by Alisa Adams
Alexa dodged around Moira and ran upstairs. She tried to close her bedroom door as she dashed inside, but Moira was too quick for her.
"You're going with the men, aren't you?" Moira asked grimly. "Or you think you are!"
Alexa was pulling her boots on.
"I am going. Who's going to stop me?"
Moira's answer was to lock the door, pocket the key, then stand and place her open arms across it.
Alexa laughed.
"You think that will stop me?" She laughed again, this time more scornfully.
Moira thought for a moment.
"Maybe not," she replied. She went to the open window and held the key out. "Another word and I drop this key a hundred feet into the moat. By the time they get us out of here, the men will have long gone, if they have not already."
Alexa sat on the bed, but Moira continued to hold the key out before putting it in her pocket again. She put her arm around Alexa, and they looked at each other. Alexa had always thought that Moira was a soft touch, but now she realized she had a core of steel. They were more alike than she had thought.
"When will you ever learn?" Moira asked Alexa fondly. "You're a girl – you can't go around doing things like this! Anyway, if anything happens to Iain, who's going to look after the baby and me?"
"You are the older sister – you should be looking after me," Alex said indignantly.
"Come on, Alexa!" Moira laughed. "We both know you have been looking after me since you were twelve years old."
Alexa laughed, then sighed.
"I hate to think Gregor is out there without me," she said wistfully.
"Gregor?" Moira asked. "Don't you mean Graham?"
"Did I say Gregor?" Alexa tried and failed to hide her confusion. "Slip of the tongue."
The outlaws came out as silently as possible, the only noise being the faint clip-clop of their horses’ feet, and there was no talking at all. The horses had already been collected, and more were being picked up along the way. Several men joined them from time to time along the way till there were around thirty horsemen, still eerily silent. It occurred to the militia, who had kept a safe distance behind, that this was not a collection of bandits, but an organized, disciplined army.
Presently, they came to the farmhouse, well-lit with candles at the unglazed windows.
The Sutherland band halted in a line, ready to charge, but they never got the chance. It was not quite dark, and by the last light of the sun and silhouetted against the lights of the house, the Sutherlands were an easy target. The crossbow bolts made no sound as they sped towards their target, but a second later the air was full of the sound of men and horses in agony.
Many of the outlaws fell immediately, either dead or wounded, and their horses galloped away, terrified by their screams. One man was dragged along by his horse with his foot caught in the stirrup, and many more were not dead but injured so badly they were unable to fight. The element of surprise had been well-used by the militia, and now they took full advantage of it.
Half of the gang were lightly wounded, and the others were seriously injured and immobile or untouched and still able to fight.
Graham saw one man trying to get up and aim his crossbow at Gregor. One stab of his sword saw to that, and Graham spun around to swipe another across his abdomen, opening the man up so that his innards fell into the dirt. It took him five minutes to die in agony. Some of the bandits succumbed to dagger wounds in their throats and hearts, and gradually they were all beaten back.
* * *
There were seven fatalities and fifteen men who were seriously injured among the outlaws. The walking wounded and the unharmed were rounded up and their hands tied, then they were strung together to walk between two lines of the militia's horses. Four of the militia were seriously wounded and a number lightly wounded, but there had been no deaths.
The surprise attack had worked. The dead and seriously hurt from the Sutherland party were put into two farmers' carts with no great regard for their welfare or comfort, and the entire party, the good and the bad, headed back to the dungeons of Castle Drummond.
Graham and Gregor shook hands and patted each other’s backs, feeling satisfied and happy with a good night's work.
Then one of Graham's most senior and trusted men who had fought against the English said with some alarm:
"Sir, where is Hector Sutherland?"
Graham and Gregor double-checked the line of men and the mass of dead and injured in the carts, but there was no sign of the chief of the Sutherland band.
They fanned out and searched the surrounding forest, but it was easy for one man to hide in a dark forest in the thickening darkness, especially if he had half an hour's start. They had known it would be a waste of time and effort, but they had to try anyway for the sake of morale.
"Let's go and see if he's at the fortress," Graham suggested. "There are enough men here to guard the prisoners."
They went back to the Sutherlands' lair cautiously, picking their way over the last few hundred yards very slowly. Then a voice came out of the darkness behind them, and it was Mairi.
"Sir!" she said in desperation, running towards them. "Is it over?"
Gregor dismounted from his horse and caught her hands. There was a sliver of a moon, and he could just about see her, but he heard the panic in her voice.
"How did you know it was us?" he asked. "We could have been anybody!"
"I heard yer voices! Greg! Please! Is it over?"
He sighed and chuckled.
"Yes, Mairi," he replied. "And we routed them."
"Oh thank God!" She burst into tears, and he put his arms around her.
He let her cry for a moment, and when her tears had subsided he asked:
"Where is your family?"
"In the trees. We took all we could carry wi' us an' hid in yon bushes over there."
