The Chieftain's Choice (The Wolf Deceivers Series Book 1)

by Elaine Manders

  With a heavy sigh, Elspeth capitulated. Her face still contorted in a scowl, she flounced back down the hall towards her bedroom.

  Alana could only hope the distraught woman would stay put. She gave Gavin a coy glance. “Go ahead with your bath. I’ll order dinner and be waiting for you.”

  ***

  Gavin didn’t remember what he had for dinner the night before, but evidently not enough, since he was ravenously hungry for breakfast. He’d already served Alana, who sat at a small round table for two instead of the long dining table.

  Every detail of their lovemaking still burned in his memory, making him smile as he heaped the steak and kidney pie on his plate. He added poached eggs with bread and butter and made his way to join her.

  Her eyes were guarded even as she smiled up at him. Hunger left him, replaced by desire for her lips. She blushed as if reading his mind. “Are you going to eat all that, m’lord?” Her tone teased.

  “I’m going to try, m’lady.”

  He’d nearly finished the entire meal when Elspeth burst into the room. “The sun is already high in the sky. The carriage awaits.”

  His jaw clenched but, catching sight of Alana’s pleading look, relaxed as she got to her feet. He rose and threw the napkin on the table. “Go get in the carriage.”

  While he gave new orders to the butler, Alana and Elspeth took only enough time to grab their cloaks and run after him. He called Dougal, Keith, and Doug, his most trusted guards, to serve as outriders.

  This was a fool’s errand, and he’d never have agreed to it but for Alana, who sat huddled beside him. As he turned to look at her, she pulled her wool cloak closer against the early morning chill. A light mist had started, adding to their discomfort. Elspeth, sitting on the opposite carriage seat seemed to care nothing for the cold nor the foolishness of her mission.

  The old cave wasn’t far, and it was boarded up. They’d not thought to bring tools, and it was likely they couldn’t even enter it. Unlike the caves the Kerrs worked, this one was covered with vegetation telling them it had been abandoned long ago.

  The carriage came to a halt in the rutted road, and he opened the door. “Stay with the women,” he ordered Keith. Elspeth tried to follow him, but he closed the door on her. “If anything is amiss, I’ll tell you.” If they did find something, he certainly didn’t wish to have the hysterical woman present.

  Alana tugged her aunt back inside. “Stay with me. The ground is wet.” Elspeth gave up and sagged against the squabs.

  Gavin approached the cave, followed by the two outriders who had their muskets raised, unnecessarily in his opinion. Pulling the vines and shrubs away, he was surprised to find one of the boards had been removed. Was it possible there was some validity to Finella’s ramblings?

  The men pulled off another of the rotten boards, and Gavin held the lantern up before the gaping black hole. He knew the cave from childhood. It was small, and whatever iron it had once held had long since been quarried. The walls were solid rock and there was no danger of it collapsing.

  He had to stoop to enter the hole. As he stood on the other side of the cave’s mouth, the lantern light bounced around the walls and farther away was swallowed up by the darkness.

  “Lyulf.” He shouted the name, and his voice echoed around and around, followed by silence. Not that he expected a response. If Lyulf were here, he’d be dead. It had been at least forty-eight hours since the man went missing.

  There were crevices in the walls where miners had found veins and dug into them. As Gavin and the men reached each one, he held the lantern to penetrate the darkness of the holes. If anyone sought to hide a body, this would be where to do it. The crevices weren’t deep as each vein had quickly run out.

  Nothing. Not that he expected to find anything. A fool’s errand, as he’d surmised. Then when they were almost at the back of the cave, and Gavin was about to turn around, his eye caught sight of something.

  At the very back, a pile of something too ordered to be rocks. Debris? Discarded implements? Or a body?

  “Do you see that?” he asked the man at his right. Not waiting for an answer, he shuffled toward the pile, kicking pebbles out of the way as they moved forward.

  “Hold this.” Gavin handed the lantern to Dougal and stooped to rummage through the piles of satchels, saddle bags, and purses.

  They’d found the highwaymen’s hiding place. All of the leather goods were empty, but he wasn’t surprised to find the valuables removed. Then he pulled up one he recognized as his own saddle bags, the ones stolen on McWayre land.

