Highland Spy: Highland Chronicles Series - Book 4

by Rose, Elizabeth

  “No’ if we can capture Valan and bring him before the king. If the king realizes ye meant no harm and were only tryin’ to help yer clan, he might give ye a lighter sentence.”

  “Nay, Caleb. Ye are wrong and we both ken it. No one can deceive the king and live to tell about it. I will pay for my mistake with my life just as anyone else who makes a fool out of our king will do as well.”

  That thought scared Caleb more than anything. He would not let Bridget go to her death for what she did. Clement, in his opinion, should not be executed either.

  “We will end this competition now,” said Caleb.

  “What do ye mean?”

  “Slink and I will distract the guards and the dogs and lead them in the opposite direction. Ye get to the loch as fast as ye can, and dinna tarry.”

  “But that will mean I’m the winner.”

  “Aye. And in the meantime, I’m goin’ back to the castle to find Valan. I will make certain the man never tells the king about yer part in this deception.”

  “But that’s no’ right, Caleb. I dinna deserve to win now, I can see that. And ye shouldna have to keep my secret.”

  “Sometimes in life, there are secrets that need to be kept. Ye and I both would do anythin’ at all to help those we love, and I’m no’ about to let anyone stop that from happenin’.”

  “What are ye goin’ to do to keep Valan quiet?” asked Clement.

  “I’ll do whatever I have to,” he answered, anger pushing through his veins. Valan made Bridget think she was barren and because of it, the poor girl had never married again. She’d been mistreated by him, and she never once thought of herself. Instead, she did whatever she could to help her father with his problem, risking her life to do it. Well, now Caleb would risk his life to help Bridget find the happiness she deserved. And by God, if he had to kill the bastard Valan to do it, then so be it.

  “This way,” shouted a guard, and the sound of running horses and barking dogs became louder again.

  “Keep to the river and it’ll take ye all the way to a giant oak,” Caleb told him. “When ye see it, take a right and go down a hill. There, ye will find the loch.”

  “I dinna ken why ye want to help me, Caleb, but thank ye,” said Clement with a nod, running toward the river as Caleb stepped out into the clearing.

  “Ye need to help us, Slink. Keep the dogs off my trail for a few minutes and be careful that ye dinna get eaten.” He put the pine marten down on the ground. It ran, and he heard the dogs chasing it through the woods. “Get up in a tree, Slink,” he said to himself, heading back in the direction of the castle.

  Thankfully, the next time he looked over his shoulder, he saw the dogs jumping, looking at something in the trees. Slink scolded them from up above, hopping from tree to tree, causing the hounds to go crazy.

  “That’s my Slink,” he said with a smile, his only mission now being to find Bridget and to keep Valan from talking.

  Chapter 24

  “Faither!” screamed Bridget, sliding off the horse and running into the cave. Her father had been tied and gagged and was lying on the cold, hard ground. Next to him was Sim, tied and gagged as well. “What has he done to ye?” She noticed the bruises on her father’s face and the blood dripping down his chin. Sim looked over at her with wide eyes, too frightened to move as he sat on the cave floor next to Brigham.

  “Yer faither gave me a hard time when I asked him to write in his book. That’s why I had to hurt him. If he would have just written what I wanted him to about me, there wouldna have been a problem.”

  “I thought ye said ye wanted me to write about ye in the Highland Chronicles,” said Bridget.

  “That missive was left for yer faither, no’ ye. But when ye arrived in the mews, I thought it might fool the king to have ye do it, but then I realized ye’re just a lass. Ye probably dinna even ken how to write.”

  When Valan said he’d known her secret, Bridget thought he meant that she was writing the chronicles. Now she realized that wasn’t what he meant and that he didn’t know her secret after all.

  “I ken yer faither is goin’ mad, Bridget. And as soon as I tell the king, yer lives are goin’ to change forever.”

  Sim made a muffled noise, and Bridget’s heart went out to him. She just kept thinking about Sorley lying dead on the floor of the mews.

  “Let Sim go,” she said. “He is no threat to ye.”

