A Man's Word by Jensen Martin

Author:Jensen, Martin [Jensen, Martin]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, azw3, epub
Publisher: AmazonCrossingEnglish
Published: 2015-03-01T08:00:00+00:00

19

On the way to Thetford I mulled over how to sneak Sigurd into town without Turstan finding out he’d disobeyed his order not to leave.

The boy rode along seemingly carefree at the side of his chosen one. There clearly was nothing in the world that mattered more to him than Rowena, and truth be told, she seemed to feel the same way about him.

Gertrude rode along in silence on a calm mare, which did not appear to be much younger than she was. Every once in a while she would glance at the two young lovers and the hint of a smile would cross her lips before her attention returned to riding.

It was just the four of us. Before we left the farm, the men were instructed to get to work and the widow told me that two armed men should be enough to secure her ride.

And it was true, Sigurd carried a spear. Not vigilantly in his hand so that it could be lowered at the least sign of danger, but in a leather strap tied to his back. That freed up both of his hands, one for the reins and one to reach out to the wench by his side at regular intervals. The placement of his spear would cause him to lose valuable seconds before he was ready to fight if an attacker should happen to descend on us.

I wore my sword under my left thigh with its hilt jutting out, so for me it was just a question of allowing my right hand to drop and grab the hilt, and I would be ready to fight.

I let the young lovers lead the way, followed by the widow. The gelding and I brought up the rear with a length of about three horses between Gertrude and myself. Should some scoundrel jump out at us and make for the widow or the two young people, who were blind to the rest of the world, I had room to get my horse up to speed, which would add force to my arm strength when I swung my sword.

If you have several armed men protecting a group, some of them can ride in the front, but if you’re alone, it’s a mistake to ride in the lead. Then you would have your back to the people you were protecting and—when screaming and wailing told you an attack was under way—you would risk being struck down by a spear in the back before you could even turn your horse around.

I also left some distance between them and myself to make any highwaymen who might be lying in wait think that I was not a part of their group. Armed soldiers sometimes avoid coming to the assistance of unknown travelers, so my involvement in their protection wouldn’t seem a given to the highwaymen.

There was hardly any way that some scoundrel would try to attack me. The crooks that live off robbing travelers are careful not to tussle with armed soldiers. They go after the easy victims and avoid anyone who even smells of being able to put up a fight.

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