  He tried to recall those men who’d held him up. Could they have been the Kerr brothers? He didn’t remember what the highwaymen looked like, and even if he could, he didn’t know the Kerr brothers by sight. Yet here was proof the Kerrs were involved with those highwaymen who’d terrorized the neighboring clans, even as far away as McWayre.

  If the women weren’t waiting in the carriage, he’d have gone to arrest the Kerrs now. As it was, he’d send a troop to bring them in later.

  Gavin estimated the number of bags. Maybe as many as a hundred. That would represent a large amount of money and valuables. Where had it gone? There was no evidence the Kerrs were spending it on themselves. Certainly they did nothing for their mother. Had they given it to Vanora? How could she entice them to rob for her? What hold did she have over them?

  Had Lyulf discovered her secret? If he had, wouldn’t he have confided to Elspeth? That woman was holding something back. She was terrified, and she wasn’t the type to be easily frightened.

  He took his saddlebags and threw them over his shoulder. Whatever happened to Lyulf, his body wasn’t here.

  A noise sounded from the other side, a scuffling and a swoosh of air. Gavin wrapped his fingers around the handle of his dirk and took the lantern so Dougal could raise his musket. “Who’s there?” Doug shouted.

  After the echoes ceased, Gavin started to turn away, but fell to his knees as a crushing blow came down on his head from some object. Nauseating pain shot from the back of his skull. He heard the muskets go off.

  Then blackness took him.

  Chapter 18

  Alana jolted upright at the sound of gunfire. She threw Elspeth a wild-eyed look and grappled for the door handle. Keith and the driver were already racing for the cave, and she followed them as all sorts of horrid thoughts crowded in, bringing hot tears to her eyes. All she knew was she must get to Gavin and be assured he was all right.

  She stumbled over a rock and fell face first. The sound alerted the driver, and he hustled back to help her to her feet. “Best get back to the carriage, m’lady. Dinna ken what trouble awaits.”

  Nay, he wouldna make her return to the carriage. While she struggled with the driver, the two guards came out of the cave, holding Gavin between them. Her hand flew to her mouth, and she bit it until she tasted blood.

  Keith forcibly pulled her back into the carriage. The men got Gavin laid out on the carriage seat, his knees bent, his head in her lap. The blood matting his hair turned her lavender gown to a sickly purple.

  Dougal turned Gavin’s head to examine the wound. “I’ll get a blanket to lay under his head. Your clothes’ll be ruined.”

  “I care not for my clothes.” Didn’t the stupid man understand Gavin was a part of her? His pain was hers. They were one, and nothing else mattered. She gently pushed the hair away from Gavin’s forehead as her tears fell on his face. She hadna even been aware she wept.

  “I’ll ride ahead and fetch the physician.” Dougal ducked out and closed the door. Immediately, the carriage jerked forward.

  Elspeth got down on the carriage floor in front of them. Numbly Alana watched her aunt unbutton Gavin’s shirt and slip her hand over his heart. She was glad there was someone else to do that, because fear held her by the throat and nerves wouldna allow her to confirm whether Gavin lived or not.

  Elspeth’s blue glance met Alana’s frightened gaze. “His heart beats strongly. He’s merely stunned.
”

  Alana prayed her aunt was right, but why would God listen to her? He’d given her this wonderful man as a husband, and she’d held him off, thinking only of her own situation. Not giving a thought of the difficulties Gavin faced. She ought to have been working with him instead of pressing him on this foolish mission. Praying for him instead of feeling sorry for herself.

  Recriminations piled up in her mind with every thump of the horses’ hooves.

  Elspeth re-buttoned Gavin’s shirt and returned to her seat. “There’s no reason to go into hysterics, Alana. You’re not the only one who cares for her husband.”

  Alana blinked her tears away and stared at her aunt, thinking she’d not heard her aright. Was Elspeth referring to Lyulf? “Husband?”

  Without a trace of emotion, Elspeth looked out the window. “Lyulf and I were married three years ago, stopping at Gretna Green after a trip to London. We kept it a secret.”

