Lost in the Woods Ch. 03

We travelled for what it seemed an eternity.

The landscape was different now; fields and hills were all around us. Although everything was abandoned because of the Barbarians' attacks, nature was showing its strength. Green grass and flowers had just bloomed from the earth. Every now and then there was a destroyed cottage along the way. I looked at the shattered buildings with anger in my heart: this had to stop, I thought. I don't know how, but it must end soon.

Guillaume did not talk. He showed no sign of anger at the destruction. I wondered if he was having second thoughts about my coming with him to his castle. What would we find there?

I was feeling better. The sense of confusion and weakness was no longer in my head. I felt grateful and happy to be alive and helped by him, but I reminded myself that I was still a woman on my own in the world. I had to find my father's allies in order to fight the Barbarians.

Night time eventually cast its thick blue velvet over us, but Guillaume didn't stop. Our horses were still trotting peacefully, as if they had just begun the journey. I was astonished. "Are these magic horses you have?" I asked him playfully. "Any other horse would have stopped hours before from exhaustion." He turned toward me and smiled. "Let's just say I trained them well. We will stop in a few hours." We rode on through the night. As the sun rose, he finally told me: "I guess we could use some sleep. What do you think?" I simply nodded. I was so tired that I couldn't even talk.

We were at the end of a deserted corn field. There was a small lake and a large oak tree that would protect us from the sun.

While Guillaume was securing the animals with a rope to the tree, I sat by the tree and leaned my head back. Within moments I fell asleep.

I woke up with a start. "Hey, Caroline, what's wrong?" Guillaume was lying by my side, looking down at me, worried. I was shaking and totally covered in sweat.

"I...I was having a nightmare, I think." I whispered. Despite the warm light of the sun, I was freezing. I couldn't remember every detail, though images of my burning castle and dead brothers kept dancing in my mind. He glanced at me.

"Caroline...you cannot be a real warrior if you keep living those terrible moments over and over like this. This will only sap your strength and concentration." He shook his head and looked at me sternly. How could this passionate, gentle lover now be a stern knight and warrior?

I stared back for a moment, surprised at his rebuke, then angry. "I'm curious, Guillaume. How did you react after your wife's disappearance? Were you so strong to cancel all the nightmares from your head every night, or didn't you sleep at all?"

He pressed his lips tightly together and clenched his fists. He didn't avoid my gaze.

"Well, I had the courage to keep on with my life," he said coldly. "You should do the same. I built my own world again. A world you don't even know, Caroline. You can't even imagine how many responsibilities and problems I face every day."

I didn't want to show him my disappointment and irritation at his tone. I tried to control myself and remained silent.

He stood up and spoke again.

"I could have had nightmares, but I didn't put myself in one trouble after another like you are."

I stood up in front of him. He was taller, but I faced him with all the pride I could gather. I stretched my toned, trained body, as if I were preparing for a battle. I tossed my blonde locks on my back.

"Oh, really?" I ironically asked.

"There is a difference between the two of us," he said. "I'm a man. I could have all the women I wanted without losing my honour or my virtue. Every time I had a woman she was the one who showed weakness, not me. And believe me, I've had many. "

I got furious in an instant. He was speaking of women as they were objects, mere instruments. Was he the same man I met the night before?!?!

"You cannot order me around, Guillaume Deschamps. You and I were complete strangers until last night. Who do you think you are?! A perfect hero who casts spells on every woman he meets?!"

He probably didn't expect such a violent reaction. He looked at me with astonishment, but immediately regained his cool attitude. Then he shook his head again.

"You forget that I was the one that rescued you the night before. I could have just left you there, at the mercy of thieves and wild animals. You could show a bit of gratitude instead of acting like a little girl. I am just giving you advice." His blue eyes were like two pieces of ice.

I clenched my teeth. I wanted to hit him hard.

"I am not questioning your good heart," I retorted. "I am questioning the way you're behaving and talking right now. I'm free, Guillaume. I could sleep with whomever I want; I could have decided to die on that stone if I wanted to. And most of all, I can leave whenever I wish." I crossed my arms because my hands were shaking. I turned away from him.

I didn't want to tell him that losing my virginity to him was the best thing I've ever done. He stepped toward me and grabbed my shoulders firmly.

"You listen to me," he said. "It's not like I'm making you stay. I'm not saying that you owe me anything or claiming any power on you--"

"What do you want from me, then?"

He remained cool and calm.

"Frankly, I want you to leave me in peace," he said. "So if you want to go, I'm not stopping you."

