The Dawn of the Lost

3

The guard eyed me up and down. "Do you like being able to see?" I asked him.

"Yes," he said.

"Then I suggest you stop your eyes wandering. If Uhtred found out you were eyeing his woman, he would cut them out of your skull." The guard averted his eyes immediately and stared at the floor, I huffed a giggle just as a furious Uhtred came charging out of the king's chambers.

"Astrid, come," he beckoned me. I followed behind throwing my half-eaten apple at the guard who jumped. "Do you have a horse?"

"Yes," I said. We both walked to the stables, and I tacked up my Friesian while he tended his Clydesdale.

"You kept the horse I stole for you," Uhtred said.

"Of course," I replied pulling myself into the saddle. With a nudge, we trotted out of Winchester and into the woods. Our horses called to one another as we rode. We stopped at a spot near the river, Uhtred got the fire going while I untacked the horses and set the saddles on either side of the fire.

"I have missed this," he said as he sat down opposite me.

"See you just need to be in the wild," I told him.

"I think you're right," he replied. I kept my guard up as I knew Ragnar was out here somewhere. "Are you okay?"

"Yes, why?" I asked.

"Because you seem distracted," he said walking around the flames and joined me. He tucked my hair behind my ear and pulled me into his chest. "Now tell me what's going on in that pretty head of yours."

"It's nothing," I replied.

"Astrid I know you," he said placing his head on my shoulder. "Were you followed?"

"No," I said shaking my head.

"We better get some rest, we have a long ride ahead of us," he said.

"Where are we headed?" I asked.

"Somewhere called Oxford," he said.

"Why there?" I quizzed him.

"Because I have a safe house. Somewhere we don't have to worry about being found. Astrid, it will be like old times," he said as he laid down letting me go, I walked to my saddle and did the same thing. I turned over, my back to him. When we woke in the morning, it was cold and droplets had formed on our furs. Uhtred was already up, he had tacked up his horse and waited for me. "For a second I didn't think you were going to wake up."

"I would never leave your side, unless death forced me to," I said pushing myself up off the ground. I threw my saddle onto my horse and with a leg up from Uhtred he helped me onto the back of my steed. We kept to a walk as the heavy rain made the earth muddy and slippery. Uhtred often turned to keep an eye on me. "I'm keeping up," I smiled nudging my horse harder in the ribs.

"I know, I'm just checking," he said turning back. The rain began to make me shiver, it got so bad that we had to stop under a tree and he pulled me over onto his horse with him, wrapping his strong arms around me.