“He still looked confused, dazed, and I pushed him into the water ahead of me. I kept one hand firm on his shoulder and steered him up the river. Ankle-deep, the water was painfully cold as it seeped through the seams in my boots. The boy stumbled several times and would have stopped, but I pushed him on. We'd gone perhaps half a league upriver when I heard the first faint bay of hounds. They were behind us, already approaching the riverbank, and the baying rapidly grew louder. I took my hand from the boy's shoulder t curl my fingers around the hilt of my sword. As if my sword would do much. If they wanted him dead, they'd have archers.” FantasyYoung AdultComing Of AgeMartial ArtNoblebright Book:The King's Sword Source: The King's Sword