Aideen's Answer

-Chapter Twenty-Two-

So they fled.
Aideen's heart hammered in her ears as they urged their horses into a run. An hour passed, then two. Constantly she and Kevin glanced over their shoulders to make sure that there was no one in pursuit.
Her body ached and her breath came in short gasps. Kevin kept shooting anxious glances her way, so she put on a tight smile and kept going.
'We can not rest yet, first we must get farther away, so that we are not in such danger of being found. Once we have ridden a few more hours, then we can stop.' She told herself.
Suddenly, Kevin reined in Demon, and she did the same with Ginger.
"Is something wrong?" She whispered breathlessly.
He was watching her with a grave expression upon his handsome face.
"Is it too much, my Love? Do you need rest?"
"No!" Aideen answered a little too harshly.
Kevin's eyebrows rose but he remained mute.
"I mean, I am fine," She blurted out. "We can not risk stopping yet, as we are still too close to the castle. I will gladly rest, when we are a safe distance away. As for now, we must continue."
Kevin's eyes softened, "My little bulldog. If you are completely determined, then we may as well stop wasting time and keep riding. The sooner we have put more distance between us and your fathers soldiers, the sooner you can sleep for a few hours."
With that, he turned and led Demon along the trail once again. They crashed recklessly through the underbrush, as the trail was not often used and was becoming overgrown. However, it was clear that Kevin had a set destination in mind, for he always seemed to know exactly which way to go. And Aideen merely followed him, trusting in him completely to show her the right way.
Their travels were uneventful for the next few hours. They simply rode on, as fast as their horses could go through the dense forest.
Aideen was drooping in her saddle, she was so exhausted, when Kevin declared it time to settle in for the night. She allowed herself a sigh of relief before leading Ginger to the spot he had found. It was a small cave, almost invisible among the trees and shrubs.
She almost fell from her saddle, then found she was having quite some difficulty walking.
"Are you well, dearest?" Kevin asked from where he knelt in the middle of the cave, as he worked on starting a fire.
Right then it lit and the flames brightened the cave up considerably. He then turned and saw her struggle.
Kevin chuckled softly as he stood up and approached her.
"I am fine, Kevin. I find I am merely a bit stiff, is all," Aideen answered, somewhat embarrassed.
"Ah, yes, I did not take into account that I am far more used to spending an entire day in the saddle than you are. Please forgive me for being so thoughtless, my Love."
Kevin reached her and softly caressed her cheek with his knuckles.
"I could not bear if something were to happen to my princess," he whispered.
Aideen felt a chill go through her and she forced herself to look away from his intense gaze. She was not at all sure how to react right now.
'I am alone in a cave in the middle of the forest, with my fiancée! Is this truly happening?' She thought, 'Mother would be mortified!'
Mother.
Just the thought made her close her eyes to fight the tears. How her mother must be hurting right now!
"Aideen?"
A deep voice brought her back to her senses.
"Oh! Yes, um," Aidden took a hurried step back, away from Kevin and his soft touch. "I am rather famished, have we anything to eat?"
Kevin stared at her a moment,but must have decided all was well for he smiled, nodded, and turned to his saddlebags.
After a small but nice supper, Aideen made a bed on the cave floor as Kevin stared off into the forest.
When she was settled, she turned to him.
"Are you not planning on sleeping this night, Kevin?"
"Not quite yet, Love. I shall remain awake a bit longer, to make sure all is well. I will retire soon, you rest. we have another long day tomorrow."
Aideen nodded and smiled at him sleepily. She snuggled under the blanket and, within a few minutes, was asleep.
Kevin stared out into the night, listening to the crickets chirping and enjoying the peacefulness. After about an hour, he made his own bed ready on the other side of the fire.
He stared across the flames at his sleeping fiancée for a moment, and a slow smile spread across his lips.
"Rest all you can, my dear. For tomorrow will most assuredly be a day you shall never forget."

A new day dawned bright and clear. The young couple was up with the sun, and they soon had their things packed and were sliding into the saddle once more.
They talked a bit, shared an interesting sight here and there, but for the most part they were each satisfied with their own thoughts. They spent most of the morning in this fashion and the hours seemed to fly by.
It was not until almost noon that Kevin stopped them abruptly.
"What is it?" Aideen asked quietly.
"Shhh! I need to listen," Was his answer.
Suddenly, his eyes widened.
"Soldiers!" He hissed.
Aideen gasped and opened her mouth to question him but he cut her off with a downward stroke of his hand.
"Follow me," Kevin ordered quietly. "Run, and whatever you do, do not stop!"
They tore through the forest like madmen. Shouts followed, and Aideen knew their pursuers were close at hand.
'We can do this,' She thought. 'We did not come this far to give up now, run Ginger!'
They rode on, as fast as they were able, but the soldiers were gaining on them. Suddenly, Aideen recognized on of the voices that was shouting.
Father.
'Oh, no,' she thought. 'He has always been able to outride me. But not this time! No! He can not win!'
Just when Aideen thought that the riders were falling behind, she heard hoofbeats behind her that were close. Much too close.
A rider suddenly caught up to her, and they were riding neck to neck. Aideen refused to look at the person riding next to her, concentrating only on the trail in front of her. She saw Kevin look back, and his eyes widened.
Her heart sank.
That one look told her all she needed to know. That Kevin did not believe that they could escape.
Just then, the rider began to pass her. At first she was confused, then she gasped in horror as he reached out and lunged for Gingers reins.
"No!" She cried out as his hands closed around the leather.
He yanked on her reins and they flew out of her hands. He did it again, intending to slow them both, but as Aideen was not expecting the sudden change in speed, she found herself thrown into the riders arms.
And looking into the deepest brown eyes she had ever seen.
"Why, hello," said the rider with an easy grin. "Allow me to introduce myself, I am your future husband, Garrett."
And with that she dropped into a dead faint.