The Fairest Beauty

by Melanie Dickerson

  In his defense, though, the old woman, Pinnosa, had said it was urgent, that Sophie was in great danger. And now he knew it was true. In fact, the duchess had ordered Lorencz to kill her. If Gabe had waited and let Valten come to rescue her, she might be dead now.

  But perhaps the duchess had decided to kill her because of him, because she discovered he was the son of Duke Wilhelm and realized the duke would be coming for her himself.

  That thought made him sick. His haste and irresponsibility had put Sophie in danger.

  What if it hadn’t been God’s will for him to come? What if it had been Gabe’s impatience, his not caring if it was right, his simply wanting to go off on his own quest to prove himself?

  God, forgive me for wanting to be the one to rescue her. But if Valten made one single disparaging remark about Sophie … God, I’m sorry. Please don’t let Sophie get hurt.

  As they came down the other side of the mountain, Sophie caught her breath at the sight before her, at the treeless, wide-open space, an entire mountainside covered in wildflowers. She had never seen anything like it. The only flowers she’d ever seen in her life were small forest flowers, mostly tiny white ones. She’d never seen anything like these red-orange blossoms that carpeted the ground in front of her.

  Just then, the sun came out from behind a cloud and shone on the beautiful, grassy, flower-covered meadow, lighting the red blossoms and setting them afire.

  Sophie tilted her head up to catch the rays on her face. Her eyes closed, she realized she was revisiting her dream. Maybe she was dreaming.

  “These flowers are so beautiful,” she breathed. “What are they called?”

  “Mohnblumen. You’ve never seen wild poppies before?” His voice conveyed surprise.

  He let the horse amble slowly. She breathed in the warm air, thanking God for the sun, for the warmth, for this moment of exquisite freedom. Then she stared down at the flowers below them, so close and yet too far to reach.

  “Would you like to stop and pick some?” he asked gently.

  He helped her dismount, and she knelt reverently toward a flower and placed her fingers on the surprisingly tiny stem. She picked it, then held it up to her face. The petals were almost transparent. How wonderful that such a delicate thing could provide such vivid color. Sophie studied it, breathing deeply, and reveling in the manifestation of her dream. She closed her eyes and let her mind empty itself of all thought except for this beautiful meadow, her dream come true.

  When she opened her eyes, Gabe was standing a few feet away, his fist full of the red flowers. Her gaze met his and she read understanding in his face. But how could he understand how she felt? He’d experienced freedom his entire life. He’d known what it was like to ride out on his horse and discover meadows and wildflowers and feel the sun on his face. But he knew the things she had gone through, even knew of her hopes and dreams. His expression was sympathetic, and it made her heart ache with some new emotion, pleasant and painful at the same time. It became hard to breathe, and she both wished he would close the gap between them, and feared it at the same time.

  A feeling of guilt hit her. She turned away from Gabe’s eyes and started for the horse, who had dropped his head to graze.

  “We’d better go. I don’t want to delay us with my foolishness.” She reached up and grabbed the pommel of the saddle, and suddenly Gabe was standing beside her.

  He held the flowers out to her.

  The air felt thick between them. She was afraid to look him in the eye but couldn’t resist. His look was serious and compelling, as if he wanted to tell her something. Her heart was beating so hard it seemed to vibrate her chest.

  Why was she being so foolish? It was very unlikely that Gabe was feeling anything like what she was feeling. And she wouldn’t want him to. She was betrothed to Valten.

  She took the flowers from his hand and he lifted her by her waist to set her in the saddle.

  Gabe took the reins and hoisted himself up, then set Gingerbread in motion. “There are a lot more meadows like this.”

  Sophie stared down at the flowers Gabe had picked for her. Gradually, her heart slowed. She kept herself from looking up at Gabe. The motion of the horse, the warmth of the sun, the sight of the beautiful flowers in her hand, and the brush of his arms around her, holding on to the reins, comforted her into a sense of peace and contentment.

