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"We leave in the "

"Do you mean it?" She turned toward the sound of his voice She had been counting the days, al for this "

"Yes, my lord"

"Ye are not afraid?"

"Oh, aye, a little But sure and I would do anything to have ht back"

"I will do ht"

She nodded, her shter than the sun atjust outside the door to watch her

Thinking herself alone, she clasped her hands to her breasts and lifted her face upward in an attitude of prayer

He did not have to divine her thoughts to knohat it was she prayed for

They left early the following h as Darkfest lifted her onto the back of a horse Leaning forward, she patted the ani the silky feel of the horse&039;s coat

"Have ye ridden before?" Darkfest asked, adjusting her stirrups

"Never anything so large"

"Well, dinna worry Clover is a fine beastie, well trained She will carry ye safely"

He gazed up at Channa Leigh She was prettier than a fresh springthere, with her skirts spread over the ht-blue fur-lined cloak around her shoulders, she looked like a fairy queen going calling

Gathering up the reins to his own great stallion, he swung into the saddle and settled his own cloak about his shoulders He clucked to the stallion, and the horse y head The ray packsoftly

The path that led down fro one, the narrow road lined by windblown trees and squat shrubs

He watched Channa Leigh carefully She held the reins lightly in one hand, the other hand resting on the po with thesun danced in Channa Leigh&039;s hair, azein the line of her profile, the sweet curve of her breast

He shifted uncomfortably in the saddle as his body responded to his lustful thoughts With an oath he looked away This journey was a mistake, he mused ruefully In the castle, he could leave her alone when he needed to escape fro within its walls that could do her harm But out here there ild animals that could tear her to shreds, deep ravines she could stumble into, rivers that could sweep her away He would have to keep her in his sight every moment

He headed east when they reached the bottoently rolling hills and shallow valleys all covered in a sea of deep green grass Tall trees garbed in the bright ee birds soared across the sky He saw a s in the shade of a stand of timber A speck of blue far off in the distance promised a water hole

For a ti chair movement of his horse He seldootten how beautiful the countryside was, the sense of freedo afforded He looked back froh She rode with her face lifted to the sun, drinking in its war at the sound of a flock of black-headed geese winging their way south

He and Channa Leigh rode all that day, stopping now and then to rest the horses or to get soh rode without co outside evident in her expression Though she could not see, she used her other senses to the fullest, running her hands over the thick velvety grass when they stopped near a river, listening to the birds as they chirped in the treetops, picking a handful of sweet-s flowers

At dusk, he reined his horse to a halt Dish from the back of the mare

"Wait here," he said, and when he was certain she would obey, he unsaddled the horses and turned theround and bid Channa Leigh sit down

When she was coround A feords, and a fire sprang to life, crackling cheerfully in the gathering dusk

He pulled the ingredients for dinner fros, filled a pot ater to war more and more enchanted with her nearness, more and more drawn to her beauty of face and forhed, a soft sound, yet he heard it clearly

"What is it, lass?" he asked

"I was just wondering"

"Wondering?"

"About Magick"

"What kind of ick, the wolf"

He grunted softly "What were you wondering?"

"If he would come to me if I called"

"What need have you of the wolf?"