Unbroken

Chapter 8

"Tell me about this Duke that you are supposed to marry." Grant said breaking our several mile silence. I grimaced just thinking about the repulsive man. I was still angry for the stunt Grant had pulled when he knew Huston was in the bushes.

"I don't see how it's really any of your business." I replied haughtily.

"I am taking you to King Johnathan and risking my life for you."

"You're getting paid."

"The money will do me a lot of good if your guards catch us. I will be imprisoned for kidnapping a royal." He said and I looked up at him. I sighed in defeat when I realized that he was right. Even though he was getting paid he could get captured. I knew what the punishment would look like. I might not like him that much but he didn't deserve that. Then Julianne was involved as well.

"He's repulsive." I said through gritted teeth. Whenever I thought of him all I could see was that childlike face. The wide mouth and the loose lips that flapped when he talked. The white specks that would form at the corners of his mouth. That gap between his front teeth. Then there was his size which could be ignored if it weren't for the tight silky clothing that he wore. When so many were in tough times it was clear that he never went without anything.

"Is that all?" Grant asked with a raised eyebrow and a slight smile. "Repulsive is sort of vague."

"No." I sighed. It wasn't all. "He's three times my age."

"And?" Grant asked as if that wasn't reason enough.

"I don't like him."

"Yes but princesses get married all the time to repulsive men who are three times their age all the time. Why would you expect anything different?" He was so blunt that it stung because he was right. I thought about what he had said for a few moments before I replied.

"Wouldn't you want to marry for love and not obligation?"

"No."

"You would want someone to pick for you?"

"Of course not, I won't be getting married."

"Why not?" I asked him in disbelief as I looked him up and down. He was an attractive man that many women would probably be happy to marry. If they could see past his personality I was sure that he would be able to find someone.

"I just don't plan on it."

"What about love?"

"I don't believe in it." he said as though it were the most normal thing in the world.

"How can't you believe in love?"

"Honestly princess I've never seen it before or felt it so how can it be a real thing?"

"I've read about it." Was my reply because I was the same as him except for Julianne. Julianne had loved me but she was the only person. Julianne had probably loved him too. I almost brought her up but he continued.

"What if you married your old, fat, repulsive Duke and found that you did in fact love him? What then?"

"I don't know. But I don't intend on finding out." I said and he laughed. How could Grant expect me to marry the Duke? I didn't even know the Duke's name and he was so much older than me well into his fifties. If Grant could see the man then maybe he might understand. I looked at the ground as we walked. I wondered what had happened in his past to make him not believe in love. I thought of my parent's relationship and I could understand where he was coming from. When I had been younger I remembered my father and my mother doting on each other. Then something changed. We moved and they were very distant from each other. When they saw each other there was something between them. Even as a child I could tell that something was wrong. I knew that they didn't love each other anymore. Grant might have a point. Love might not be possible.

Our silence resumed and we continued walking. A few minutes later my stomach let out a huge growl and Grant laughed at me.

"I think it's time to eat." He said and I heartily agreed. We made our way to the stream that we had been following. Grant set down his pack and walked off in the other direction. I shook my head and rolled my eyes. Men had it so easy the only difficult part of their process was choosing the best tree to stand behind.

I started rummaging through the pack when I noticed how deathly quiet it was. The forest was never completely silent there was always some obnoxious bird chirping its heart out in the trees or the rustle of some leaves but right now there was nothing. I stood up and looked around me I started making my way to follow Grant while trying to come up with some explanation. He would say I was being paranoid and just trying to catch a look. I could already picture his anger but that didn't matter to me. Something was wrong I could feel it.

I was just beginning to talk myself out of my anxiety when two huge arms grabbed me around my waist and slammed me into a tree. I cried out when my head cracked against the rough bark but a calloused hand pressed uncomfortably against my mouth. I wanted to yell at Grant for ripping me off my feet and nearly busting my head open. I was going to give him a piece of my mind as I looked up at him and froze.

Two black eyes looked hungrily at me from beneath thick dark eyebrows. It wasn't Grant. I stared back at him in shock. The arm eased off of my waist and I felt a cold knife against my throat. He placed a finger against his lips letting me know that it was in my best interest to be quiet. I looked around him and saw that there were two more men nearby. All of them looked at me and I trembled. The rough bark of the tree was pressing uncomfortably against my back as I was pressed against the trunk. The hand still clamped down on my mouth even though I was too terrified to make a sound. The knife against my throat let me know that it would only take one small movement and I would be bleeding out. Everything in me told me to hold still and be quiet. Then I remembered Grant. He was out in the trees somewhere. The fact that I couldn't see him let me know that the men might not know where he was either. I started to struggle. I pushed at the man and tried to turn. The blade nicked my skin and I felt the sting. The man looked me in the eye and I could see his anger. I could see that he wasn't afraid of doing what he would have to do if I put up too much of a struggle. I didn't care. I bit him hard and he yanked back his hand for a split second. I screamed for Grant to run and the hand flew back to cover my mouth.

The blade came off of my neck and the back of his hand crashed into the side of my face bashing my head against the tree. He released me and I fell to the ground on my stomach seeing stars. I ignored the dizziness and launched myself forward. I was grateful for the lack of skirts around my legs that would trip me up as I flew forward. The three men bolted towards me and I screamed at the top of my lungs. For the first time I hoped that the guards were nearby and that they would hear me cry out. I hoped that Grant hadn't covered our tracks too well. I hoped that we hadn't walked too quickly for them to catch up to us.

But it was useless and part of me knew that but another part of me was unwilling to accept it. I scrambled to my feet as the men closed in around me. They held up their arms as though to show me that they wouldn't hurt me. I looked for an exit but the three of them stood around me. I bolted forward and one of them grabbed the back of my shirt when another kicked out my legs from underneath me. I barely managed to get my arms out to break my fall before I crashed down on the forest floor. The brown pine needles, sticks, and rocks bit into my palms and stung. It didn't matter though. I didn't care about the pain as I pushed myself up again. Then I saw something that caused me to stop in my tracks.

Three men came out from the trees all holding onto a struggling Grant and my hope plummeted. He didn't get away. He hadn't heard my scream to run or I had been too late. He wasn't going to be able to save me from these men. He couldn't even save himself I realized and felt my hope plummet. There was no way to escape. I looked at the three large men standing around me then to the three men that were holding onto Grant. A dangerous looking knife came out and was placed against his throat. I met Grant's eyes as my fists raised and he gave a slight shake of his head. There wasn't any way that I was going to be able to fight my way out of this one. I took a step towards the man nearest me and swung.

My attack was so unexpected that I caught him by surprise. There was a satisfying crunch and the two other men standing by me laughed. There was a gush of blood from the broken nose and I lifted my fists again. It was useless though. Before I could react a fist collided with the side of my head and I dropped to the ground for a final time as the unconsciousness engulfed me.