Slave's Love (Pirate!Spamano)

Capítulo 21 (veintiuno)

!! This chapter contains content some might find disturbing !! 

Antonio

Stillness hugged us hand-in-hand with silence. No-one dared to breath nor move, even the wind playing with leaves just few seconds ago stopped in its tracks, leaving its toys on the ground as it left quickly.

The horse underneath me shivered, muscles tensing as if expecting something drastic to happen. His ears twitched, turning to the side and listening carefully, closely but nothing reached them, nothing came into his sight and thus he relaxed, bowing his head to the ground, probably trying to find something to eat.

Crack and the little twig broke into half under the animal's weight. And there, in the woods, protected by a shadow, a young deer stiffened. He straightened his back, tilting his head up as he gazed around, directing his ears towards our little group. Perhaps it was a doe; there were no antlers to be found on the animal's head. All in all, it was young and it was staring right at us like if it knew what was about to happen.

That's when I heard soft thumping echoing through the air. Roderich must've heard it too for his head shot up and his gun lowered slightly, waiting what kind of beast we would face. What surprised me though wasn't a bear or a majestic deer coming out, but two little brown deer or does rushing out from the near thicket, stopping at the side of the adult mammal, rubbing their tiny noses against its fur.

Breath hitched in my throat as I stared at the scenery in front of me; did Roderich really want to kill them? I wouldn't lie, they were adorable and to hell what others would think of me; I fake-coughed loudly, resting my hand on my chest afterwards and clearing my throat in an attempt to make it all look real. Just then, the animal trio jolted in surprise and bolted from our range, leaving me with an angry look from the Austrian next to me.

"Was that really necessary, Antonio?" He growled out, resting the gun against his side. Shadow of a frown fell upon his face, somehow purple orbs shining with undertone irritation. I only shrugged and grabbed leather reins, pulling them closer to my frame to get my horse's attention. Once I've received it, I made the mammal turn towards his fellow and motioned it was time to move on. With a final huff, the Austrian did the very same after giving away his weapon to a nearby standing servant.

Our horses moved in a swift gallop, side by side, hooves drumming against the wet ground. There was an uncomfortable burden thrown upon us, that one unsaid yet loud question suffocating me, making my insides clench and twist, breath hitching in my throat and for no specific reason at all. There was no reason for me to feel like this – afraid of something that didn't even exist – despite telling myself there was nothing to be worried about. And yet, my anxiety was only growing stronger with each second passing.

However, the river of my thoughts was stopped as the Austrian slowed down, making me do the same in a natural movement. His hand flew up as a signal for the two servants following to leave us alone. The hooves clicked softly against the ground, muscles clenching and shifting with every movement as the distance between us and the other men grew bigger.

With a sharp tug, the Austrian's horse stopped in its tracks, puffing out air in hot whiffs and mine did the same as I ordered it to halt. At least, the somehow purple eyes shifted upon me, just staring at me and nothing more and yet, it felt like Roderich looked about inside my head, my heart, my thoughts which made me anxious to the bone. "So..," he began in an emotionless tone, his voice stern and strict. "Why did you let those animals live, Antonio?" A strange feeling of relief filled me before I let air rush back into my lungs in a large gulp. My shoulders slumped a bit, not to let it seem like I was off guard but relaxed enough to talk to him freely.