"There is just one more thing." He sighed. "Mairi, we could not find your father. Now don't panic." He heard her indrawn breath. "He is probably dead, but we do not know. Tomorrow we will do a proper search, but tonight, you must come with us. You and your mother can take a horse each with one of the small children, and the rest of us can ride on the other ones. I will have some of the men come and search this place, and then we will seal it before we destroy it!"
11
A Meeting of Women
Graham, Iain, and Gregor were all exhausted after the raid but stayed behind with a work party to help seal the whole area around the tunnel with big rocks after Mairi had given them detailed directions to the whereabouts of its entrance.
She could not, of course, tell them exactly how to open or close it, but they insisted that they could attend to that in the next few days. All they wanted to do at that moment was to make sure that Hector did not get in. They posted two armed guards to make sure that their precautions were not interfered with and came home.
Both Moira and Alexa were waiting for them in the parlor.
They were sitting by the fire drinking cups of hot spiced wine when the men came in, but jumped up at once when they saw them.
Moira threw herself into Iain's arms and hugged him tightly, while Alexa received Graham's passionate kiss without demur, and smiled at him.
"I am so glad you're all right," Moira murmured.
Iain embraced her even tighter.
"I had to come back for you," he said huskily.
Moira was gazing into Iain's blue eyes with fierce intensity.
"How did it go?" she asked. "Did all our men survive?"
"Yes," Gregor answered, "but we had a few serious injuries. I have asked Annag, the healer from the village to come and see them."
"Poor Gregor," Moira said. "Come and give me a hug." She embraced him and gave him a warm kiss on the cheek.
"Did you get Mairi and the children?" Alexa asked, anxious.
"Yes," Iain replied. "They are downstairs with cook having something to eat. The poor little things are starving. Will you wake up Nanny Joan? We cou
ld do with her knowledge right now."
Alexa nodded, and ran off down the corridor barefoot with no grace at all, looking more than ever like a boy.
"I hope she never has to be introduced to the King." Moira sighed. "She would still want to do it in breeches!"
They laughed and went to get some more wine.
* * *
Alexa went to Nanny Joan's room, where she quickly explained the situation. Nanny was awake at once.
"Can you come down please?" Alexa asked, still apprehensive. "These poor things need some love and comfort."
Nanny dressed quickly, and Alexa was relieved. When it came to children, Nanny knew all there was to know.
They went into the kitchen where the cook, startled, made a quick curtsey.
"Morning, mistress," she said politely. "Would you like some warm milk? Miss?" She had also been woken up at an ungodly hour, but she was already bright and cheerful. Early mornings held no terrors for her.
They both nodded their thanks and looked at the children.
"Good morning." Alexa smiled. "Are you enjoying your food?"
Each child had a plate of mutton stew, a hunk of bread and a big glass of hot milk in front of them.
They all nodded – since their mouths were full – and Alexa smiled.
The dark girl, who is about the same age as myself, must be Mairi, she thought.
"Are you Mairi?" Alexa asked.
"Aye, mistress," Mairi replied with a timid smile.
There were two boys beside her who looked about sixteen, obviously twins; a twelve-year-old girl; a ten-year-old girl; and a three-year-old boy.
At least those are their approximate ages, Alexa thought.
"Where is your mother, Mairi?" she asked kindly.
The last thing she wanted to do was frighten these traumatized children any more, so she kept her tone as gentle as possible.
"She is wi' the wise woman, mistress," Mairi replied. "She wanted tae help oot tae give thanks fer oor rescue."
"That was very good of her." Alexa smiled. "Now, after you have had a sleep or whenever you feel you can, please come and talk to me. I need to ask you about the children. Just get one of the staff to show you where I am."
She looked at Nanny Joan, who smiled.
"Onybody that wants mair come an' ask the cook," Nanny Joan announced. "I am goin' tae find ye some beds wi' big feather mattresses an' cozy woolen blankets, an' ye can sleep fer as lang as ye want because naebody will wake ye up. Efter that, ye will all have a big hot bath wi' loads o' bubbles! Wid ye like that?"
There was a lot of nodding, but no one spoke.
Probably too scared, Nanny thought, in case they are beaten.
Finally, one of the twins spoke up. He was one of the older children, almost a man, with a voice just deepening into adulthood.
"Mistress," he said with some shyness, "Mairi says Paw is still oot there. He cannae get in here, can he?"
There was so much fear in his voice that Alexa felt like crying.
"No, my friend," she replied, her voice still gentle. "There are two armed guards on the gate at all times. They have instructions to ask everyone to identify themselves as they come in, and if they cannot, they are sent away. If anyone looks suspicious, he will be held captive by the guards till we can identify him.
"The gates are closed at night, and they are twenty feet high, so unless he grows wings, he cannot get in. You are safe. You are all safe with me around too. Believe me – I can defend all of you!"
Half a dozen happy faces and one angry looked back at her. The only grim face was Mairi, who had learned that trusting was not always the best course of action.
