Heart of the Sea Wolfe by Danelle Harmon

Author:Danelle Harmon
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 2018-01-22T05:00:00+00:00

* * *

Dorian didn’t know whether to rejoice or curse when he saw the horse and wagon waiting outside in the darkness.

If only pretty young Mercy Payne had offered him the use of the conveyance earlier, he could have been well on his way back to Boston and his presence amongst these good people would not have cost them their home, if not their safety. Now, it was too late.

The horse had sensed the tension. Head high and eyes rolling with fear, she began to jig, blowing hard through her nostrils. Dorian untied her, steadied her with a soft word and a hand on her muzzle, then hobbled back toward the wagon. He put the musket on the floorboards. Gritting his teeth against the pain in his ankle, he hoisted young Elias into the vehicle, then handed up Mrs. Payne and finally reached for Mercy as she came racing back out from the house.

“I can do this myself,” she protested, her face white with fear as she glanced off toward Concord, but he allowed her no choice. The shouts of the approaching mob were getting louder, and he planted his hands around her waist, lifted her, and plunked her neatly down on the seat. She gathered up the reins.

“Head east,” he directed, climbing up beside her. It was a tight squeeze between the girl and her mother. “Stay off the road. Use the fields until we’ve put some distance behind them.”

She nodded, her face pale and strained. Dorian caught Mrs. Payne’s frightened gaze and wished he had words of assurance. Beneath them the wheels started moving, slowly at first, and then faster as Mercy urged the big mare into a trot, leaving behind the homestead she’d known all her life.

The cart bumped over the uneven ground, throwing them against each other. Dorian could feel the girl’s hip bone against his, the warmth of her thigh through her woolen cloak and petticoats. She urged the mare off into a nearby pasture, skirting the stone wall where poor Lord Charles had died and the horse that could have saved him, saved all of them from this unnecessary flight into the night, had stood. Both were long gone, and Dorian had time to wonder what had become of the horse, let alone his friend’s body, as they moved further into the night.

He twisted around to look behind him. Elias sat in the bed of the wagon, holding on for dear life and his eyes wide with fear as Mercy shook the reins and urged more speed from the mare. Behind them, far off across the darkened fields, pinpoints of light began to appear as the townsfolk came down the road, carrying torches and headed toward the Payne homestead.

“Mother, I’m scared,” the little boy said, his lower lip trembling. “I want to go home, not to wherever Mr. Dorian is taking us.”

Mrs. Payne was far to distraught to answer, only huddling over the framed silhouette and weeping, her ample body bumping against Dorian’s.

Dorian shot another glance behind them.

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.