by Carmen Caine
Laird Chisholm said, “I think we should run the cur to ground and finish this today.”
Niall answered, “There is nothing I would like more. It is not wise to let him reach Brathanead. Select the men ye wish to take and we will leave immediately.”
As Fingal prepared to join them, Niall pulled him aside and said, “Fingal, I think ye should stay here.” At the pained look on Fingal’s face, Niall added, “It isn’t what ye think. I will never again question your loyalty, and I know ye want vengeance. However, I don’t think ye should be put into the position of possibly having to kill the man who sired ye.”
“Niall, he deserves to die, even if only for abandoning his own men today.”
“I agree, but still, no man should have to carry that on his conscience, justified or not. Let me do this. Stay and see to things here for me.”
Fingal reluctantly agreed. Within minutes, Lairds MacIan, Chisholm, and Matheson, with warriors from all three clans, headed south toward the MacLennan border.
~ * ~
Katherine and her escort were only a few miles away from Cnocreidh when Hamish reined in on the edge of a clearing and motioned to Muir. After a quick discussion with Hamish, Muir came to her and said quietly, “My lady, I don’t wish to worry ye; however, there appear to be a large number of men on horseback in the woods beyond the clearing. We can hear them, and Hamish doesn’t know who they might be or why they are here. Until we know differently, we can only assume they are a threat, perhaps sent by Laird MacLennan, but we don’t think they have seen us yet.”
“We are going to backtrack with ye and avoid them by circling to the north. Stay as quiet as ye possibly can and, if we are attacked, ye must not leave my side unless I tell ye differently. Do ye understand?”
Katherine nodded.
They quietly retreated a safe distance, and skirted around the threat, reaching the edge of the forest on the northeast side of Cnocreidh.
Before they entered into the open land surrounding the castle, Muir said, “We think we have avoided them, but if we are attacked as we move into the open, ye ride with Hamish as hard as ye can toward the keep. He will see it opened to ye, and the rest of us will protect your back.
They had barely entered the open area when a group of at least two score and ten men swarmed out of the forest to the east of Cnocreidh. As Muir instructed, Katherine rode hard toward the keep with Hamish at her side. They had barely covered a quarter of the distance when Hamish’s horse took an arrow to his chest and crumpled under him. Katherine stopped to reach a hand to Hamish, but he slapped Eachann’s rump, forcing the horse back into a run toward the castle. However, that momentary pause was enough time for Duncan, who had separated himself from the battle, to reach her. He pulled her onto his horse and rode full speed toward the forest. Before he reached the forest with her, Katherine was able to twist in his arms enough to see her escorts were holding their own, joined by warriors pouring out of Cnocreidh. Duncan crushed her against his chest and pushed her forward, leaning low over the horse’s neck to avoid the branches. He held her so tightly she could barely breathe. She wanted to fight, but knew if she fell from the horse at the breakneck speed they were riding, she could be seriously injured and possibly lose the baby. So she held on, praying someone would catch them.
As they rode, Duncan shouted orders to the others, telling them to cover his back and follow as soon as they were able.
“Duncan, there is no way ye can win this today. We know Malcolm was behind everything. Niall and Laird Matheson have joined forces and returned to Duncurra. Stop now, take me back, and Niall will reward ye.”
“Ye are daft if ye think I believe that, my lady. Malcolm is my cousin and has been planning this for years. He is not only cunning and cautious, but he was also prepared to do whatever was necessary to achieve his goal.”
“Ye are the daft one if ye believe he will prevail against their combined armies.”
“I will admit that together Matheson and MacIan will present a challenge, but it is likely Malcolm controlled Duncurra well before they arrived. The fact is, my lady, if Malcolm holds Duncurra under siege, having Laird MacIan’s wife as hostage could only be advantageous. Nevertheless, if ye are right and Malcolm fails, I still stand to gain control of Clan MacLennan. Having ye as a hostage won’t hurt me, either. This is far from being over for me, and ye are too valuable a tool to just let ye go.”
