The Born Queen - J. Gregory Keyes [62]
Its reflexes were better. It hurled up and back, shrilling—
—and going straight into Winna, who went sprawling on her back.
Aspar started after the beast, but suddenly heard the thrumming of hooves and glanced to see what it was. The monster looked, too, but not in time to dodge the spear that struck it in the ribs and lifted it off the ground, propelling it along with the weight of a bay charger and an armored knight behind it. The knight slammed it into the trunk of an ash, and the spear shivered. The terrible beast crumpled and then started haltingly to get up.
The knight dismounted, drawing his sword.
“Wait,” Aspar said. “It might be poison.”
He was trying not to think that if it was like the greffyn, Winna was already venomed.
The knight hesitated, then nodded.
Aspar walked over to the creature. Its skin was barely cut, but it was clear that much was broken inside. It watched him come with curiously blank eyes, but when he was close enough, it hopped at him again. It was slower than before.
Aspar sidestepped, caught the leg above the claws with his left hand, and severed the whole limb with the feyknife. Dark, almost purple blood jetted from the stump as the head darted down to bite him. Aspar kept the knife coming up, however, and it went through the serpentine neck as if slicing soft cheese.
He turned away from the bloody work and found Winna hobbling toward him.
“Stay back,” he shouted more loudly than he meant to.
She stopped, her eyes widening.
“The blood,” he explained. “Every one of these things is different. Its touch may not be so bad, but its blood might.”
He noticed she was rubbing her elbow.
“Were you hurt when you fell?”
“It’s you,” she said feebly. “I should have known. All I had to do was find a monster…”
“Yah, it’s me,” he said more softly, unable to keep his gaze from jumping down to her belly.
“You’re—”
“Yah,” she said. “Yah.” She smiled a wavery little smile. “I knew you couldn’t be dead. I told them.” He saw that tears were streaming down her face. She reached out her arms, but he took a step back, and she nodded.
“Saints, then,” she said, straightening and wiping her cheeks. “Get cleaned up so I can greet you proper. And you can tell me where you’ve been all this—”
Her gaze went out over his shoulder and became suddenly less tender. “Oh,” she said. “Hello.”
“Hello,” he heard Leshya say behind him.
Ah, sceat, he thought.
The knight had his helmet off, and he looked familiar.
“There’s a spring just over here,” he said. “You can leave your clothes and take my cloak. We can be to Ermensdoon in under a bell.”
“I know you,” Aspar said.
“Auy. I hait Emfrith Ensilson. You saved my life.”
Aspar nodded. “You look better than when I saw you last.”
“I should think,” the greftson said. “How are you feeling?”
Aspar shrugged. “I’m not so easy to poison as some.”
“From what I’ve heard, I’d hardly guess you were human at all,” Emfrith said, trying on a little grin that didn’t fit and was soon put away. Aspar didn’t miss the shy glance at Winna, either.
“Human’s not all your mother told you it was,” Leshya said.
“He’s human enough,” Winna said.
“Where’s Ehawk?” Aspar asked.
“In the mountains, looking for you.”
Aspar had been aware that more horses and men were approaching, and now they were there: twenty-two of them, most in the livery that Aspar remembered from Haemeth. A couple were dressed more roughly, and he reckoned they were trackers or hunters.
“We’ve a few extra horses,” Emfrith said. “I’d be happy if you and the lady would use them.”
“I’ll stay on foot till I’m clean,” Aspar said. “Where’s this spring you were talking about?”
“Just there,” the fellow replied, gesturing.
Aspar nodded and headed in that direction.
The spring came cold and clear from the ground and fed a pretty pool edged in moss and ferns. He wearily stripped off his leather chest plate and the gambeson beneath, which