Safe passage
It took Leandro and his men three hours to reach the border between the rivals’ territories, marked by a shallow stream. Carmen and Saveda both had begun to stir an hour into the trip, but, tied, gagged and hooded, the soldiers ignored them except for an occasional glance at their naked bodies. Carmen’s breasts, they all knew, were damaged beyond repair, but Saveda’s branded breasts, though unsightly, would not have stopped any of them from enjoying her pleasures if Leandro allowed it. For that matter, with the leather strap still covering her deformed breasts, they all would also have enjoyed Carmen’s remaining charms if given the opportunity.
The men startled for a second, and prepared for battle, when they saw a small band of ruffians in the distance ride toward them. After a few seconds, though, Leandro recognized them as men loyal to the King who could not yet know of his demise.
“Caleb, you are awfully close to the border,” Leandro chided the ruffians’ leader with a smile.
“We have no choice, friend, but to carry our raids across the border, since no one from the Duke’s castle ever enters the King’s territory anymore.” He noticed the two carts and rode closer to examine their contents. “Except two women passed by this morning. But we could see that several King’s guards were protecting them from a distance. In fact, an advance scout told us they were traveling to see the King and we were not to approach them for any reason. Are these the two?”