He paused. I could hear the furious pounding of our hearts and nothing else. "I should be the one to ask you, lady. What do you want from me?"

"I just don't want to be treated like a whore." I blurted out, turning on him, full of anger.

He smiled a cruel smile. "Then don't act like one."

I raised my hand and HIT him on the face as hard as I could. He flinched, but stood still.

I was so furious that I started to pound his chest with both fists. "YOU ARE...YOU ARE...." I shouted, totally out of control, not even able to find the right words to insult him.

He caught my wrists. As I defiantly lifted my head, our eyes met. He was livid, and so was I. We glared at each other.

Suddenly, he wrapped his arms around me and kissed me hard.

I fought him with all my strength, biting him hard on his lower lip; the blood came out and mixed with our saliva. I wanted to tell him that I despised him, but it was impossible...

He slammed me hard back against the tree. My skin scratched against the bark. I kept on striking out at him; he managed to catch my hands again. His body pressed mine even harder. I was strong but slender, and he he was too powerful for me...

He pressed his cock between my legs, breathing heavily. I dug my nails into his skin. Incredibly, a strong rush of desire briefly overcame me, but as my body focused on his cock against my sex, my mind still rebelled against his arrogance.

He undid his belt. His pants dropped. He was still holding me with the other hand, kissing me in the meantime. As he reached down and lifted my skirts roughly, he pushed my hands out of the way and pinned me against the tree with his body. His cock was hard now, and my hips were bare. He lifted my legs with his arms and wrapped them around his body. My slit was against his cock. He kissed me hard. For a moment I responded to his kiss and pressed my hips down so that my clit pressed hard against the tip of his cock. Then, angrily, I turned my head to avoid him.

"You're acting exactly like those drunk thieves -- aren't you proud of yourself?" I hissed, biting his arm hard.

He playfully asked back: "I'm only taking what you want to give...aren't YOU proud of yourself?" My teeth sank into his neck in response. His cock found my wet entrance and he smiled. "You impossible, questioning creature. I will have you now..." "Bastard," I replied.

He plunged inside me and I moaned. I wanted to flee from him, to hurt him...and I couldn't.

I tightened my grip around his hips. We stared at each other with venom and lust mixed together.

My juices were dripping down his cock and balls. I was experiencing breathtaking pleasure, but still wanted to resist..

As he totally buried himself into me, a low moan came out of my lips. My pussy clamped down on his throbbing sex. I let go of my control and kissed him hard. He began to thrust, slamming all the way inside me then back out. Again and again.

The tree was shaking and leaves were falling all around. "Oh, God," I moaned, lifting my hips in order to meet his long, firm strokes. I arched, pressing my hips against his.

"Say...what...you...want...Caroline," he gasped into my ears.

"Ohh God, please...I want you to..." I didn't want to say it. I closed my eyes.

"Look at me, Caroline. And tell...me..." I opened my eyes and realized it was too late. I knew what I wanted. I knew it too well.

"I want you, Guillaume...I want you to fill me...to consume me...I want to give you all of me..." I whispered, and I instantly blamed myself. Why was I so weak?

He paused for a second, staring at me with a confused, yet affectionate look. He went on pushing himself inside my wetness, relentless. "Ohhhh," I moaned.

He took me again and again, harder, faster, until I came violently on his cock, my nails breaking the skin of his neck and screaming.

His eyes were wild with fury and lust as he kept thrusting. "Tell...me...that...you...want...this..." he gasped. "Ohhh Guillaume, I want this so bad I'd die," I moaned, my voice husky.

"Good...because I want this...too..." he groaned, lifting me and taking a few steps back.

He lowered our bodies onto the grass and I locked my legs around his back once again. Our lips locked in a passionate, warm kiss. I closed my eyes, overwhelmed by a deep, new feeling...

My body and his rocked together on the ground. He pulled down my dress, exposing my firm breasts, and he desperately grabbed at them, squeezing them. I arched. The only sounds heard, apart from birds and the warm wind, were the slaps of our bodies and our sighs.

He sucked on my pink, hard nipples, making me cry in pleasure.

I cupped his face in my hands and asked: "Tell me what you want, Guillaume...tell me..."

Staring back at me with his deep blue eyes, he whispered: "I...want...you...Caroline...I...want to...have...you." I kissed him deeply. My heart missed a beat. He was feeling the same, so why did he tell me such selfish things before?

Abruptly, he wrapped his arms around me and rolled us over, his cock still inside me.