  “Why?”

  “We had our reasons.”

  “I doona understand.”

  “We wished to keep it from Vanora.” Elspeth huffed. “We intended to send her to London to have her season. She always resisted, planning to go when invited by Lady Tynsdale.

  Lyulf knew an English nobleman who was interested in courting Vanora. We hoped he would offer for her, and she would, of course, live on his estate. At that time, Lyulf and I would announce our marriage. With Vanora settled, the clan would accept Lyulf.”

  Alana felt Gavin’s blood soaking into her lap. Fear again threatened to smother her, but they were almost home. She forced her attention back to Elspeth. “So, you intended to send Vanora away all the time?”

  “There’s nothing for her here, no one suitable for her to marry. She understood that.”

  “Did she? She’d hope to marry Gavin.”

  “Vanora is not the issue now. Our husbands are.”

  Alana couldn’t argue with that, and she breathed a sigh of relief as they rode into the yard. Servants descended upon the carriage to lift Gavin out. She thought she heard him groan as he was taken from her, and she prayed that was a good sign. Perhaps he was gaining consciousness.

  She refused to leave Gavin’s side, even when Dr. Paul examined him. “Your ladyship should change out of those bloody garments. He’s in no immediate danger.”

  “I’ll stay until he awakes.”

  Only moments later Gavin opened his eyes. “Alana.”

  She took his hand and lifted it to her cheek. “Yes, dearest. Dr. Paul says you’ll be fine.”

  Gavin tried to get up and flinched. “Hurts.”

  “It will hurt for a couple of days, but I don’t think you’re concussed.” The physician met Alana’s gaze. “You can leave him to me, your ladyship. We’ll have him cleaned up by the time you return. In fact, after you’ve changed, why don’t you drop by Lord Barthram’s room and reassure him. We don’t want him to become upset.”

  “You’re sure all will be well?”

  “Your husband’s head is far too hard to be cracked by a rock.” The doctor was trying to make light of the situation, but she wondered how a rock came to hit Gavin. Had it just fell or had it been thrown? And if so, by whom?

  She wished she might talk to Keith and Dougal, but they’d gone. She supposed they were tracking down whoever had left that stash in the cave.

  “Go on, lass,” Gavin said. “I’ll be all right.” She pressed his hand to her lips and reluctantly left him to the physician’s care.

  ***

  Keeping Gavin in bed as the doctor ordered was the most difficult task Alana had ever encountered. He was such a stubborn man. Even though the pain forced him to take things easy, he insisted on calling his men in several times a day to report their progress.

  The older Kerr brothers were not to be found. Evidently, they’d left the area. That was both good and bad. Good that they couldn’t cause more trouble in the immediate future, and bad that they still roamed free.

  Elspeth walked around like a ghost, never saying much, and surprisingly, spending a great deal of time with Lord Barthram. Alana was grateful for that since it left her free to attend Gavin. Trying to keep him from overexerting himself took most of her attention, but she enjoyed every moment alone with him.

  On the third day, he quit his sickbed and dressed over her objections. She paced the hallway as he and his men holed up in the study. With nothing else to do, she decided to check on Barthy. Elspeth hadna come down all day, and it was past noon, so no one was about this morning.

  “Gavin dismissed you as his nurse?” Barthy greeted her.

  “Aye, he’s discussing strategy to catch the thieves.”

  Lord Barthram closed his eyes and locked his hands together as she kneaded his neck and shoulders. “I’ll not be so foolish as to dismiss you, lassie. You may nurse me anytime you wish.”

  A little dart of guilt stabbed her. She’d neglected Barthy in the past few days and was certain Elspeth hadna thought to rub his tired muscles. “Elspeth is melancholy. Lyulf hasna been found. She doesna think Gavin and the men are putting much effort into finding him.”

  “I know. Elspeth realizes Lyulf must be dead but doesn’t want to admit it. That’s the way people are, holding out hope until the very end. I certainly do.”

  She patted his back and sat beside him. “You, Barthy? You have more faith than anyone I know. I wouldna have thought you to hold onto foolish hope.”

