Read Online The Battle Lord's Lady by Linda Mooney - Free Book Online Page B

quickly as it had come. The Battle
Lord released her arm, almost tossing it back into her lap as he
stepped away. She watched as he wiped the blade on his thigh before
putting the dagger away.
    “I’ll have our physician doctor those wrists
so they don’t become infected.”
    “Thank you.”
    “No. Don’t thank me. If you get sick, all of
this will be for naught. I need you well in order to face my
men.”
    He turned to leave her when Atty realized
something had been left very much out of place. “You’re
not...you’re not going to tie me up?” she inquired with
disbelief.
    The Battle Lord paused at the door, his hand
upon the latch. “I have nearly thirty men at my beck and call this
very second. There are two doors to this place, and I have guards
at both of them. No. You’re not going to retaliate because you’re
going to accept the terms of my conditions. You want to save your
compound. However...” He took a moment to give her another
painfully crooked smile. “However, I’m not as stupid as you keep
trying to make me,” he told her, mocking her earlier words.
    Atty watched as he grabbed her bow and quiver
of arrows before letting himself out, leaving her alone and
defenseless inside the shop.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

Chapter Eight
    Hesitation
     
     
    Yulen walked over to where the physician lay
awake in his roll. He threw down the bow and quiver of arrows
beside the man’s head, giving him a start.
    “Medicate the prisoner’s wrists before they
become infected,” he ordered in a low voice. “The ropes have drawn
blood.”
    Silently MaGrath reached for his pouch, then
turned and gave the Battle Lord a surprised look. “You haven’t been
down long enough to get the sleep you need,” the man berated
gently.
    “I have too many things on my mind.”
    MaGrath frowned. “You’re pushing your own
limits, do you know that?”
    “I know,” Yulen nodded, suddenly relenting.
“When we get back to the compound, I promise to give myself more
time.”
    “You won’t heal without the rest,” the
physician insisted, pushing his case. Yulen knew the man would keep
pestering him, or else the wounds he had suffered a few days ago
would never sufficiently heal. Even now it was evident MaGrath was
worried he wouldn’t be able to completely get over them.
    Yulen waved a hand, as if to dismiss him.
“Just...take care of the Mutah. Her hands are her weapon. If she
gets ill or loses her ability to use them, then all of this will be
for naught.” That being said, the Battle Lord trudged off in the
direction of the compound.
    Pausing beside a tree, Yulen rubbed his eyes,
then pressed the heels of his hands along his forehead. The ache in
his face centered him, a constant reminder now of his own
carelessness and rash behavior.
    Maybe it was the pain that had kept him from
destroying the whole Mutah compound, he surmised. Maybe it was
because of the weeks he’d spent on horseback, and the exhaustion
overtaking them all that had given him a weak moment.
    Or maybe...maybe it was the incredible
antithesis in the Mutah prisoner—
    Her name is Atty.
    —he’d found that intrigued him.
    As he’d pulled the rope slivers from
her wrist, he’d deliberately exposed his back to her. It had been a
dangerous and stupid move on his part, but he’d been prepared for
anything. Yet, when nothing had occurred, he had been more
surprised knowing she wouldn’t have tried to escape. He knew she wouldn’t hurt him, and that
was when the bucket of questions had poured into his
brain.
    She was a fascinating puzzle, he kept
repeating to himself. Her hands bore the hard calluses from her
skill with the bow, yet her face was as open and revealing as the
pages of a book. This was not a girl accustomed to deceit and
cunning. This warrior, who could slay her enemy as easily as she
slew game, was emotionally vulnerable.
    Taking a deep breath, Yulen ran a