The ride was bone jarring and Katherine suspected Duncan pushed his mount as hard as he dared. She heard horsemen following them, but she didn’t know if they were the other MacLennan warriors, her own guard, or more Mathesons from the castle. Late in the afternoon, Katherine finally recognized her surroundings. They were just north of the mountain pass where Tadhg had kidnapped her only two days earlier, and she knew this was MacLennan land. However, rather than turning south, in the direction of Brathanead, Duncan turned north.
“Why are ye not riding toward Brathanead?”
“So ye know where ye are, do ye?”
“Aye, but why are ye riding north?”
“Because, my lady, it is unexpected. If the men following us are MacIans or Mathesons they will ride toward Brathanead. By heading north we will elude them. Besides, Laird MacLennan is likely to be at or near Duncurra, and we may have a better chance of reaching him there.”
Duncan’s ruse appeared to have worked, for as they travelled northward, there did not seem to be anyone in close pursuit. However, they had not been on their new course long before they heard horses approaching ahead of them. Duncan swore and turned his horse into the woods. Before Katherine realized what was happening, he clamped a hand viciously across her mouth. “Ye are more valuable to me alive than dead, Lady Katherine. Still, I will slit your throat if ye make a sound.”
~ * ~
Malcolm was surprised to see Duncan leave the forest with Katherine.
“Well, what have we here, Duncan?”
“We waited, as ye said, for Niall’s army to arrive, but they never did. Finally we saw Lady Katherine arrive under heavy guard. I knew something must have gone wrong, and I suspected ye might need her as a hostage.”
Malcolm listened but his eyes didn’t leave Katherine. She appeared calm and composed and she didn’t look at him. The mask she assumed didn’t fool him. She was afraid, and fear was an excellent motivator for cooperation. Pain was as well, and he would use it if he needed to.
“Indeed I do,” Malcolm sneered. He moved his mount until he was within reach, grabbed her chin, and turned her head to face him. He laughed malevolently. “With Niall’s bonny little wife in residence at Brathanead, we will have a delightful morsel with which to bargain. Well done, cousin.”
She knocked his hand away and spat on him. He backhanded her. “Ye will pay for that, wench, and I can assure ye that ye will remember your uncle as gentle before I am through with ye.”
To Duncan he said, “Bind and gag her, we need to keep moving.”
Duncan did as Malcolm instructed, but said, “Laird MacLennan—I did not expect to find ye returning to Brathanead. Riders followed us from Cnocreidh, but I don’t know how many. Some may have been my own men, but I suspect they were not alone. I turned north hoping to elude them all, but if we proceed southwards, we will put ourselves within their reach.”
Malcolm looked irritated. “We can’t stop here. I have no doubt vengeance is on our heels as well. We will ride up the mountain and hide in the caves until it is safe to proceed to Brathanead. Make sure that gag is secure, I don’t want a sound out of her.” Malcolm decided to take another precaution as well. “Eithne, dismount and give me your mantle.” He switched Katherine’s mantle for Eithne’s and hoisted Katherine onto Eithne’s palfrey.
“What are ye doing?” demanded Eithne. “Why are ye giving her my mount?”
“Ye’ll ride with Duncan.” Eithne protested, but Malcolm pacified her by explaining, “From a distance, anyone will assume ye are Katherine, and they will not risk harming ye.” Besides, he m
ight need a diversion, and as long as he secured his own safety, the consequences mattered little to him.
~ * ~
With her hands bound in front of her, Katherine knew once they began to move again, she would be unable to do anything but stay in the saddle. The wind sharpened and the clouds thickened in the late afternoon sky. It looked as if a snowstorm were brewing and, if it broke soon, the fresh snow would obliterate any trace of their trail. With her bound hands concealed by the mantle around her shoulders, Katherine unpinned the jeweled brooch that had been Niall’s present to her on Epiphany. She hid it between her palms, and just before they left the trail to head up the mountain, she let it slip out of her hands to land in the track. She prayed no one noticed it, and, in their rush to escape, no one did.
Chapter 30
As the day wore on, Niall’s frustration rose. Malcolm seemed to remain just out of reach. Late in the afternoon, dread filled him when they met Muir and Turcuil with a contingent of Matheson soldiers riding north.
