Chapter 143: Hear Me Roar
"No, no," the woman in the room said. "Stop, stop, oh, please!" But her voice was weak and feeble, and she couldn't push the man away.
Instead, she buried her hands in his messy, bright golden hair, pulling his face toward her chest.
Bran must have made a sound accidentally, for Cersei suddenly opened her eyes, staring straight at him, and then screamed.
Bran tried to flip himself up, using all his strength to hook onto the gargoyle statue, but he exerted too much force, his legs slipped, and he immediately began to fall.
He hurriedly reached for the windowsill, then his body slammed hard against the wall. The violent impact made it almost impossible for him to breathe. He clung to the window frame with one hand, dangling in midair.
Two faces appeared simultaneously above him at the window.
It was indeed the Queen. At this moment, Bran also recognized the man beside her; they looked remarkably alike, standing together like reflections in a mirror.
That was Jaime Lannister, the Queen's brother.
"He saw us," Cersei shrieked.
"He saw us," Jaime repeated.
Bran's fingers began to loosen; he used his other hand to grip the window frame, his nails digging deep into the hard stone.
Jaime reached down. "Take my hand," he said. "Don't fall."
Bran grabbed his hand with all his might, and Jaime pulled him onto the windowsill. "What were you doing?" Cersei demanded.
Jaime ignored her, using his strong hands to steady Bran on the windowsill.
"Boy, how old are you?"
"Seven." Bran felt a sense of relief but still trembled. He noticed his nails digging deeply into the man's arm and quickly released them in embarrassment.
Jaime turned to Cersei. "The things I do for love," he said with regret, then forcefully shoved Bran out the window.
Bran screamed and flew out the window, tumbling through the air. This time, there was nothing for him to grasp; the ground hurtled toward him at breakneck speed.
The next moment, a piercing scream echoed from below the tower, like the howl of a dying wolf.
Catelyn Tully rushed toward Bran's fall with all her might, but it was far too late to catch him before he hit the ground.
Bran crashed to the ground less than fifteen feet from Catelyn, his fate unknown.
At that moment, Jaime, who had looked up at the sound, met the venomous eyes of his brother's wife.
Behind her stood Ser Rodrik Cassel, the master-at-arms of Winterfell, and a whole squad of Northern guards.
"Run!" Jaime had never been so panicked; in the next instant, he had vanished from the window.
"Run?" Cersei asked, confused.
"Put on some clothes, anything will do." He explained to Cersei as he quickly dressed. "Eddard's wife saw me push his son down, so we split up."
"How did she end up here?" Cersei blurted out instinctively, then screamed, "Split up? You're abandoning me?"
"If you want to leave Winterfell alive," Jaime picked up his sword, "leave in the other direction and pretend nothing happened."
"I'm the Queen! What can they do to me?" Cersei stepped forward and grabbed Jaime's arm.
"If our affair is discovered, do you think Robert will care that you're the Queen?" Jaime gripped Cersei's hand in return. "Catelyn only saw me. I can fight my way out, and this has nothing to do with you."
"No!" Cersei gripped even tighter, too terrified to think. Jaime was her only anchor. "I won't let you leave."
"Gods damn it!" Jaime was on the verge of desperation, for he could faintly hear hurried footsteps on the stairs below. "My dear sister," he said, but ultimately embraced Cersei and whispered, "Think of Joffrey, think of Tommen and Myrcella. What will Robert do to our children if he finds out about us?"
Almost instantly, Cersei released Jaime's hand.
"Run! Take the other staircase! You know my abilities—I can fight my way out. Winterfell can't hold me." Jaime left with his last words, then drew his sword and charged toward the direction Catelyn's guards were coming up the stairs.
Jaime had only reached halfway down the stairs when he encountered eight Northern guards who had come to capture him.
He charged forward, sword in hand, like a lion among wolves, quickly killing their leader, then easily piercing a guard's chest and severely wounding another.
Jaime's skill and ferocity terrified the remaining guards, who retreated hastily. Jaime seized the opportunity, breaking through their lines and rushing down the tower.
"Why?" Catelyn's voice reached Jaime's ears as soon as he reached the ground.
She crouched not far from him, holding Bran's body in her arms. "Why?" Catelyn repeated.
"You came to Winterfell as guests, and we offered you bread and salt and a warm hearth. I believe I have done nothing wrong in our hospitality, so why—why did you hurt my child?" Catelyn's voice trembled, her eyes bloodshot.
Yes? Why? What reason did he have to hurt Bran? Besides the truth, Jaime couldn't even concoct a single excuse.
Therefore, Jaime ignored Catelyn's questioning and rushed toward an unguarded direction.
He needed to draw everyone's attention so Cersei could leave undetected, and at the same time, he needed to find a horse to escape Winterfell before the castle was on high alert.
As long as he could return to Casterly Rock, the final outcome couldn't be too dire.
Catelyn clearly noticed Jaime's intention. "Stop him! Stop him now!" she said to Ser Rodrik beside her.
"But my lady, your safety is at risk," Ser Rodrik hesitated.
"Stop him! Don't let him escape!" Catelyn insisted.
"Go and inform the patrol to close the gates and send reinforcements," Ser Rodrik ordered a guard, then waved for two other guards to follow him as he chased after Jaime in the direction he had fled.
"Kingslayer, are you really going to abandon your lover and run away like this?" A voice came from behind, causing Jaime Lannister to stop in his tracks.
His lover? He turned to look at the source of the voice, only to find Cersei naked, being dragged toward Catelyn by several guards.
"Lady Catelyn, we found Her Grace the Queen in the room where the Kingslayer was. I think Bran probably accidentally stumbled upon their affair while climbing the wall, and the Kingslayer tried to kill him to silence him," the leader of the newly arrived guards reported to Catelyn.
Jaime couldn't hear what the man was saying; he just stared intently at the captured Cersei.
She was clearly dressed before he left! What was going on?
These bastards had stripped her naked?!
How dare they? Jaime felt his blood boiling, his lion's soul roaring.
"Kill them all! Jaime, kill them all!" Cersei, captured and seemingly disoriented, roared madly the moment she looked up and saw Jaime.
Jaime halted his escape, his rage consuming his reason; he wanted to tear these bastards to pieces.
"Take him down!" Ser Rodrik ordered immediately, seeing Jaime stop fleeing. He now had the support of the guards who had captured the queen and the remnants of the force driven down from the tower, giving him a force of twenty men.
But they merely surrounded Jaime, none daring to confront him directly.
The next moment, Jaime roared and charged toward the enemy, many times his number.
A lion roared amid the crowd.
Ravens circled above the broken tower.
(End of Chapter)
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