‘I prefer not to take the risk.’ He stroked his chin. ‘You appear three-quarters of the way towards being dead on your feet.’
‘I’m not.’ She stumbled over a rock this time. Sandulf instantly put out a hand and caught her elbow, steadying her, ignoring the pulse of warmth which travelled up his arm.
Up close, her lashes made a dark forest against the alabaster of her skin. But he could also see the tired redness which threatened to overwhelm her storm-tossed eyes. Lady Ceanna was close to collapse, but he suspected she’d deny it until she fell to her knees in exhaustion. The irresistible force had met an immovable object. ‘When was the last time you slept?’
‘Over two nights ago,’ she admitted, tucking her head into her chest. ‘I had things to do. Plans whirled about my head, rendering sleep impossible. My feet are clumsy because of these stupid slippers and this impossible gown. Why I ever agreed to it, I’ve no idea.’
‘A good night’s sleep won’t do you any harm.’
She made to move off, even as the mist began rising and swirling about them. ‘Urist will be getting further ahead. I’ve no wish to inconvenience you any longer than necessary.’
‘We’ll move more quickly than he does, particularly if we are both rested.’ Sandulf laughed to himself. He remembered a time when he was the one who had stubbornly refused to give in, who kept going, despite the cost to everyone else. It had been a hard lesson to learn. He never considered a woman might have a similar drive.
‘How do you know?’
‘Experience with travelling.’ As her sceptical look increased, he added, ‘Urist will have at least one cart in his group. He is taking your trunk and unlikely to carry it on his back.’
She looked up as a large raindrop fell on her nose. She wrinkled it in a delightful fashion. ‘And you have travelled far.’
‘From Maerr in the north to the Rus in the east and down the great rivers to Constantinople. And then across the seas to Strathclyde.’ He kept his gaze on the increasing rain. The journey had been far harder than he’d ever imagined. When he’d left Maerr, he’d considered himself equal to anything. He hadn’t realised how privileged he’d been, how much he’d had to grow up and how quickly.
Her eyes widened ‘Further than I’ve ever dreamed of travelling.’
‘If we keep on, your feet will be torn to ribbons.’
‘The sooner we reach Urist, the sooner I retrieve my stout boots. There, you see I’m not totally impractical and feather-brained.’
He watched her intently. He’d been mistaken earlier, outside the tavern, in his assessment of her. Lady Ceanna was not one of those fluttering females he’d encountered elsewhere. Lady Ceanna was another sort of woman entirely. ‘If you were truly feather-brained, we would not be having this conversation.’
‘Getting to Urist is the point of this.’
‘You presume he goes to Nrurim the way you think he will, that the tavern keeper did not seek to mislead you.’
She opened and closed her mouth several times. ‘I hadn’t considered that.’
‘Which do you want more?’ he asked as if he were coaxing that blackbird he’d tamed as a child. ‘Nrurim or Urist? Give in, Lady Ceanna. If I carry you, our progress will crawl.’
‘Nrurim.’ She sighed. ‘Very well. I give in. We stop. My feet ache and you’re plainly exhausted. For your sake, then.’
‘It is not a competition to see who can keep up, my lady, but who finishes. My father’s helmsman, Joarr, once told me that when I tried to outrun my brothers who were carrying heavier packs. He was right, even if I didn’t see it at the time. It is about ensuring everyone in a group makes it. A harder task than you might imagine.’
Her cheeks flushed. ‘Is there anything I can do about my feet? Please?’
‘Unfortunately, I’m not carrying a spare set of boots, but I do have some ointment which might assist.’ He reached into his pouch and produced a small jar.
‘I’d like that.’ Her spine stiffened. ‘I can put it on my feet myself without your help.’
‘Did I say otherwise? You are capable of many things, my lady, including applying ointment to your feet.’
Lady Ceanna possessed a certain luminous quality to her smile which he’d failed to fully appreciate earlier. ‘I’m pleased you understand that I am not one of those ladies who cling like a vine. I take pride in my accomplishments even if it is merely looking after my bruised feet.’
What had happened to her to make her this way? Women like her should expect to be pampered. Sandulf shook his head. It was none of his concern. His mission was ensuring Lugh received the justice due him for Ingrid’s murder. Once he accomplished that, then he could begin living again. He was not going to prove Brandt, or the others, correct by losing his focus and allowing his best chance to slip through his fingers.
‘Are there any huts around here? Places where we could rest?’ Sandulf asked.
She shrugged. ‘I haven’t seen any. I’d like to keep close to this track. If we wander off in the mists, looking for something which doesn’t exist, we might lose our way entirely.’
Her lips turned up as she threw his excuse back at him. Sandulf muttered a curse which made the smile grow.
‘You doubt your ability to rediscover it.’
‘I know the general direction Urist is going in. I can navigate by the track, the hills and the lochs we encounter. It is just...’ She plucked at a loose thread on her gown. ‘You and I...we barely know each other.’
‘You fear spending a night alone with a strange man, I understand. I gave my word that I’d protect you.’ He willed her to understand. ‘That includes protecting your honour, my lady. I will ensure nothing happens to you.’
She covered her eyes with her hands which made her