Muir filled him in as quickly as possible. “As soon as the MacLennans poured from the woods, I knew we were badly outnumbered, but we thought we could hold them back long enough for Hamish to get Katherine inside the walls. Matheson reinforcements joined us immediately and we routed them.”
“And Katherine is safe?”
“Nay, Laird. Hamish was unhorsed and she slowed to help him. He slapped Eachann back into a run, but it was too late. Duncan reached her and escaped.”
“Dear God.”
“Laird, I’m sorry. Rab was gravely injured as well. We left him at Cnocreidh, but Hamish, Keavy, Turcuil, and I pursued them with Matheson warriors. We reached the mountain pass leading to Brathanead less than an hour ago. Not knowing for sure which direction he would go, we split up. Hamish and Keavy led some of the Matheson warriors south, while Turcuil and I led the rest north.”
“And ye met no one?”
“Nay, Laird.”
Niall swore. How could he have underestimated the true depths of Malcolm’s deception? He hadn’t simply relied on drawing Niall away from Duncurra, he had men in place to assure his defeat at Cnocreidh as well. With every ounce of control he had, he tamped down his rage and focused on finding Katherine.
The leaders agreed it was unlikely Malcolm’s party had been far enough ahead to have made it through the pass before the warriors riding from Cnocreidh had reached it. Muir and his men should have met Malcolm and his guard on the track. Since they didn’t, it was likely that Duncan had indeed ridden north and met Malcolm’s party. Once alerted, Malcolm had probably left the trail to hide in either the woods or the mountains.
They searched along the track for signs of Malcolm’s trail, but because his army had ridden north the previous day, horses had trampled the snow on the track, making it impossible to distinguish a new trail from an older one. To make matters worse, the clouds thickened and before long, a light snow began to fall. If they didn’t find some indication of where Malcolm had left the track soon, fresh snow would cover any evidence. They had nearly given up hope when one of the Chisholm warriors saw the jewels from Katherine’s brooch glinting in the snow.
It appeared that Malcolm’s party had headed for caves in the mountains, and once again Niall was in pursuit. It wasn’t long before the fresh snow changed from a curse to a blessing. They found Malcolm’s tracks.
~ * ~
Katherine tried to work her hands free, but only succeeded in causing the rope to chafe her wrists until they were raw, bloody, and burning. The gag Duncan had stuffed in her mouth tickled the back of her throat, requiring her to constantly fight the need to retch. On top of everything else, she was freezing.
While riding with Duncan, she had at least been warm. Now she had very little to protect her from the cold. Having removed the brooch holding it around her shoulders, Katherine’s plaid slid down her back underneath the mantle and bunched around her waist. Furthermore, knowing why Malcolm had forced her to trade places with Eithne, she had shaken the mantle’s hood off, exposing her kertch. Even from a distance, in the gathering darkness, Niall would know she was not Eithne. While she thought the plan was clever and no one seemed to notice or care that her hood had slipped off, her linen kertch provided no protection from the cold and snow.
~ * ~
Malcolm held up his hand, halting his men for a moment. In spite of the wind that whipped and moaned around him, he heard the unmistakable sound of horses approaching. If he could buy himself just a little time, he could disappear into the caves with Katherine.
“Duncan, stay here with Eithne and the rest of the guard. They will think it is Katherine with ye, and that will give me time to escape to the caves. When they approach, surrender.”
“Aye, Laird,” answered Duncan.
“Surrender? They’ll kill us all when they realize ye still have the little bitch,” screeched Eithne.
“Nay, they won’t. Niall is nothing if not noble. He will accept your surrender and not harm ye. I will pay the ransom to get ye and my men released.
~ * ~
Niall and the men with him saw the small party stopped ahead of them and charged. As they drew closer, Niall noticed the pair riding away. Even in the heat of battle, Niall’s brain registered the white covering on the woman’s head and knew that Malcolm still had Katherine. He pulled back and skirted around the battle, riding hard to reach Katherine. As he did, he heard Eithne’s blood curdling scream and Tadhg’s anguished battle cry. Ignoring it, he continued to chase Malcolm and Katherine.