  Her brother. Gabe was her brother. He was taking her to Hagenheim and safety. That’s all.

  They continued through the meadow and Gabe picked up the pace, now that they were on more level ground. They could hear the river to their west but couldn’t see it, as it was surrounded by trees. Sophie looked all around her at the beautiful trees — such variety compared to Hohendorf — the green grass, and more wildflowers of purple, pink, and yellow.

  “Let me know if you need to stop,” Gabe said.

  “I am well,” she murmured.

  “I’m thinking of hunting a hare for our dinner.”

  Sophie was glad. They had precious little left of the bundle Petra had supplied.

  Sophie fingered the bouquet and regretted the feelings she’d had for Gabe when he’d picked it for her. Those feelings were only foolishness brought on by her gratitude to Gabe for saving her from the duchess, and because they were alone together. “We haven’t seen any houses or people. Aren’t there any villages or towns around here?”

  “Not many. We’ll see more when we get closer to Hagenheim.”

  She asked more questions about his siblings. His family was always a safe subject, and he always seemed to have more to tell her. Soon they were laughing companionably. She even grew comfortable enough to ask about Brittola. “What does Brittola look like?”

  “She has blonde hair and green eyes.”

  “Is she tall?”

  “About your height, I suppose. Although she may have grown since I saw her.”

  “Does she write letters to you?”

  “Rarely. She wrote a few times after our visit a year ago, but I haven’t heard from her in months.”

  If you were my betrothed, I’d write to you every day. Sophie was glad she hadn’t said that aloud. What an awkward silence that would have resulted in.

  “Perhaps she doesn’t like to write.”

  “She told me as much.”

  “Do you write to her?”

  “Whenever she writes to me, I always answer. I’m afraid I haven’t been any better a correspondent than she has.”

  “I suppose Brittola had tutors and learned to read and write, everything a well-bred lady should.”

  “I suppose. Although she did tell me that she wasn’t a very good student and often pretended to be sick or ignored her tutor. Which surprised me, because she seemed so docile and meek when she visited Hagenheim.”

  “It is easy to pretend sometimes,” Sophie murmured, thinking of her own pretending. But other times, it was quite hard. “I am sure she must have learned to dance as well.” Sophie had always wanted to learn how to dance. Not that she’d ever had the occasion to do it, but she’d dreamed of having many opportunities once she was able to get away from the duchess.

  “Yes, she knows all the dances.”

  They were silent for a few moments. Finally, Sophie said, “It will be embarrassing for your brother if his betrothed does not know how to dance.”

  “We’ll teach you. My family knows how to play the songs and can teach you all of the necessary steps in only a day or two.”

  Sophie felt herself blush with pleasure. She imagined learning to dance with her betrothed’s family looking on, swirling around the floor holding Gabe’s —

  No, of course not Gabe’s hand. She would learn holding Valten’s hand.

  Learning to dance would be enjoyable. And by the time she became a duke’s wife, she would know how to dance very well and he would not have to be ashamed of her. She hoped.

  Chapter 12

  Gabe looked up at the sun, high overhead. Almost time to stop and let Gingerbre
ad rest so they all could get a drink. They hadn’t seen any sign of the duchess’s guards or the murderous archer from the day before. But they could catch up to Gabe and Sophie at any time. Best to keep their times of rest as short as possible.

  He turned his horse toward the river and went down the slight hill into the trees.

  Gabe pulled on the reins and stopped Gingerbread. By the river’s edge, a large brown rabbit stood nibbling the grass.

  He quietly helped Sophie down, then he slowly dismounted. He pulled his crossbow from his back, loaded it, and as the arrow clicked into place, the rabbit lifted its head, suddenly alert. Gabe aimed carefully. He pulled the trigger to release the arrow. It found its mark, right into the hare’s skull, knocking it over.

  “That was a perfect shot.”

  Her words warmed him. Valten probably wouldn’t have been able to hit the animal, especially from that distance. Gabe always had been a better shot.

