Berengaria’s side, Queen Joan at the other.
‘MacEgan,’ came Adriana’s voice softly. He looked into her dark eyes, and she steadied herself. ‘You saved my life.’
‘I kept my promise,’ he answered, ‘to let nothing happen to you.’ But even so, the sea had claimed one life. He only prayed it would be the last.
Within minutes, Berengaria watched in horror as the ship split apart, the wood fragmenting beneath her feet. She held fast to the side of the boat, but she was plunged into the frigid water without warning. Her head went below the surface and she tasted salt.
She struggled, trying not to panic, when an arm caught her waist and forced her above the surface. She took a deep breath, and saw MacEgan holding her. He swam away from the wreckage, guiding her toward a large section of the ship. ‘Hold this,’ he ordered. Her fingers dug into the wooden surface, and she gripped it with all her strength. Then Adriana joined her, while Joan floated on a piece of wood further away.
She lost track of time, but Adriana never left her side. Her lady-in-waiting fought to swim with the current, bringing them closer to shore. From time to time, Liam adjusted their direction, swimming alongside them. Though he ensured that each of the women were safe, Berengaria didn’t miss the way he was watching Adriana. There was an intensity in his eyes, as though the young lady meant something to him.
Her heart faltered, for Richard had looked at her that way on the first day they’d met. Sometimes a single flicker of interest was all that was needed to give rise to the seedling of love.
Will I see him again? she wondered. She rested her head against the wood, her body exhausted from the immense force of the storm. Along the edge of the sea, the sky had grown lighter, the rose of dawn painting the edge of the grey water. And after endless hours, her feet touched the sand.
An unexpected laugh broke forth, and she beamed at her lady-in-waiting. ‘Adriana, we’re going to live.’ They struggled towards the shore, their skirts weighing them down, while Liam escorted them forward.
The storm had ceased, and pieces of blue sky broke through the clouds. The waves had grown calmer, though Berengaria still struggled to keep her balance in the waist-high water. Ahead, she saw the Count of Berduria, who had reached the sandy beach before any of them.
Within moments, men on horseback emerged along the shoreline, their armour gleaming in the sunlight. Liam drew close to the women. ‘Don’t trust them,’ he warned. ‘We don’t know anything about the Cypriots.’
Berengaria’s smile faded, and the chill of the water made her nerves grow uneasy. A few yards away, Queen Joan was walking out of the water towards the shore.
‘Do not tell them who you are,’ Liam warned, but the young woman made no indication that she’d heard him.
He started to move toward the queen, but Adriana caught his arm. ‘Be careful, MacEgan.’
His grey eyes studied hers, and he covered her hand with his. ‘Wait here.’
He made his way towards Joan, and Berengaria eyed Adriana. ‘He means something to you, doesn’t he?’
Adriana didn’t answer, nor did she pull her gaze away from MacEgan. ‘I only met him a day ago. And yet it feels like far longer.’
‘He is handsome,’ Berengaria admitted, ‘but not as handsome as Richard.’ Her voice held more melancholy than she’d intended. Inwardly, she worried that she would not see the king again. She might die a maiden, before ever becoming a bride.
‘Were it not for him, I would have drowned,’ Adriana whispered.
Berengaria took her lady’s hand in hers, and they walked together towards the shoreline. Although MacEgan was trying to bring Queen Joan closer to them, she ignored him and kept walking away.
The Count of Berduria had reached the men and was speaking to them. Although they remained mounted, Adriana tensed.
‘Something’s wrong,’ she predicted. Her hand went to her leg, where Berengaria knew her lady-in-waiting kept a knife. ‘MacEgan was right. Stay close to me.’
She didn’t understand what bothered Adriana so, and when she asked, the woman replied, ‘If you saw a shipwreck, wouldn’t you try to help the survivors? These men are only watching.’
With a glance behind her, Berengaria saw that three other ships had also been blown off course and were anchored less than a mile from the shore. ‘Should we try to reach those ships?’
‘Not yet.’
Both of them watched as the count spoke to the men. His tone held arrogance, but Berengaria thought she heard him speaking Greek to the men. Queen Joan had already reached the shore and was preparing to join the count. The woman marched forward, her bearing filled with pride. The count pointed to her, and then to Berengaria and Adriana.
‘Don’t tell them,’ Adriana whispered, as if pleading for the man to remain silent.
But it was too late. To her horror, one of the armed men unsheathed his sword and plunged it into the count’s chest. The nobleman sank to his knees, falling against the sand while his lifeblood spilled out.
Saints deliver us. Berengaria covered her mouth, shocked by what she’d just seen. Queen Joan grasped her skirts and fled back to the water. Liam called out for her to come toward them, and he reached them a moment later.
Berengaria couldn’t stop from shaking, and from the gleam in the soldiers’ eyes, she didn’t know if she would become a prisoner or die the moment she emerged from the water.
‘The count told them who you are,’ he said grimly. ‘Our best hope is that they take you hostage.’
But Berengaria knew that MacEgan’s life was in greater danger than her own. Already these men had killed the count, so it was clear they had no use for the men. ‘You need to swim hard towards the other three ships anchored off the coast,’ she ordered. ‘If you reach one of them, you can sail back and alert Richard.’
‘I can’t leave you here alone.’
The horsemen started to ride forward, and their time was running out. ‘You must,’ Berengaria insisted. ‘If what you say is true, then they won’t kill us because they’ll want to use our lives to bargain with Richard. If you stay, your fate will be the same as the count’s.’
His face hardened, but she saw her words were breaking through to him. ‘Go, MacEgan. I am commanding you, as your future queen.’
An unnamed expression crossed his face, and she remembered that he was Irish, not English. Correcting herself, she added, ‘Please. Go to Richard.’
Before he could move, the soldiers charged forward with their horses. Armed men surrounded them, with spears and swords raised as a visible threat. Berengaria held her breath, not knowing what to do now. The soldiers reached for MacEgan, but he made no effort to fight.
In the Norman tongue, he commanded, ‘Obey their orders.’ His eyes met Adriana’s, and she saw the softer assurance within them. ‘I’ll return to you. I swear it.’
MacEgan moved so fast, Berengaria barely had time to get out of the way. It took only seconds for him to drag a soldier down from his horse, smashing his fist into the man’s face. When a second man tried to stab him with a spear, MacEgan grasped the weapon, twisting it free of the soldier’s hands. Now armed, he seized the first soldier’s horse and rode the animal hard along the shoreline, forcing the others to follow. Three men remained behind with her and Adriana, one of them seizing Queen Joan.
Berengaria held her breath as MacEgan reached the deeper water. He stood on the horse’s back and dived into the waves, disappearing from view. Adriana clung to her, hot tears breaking free.
‘Don’t be afraid,’ Berengaria whispered to her lady-in-waiting. ‘I believe him. He’ll find a way to send a rescue.’
But when they