  “I do. At the moment I hold out hope that Rory will return home a changed man. The prodigal returned home. He should arrive soon, shouldn’t he?”

  “Aye, we received notice he’s back in Scotland and should be here within a couple of days.” She took up the book Elspeth must have been reading to him, the Canterbury Tales. “I’ll ask Gavin, but I doubt he knows any more than I do. He’s determined to find the highwaymen before the assizes. I’m trying to turn it all over to the Lord, but tis hard, and I’ve been wrong so many times.

  “Why would you say that, my dear?”

  Dare she confide to Barthy? Tell him she wasn’t Hester’s daughter? Would he think less of her? Nay, never. Barthy was like Gavin in that he didn’t hold any superstitious beliefs. “It’s most likely I’m Miriam Tynsdale’s daughter.” She related her meeting with Mrs. Kilgarney.

  Barthram never gave a hint he was surprised. “Does that bother you, lass?”

  “Aye, Barthy, it does. Even though I knew my father was a rouge, at least I knew my mother was a good woman. Now, I find that wasn’t true.”

  “Do you think it matters to God?”

  She stared at him for a long moment. The thought had never entered her mind, but if she truly trusted God, wouldn’t she believe He loved her regardless. “I think not.”

  Barthy smiled. “You are right. God doesn’t care who we are born to.”

  “But all my life I’ve been condemned because of who my father was. When I went to market, people would push out of the way and whisper. They dinna say much because they feared Grandfather, but they believed me contemptible all the same…and…it hurt, Barthy. I know I shouldna let it bother me, but it hurt.”

  “But Hester believed you to be her child. She died believing you were her child. Doesn’t that give you comfort?”

  “It does, and I still love Hester as a mother.”

  “If you believe her to be your mother, she is. Don’t you realize, lass, that’s why we’re sent to this world of sin? To believe. If we choose to believe in right instead of wrong, to believe in God, we have accomplished our purpose in being.”

  He was right, of course, but how could one believe when evil kept up a relentless fight to undermine one’s belief. Then Barthy asked a question that she could answer without doubt. “Do you love Gavin?”

  “Aye. That I am sure of.” Should she tell him Gavin’s promise to take her to the colonies if the clan wouldn’t accept her? No, that was something Gavin would have to confide, but she prayed it would never come to pass.

  “Then that’s all that matters.
In the end, love is all we can hope for.” The old chieftain closed his eyes as if suddenly fatigued. “If only Rory could find a good woman and place his trust in God. I charge you and Gavin to keep up that fight when I’m gone.”

  His concern with Rory surprised her. He’d made little mention of his other son, but of course he’d be concerned about Rory. She squirmed. Barthy always made her uncomfortable when he referred to his imminent death.

  He reminded her of something else. She hadna given Rory a single thought, not about how he was faring, nor the state of his soul. A nervous laugh escaped her. “We shall join you in urging Rory to the straight and narrow.”

  Barthy coughed and dragged in a deep breath. “It will take us all. No one has really spoken his mind to Rory. I certainly haven’t, being afraid of pushing him further away, so we dance around the truth.”

  Alana scanned the pages of the book when a shrill scream rent the air. She and Barthy locked startled gazes.

  “What in the world?” She jumped up. “I’ll be right back to let you know. No need to worry.” How silly that was? Anyone would be worried over that ear-splitting scream.

  She found Gavin and Elspeth in the entrance hall. Elspeth gave her a tortured glance before lifting her skirts and dashing toward the stairs.

  Alana reached Gavin’s side before he spoke. “They found Lyulf’s body.”

  “Where? How?”

  “A fisherman snagged his clothing in Loch Cullen. Even though Matt Kerr says McGil did the deed, I want to wait until after Rory’s return and the ceilidh before arresting him. He’s not going anywhere. But Elspeth is enraged that we should wait for justice.”

  “When will the ceilidh be?” She still didn’t know how they could call a party when so many had died recently.

  “As soon as Rory arrives. I’ve sent word to invite Sir Angus as well as the neighboring chieftains.”

  “Grandfather is coming?”

  “I’m going to ask him to preside over the assizes, and I hope to have all the Kerr brothers in the dock before then.”