Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8

The smell of woodbine drifted back to John. The strange woman in front of him had been silent since their escape. He could almost hear her thinking. He held in a chuckle as he remembered how angry she was when he called her daft.

Why did she help him?

He meant what he’d said. He might have been stripped of his title and his lands, but he still took his knightly vows to heart. This time a snort escaped. Mayhap not all of them.

“Something funny?”

“Nay, lass. Now that we are away, care to tell me who you are?”

“My name’s Anna. Anna Waters.”

“John Thornton. At your service, lady.”

“You don’t have to call me lady. It’s just Anna. You said you were locked in the tower for treason.” Her voice trailed off. She was such a tiny girl that for an instant he wondered if she was a fairy who’d appeared in the dark tower to save him.

Her slim, delicate hands trembled as she stroked the horse, giving away her mood.

“So I was wondering, what year is it? ”

He was glad she could not see the surprise on his face. Mayhap she had escaped from her cell and was addled in the head. Though she didn’t seem to be witless.

“’Tis the Year of Our Lord 1331.”

He felt her flinch. Her fetching backside nestled in between his thighs made him think of home. A wife and babes. Things he thought he would never have. And no longer deserved.

“You know not what year it is?”

She was silent for so long that John opened his mouth to repeat the question, but she finally spoke. He had to lean forward, straining to hear her. Her voice came out as a whisper on the wind.

“I guess I forgot. I fell and hit my head earlier. Maybe that’s why I couldn’t remember.”

He heard the lie on her lips. John knew when people were telling the truth or not; the skill was useful in dealing with pirates and thieves. She was lying, but to what end? For now he would let her keep her lies until he learned her intentions.

“Where are you from, Mistress Waters?”

She waved a hand about, almost hitting him in the nose. “It’s a long way from here. I’m visiting London on holiday.”

“Alone? Where is your guard or chaperone? ’Tis not safe for a lady to travel unescorted. There are ruffians about.” As he would know, for he was the worst of them all.

Her hesitation told him she was about to spew forth another untruth.

“I’m a grown woman. I can take care of myself. Where I come from, it is not unusual for women to travel alone.”

This time she definitely managed to surprise him. “I would like to see such a place. Where women think themselves equal to men.”

John grinned, knowing she could not see his face. He could feel anger radiating through her as she twisted in the saddle to look up at him, her cheeks pink and her eyes the color of the woods, sparking with fury.

“I’ll have you know, where I come from women are equal to men… Well, we’re not paid the same, but we can have our own property, vote, and live as we choose. You’ll see, the same will happen here in England.”

As the darkness gave way to dawn, he stared at her hair. The first time he’d looked it appeared to be a plain brown, rather like mud, but when the sun lit her hair, John could see the colors of the forest, the moors, and the gold of the sun all woven throughout the long strands. She wasn’t beautiful, but the longer he looked at her the more attractive he thought her to be. There was something within, a light spilling out that changed her plain features, making her beautiful.

“I doubt what you say. Women are weak and needs be protected. They cannot wield swords.”

“They may be weaker in some aspects, but in many others they are equal, if not stronger.”

He gave thanks she had found him and not another. He had come to have rather odd ideas about the sexes. Views none of his peers would share. Anna Waters intrigued him. He looked forward to learning all her secrets.

“We will agree to disagree, mistress.”

“You can call me Anna. I guess since you think men are better than women, I should call you the great one or he who is all knowing ?”

This time he threw back his head and let the laughter escape.

“Either of those would do, but John will be fine.”

“Whatever.”

He heard her huff, and winced as she slammed the back of her head into his chest. He didn’t know what whatever meant, but by the way she said it, he knew it was meant to provoke. For the first time in a long time, John found himself interested in a woman. There hadn’t been anyone…not since Letitia.

“Are you going to tell me where we’re going? I don’t have time for gallivanting around the countryside. I really need to get back to the tower. ”

He was incredulous. “You would willingly go back? They would kill you for helping me escape.”

“I thought I would sneak in when everyone was asleep. I think I left something behind.”

He heard the lie again. What wasn’t she telling him? Did she have a lover in the tower? The thought made him jealous of the unknown man.

“Nay. We cannot. The king’s men are after us. We are traveling to the one place they would never think to look. Once we are safe then I will see you to wherever you needs go. But not back to the tower. Go back to the tower and you will die.”

By the stiffness of her body he knew she was displeased. But he would not risk going back. It would take them a fortnight to travel to Blackmoor Castle. Ample time to find out what she was hiding.