The men were spaced out evenly before him. Edward knew that if they spread out further they could easily get to Eliza and there was nothing he could do to stop them. He couldn’t shoot two men with one shot – he was good, but not that good. If he had any chance of getting Eliza out of there and to safety, he had to be the one to attack and control the confrontation – and there was no doubt there was going to be confrontation and inevitably bloodshed.
Sending a silent prayer heavenwards that Eliza wasn’t squeamish and wouldn’t faint on him, Edward lifted his pistol and shot one of the pursuers with surprising accuracy. The man fell to the ground with little more than a soft groan, the suddenness of his demise was enough to prompt his associates into action. Immediately the battle was on.
“Eliza, get onto Guinness and don’t get off until I tell you.” Edward snapped, shoving one hand behind him and pushing her off his back before lunging forwards, his pistol raised. He had no time to check to see if she had followed his orders, his attention taken by the wicked looking sabre that was now pointed directly at his heart. Without hesitation he pointed the pistol and used his second and last shot before turning to the last man standing with a snarl of contempt.
“You can fight to the death too, or you can run for your life – it’s your choice.” He snarled contemptuously as he glared at the third and final man. Edward knew what he was going to choose as he watched the man look nervously at the two men on the ground before swallowing harshly and staring at the smoking pistol pointed at his heart. To Edward’s consternation he didn’t run, but raised his own sabre and lunged straight at Edward who had little to protect himself other than a now empty pistol and a scabbard. He was aware of Eliza’s scream but daren’t look to see if anyone else was attacking her, his own survival depended on the next few moments.
Turning the advance around a little, he scooped up a handful of dirt off the ground and waited until the man was only a few feet away before tossing the contents of his hand directly at his attackers face. It gave him enough of an advantage to dodge past the clumsy fool and quickly mount one of their horses. Gathering the reins of the other two, he nudged the horse around the bodies now lying face down on the ground and rode over to Eliza who was staring at the fallen men in horror.
“Eliza.” Edward snapped, cursing fluidly at the sight of her ashen face. Although she hadn’t crumbled into screaming hysteria, she was clearly appalled by what she had just witnessed. Could she hold it together until they got to safety?
“Eliza.” Edward shouted snatching Guinness’ reins and leading him around until they were all facing the same way. “Do you ride?” He rapped his knuckles harshly on her knee, hard enough to snap her out of her daze.
“Do you ride.” He reiterated, watching the man stagger towards them, his sword raised in attack.
“Y-yes.” Eliza whispered, trying desperately to cling to the relative reassurance of Edward’s familiar voice. “Y-yes I ride.”
“Then can we go now please?” Edward snapped sarcastically, hoping that if she realised he was angry with her it would be enough to break whatever fear had gripped her.
Pushing Guinness forwards he slapped the big horse harshly on the rump, rewarded when the big horse immediately lunged forwards. The sudden movement of the horse snapped Eliza out of her trance more effectively than Edward and he watched as she immediately snatched up the reins and began to ride the beast away from the clearing. Ignoring the snarls of the man running towards them, Edward nudged his own mount into a canter and dragging the remaining two horses behind him, took off after her.
“Which way?” Eliza shouted as they rode across the rough field towards the far corner. She had ridden as a child and knew how to handle a horse, but Guinness was simply immense. Although his solid bulk beneath her was reassuring, she wasn’t sure she could handle him jumping over the low slung hedge directly ahead of them.
“Go to the corner, I think I can see an opening we can go through to get on to the road. Do you know where we are?”
“I think we are near Lymster, but can’t be certain in the darkness.” Eliza replied studying the area for a while as she tried to make out the shadows of the surrounding countryside. “I need to see a stone marker.”
“If we get onto the road, we can find one.” He watched as Eliza settled into Guinness’ rhythm despite her earlier concern, and was answering his questions clearly enough to reassure him that she was managing to hold her fear at bay.
They left the field and stepped onto the flat road surface with a sigh of relief. Edward glanced back but could see nothing in the top corner of the field except dark shadows. The horses behind him trotted along happily enough now they had left the scene of the bloodshed.
With no imminent threat of pursuers for now, they had the time to slow to a steady trot without the fear of Guinness losing his footing on the uneven surface.
“Stop a minute.”
Eliza glanced across at him, every nerve stretched taught by what she had just experienced.
She had seen enough carnage and bloodshed to last her a lifetime and to watch Edward, whom she had considered her saviour calmly kill those two men, chilled her to the bone. She was very grateful for the warmth of the woollen cloak that smelled so much of him, a man she didn’t know at all. Mentally she chided herself. In spite of everything that had happened, she had only known him a matter of hours and simply had no way of knowing if he was a cold-blooded killer, or the sensual seducer she had encountered in her room at the inn.
Dutifully she reined to a stop and glanced across at him only to find three sets of reins being pushed into her hand.
“Hold these for a minute; I need to check Guinness hasn’t been injured from the fall.”
“Is he alright?” Eliza queried hating the thought that the animal could be hurt trying to help them.
Edward ran his hands gently over the warm flesh of the large animal, reassured when he was met with nothing but a soft snort of pleasure as Guinness enjoyed the attention. Eliza watched as he crooned softly to the animal for several moments, rubbing him gently between his ears before giving him a pat.
She shouldn’t allow herself to be so distracted by him but he was an enigma, a puzzle that demanded she discover which one was the real Edward. The harsh, ruthless fighter who ruthlessly killed in battle or the soft and gentle man who took the time in tense moments to soothe frightened animals.
“He’s fine, just a bit dusty. Luckily the ground was soft from all of the rain we have had; I think it cushioned his fall a bit.” Edward relieved her of the reins and mounted one of the horses.
“What are we going to do with them?” She nodded towards the two additional animals that trailed dumbly behind them.
“When we get to the village we will stop and pick the fittest. We have no way of telling where they have come from, so cannot return them but we can leave them with a farmer who may be able to make use of them.” Edward frowned at her only to find her staring over his shoulder in horror.
Silently she pointed down the road behind them.
Edward glanced into the shadows and cursed roundly at the sight of another three riders approaching at a rapid pace.