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Time passed by slowly. The forest became even more dense which made it difficult for the horses to get through. Nightmare and her large size were in particularly challenged. I allowed her to lead her and myself through the forest. Li and his men weaved their horses in between the trees, over stumps. and through bushes. The weather wasn’t on our side. The snow had begun falling from the sky with great force. There were times when the world around me was nothing more than a white blanket. The wind whipped across my face like a blade. My gloves were frozen. They had been for some time now. The journey had worn me down.
There were times when I raised my arms up to build a shield around us. Each time, Li would reach for one of my arms then he would tell me how I needed to save my energy. He was right. My body was drained. Even with the bumpy journey, I found myself unable to keep my eyes open. Nightmare’s neigh saved me several times from falling off of her.
My body needed to rejuvenate. I wanted to beg Li for us to stop so that I could build a fire and rest. Li probably wouldn’t argue at my request, but I couldn’t be selfish. If we stopped that would slow down the entire journey. We would need more supplies to make up for the hours we lost.
I needed to warm myself up somehow. I pulled my arms out of my sleeves. Under my robe, I crossed my arms in front of me. It didn’t help much. I still felt like an icicle. An icicle ready to shatter due to the coldness and constant convulsions of shivering it was doing.
The other horses were just as miserable as me. I watched them as they snorted snow away from their faces. Their faint neighs could be heard whenever the wind slowed. When the snow wasn’t as thick, I could see that their heads were lowered, and they were moving sluggishly. They were most likely thinking what I was thinking. Let’s stop.
Yamato Canton was known for its cold weather. More like suspected. No outsiders were allowed into the canton so outsiders could only suspect the weather was cold. Their conclusion was based on Yamato Canton being located high up in the mountains. It was also because Li and his men always wore clothing made of thin material.
The lack of body language from Li and his men told me the cold didn’t bother them. Or perhaps they were acting tough because of me.
It appeared that their horses and I were the only ones freezing our asses off.
“Stop,” Li’s shouted over the ferocious wind. All of the horses came to a halt. Even Nightmare stopped.
I looked at Li; however, he was busy scanning around us. His men were doing the same. Li gave a gesture with his hand. His men slowly moved their horses through the snow and terrain. A few of the men moved ahead of us, others faced behind us, the others fanned out. They were positioning themselves in a circle around us.
The thought of me being cold was pushed to the back of my mind. My mind was consumed with panic. My heart felt like it was ready to explode. I could barely catch my breath from my anxiety. This was a whole new world for me. Danger. A hidden danger.
With my task being to kill Maddox, why didn’t I consider the danger involved? I was so obsessed with breaking free from King Theo that I had let the most important part out of the equation. I was trained in weapons and military tactics. However, I had never used these skills on a real enemy.
My eyes searched around us. What had Li seen or heard? I could barely see Li and his men, and they were close to me. Maybe, he just had a feeling. I had learned that warriors who went to battle often, became attuned with nature. They could feel when something was out of place. Much like an animal.
Li moved his horse next to me.
“Is everything okay?” I whispered unable to hide the fear in my voice.
“Yes. I need you to do something for me, okay?” He asked with serious eyes.
“Okay,” I whispered.
“When I tell you to, I need you to take Nightmare as fast as you can that way.” He pointed in front of us and off to the right. “Don’t stop until you reach the river. Myself or one of my men will meet you there.”
“Li, what’s going on?” I pleaded.
“It’s okay. Everything will be okay.” He smiled.
“Just let me stay here,” I blurted. “I could be more useful here.” If he gave me enough time, I would be down on my knees begging him to let me stay. Alone? That was not something I wanted at the moment. Alone in this situation would leave me vulnerable. More vulnerable than I already was.
“We need you safe.”
“And, I’m safe by myself?” My words attacked him like venom. There wasn’t a reason to be angry with him. He had his reasons. He was much more experienced with danger than I was. Still. I couldn’t face being alone.
“Annaliese, listen to me. Trust me. I won’t be far behind you. Okay?” Reaching out, he took my hand in his. “Trust me. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“What if—” He shook his head.
“I will be right behind you. Nothing bad will—”
Whiz. Whiz. Whiz.
Something flew by me at great speed. It made a whistling noise as it passed by. A few of Li’s men shouted in pain.
Whiz. Whiz. Whiz.
Two more flew by me.
“Go! Remember what I said,” Li yelled at me, then swatted Nightmare on the butt. She took off in a sprint. I looked over my shoulder. Li and his men with their swords drawn heading the opposite way of me.
There was a part of me that wanted to turn around. The other part of me kept me from doing so. I needed to trust Li in this moment. If a warrior like him was telling me to leave, then that’s what I needed to do. I could ask questions later.