  He chided himself for his pride and for having such unkind thoughts about his brother. But he was still proud he could provide meat for them both.

  He hurriedly skinned the hare while Sophie built a fire.

  “We can’t take any with us, so we need to eat it all now.”

  They roasted the meat and Sophie ate almost as much as he did. He wanted to compliment her good appetite, but from his experiences with his sisters, he was relatively sure that would be a bad idea.

  He and Sophie covered their fire with dirt, then poured water over it from the river. They climbed back on Gingerbread and headed away from their midday camp.

  If they continued to travel hard and fast, they should be close to the Cottage of the Seven by tomorrow afternoon. It would be a good place to spend the night after sleeping outside for two nights. And he hoped to find someone at the Cottage who would travel with them, which would also help preserve Sophie’s reputation.

  As night fell, Sophie relaxed against his chest, apparently asleep. He should start looking for a place for them to settle for the night, but he wanted to travel as far as he could, as long as he could still see several feet in front of him.

  Perhaps he shouldn’t have come alone to rescue Sophie. But he was taking care of her. God willing, he would get her safely to Hagenheim. For once, everyone would be patting him on the back instead of Valten.

  But somehow, that didn’t matter so much to him anymore. He no longer relished the thought of Valten’s envy and anger at Gabe rescuing his betrothed. And the praise he would get wasn’t as important to him as he had thought it would be. In fact, he would do it all again even if no one else knew, because he was doing it for Sophie. He wanted to take care of her and keep her safe just because … she was kind and unselfish and smart and beautiful.

  And she thought of him as a brother.

  Where were these thoughts about Sophie taking him? Even thinking the wrong thoughts about one’s brother’s wife was a sin. Valten wasn’t married to Sophie, and he had not been the one to pledge himself to her, but Gabe needed to look at her as if she was Valten’s beloved.

  Gabe realized he was tired, and exhaustion was weakening his defenses. He had to find a place for them to shelter for the night. Anyway, it was almost dark.

  Last night, he had found a perfect place for them to sleep, and prayed they’d find another place just as perfectly situated. He moved through the trees, searching for a sheltered spot.

  Gingerbread stumbled on a rock, and Gabe instinctively wrapped his arm around Sophie’s middle to keep her from falling. She woke up and glanced around.

  “You’re just in time to help find a place to stop for the night. It looks like we could all use the rest,” Gabe said.

  She mumbled her agreement and rubbed her cheek, pulling away from him a bit.

  This area wasn’t nearly as rocky as the surrounding terrain, so it looked as if the best shelter they would get was in the midst of trees and bushes.

  But then Gabe came upon a small stream that fed into the river. The stream trickled down a hill. On a hunch, he followed it a short way and, on the other side of the hill, found a sheer rock floor that was sheltered on two sides by trees.

  They both dismounted. When his feet touched the ground, Gabe’s knees buckled and he almost went down. Sleeping lightly and traveling hard was taking a toll.

  Sophie walked to the stream while he finished seeing to Gingerbread. The moon glowed just enough so that he could keep a subtle eye on her, and see the area around them. Sophie came back and together they spread out the blanket in the sheltered spot.

  “You sleep here,” Gabe said. His voice sounded stilted, even to his ears. “I’ll sleep over there, by one of the trees.”

  Sophie scrunched her eyes at him, as if confused.

  It didn’t matter if she was confused. Even if he hurt her feelings, he felt the need to keep his distance.

  Gabe heard the crack of a breaking tree limb and looked up. Across the river, fifty feet away, a man was aiming an arrow straight at Sophie.

  Gabe didn’t have time to grab his crossbow. Instead, he leaped in front of Sophie, putting his body between her and the man.

  The next instant, he felt a sharp, searing pain. A glance to his left revealed an arrow shaft sticking out of his shoulder.

  Chapter 13

  He dropped to his knees as Sophie screamed.