  “Tsk, tsk,” said Valan with a cluck of his tongue. “Mayhap I should kill the whelp, just like I did to his lover.”

  “Lover?” asked Bridget, now realizing Sorley’s secret.

  Sim’s eyes opened wide in fear and he released a muffled scream against the gag, and pulled against his ropes. His and Sorley’s secret was now revealed, but it was something Bridget would never repeat.

  “Sit down!” snarled Valan.

  “I dinna want to sit.”

  “Sit down while I figure out what to do with all of ye.” The man paced back and forth. “I wish I had more rope so I could tie ye up, too.”

  “Ye’ll never get away with this,” she warned him. “Caleb MacKeefe and his clan will hunt ye down like a dog.”

  “That’s it,” he said, rushing over and holding the tip of the sword under her chin. “I’ve heard enough out of ye. Take off yer plaid and rip it in strips.”

  “I’ll do no such thing.”

  “Then yer faither dies.” He moved the sword over to her father and she realized she had to stop him.

  “Nay, wait! I’ll do it,” she said, tearing up her own clothes only so he could use them to bind and gag her, too. Tears filled her eyes because she knew she couldn’t fight off Valan, even if she’d had a dagger on her, which she didn’t. And any attempt she made to fight him or to escape was only going to mean death for her father and Sim. She couldn’t let that happen. Bridget prayed for a miracle, because that was the only thing that was going to save them now.

  Valan continued to pace the floor of the cave. Her father lay there in naught but a night robe, his thin body shaking from the cold that set in. He didn’t move and neither did Sim. In the semi-darkened cave, she couldn’t even see them well enough to know if they were alive or dead. Then she heard a small noise and looked down, thinking at first it was a rat. But relief washed over her when she saw Slink sticking his nose into her bag. Mayhap she could get a message to Caleb. It was her only hope.

  Keeping an eye on Valan, she used her hands behind her back to rip off a shred of her plaid. Caleb might know it was hers, but he still wouldn’t know where to find her. The cave was filled with moss, so she rubbed the shred of plaid against it, trying her best to flip it toward the pine marten. Then she tried to whisper through the gag.

  “Take dis to Cay – ib,” she said, seeming to catch the animal’s attention. Still, it didn’t pick up the scrap of plaid. She pushed it with her tied hands toward the animal again and, this time, Slink picked it up in his mouth. Using her mind, she tried to tell the animal to take it to Caleb. It was an absurd thought that it would work, but she had to try something. She wasn’t sure if the pine marten understood her or not, but before she knew it, Slink dashed off into the shadows, and then he was gone.

  * * *

  Caleb made his way back to the castle, emerging from the woods, running as fast as he could. There was a crowd of people gathered around the mews, and no one even paid any attention to him.

  “What’s goin’ on?” he asked a woman standing nearby.

  “They found a dead body in the mews,” she told him. “One of the children discovered it.”

  “God’s eyes, nay,” he cried, thinking it was Bridget. He pushed through the crowd, entering the mews to find Storm, the king, and even his friends, staring down at someone covered in blood. “Is it Bridget?” he shouted, pushing his way closer, relief washing through him that it wasn’t Bridget.

  “Caleb, what are ye doin’ here?” asked Storm, leaning on his staff to keep his weight off his foot. “I thought ye were competin’ in the la
st event.”

  “Forget about that. The competition is over and Clement has won,” he told him. “Is the chronicler dead?” he asked, realizing it was Sorley on the ground.

  “Nay,” said Wren, checking for life signs. “But he has lost a lot of blood and is hurt badly. We need to take him to the keep anon.”

  “We’ll take him,” offered Hawke. He and Ethan moved forward to carry Sorley inside.

  “Who could have done this?” asked the king.

  “I dinna ken, but ye are no’ safe,” Storm told him. “Ye will stay inside my solar under guard until we find the person who did this. They might be out to assassinate ye as well.”

  “I’ll no’ leave here until we find out what is goin’ on,” said the king, leaving with Storm and some of his guards, heading to the keep.

  “Where is Bridget?” asked Caleb, feeling his heart pounding wildly. “Have ye found her?”

