Greyleaf let out a muffled cry, accompanied by violent choking and the sound of sticks clashing.
‘Beat him!’ the large man laughed sadistically, ‘break every bone! Crack his ribs and smash his limbs!’
Greyleaf brought his horse to a stop upon sighting Thistlemead. All seven of those following him, five men and two women, stared in terror; the single prey they were chasing looked to be accompanied by thirty, maybe thirty-five, others.
‘Thistlemead!’ he cried, ‘I see you have newfound friends.’