Sora's Quest Read Online Free PDF Page B

Then a fragile calm settled over her, like fine mist. She had to think logically. Whether Lord Fallcrest was alive or dead, nothing changed. If she ran back home, she would still have to take suits, marry, start a family. Be realistic. You can't run an estate by yourself. If anything, that thought terrified her even more than the man behind her. There was no avoiding that life, not after tonight.
    No, she wasn't going home. She couldn't. Not after making it this far.
    Which meant she would have to escape her captor.
    She gripped the satchel before her, fingers cramped with anxiety. The ever-constant motion of the horse was almost soothing, the man behind her was momentarily silent.
    Well, she finally figured, I need a plan. Sooner or later they would have to stop. Simple is best. When her captor dismounted, she could knee him in the groin and run into the woods. It was the most logical thing to do. Then she would continue on her way to town. She didn't know the road, but she could ask anyone for directions....
    And she still had her satchel, her lifeline. She had enough money to buy a horse and be gone before anyone thought to look for her. She would leave this killer and her ill-fated manor in the dust. Then she would begin the hunt for her mother. Local house servants, newsboys, the county recorders might know something. A Lord's business was everyone's business, after all.
    It was admittedly a flawed plan, but the best she could do for the moment.
    She reached up and touched the necklace that dangled beneath her shirt. The stone felt warm, even through the thick linen.
    A line of trees appeared in the distance, a forest. Sora felt a sliver of doubt. She had explored much of her father's lands, but had never gone this far out. They had been galloping for almost an hour. This proved that she was thoroughly lost. The horse whuffed and panted, a sheen of sweat on its thick gray neck.
    They reached the treeline and entered the forest. It was dark and overgrown, menacing, far different from the acreage around her manor. The branches overhead blocked out the stars, obscuring all hint of light. Sora leaned forward in the saddle cautiously, hit by another wave of sickly terror.
    Without warning, the man grabbed her head and forced it down below a branch, drawing a muffled shriek from her lips. She thought for sure she would be beheaded. When she sat back up, she was not only breathing hard, but trembling and flinching at every small shift the horse made. Did he put the knife away? she wondered, still regrouping.
    Sora looked ahead, peering between the darkened trees, as though they held an unseen solution. She was determined to be prepared for whatever came next.
    She squinted. It seemed that there was a slight flicker of light ahead, the telltale signs of a campfire. A nervous grin came to her lips. What kind of idiot leaves a fire burning untended in the middle of a forest? Maybe this would be easier than she had first thought.
    They reached the fire quickly; her captor halted the horse just outside the circle of light. Then the man dismounted smoothly, then grabbed her with firm hands and lifted her down next to him.
    Sora found herself standing on a soft cushion of pine needles. She looked up at her captor, trying to see him clearly in the darkness, though he was almost invisible. Finally, she made out his shadowy, intimidating face.
    Gathering her wits— here it is, my chance! —she launched herself at him, trying to attack him as she had planned. She fumbled, attempting to knee his unprotected groin.
    He caught her easily and held her hands up by the wrists, barely concerned by her sudden action. Her lips parted, the air taken out of her, shocked by a sudden sense of failure.
    That went well, she thought sarcastically. All hope left her and Sora sagged in his grip. Her strength seemed to have drained out through the soles of her feet. She was lost.
    Then she noticed the rope he was carrying. She watched numbly as he tied her