  “Nay,” said Logan. “No one has seen her since this mornin’. I was told her faither was ill and stayed back in the room today, but she was up on the dais earlier. Before the start of the sword fight, that is.

  “Have ye checked with her faither? Mayhap he kens where she is.”

  “No’ yet,” said Logan. “There’s been a lot of commotion here as ye can see.”

  “Find Jack. Maybe he can help us track her,” said Caleb, running for the keep. He made his way to Bridget’s chamber, bursting inside the room only to find it empty. “Brigham? Are ye here?” he called out, looking around the room and realizing things were spewed about and broken. It looked to him as if there had been a struggle.

  “God’s eyes, nay,” he said, searching the room. He found a piece of parchment on the floor and picked it up and read it. It was the same message that Slink had brought him earlier. It was someone saying to meet them in the mews at the start of the sword fight. Could Sorley have threatened to expose Bridget to the king, and they struggled and she killed him? He didn’t think that sounded like Bridget. Plus, where was Brigham? And why were there two of the exact same missives? This had to have something to do with Valan.

  Hearing a slight sound at the open door, he spun on his heel and drew his sword.

  “Slink,” he said, letting out a breath and resheathing his weapon. “Where have ye been? And by the way, thanks for distractin’ the dogs. I’m sorry I had to ask ye to do that, but we were helpin’ out Clement.” He’d always spoken to the pine marten as if it were a person, and for some reason the animal always seemed to understand him. “What have ye got in yer mouth?” he asked, bending down to take something from him.

  He held it up, realizing it was part of someone’s plaid.

  “Caleb, I’ve got Jack outside,” said Logan, walking into the room. “Did ye ask Brigham where Bridget is?”

  “He’s no’ here,” he said, fingering the piece of plaid, looking at it closely and sniffing it.

  “What the hell are ye doin’?”

  “I found this missive in the room,” he said, shoving the parchment at Logan. “There was another identical missive that Slink brought me earlier in the barn. And Slink just brought me this piece of plaid.”

  “This note sounds threatenin’,” said Logan, reading it quickly. “I wonder if it was for Bridget or Brigham.”

  “It doesna matter, because they are both gone and I think Valan has them.”

  “Valan?”

  “Bridget’s ex-husband.”

  “She was married? Who is this man?”

  “He’s the man who’s been sabotagin’ the competition.”

  “Ye ken he’s the saboteur? How did ye figure it out?”

  Caleb trusted his friends, but something made him keep Clement’s secret to himself. “I just ken,” he said. “And this plaid is Bridget’s, I know it. It also smells musty like a cave and has moss and moisture on it.”

  “So what are ye sayin’?”

  “I’m sayin’ I think she’s in trouble. I plan on doin’ whatever it takes to save her, Logan, because she is the woman I love.”

  Chapter 25

  “Get up, we’re goin’,” said Valan, kicking at Bridget, a short time later.

  She mumbled through the gag, and he ripped it off her mouth. “What is it?” he asked.

  “Where are ye takin’ us?”

  “I’m only takin’ ye,” he told her. “And ye are comin’ with me to England.”

  “England?” she asked, as he yanked the ties off her legs and yanked her up to a standing position. Her hands were still tied behind her. “Ye’re runnin’ from the MacKeefes, but they will still find ye.”

  “We’re close enough to the border that I can make it across before they come for me. They willna follow me into England. I’ll start a new life there.”

  “I’m no’ comin’ with ye. My home is Scotland and I want nothin’ to do with ye.”

  He slapped her hard, making her stumble backwards. “Ye say another word and I’m puttin’ the gag back in yer mouth. Now move!”

  * * *

  Riding like the devil, Caleb headed for the cave where he thought Valan might have Bridget. He never should have been so caught up in the competition that he couldn’t protect her. If anything happened to her he would never forgive himself.

  “I see someone,” he called back to Logan, drawing his sword, dismounting, and hurrying into the cave. When he got there he could see two people lying there bound and gagged. “God’s teeth,” he said, rushing over to Brigham and pulling off his gag and binds.

