As the young man whose sword threatened Salix dithered, the door at the far end of the room burst open. Three men and a woman entered One of the men seemed to be in charge; he was elderly, and well dressed, with a short grey beard and a rich, red cloak. Two steps ahead of him was a middle-aged woman dressed in the black tunic and trousers of the Order of the Blossom, and beside her, a young man with a round face and dark hair. Panting some distance behind was another dark-haired young man, one who looked strikingly like the first, but poorly dressed and clearly exhausted.
"Vitus!" called Salix, seeing the first young man, "But - how are you alive?"
Vitus threw her a quick smile, drawing his sword as the old man drew up in front of the Flora holding the baby.
"Now, Flora Cicuta, hand over the child," the old man demanded imperiously.
"Never, you old fool!" Cicuta retorted. “And you, Flora Althaea,” she addressed the middle-aged woman, “You, too, betrayed me, I suppose?Well, you can watch the child die, then.”
Cicuta held Aurelia, kicking and screaming, by the scruff of her neck. She held her dagger, drawn, above the child's head.
“Da!” The little girl wailed, small hands reaching towards the elderly man. For a moment, everyone turned to look at her.
Marcus was almost surprised into movement, but strong arms held him, and he could do nothing.
Looking over to the old man, Flora Cicuta said, "You caused this.”
Cicuta drew her arm back, then brought the dagger down, aiming for the middle of the baby's chest.
High up on his balcony, Petro gasped. Desperately, he tried to fit another arrow to his bow, but it was too late. As he struggled, though, another bowstring twanged from the balcony at the far end of the gallery. The moment of surprise gave Salix the chance to sink suddenly downwards and slip out from between her captor's body and his sword.
Cicuta fell, an arrow in her back, and Salix neatly caught Aurelia before the baby could hit the ground. On her own balcony, Flora Tsuga smiled, lowering her bow.
"Everyone alright down there?" She called.
YOU ARE READING
The Baby and the Battlefield
FantasyA baby? On a battlefield? Marcus is a clerk in the Imperial army. When he finds an abandoned baby on a battlefield, he has no idea what to do with her. His best friend is no help; he thinks Marcus is a sucker for taking the kid in. The slave who end...