  “Get down! Behind me,” Gabe yelled. He grabbed the crossbow still at his feet, but because of the arrow in his shoulder, had a hard time lifting it up high enough to aim it. The man across the river was setting another arrow to his longbow.

  “No!” Sophie screamed again.

  Gabe heard the faint whoosh of an arrow, but the man across the river was still aiming in their direction. He seemed frozen. Then, slowly, he fell face forward into the river, an arrow sticking out of his back.

  A big, barrel-shaped man emerged from the forest behind the fallen archer.

  Sophie turned to Gabe and threw her arms around him just as he sank to his side on the ground.

  Sophie fell to the ground beside Gabe. She recognized the big man who had shot and killed the archer trying to ambush them. Walther. Thank you, God.

  Convinced they were now safe, she turned all her focus on Gabe. The hideous sight of the arrow sticking out of his shoulder, its head sticking out his back, made her shake her head in disbelief. Why did he do it? He’d deliberately stepped in front of her so the arrow would strike him and not her. Why? He was only rescuing her to irritate his brother. She felt so sick, she wondered if she was about to throw up.

  She had to help Gabe. He was shot … with an arrow … an arrow that was meant for her.

  His face was contorted in pain, his eyes closed.

  “Oh, why did you have to get yourself shot?” She examined where the arrow had gone in. “Don’t worry,” she tried to reassure Gabe, who was gasping in pain. “You’ll be all right. I’ll take care of you.” Please, God, help me know what to do. Don’t let him die.

  The arrow should have pierced her heart. It was meant for her, not Gabe. She stared at the shaft, dripping with blood where it met his body. She would have to break it off and then pull it out. It should be done quickly, before she had time to get squeamish about it. She braced herself and, with both hands, grasped the end of the arrow sticking out the front of his shoulder. Without allowing herself time to think, she broke it.

  Gabe let out a howl of pain.

  “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” Sophie touched his face, laying her palm against his cheek.

  “It’s all right,” he said through clenched teeth. “Just pull it out.”

  She looked at the metal head of the arrow sticking out the back of his shoulder. It was covered in blood. Sophie had seen blood before, had never been bothered by it in the past, but this was Gabe’s blood. A wave of weakness came over her. The thought of pulling that arrow the rest of the way through his flesh … she wasn’t sure she could do it.

  I have to do it. For Gabe.

  Suddenly, a huge man was tower
ing over them.

  “Walther. I thank God you’re here.”

  “As soon as I heard what had happened back at the castle, I knew I had to find you. I couldn’t let anyone hurt our little Sophie.” Walther knelt behind Gabe. “Go get a blanket or something to press against the wound.”

  Sophie ran and got the blanket she’d slept under last night. She ran back on shaky legs and sank to her knees beside Walther. The big man grabbed the arrow and yanked it out.

  Gabe’s body went limp, his head sinking to the ground.

  She held part of the blanket to the back of his shoulder with one hand and pressed the other half of the blanket over the entry wound at the front of his shoulder.

  “You’ll have to push harder than that. I’ll do it.” Walther nudged her aside.

  Sophie moved aside. She lifted Gabe’s head and right shoulder and placed them in her lap. Tenderly, she brushed the hair from his forehead.

  “Gabe? Are you all right?” He must have fainted from the pain. She hovered over him, watching for any flicker of movement. Finally, he groaned. Then his eyes opened.

  Walther was still pressing hard on both sides of his shoulder.

  Gabe grunted. “I’m sorry I failed you, Sophie.”

  “You didn’t fail me. You saved me.” She touched his forehead again, brushing his hair back and letting her hand linger. “You are so brave.” She still couldn’t believe the sacrifice he’d made. Her eyes filled with tears and one spilled onto Gabe’s shirt. She wanted to tell him he was the bravest man she knew, that he was her rescuer and she would never forget what he’d done for her. But she knew she wouldn’t be able to get it all out. She would choke on her own tears before she’d said two words of it.

  “I should have seen him coming,” Gabe said softly. “I should have heard him. I should never have let him get so close.”