I was on top of him. My long, blonde hair fell over his face as we kissed. We smiled.

I began to bounce slowly on his body, lowering and lifting myself onto his cock. The sensation was exquisite. I was in control yet he was still driving himself inside of me, his hands on my waist. My clit was grinding against the base of his hardness, sending shivers throughout my body.

He reached behind me and started playing with my asshole with skilful fingers. Surprised, I held my breath. He didn't stop thrusting as he eased one skilful finger inside my tight hole, then out, then further in. The sensation of being filled in both holes drove me wild.

I leaned back, pressing my ass onto his finger while his cock pressed harder against the top of my vagina. I increased the pace, we both pushed and grinded frantically, faster, harder... "Ohhhh, yes," we both chanted as our mutual pleasure grew. I leaned forward again and he thrust deeper into me ...until we came, crying out each other's names, still thrusting against each other until I finally collapsed onto his chest.

As we were still coming down, he held me close. I inhaled his musky scent, and smiled. A single tear ran down my cheek and I quickly wiped it away. He stroked my hair gently.

This wasn't pure sex, I thought. It was an authentic bond between two people.

I didn't lift my face to look up at him; I was afraid to meet his gaze. Moreover, I couldn't understand his behaviour. How could he say those words and then makr love to me?

"I have a brother." Guillaume's words took a moment to register in the midst of my own thoughts and feelings. "What?" I said, a little confused.

"And he isn't just a brother. He's... the King."

My heart beat faster. "Guillaume...what are you talking about?"

He smiled ironically. "You're speaking to a Prince, Caroline. I am the bastard son of the old King Clovis the 2nd. This makes me the current King's half-brother."

"Clovis the 3rd...you're telling me that he is your brother?!" my jaw dropped after pronouncing this name. Guillaume was relative to one of the most infamous and stupid Kings in history, our current king -- the king my father always criticized with bitter words, the one who started this war. Impossible.

He wore an ashamed expression. I couldn't blame him.

"My father fell in love with the wrong woman while he was still a prince. I am the concrete result of their love. He met her while he was visiting the countryside near his castle, alone. I was born 9 months after their first secret encounter.

"My mother raised me. He helped her finding a better place to live, although far from the Reign. She knew she couldn't be his wife, but accepted the situation as it was.

"Then, my Grandfather died, and all the responsibility fell upon my father's shoulders. In less than a year, he became King, was forced to marry a rich noblewoman for the Reign's sake...and left my mother alone with a 4-year-old child."

Guillaume let out a deep breath as I listened to him, speechless.

"He wasn't an evil man. He just couldn't act differently. He visited us at night, when no one controlled him. I remember him well, even if I was only 12 when he died.

"My mother wasn't an ordinary woman, Caroline. She wasn't a noble. She was endowed with magical powers, and everyone avoided her for this, even if she was a beautiful and charming lady. Thank God she wasn't burned alive."

"A...witch?" I quietly asked.

He nodded. "She disappeared when I was 18, and I'm sure she's still alive. I found a letter she was forced to write, telling me that she was being an obstacle to my future. As soon as my brother is defeated, I will find her."

As he paused, I tried to imagine her; he must have inherited her looks. "We will talk about her later. The more important thing is: stay away from my brother. You know it well: he is somehow responsible for your family's destruction. War is his only aim and desire. He was the one who chose the Barbarians as allies. The situation came out of his hands, because he's irresponsible and uses his throne only to spread violence and power all over the Reign.

"After my father's death I inherited a castle and the nearby fields, and I became Duke. I could have lived a calm life, but I cannot stand the way Clovis is behaving. In a way, I feel responsible for all the suffering and disasters he's causing. What I do every day is trying to find solutions to the terrible deeds of the King. Many nobles chose to follow me instead of him, even if he still has more allies than I do. He hates me for this...and I think he showed how much he loves me with the...the killing of my wife."

I started to speak; he interrupted me.

"I have no proof, but I'm sure that he did it."

I hid my face in my hands. It was too much to handle.

"Let's make a deal," he said, and I looked up. "I will help you, but you must promise me you will stay by my side as soon as we enter my castle. I don't want you to die by his hands, too."

"I will, Guillaume," I told him, "but remember that I can fight. If I bump into him, I will surely burn him with all my hate."

"I really want to help you, Caroline. Do you...still trust me?"

I took his hand and squeezed it, losing myself into his blue gaze. "I do, Guillaume."

We got dressed and continued our journey.