I hope that you enjoy this new chapter.

Elizabeth shot a worried look at de Tournay. Their eyes met and the decision was clear – pretend they heard nothing and continue to slowly ride away from the gates of Paris. Maybe their luck would hold and the over-eager Captain would leave them alone in favor of somebody else to harass.

Unfortunately, that was not to be. The young captain, scarcely older than Elizabeth herself, continued to pursue them. Two other soldiers decided to accompany him, but the other men saw no need to exert so much effort on a simple farmer and his son.

"You two. Stop," the Captain bellowed. Not seeing any options, Elizabeth and de Tournay stopped, but they did not dismount. The two soldiers accompanying the captain took their horses reins. "Papers?" The two travelers handed their passes while Elizabeth prayed fervently that the forgeries were good ones. "Are you two hard of hearing," the captain asked rudely. "I had called for you to halt several times?"

"My apologies, Sir," de Tournay said in as meek a voice as he could manage. "We were deep in our own thoughts. My mother, the boy's grandmother," he said with a nod toward Elizabeth, "just died. We did not hear you."

"Hmm," was the noncommittal response.

Elizabeth carefully watched the captain review their passes. Looking for anything that would give away what he was thinking. Then something changed in the man's stance. Elizabeth could never say what it was, but a subtle shift of the captain's body somehow warned her. She managed to capture de Tournay's eyes and the older man nodded in understanding.

With as much force as she could muster, Elizabeth kicked out with her booted foot. She caught the soldier by surprise as the heel of her boot made contact with his mouth. The man staggered back and released the horse. In his shock, the soldier holding the reins of de Tournay's horse dropped the reins.

"Ride," Elizabeth yelled as both of them spurred their horse away from the city gates.

It only took a few minutes, but the soldiers recovered from their surprise. They ran back to get horses and to give chase.

Elizabeth had no illusions about what their horses, nags really, could do. They might be able to gain some ground on the soldiers, but if they had any hope of escape, it would be through stealth. But for now, they rode for all they were worth straight into the forest. Elizabeth had begun to hope that perhaps they would be successful.

Just as that thought entered her mind, she realized that she was hearing the galloping of several horses close upon their heels. One look and she knew that De Tournay heard them two. They were going to slow their horses and move further into the cover of the forest, when de Tournay's horse tripped. The horse managed to stay on his feet, but he bucked and threw de Tournay off. At the same moment several soldiers broke through the trees and moved toward De Tournay in an effort to surround him.

In a flash, Elizabeth was off her own horse and running toward the older man, drawing her blade at the same time. De Tournay appeared to be stunned for a moment, but then he rolled onto his hands and knees and started to rise. "That was the first time that I have been thrown from a horse in over twenty years. I hope that it is another twenty before I repeat the experience." He must have seen the worry in Elizabeth's face because he smiled reassuringly and said, "I am fine, My Dear. A bit winded, but quite fine." He looked around, "It appears that there are some people here, that wish to speak to us," he said drolly," but his eyes were as hard as the sword he now pulled from the scabbard and his stance indicated he was ready to fight for his life.

Shoulder to shoulder Elizabeth and De Tournay stood and looked around. There were three soldiers visible. The three soldiers charged them and the fight was joined. At times, Elizabeth fought against two men and at other times it was de Tournay. Elizabeth was a fine swordswoman, but this was the first time she ever actually had to fight for her life. Elizabeth focused all of her energy on staying alive as she thrust, parried, and brought forth every maneuver and gambit that she had ever learned.

A quick glance over to de Tournay assured her that she was holding his own. He even managed to make brief eye contact with her and offered her a quick, tight lipped grin. He may have been of an age and he may have had a slight paunch, but clearly he was still fit and able and for that Elizabeth thanked God.

At one point, Elizabeth was set against the captain and another soldier. Their constant onslaught was forcing her back as she sought a position that would offer her an advantage. As she was cautiously stepping backward, her foot landed on a pinecone and she lost her balance. She brought her blade up to ward of the oncoming blow, but she was not fast enough.

Elizabeth had been instructed in sword play since she was a small girl. Her instructors, including Percy, started by gently correcting her. However, by the time she was in her teens, she was very profecient and the correction became harsher. She was no stranger to the burn of the flat of the sword across her arms, hands, or even back. She had nursed many such bruises and was familiar with the pain. The cold, yet burning sensation on her left arm was like nothing she had ever experienced. She bit her lip to keep from crying out and attempted to fight back even as she regained her balance.

De Tournay was nowhere to be seen and Elizabeth prayed that he was safe. She felt weak and disoriented and she knew that she would not be able to continue much longer. She desperately wanted to give up and give in, but her pride would not permit it. She continued to fight. Suddenly she noted a movement behind the two soldiers. A swift movement of his blade disarmed one man and Elizabeth was able, with a clever flick of her wrist, to disarm her other opponent. She looked for the third soldiers and did not see him. She saw De Tournay's blade glint red, and decided that she did not wish to know what had happened.

She held the two unarmed soldiers at bay while de Tournay cut their shirts into strips and tied their hands and feet. "This should be sufficient for a few hours," he said with some satisfaction. "By then, we will either reach Mt. St. Pierre or it will not matter. Let us find their horses and be off."

Elizabeth nodded – or tried to. The pain of that motion, caused her to cry out. She looked over at the source of the pain and saw that the left sleeve of her shirt was soaked with blood. For only the second time in her life, she felt her world start to spin as her vision started to darken.

I was hoping to have Elizabeth be brave and heroic, but not perfect. She and de Tournay succeeded, but not without some cost. Now they still need to get to Mt. St. Pierre. Will they get there in time and what will they find. Thank you for reading and sticking with me. Please review and let me know what you think.