It was as though the world had stopped turning.
The forest around us fell into an eerie stillness. No birds called from the branches overhead. No wind stirred the leaves. Even the horses seemed to sense the tension hanging over the clearing, standing unnaturally quiet beneath their riders. The only sound I could hear was the pounding of my heart.
Behind me, Marcus had gone completely still.
I drew a shaky breath when I felt it.
The subtle loosening of his arm around my waist. The way his body seemed locked rigid behind me. I could not bring myself to look at him.
My eyes burned, and I blinked several times, forcing back the tears threatening to gather. This was not the place. Certainly not here, surrounded by soldiers and men eager to turn every weakness into weapon.
"Something happened that night," I said softly, my hands finding his, where they rested around my waist. His skin was warm beneath my fingers, but there was a tension that I had never felt before. "I'm sorry."
Carefully, I tried to loosen his grip, not because I wanted to let him go, but because he might never want me again, after finding out what I had done. What Gen had done to me.
"It was..." My throat tightened.
The words refused to come, as images flashed through my mind, unbidden. From the way Gen had looked at me that night, the way he held me, pushed me down as I told him to stop, the feeling of being trapped inside my own body.
I swallowed hard and tried again. "It was against my—"
"You do not have to elaborate."
Marcus's voice cut through mine, the sharpness of it startling me into silence.
I lowered my gaze to the horse's dark mane, my fingers twisting together in my lap.
"If you want me to..." My voice faltered. I hated that they could see me trembling. "If you want me to leave...I would understand."
The words tasted like ash.
I could feel Gen watching us from across the clearing, waiting for the slightest crack in Marcus's resolve. He was waiting for Marcus to act rashly.
For the briefest moment, silence stretched between us.
Then Marcus's arm tightened around my waist, pulling me firmly back against his chest.
Slowly, he lifted his gaze to meet Gen's.
"It does not change the fact that she is my wife."
The conviction in his tone made my throat tighten.
"If she bears a child," he continued, his arm never loosening around me, "then I shall claim that child as my own. As any husband worthy of the title should."
His eyes never left Gen's.
"Whatever happened while she was under your protection is not hers to be judged for."
A muscle ticked in Gen's jaw.
Marcus's hold on me tightened further.
"Nor is it yours."
For a long moment, neither man looked away.
Then Gen laughed, the sound low and disbelieving.
"You would claim another man's child so readily?"
"I would claim hers."
Something flashed across Gen's face.
Pain, anger, possession....I wasn't sure which.
"You speak boldly for a dead man."
Several of Gen's riders shifted forward and immediately, Roman hands dropped to the hilts of their swords.
Marcus lowered his head slightly, his gaze never leaving Gen. "And you speak as though she belongs to you, Briton."
Gen's jaw tightened. "I found her."
"You took advantage of her."
The words struck like a slap, as several Britons erupted in angry protests.
One rider spurred his horse forward.
But Marcus's soldiers remained silent, watching and assessing with their trained discipline.
"Enough!" Gen barked.
The clearing fell silent once more, as his eyes found mine.
"Helena."
My stomach twisted.
"Come with me, my love."
Marcus's arm tightened instantly.
"No," I bit out.
His gaze remained fixed on me.
"I am sorry for what I did, Helena. You know I would protect you."
Before I could answer, Marcus's horse sidestepped beneath us, reacting to the tension crackling through the clearing.
Every rider around us was coiled tight. The soldiers on foot stood with shields raised and spears leveled toward Gen and his men, waiting only for Marcus's command.
All it would take was one movement.
Then Gen smiled, his gaze never leaving Marcus.
"Well then," he said, a bitter laugh escaping him. "It seems the only thing standing between me and what is mine is a fucking Roman."
Before anyone could react, he lifted his hand.
A Briton surged forward and hurled his spear.
The Roman soldier twisted aside before it could strike him, but his horse reared violently, nearly throwing him from the saddle. As he fought for control of the animal, Marcus lifted his hand sharply, shouting something in Latin.
Roman riders immediately shifted into a defensive position.
The Britons took it as a challenge.
With a roar, they charged.
Marcus cursed. "Gods damn it!"
A Roman rider charged forward, and a Briton met him head-on, their swords clashing against each other.
Chaos erupted.
Marcus immediately seized the reins, not toward Gen.
Away from him, toward his men.
"Quintus!"
One of the Roman soldiers broke free from the fighting and rode hard toward us.
Marcus buried his face in my shoulders for a brief moment, inhaling my scent sharply before his lips drifted to my ear. "I need you to listen."
"Marcus—"
"Listen."
The fighting was already spreading like disease around us.
A horse crashed into the undergtowth nearby.
"Helena!" Gen's voice broke through the chaos.
Someone screamed.
Marcus turned toward the approaching rider.
"Take her."
My heart stopped. "What? Marcus—"
But he had already switched to Latin, the tone of his voice leaving no room for argument. His solider nodded, then placed a fist against his chest as a salute.
Marcus grabbed my waist.
For one impossible moment, I thought he might simply keep me here.
But instead, he lifted me from the saddle.
I fought. "No, I can't leave you..."
"Elena." His forehead touched mine, only briefly. "Do not worry, I will find you."
Then he passed me into another man's arms.
The Roman secured me onto his horse, as I twisted desperately toward Marcus.
But he was already drawing his sword, as the sound of steel ringing through the forest.
"Go!" he roared.
The horse lurched forward, away from the direction where the fighting was. Branches whipping past, as the clearing disappeared behind us.
I turned back, just in time to see Gen's black horse surged forward through the fighting.
Straight toward Marcus.
Then the forest swallowed them both.