Dunei - A Murtagh Love Story - Eldest Fan Fiction

Chapter 05

Hours lapsed before the bolt on the door scraped open. Two pairs of footsteps began to descend the stairs, and the door thudded shut behind them. There was a pause, then a jingle of metal and the footsteps continued.

From behind a portly man in a grey woollen tunic came into Lorena's field of vision. He carried a silver platter with an assortment of food and beverage. He placed the tray at the base of the far wall, seconds later he was joined by a second man, similarly dressed but younger who placed his own platter next to the first.

The larger man turned back to Lorena, he looked her up and down with an expressionless face. His head was oddly shaped, large at the top and bottom yet skinnier in the middle like an hour glass. He was bald with the exception of short black hair running around the back of his head. His cheeks where ruddy, and lips almost as grey as his tunic. He was altogether unpleasant to look at.

Lorena sucked in her breath as he reached for the side of her head, a quick flick of the wrist and the leather strap came undone. She lifted her head off the slab and watched as the man undid the padded shackles around her wrists. Lorena looked to her right to see the younger man had undone Murtaghs leg shackles. A mistake, Lorena's lips twisted into wry smile. When at last freed of the final manacle Lorena threw herself off the slab and toward Murtaghs.

The young gaoler gasped, and the older one quickly began to make his way between the tables. Her fingers fumbled at the restraints, and she only managed to undo one wrist and the head strap before an arm encircled her waist. Murtagh threw open the last shackle at the same time the young gaoler slapped a leg manacle back on. Lorena was spun, and her upper body pushed onto the stone slab, face down. With a snarl she kicked and pulled her arms as one was pushed behind her back and painfully upwards, a hand grabbed a fistful of hair and held her face firmly against the slab.

She could hear a fight happening behind her, Murtagh growled and there was the sound of flesh hitting flesh. The gaolers grip loosened as he turned to assist his counterpart, and Lorena wrenched her arm free before throwing her full weight back against him. The man stumbled slightly but managed to grab hold of Murtaghs left arm, and with an iron grip pulled it down into the allocated shackle. Murtagh still tried to fight but he had been unable to free his right leg and now with his left arm restrained and the young gaoler attempting to contain the right he had no chance. You fool! thought Lorena as she attempted to kick in the knee cap of the older gaoler, You fool, you had no chance and now you've made things worse. The older gaoler's knee buckled but he dealt a slap to Lorena, sending her sideways into the slab, bashing her floating ribs into the unforgiving stone.

She attempted to strike him again as he approached but he easily caught her wrist, bent her forward over the slab and pushed her arm up behind her back like he had done before. Lorena struggled violently against him but the man simply held her in place, eventually she heard Murtagh stop struggling and growl in frustration, then the only perceivable noise was the varying laboured breathing of the four people in the room. She half stood half laid still, waiting to see what the gaoler would do. She silently fumed with anger, she knew under different circumstances Murtagh and she would have had no problem with these two but she had not taken into consideration their exhaustion. It had been less than a week since the battle of Farthen Dûr and they had not been able to fully recuperate.

After a minute or so the gaoler released Lorena's forearm and took a firm grip of her upper arm. He half dragged her over to a door at the side of the chamber before Lorena managed to find her footing. He opened the door and pushed her in, looking around she realised it was a privy chamber. The door was shut behind her leaving her alone. When finished she knocked on the door and was allowed back out. He grabbed her arm again and led her back to the slab. Lorena resisted the urge to fight, knowing full well that she had no chance in her exhausted state, especially with Murtagh confined and a second gaoler ready to intervene. She was pushed back onto the slab and restrained before they released Murtagh. His knees buckled as he hit the ground but the gaolers' strong grip stopped him from falling. Murtagh attempted to push his arm off of him but other than that he gave no resistance, he disappeared into the privy chamber and returned to his slab without a fuss.