too early for an attack. He and John expected a battle closer to the Peniscola Port. For an attack to come this quickly in the journey, the king’s men would have had to be near the chateau when the caravan departed.
“If you haven’t found anything, we should return.” Landyn waited for her to turn her horse toward the caravan.
She didn’t move for a long moment, shifting her gaze back to the chateau. Her back was straight, her hands firm around the reins. She was comfortable on the horse, sitting like a man. He had heard about John’s daughters from the monks. Some thought them an abomination because of their manlike talents and dress. Others found them fascinating. Both groups had grudging admiration for their skills.
Landyn thought Raven was interesting. “Your father is waiting,” he added.
She sighed softly through clenched teeth, and it almost came out as a hiss. Then, suddenly, she frowned. She urged her horse away from the caravan.
He glanced anxiously back toward the caravan. It was not visible down the road, and he didn’t like leaving it. But John had tasked him with making sure Raven was unharmed. So, he followed her.
She stopped at the side of the road, staring at the ground.
Landyn followed her gaze. The moonlight washed over part of the road that many hoofprints had smashed. His eyes tracked the trail along the road where the caravan was resting. “It’s our men.”
She urged her horse to the side so Landyn could see the wet weeds on the side of the road. Another large group of tracks trailed off the road into the trees. “Then why do they lead into the forest?”
Panic grasped Landyn in a cold fist, and he whirled his horse, spurring him into a charge down the road.
He had to warn them!
Raven bent low over the saddle, urging Thunder faster as she dashed after Landyn. What had happened to the scouts in the forest? How could no one have seen that many men?
Before they came within visual distance of the caravan, the tings of metal against metal and the cries of men rang through the air.
Dread clawed at Raven.
Landyn stopped ahead of her.
She was going to race by him, but he moved his horse into her path. “Wait,” he ordered.
She clenched her teeth, and her fingers gripped the reins so tightly that Thunder reared up onto two legs. When the horse landed his front hooves in the mud, she quickly scanned the road ahead.
The ground was strewn with white-tunicked Templar Knights, as well as other knights in black.
Raven scowled. Black knights. That was why she hadn’t seen anyone in the forest. Farther up the road, the remaining Templar Knights had formed a circle around the wagons. A large group of black-clad knights approached slowly, holding their swords before them. The Templar Knights were massively outnumbered. Even if she and Landyn joined them, they would still be overwhelmed.
“This way,” he said and headed into the forest.
Raven hesitated. Where was her father? She quickly scanned the Templar Knights and their opponents, but she couldn’t see him. With a grimace of uncertainty, she spurred Thunder and followed Landyn into the forest. Just past the tree line, he dismounted.
She quickly followed his lead, swinging her leg over the saddle and landing on the ground. They moved swiftly from tree to tree to stay hidden.
Raven ducked beneath branches and stepped over fallen branches. She looked toward the road. Through breaks in the shadowed tree line, flashes of white tunics shone in the moonlight as the knights fought.
She crouched slightly and glanced at the ground. The muddy floor of leaves was trampled by footsteps. An ambush. She had been right about someone being in the forest, but she couldn’t have imagined the number of men. She peered back toward the wagons. Clangs resonated through the night air as the battle continued. She caught glimpses of the black knights. They wore no heraldry. Who were they?
And where was her father?
Landyn stopped and bent behind a bush, peering through the leaves.
Raven sheltered beside him, following his stare. She angled her head so she could see through the branches. The wagons were before them with only a few Templar Knights left. One rushed toward a black knight, holding his sword before him. They crossed blades. The Templar Knight swung his mighty weapon around to the side. The black knight blocked the blow.
Another black knight came up behind the Templar Knight and shoved his blade into his back.
Raven inhaled in surprised disgust.
Landyn nudged Raven with his elbow and stood, moving to another tree. Laughter echoed from somewhere on the road. A scream of agony pierced the air.