Niall saw Malcolm look over his shoulder, panicked. In horror, Niall watched as Malcolm drew his sword and raised it toward Katherine, but it wasn’t Katherine for whom Malcolm aimed. He slashed at the flank of Katherine’s mount. The mare screamed and reared. Unbridled fear gripped Niall’s heart as he helplessly watched Katherine struggle to stay on her mount with bound wrists.
He tried to reach her as she clutched desperately at the edge of the saddle. The ground had become slippery with snow and the horse was sliding and stumbling. All thoughts of vengeance for Malcolm fled as Niall saw Katherine lose her struggle to stay in the saddle. She was thrown to the ground, but with her bound hands, she couldn’t break her fall.
When he finally reached her side, he removed her gag. Relief flooded him when he found her unconscious but still alive. He cut her bonds and felt her limbs for signs of breaks. It looked as if her only injuries were the lump on her head, a bruise on her face, and abrasions on her wrists caused by her bonds. Vengeance would have to wait; he couldn’t leave his wife.
Tadhg arrived at Niall’s side just as Niall gathered Katherine’s small limp body into his arms.
Enraged, Niall said, “The bastard caused the horse to throw her to save his own worthless skin.”
“I’ll take a few men and go after him. Get her to safety.”
By this time, Laird Chisholm had joined them and said to Tadhg, “I’ll go with ye.”
“Nay, Fearghas,” Tadhg said. “Malcolm has laid so many traps in the bid to win Duncurra, there is no telling what might await on the way back there. Niall needs as many men as possible riding escort.”
“Aye, Fearghas. I have to get her home,” Niall said as he wrapped his plaid around his unconscious wife and rose from the ground with her. “I cannot lose her,” he said, his voice raw with emotion.
Chapter 31
Vaguely aware she finally felt warm, Katherine had trouble remembering why she had been so cold in the first place. As she struggled to emerge from oblivion, she also realized she had a terrible headache. She fought to open her eyes, but the light only intensified her pain, causing her to moan and retch. Gentle hands rolled her to her side, yet her retching brought nothing up.
She heard her husband’s anxious voice say, “Effie, she is waking.”
She tried again to open her eyes. For a moment, the light sent another wave of searing pain through her head, but she kept them open this time, and saw her husband’s worried face. He was kneel
ing by her bed. Effie moved into view behind him. “Ye’ve come back to us, have ye? Do ye know where ye are?”
Katherine blinked and tried to look around. The movement caused her head to swim and she wanted to retch again, but she said, “Home.”
“Aye, lass, ye’re home,” Niall said, his voice husky.
Katherine closed her eyes for a moment. Why was the midwife here? She opened her eyes again and managed to ask, “The baby?”
“Is fine,” answered Effie. “But ye have a nasty bump on your head from the fall.”
“I fell?” asked Katherine. She closed her eyes again, trying to remember. Images began to flood her mind as her memory returned. She moaned again. “Malcolm slashed my mount’s side and the poor thing threw me.”
“That’s right, sweetling, but ye will be fine now,” said Niall, with a hint of desperation in his voice.
Effie brought her a bowl with some broth in it. “Try to drink some of this, my lady.”
Katherine swallowed a few sips before, overcome with exhaustion, she slipped back into oblivion.
~ * ~
When she awoke later, the room was dark save for the light from the fire. Niall held her in his arms, but he was not asleep. “Back again?” he asked, his voice still thick with concern.
“Aye,” Katherine answered. Her head hurt less than it had earlier and she felt hungry. “Is there any more broth?”
Visibly relieved, Niall answered, “Aye, sweetling, there is.” He helped her drink a little more, and she ate a few bites of bread as well before giving in once again to the powerful urge to sleep.
~ * ~
The next time she woke, sunlight streamed in through the window, and she felt considerably better. Niall slept beside her, but woke instantly as she stirred. “Good morning, love,” he said, and kissed her gently.
“What happened?” she asked.
“Ye were thrown from a horse.”
“I remember that. What happened here? What happened with Malcolm and Eithne? And how did I get back here?”
