Heart of a Knight by Dana D'Angelo

Author:Dana D'Angelo
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Dana D'Angelo
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 9

“Please, Geoffrey,” Karina said. “If you go out there, they’ll believe that you killed Osbert!”

“’Tis all for the best,” he said, gently prying her hands from his arm. “They already believe that I’m guilty.”

She looked helplessly at him as he pulled away to confront the crowd. And as soon as they saw him, two men approached, each taking him by his arms. They pulled roughly at him, causing him to stumble.

Geoffrey turned his head and looked straight at her. All Karina could do was to stare back, powerless to help him. He was innocent! she wanted to scream to the crowd. There was nothing in his character that suggested that he would ambush and stab a man in the back. But her shoulders slumped, knowing that the townspeople would never believe her. She had no influence in the community. And if Warin had his way, Geoffrey was as good as dead.

The mob trailed behind them until only Sewallus and her servants remained.

“’Tis best that he’s taken away,” her friend said. “You don’t want a murderer living under your roof.”

“But he denies doing it,” Karina said, clasping her hands in front of her.

“It doesn’t matter whether he denies it,” he said shrugging. “My father is convinced of his guilt.” He looked nervously at the disappearing crowd. “I better go before he notices that I’m missing.”

And with that, he ran to catch up with the riotous mob.

“Where are they taking Geoffrey?” Eli demanded as he came to stand beside her, an angry glint appearing in his eyes.

“They’ll likely take him to the town square,” Karina said, closing the door firmly.

“And while there, Geoffrey will no doubt be whipped and shamed.” Alays added, her tone sad. “That was what happened to the last person who committed murder in this town. As a newcomer, the townspeople will show no mercy to our stable master.”

“He’s going to die, isn’t he?” Eli asked, his voice dropping.

Letting out a long sigh, Alays nodded her head. “Aye, he’ll die, but it won’t be in Treville. First, he’ll be taken to Baltroham. He’ll go through a trial, and then they’ll hang him.”

“But we have to do something.” He looked at Karina, his eyes shimmering with unshed tears. “We can’t allow them to kill an innocent man!”

“We are only subjects of the kingdom, Eli,” Karina said kindly, placing a hand on the boy’s thin shoulder. “We have no power or influence.”

“I don’t care,” he said, a sudden defiance entering his young voice. “Geoffrey saved my life, and I owe it to him to save his.”

“Well, I hope lady fortune is in on your side, because you have no chance of freeing him on your own.” Alays looked at the wooden table and frowned. “The morning is half gone, and I still need to finish my chores.”

Karina absently watched as Alays left them to put away the uneaten food. Eli was right. She couldn’t allow Geoffrey to suffer in this way, especially when she owed it to him as well.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.