  “Och, nay,” said Logan, following him into the cave and heading over to help Sim. “Keep watch, Jack,” he called out to his wolf.

  “Brigham, are ye all right?” asked Caleb. The man’s eyes flickered open, and he looked as if most of the life in him had drained away.

  “Caleb . . . he’s got . . . my daughter. Save . . . her. Please.”

  “Is it Valan?” he asked the man, but didn’t get an answer. “Where did he take her?”

  The old man’s eyes stared at him, but he didn’t move and neither did he breathe. “Damn it,” said Caleb, feeling for a pulse and not finding one. “I’m sorry I couldna save ye, Brigham. Ye will be missed,” he whispered, reaching out and gently closing the man’s eyes. “He’s dead,” he mumbled to Logan.

  “Och, nay,” said Logan walking over with Sim.

  “Where is Sorley?” asked the man. “Please tell me nothin’ has happened to him.”

  “The chronicler is severely wounded, but he is still alive,” Logan explained.

  “Take me to him. Please,” begged the man.

  “I’ll take him back to the castle and then return for Brigham’s body,” said Logan.

  “Aye,” agreed Caleb with a nod, getting to his feet. Slink wandered over and sniffed Brigham’s dead body. “Was it Valan who did this?” Caleb asked Sim just to make sure, feeling the anger coursing through him.

  “Aye,” answered the man.

  “Is Bridget still alive and did he take her with him?”

  “Aye, she’s alive and he did.”

  “Where did they go? Did ye hear anythin’ at all?”

  “I only ken that he said he was takin’ her as collateral to get him over the English border.”

  “I’m goin’ after them,” said Caleb, picking up Slink and heading for the door.

  “Wait, Caleb. Let’s go back and get Ethan and Hawke first,” said Logan. “Ye shouldna do this by yerself.”

  “I’ll no’ wait another minute,” said Caleb, getting atop his horse. “I will stop at nothin’ to save Bridget.”

  Caleb traveled toward the border, once in a while finding a broken branch or a scrap of Bridget’s plaid, ensuring him he was headed in the right direction. But after nearly a few hours, it started getting dark, and he had a hard time telling where he was going without a torch. He figured Valan wouldn’t be able to travel too fast with two of them on one horse. He’d only seen the tracks of one horse leading in this direction. They would probably have to stop for the night once it g
ot dark. They weren’t that far from the border and, for all he knew, they might already be across it.

  “Where would he go if he wanted to hide for the night?” Caleb asked himself, traveling slowly now. His pine marten made a small sound, crawling out of the bag and jumping to the ground. “Nay, Slink, get back here,” he said, not wanting to leave him. Then he realized the pine marten was heading for the only shelter in this area and it was right up ahead. “Aye. The priory,” he said, shaking his head, wondering how the thought almost escaped him. He knew now where Slink was headed, and he agreed that it was probably right where he’d find Valan and Bridget. Now, he only hoped that he wasn’t already too late.

  * * *

  “Off the horse,” growled Valan, pushing Bridget. With her hands tied behind her back, she couldn’t catch herself as she hit the ground hard. Her face was pushed into the dirt. Her shoulder hurt so bad that she thought she’d broken it.

  Valan slipped off the horse and tethered it to a tree. “Ye’re slowin’ me down,” he growled, grabbing her by the arm and pulling her to the small enclosure where Bridget had stayed on their journey with Caleb and the others on the way to Hermitage Castle.

  “Then why dinna ye just leave me here and go without me?” she asked as he threw her to the ground.

  “Oh, I’ll leave ye here, and go on without ye.” He unsheathed his sword.

  “What are ye doin’?” she asked, seeing the glimmer of the metal in the moonlight.

  “Ye ken too much. Ye dinna really think I’m goin’ to let ye live.”

  “Why are ye doin’ this, Valan? I never did anythin’ to ye.”

  “My life was ruined the moment I married ye,” he told her. “I will never be anythin’ without heirs and ye didna give them to me.”

  “Ye’re the barren one, so dinna blame me,” she spat.

  “I’ve had enough,” he said, moving forward. Something hissed at him and ran over his feet, making him jump back in surprise.