“Yes, my lord,” she said automatically. She mused over what he had said — an orphan, utterly alone in the world, taken in by the Prince who lived here. Surely he would understand their plight. But what of the lands his father had held? It seemed that Sir Isaac refused all of the benefits of his knighthood, which seemed utterly foreign to her.
Isaac sighed and pressed his head to the back of her neck for a few moments, before straightening up and scooting back, allowing enough space between them so as not to make the guards suspicious. But luckily, he was on semi-friendly terms with them, and conversing easily with Aiden and Ethan, he conveyed what had happened with Sir Kit and they were allowed entry almost immediately.
Summer wished she could cling to him as they entered the courtyard; the castle rose in towers about them and she felt incredibly small, and grubby, and of low caste. She settled for huddling her hands in her lap, and waiting until Sir Isaac dismounted before she moved at all. She didn’t want anyone else to touch her, though a few helpful stableboys appeared as soon as they crossed the courtyard.
It felt like everyone was staring at her, though surely that couldn’t be the case, and she stuck very close to Sir Isaac when they entered the castle. A tall man, richly dressed, but brooding and dark, emerged almost immediately from one of the rooms. “Welcome home, Isaac,” he called, a smile lightening his expression. He came to clap the knight’s shoulder, and went on, “Where have you been? I expected you two days ago.”