Lords of Honor (26 page)

“Do you know how to use a pistol, Libby?” Micah asked her calmly.

Her eyes grew wide
.
She nodded
.
“Yes, Owen taught me.”

Micah removed a small pistol from inside his coat pocket
.
He put it in her hands
.
“How about a knife?”

“
Owen did not teach me how to use
a knif
e
,
I’m sorry to say
.”

Micah
removed
the same
small knife
he used at the cottage to cut their apple
from his boot
.
He
laid it on the seat beside her
.
“
It is here if there is a
need
for
it
.
If someone
reach
es
for you just jab at them
, t
heir hands, face,
arms,
thigh
s
.
Try to w
ound them anywhere you can that will slow them down
and
t
hen get away.
”

“I won’t have to get a
way
.
You’ll be here, won’t you?
”

“I will not leave you, Libby.”
Micah reached out and caressed her cheek.

Libby nodded
.
She
wish
ed
she felt a little braver
.
She was not a fearful person, but these Brown Coats
did
frighten her.

Micah withdrew a larger pistol from
a
nother
pocket
inside his coat
.
He set it on the seat beside him
.
He li
f
ted his trouser leg and removed a l
onger
knife from
a sheath
inside his other boot
.

The carriage picked up pace and
moved along
faster
.

Owen came to the window on Libby’s side
.
“Don’t you worry, pet
.
Micah and I won’t let anything happen to you.”

“Nor shall I
, Miss Libby
.”
Charlie came up to ride beside the carriage door on Micah’s side
.

Matthias Halfknight, Lord Sinclair called from the box, “Two riders up ahead
, coming fast
.
I don’t see brown coats
.
They’re close
.
Get Libby down if I tell you to.”

“Let me know,
Sinclair,
”
Micah
called
loudly.

“Sweetheart, do you want to get down on the floor?” Micah asked her.

Libby
regarded
Owen
, then
Micah
.
She shook her head
.
“
No,
I
prefer t
o stay here so I can see you both.”

“Fine for now, but if one of us orders you to the floor, you
do it
, Libby
.
Understood?” Owen said
sternly
.

She nodded
.
“Yes, Owen.”

“Riders in front are allies
.
Harry and Wyldhurst!”
Lord Sinclair bellowed from the drivers’ bench.

“Good, that makes
us
eight to their ten.
” Micah smiled at Owen
,
then asked, “
Owen, how well
does
Libby shoot?”

Owen chuckled, “Not well
.
Be careful, Micah.”

“Owen!” Libby reprimanded her brother
.
“I’m a good shot and you know it!”

“Sorry
, c
ouldn’t help it
, p
et
.
She’s a steady shot, Micah
.
She can hit her mark,
”
Owen grinned
.
H
is eyes, almost as deep a blue as his sister’s
,
twinkled merrily
.

“Yes, I can
hit
my marks, Micah
!
” Libby smiled
at her handsome husband to be
.

Micah
grinned
at
her
.
Every new thing he found out about his Libby just endeared
her
to
him
more
.
If they weren’t in such a precarious situation and if Owen and Charlie weren’t
riding beside the carriage
looking on
, Micah would have kissed her at that moment
.

“Brown Coats
are pushing it now
!
They’ll be on us in a few minutes
,
” Newt’s voice sounded
from behind.

Charlie
turned his mount away
from Micah’s
side of the carriage
and was replaced by Harry Bellingham,
the
Earl of Glaston.

“Micah
.
Lady
Elizabeth,
I am
glad to see you are well.”

“Harry
!
Where’s Rowena?”
Micah asked.

“
She waits for us a
t
Horethorne Hall
, though she wanted to come along
.
Don’t worry Lady Elizabeth
;
we
’ll have you
safely
to
the
Hall
in no time
.”
With a parting nod,
Harry moved forward
again
to allow Charlie back into position
.

Harry’s voice boomed
,
“They’re almos
t on us
.
On the count of three;
everyone
,
except Charlie and Owen, turn and fire
.
One, Two, Three!”

The sounds of gunshots
sounded behind them
.
A
few stray shots answered
the initial thundering boom
.

Libby grasped Micah’s hand tightly
.
Harry’s voice sounded further back now
.

“Fire again
!
One, Two Three
!”
The sound of guns firing followed
the order
.

A few
more
shots were heard after
that
round
.

“Another!” Harry commanded
.

One more round of shots were fired.

“Is
anyone harmed
?”
Libby
asked
Owen
.
He
turned back to
inspect his colleagues
.
He
shook his head
as he faced her again
.
“We’re fine
.
It
appears they are down
four
men
.”
He turned
in his saddle
again
.
“
Make that five
.
Another
just
slowed and turned away
.”

“Sinclair, tell the driver to get the
carriage moving
!
The Brown Coats are
falling back
.
We need to gain some distance,” Harry
’s voice boomed
from behind the c
onveyance
.

Libby
was unaware
she
he
ld her breath until she exhaled deeply
.
“You’re certain no one is
wounded, Owen?” Libby asked
with concern
.

“Is anyone hit?” Owen shouted out.

After a chorus of no’s, he
returned his gaze to his sister
.
He s
miled
and shook
his head
.
“We’re all fine, pet.”

“They’ve quit following us, at least for the meantime,” Newt’s voice
sounded
nearer to the carriage
now
.

“We should
arrive
at the Hall in
about
a half hour
, Libby
.”
Micah slipped his arm about her shoulders and drew her close
.
He kissed her temple.

Libby exhaled in relief
and leaned against Micah
.

The carriage turned o
nt
o the d
rive leading to Horethorne Hall
in late afternoon
.
Micah leaned close to Libby and whispered, “Welcome home, sweetheart.”

She
smiled up at him
.

She
eagerly
took in the view beyond the carriage window as
the sixteenth century m
anor house
appeared around a bend in the drive
.
The
old
yellow
stone glowed
in the
late
afternoon sun
.
T
here were wings
on either
side
of the house
and
there
appeared
to be
another
behind
the original manor
.
The
multitude of
mullioned windows gleamed
in the sunlight
.
Colorful f
lowers bloomed in the well tended beds
that were laid out on one side of the house
.
Large majestic trees lined the drive
, their branches forming a canopy as the carriage moved
slowly
toward
the Hall
.
Libby
found
the
house
’s
appearance to be
warm and inviting
.

Libby
met
Micah
’s gaze
.
“It’s a beautiful house, Micah
.”
She gave him a broad smile.

“I’m glad you like it
, Libby
.”
He squeezed her hand
and
brought it quickly to his lips
.
He g
ave
her a
very
pleased
smile
of his own
.

Micah handed his Lady down and led her up the
stone
steps
.
H
is hand
remained
at the small of her back
.

It
surprised
Libby when she saw
a
beautiful blonde woman exit through the main
door
.
She appeared to be heading straight
toward
them
.
Micah mentioned he only had one
sibling, a
sister
, Mary,
and
that
she was married and lived in Yorkshire
.
Surely this could not be her.

Harry Bellingham passed them on the steps and
gathered
the woman in
to
his arms
.

“Was there trouble
, Harry
?”

“Yes, my love, but we came through it unscathe
d,
”
Harry assured the woman
with the angelic appearance
.