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with him and they slipped away with the limping horse.
    It seemed like an endless journey at this point. Alessandria had no idea how long they had been traveling because she’d lost all track of time. It could have been ten minutes; it could have been forever. It was difficult to gauge. But that sense of uncertainty eased when the moon began to peek up over the horizon and there was a tiny bit of light now for them to see by. It made all of the difference in the world.
    Onward they went, now with more confidence, but it was nearing the dead of night as they reached an enormously swollen body of water. Everything before them seemed to be flooded, the sounds of water swirling in the darkness. Behind her, Alessandra could hear Chad sigh.
    “Damnation,” he hissed. “Boughton Creek is overflowing its banks. This is an unexpected bit of nonsense.”
    There were knights swarming around him on excited horses. “Is there any way around this?” someone asked.
    Chad shook his head. “Nay,” he replied. “We must cross this. There is no other way.”
    That seemed to concern the group a great deal. “Then we have no choice,” one very big knight said. He had a crossbow in his right hand, controlling his horse with his left. “You called this creek by name, Chad. How close are we to Canterbury?”
    Chad turned to look behind them, concerned with what might be coming up from the rear. “Not far,” he said, returning his focus to the dark water. “Another half an hour at the very most. But we must get across this creek.”
    “You seem worried.”
    Chad nodded. “This creek comes from the sea,” he said. “It is not far to the north of us. It can be deep in places and the mud is like glue. There is, in fact, another road, but it is fairly far to the south. We may not have the time to….”
    “Chad!” Someone shouted his name. “Riders!”
    The knights all whirled around, weapons at the ready, seeing two lonely torches approach at a distance. Since Chad had sent out two riders, he wasn’t particularly concerned with whoever approached, but he was suddenly very concerned when, far in the distance, they began to see more pinpricks of light. They were very faint, but it was clear that they were moving. He pointed.
    “Look,” he said to his men. “Our scouts are being pursued.”
    The knights around him began to hiss. The one with the crossbow spoke. “Do we try to go around this watery mess, then?” he asked. “Can we do it in time?”
    Chad knew this land. He’d spent many years here as a small boy. It was marshy land at best because of its proximity to the sea. “I fear we may get into more trouble if we act in haste,” he said. “There are swamps about here and if we get stuck in one, we will be finished. Unfortunately, our best option is to cross the swollen creek at this point and pray we can make it. I will go first; follow me in a line and do not stray.”
    The knight with the crossbow rallied the others and, soon, they were crossing in a single-file line across the swollen creek. They were trying to move quickly but not foolishly, so Chad kept a steady pace. On they went, watching the water and mud rise to the knees of the horses, going deeper and deeper, but still Chad went forward. The creek usually wasn’t very wide and he, through the darkness, could see dry land on the other side, about a dozen feet away. It gave him something to aim for.
    But it would get worse before it got better. The closer they drew to the opposite shore, however, the more the horses seemed to be sinking. A couple of the animals towards the back of the line seemed to be panicking a bit and the knights astride them were struggling to keep them under control. Chad didn’t look back to see how close the pursuing riders were; it didn’t matter much at that point how close they were so he kept his gaze forward, his manner calm, as he directed his horse further and further into the water.
    There was a definite current around them