Alexa went around the table collecting names.
"I may forget," she informed them, "but that doesn't mean I forget you. I just have a very bad memory!"
She began with Mairi, then Donald, Dougall, Rose, Ella, and Sam.
"I hope I remember them all!" She laughed.
Alexa ruffled Sam's hair, and he flinched away from her. Tears sprang to her eyes as she looked down at him. What this poor little child must have gone through!
Nanny came back with a brisk, businesslike air. Her hands were clasped in front of her, and she was looking at all the faces of the children as if to memorize them all.
She once again went through the roll call, and the children began to drink their milk and talk freely among themselves. Nanny guessed it was the first time they had been able to do it without fear.
She squatted down beside Sam, who was struggling a bit with his spoon, and said gently, "Can I help ye, wee lad?"
Sam nodded and opened his mouth, and Nanny sang a little song as she fed him. He looked at her in wide-eyed wonder. This tenderness had never happened to him before, and he was both scared and delighted – delighted because it was so wonderful and scared because he did not want it to end.
Nanny spooned the last of the delicious food into his mouth and wiped his lips with a cloth.
"All right, wee man?" she asked kindly.
"Aye," he murmured.
"Wid ye like some raspberries?" Nanny asked everyone.
There was a general chorus of, "Aye!" And their faces lit up.
In a moment, the cook and a maid appeared with a big bowl of raspberries and a large jug of fresh cream. When they had dished up for everyone, they put a dollop of honey on top of the cream in each bowl and watched them as they tucked in, then left, smiling.
* * *
Alexa watched them, her heart full of pity. When she had been a child this sort of food had been her staple diet – good, rich, nourishing fare that she took for granted. She also felt ashamed. She had taken all of this as her right because she lived in a castle with a laird, servants, a nanny, a maid, and a cook.
"Did you find them a bedroom?"
Nanny nodded.
"Aye, but they will need two," she replied. "One fer the girls an’ one fer the boys. Mammy can stay in the room wi’ the boys because o' the wee yin. The housemaids are bringin' the beddin' noo. I will stay wi' them fer a while."
"It's been a strange night – or morning!" Alexa sighed. "I have never seen people eat dinner in the middle of the night before."
"Those bairns were starvin’!" Nanny said grimly. "I wish I could get my hauns on that faither o' theirs!"
"I'll tell you the story in the morning, and you'll understand," Alexa said. "Goodnight, Nanny, and thank you."
Nanny kissed her and Alexa went to bed.
The next morning there was a buzz of activity as everyone was fed about a gallon of porridge each and the milk supply dwindled rapidly. Little Sam attached himself to Nanny and would not let go of her hand unless it was because she was carrying him or bathing him.
He loved the bath and would have sat in it all day if she had let them.
Later that morning, Alexa let them take turns riding Jenny around the courtyard. She had never seen such joy in children's faces as she did that day, and it made her blood boil to think of them being used so cruelly by their father.
For the moment, the family wanted nothing more than peace and quiet. Sam, held securely in his mother's arms, slept soundly for the rest of the night, and it was ten o'clock before they got out of bed the next day.
* * *
Alexa had been appalled to see the swollen and bruised eye which Donella had received as the result of a crushing blow from Hector's fist. She sent at once for a herbal remedy from Annag, the wise woman.
Annag came at once bearing some ointment of arnica and goose fat. She also gave Donella some willow bark to soothe the pain and valerian to help her sleep. Both of these had to be made into tea.
"Yon woman's in a bad state, mistress," Annag observed. "If ye ask me, it's a good job that man o' hers is away. Wid ye like some milk o' the poppy tae help her sleep an all, mistress? Sometimes ye need somethin' a wee bit stronger, but I hesitate tae give it tae ye – 'tis dangerous stuff."
"If we need it we will send for you, Annag, and you are r
ight," Alexa agreed. "I am worried about the children, especially the littlest one, Sam. He is so nervous, and fears everything."
"Only time and God will cure that, mistress. But love an' kindness help tae. Looks as if ye're givin' him plenty o' that."
Alexa dropped Annag's payment into her hand and closed her fingers over it.
"And a skilled, wise woman too." Alexa smiled.
She saw Annag open her hand and gasp at the amount of silver in it. Alexa was always happy when she made someone else happy.
* * *
When Nanny had taken the small children away for a story that afternoon, Mairi, Moira, Alexa, and Donella sat down to discuss the children and what to do next.
"Mairi." Moira put her hand over the girl's on the table. "How do you feel now?"
"Free, mistress," Mairi replied. "I feel free for the first time ever. I hae never left that hoose before. There is an acre o’ ground around it an' apart from that, I hae never been onywhere but where I go at night. So, I feel free." She smiled at them all, but tears were running down her cheeks.
"Donella," Alexa asked, "do you feel better now?"
"Aye, mistress," Donella replied, smiling, her poor bruised eye nearly closing. "I feel safe. But I wish they wid catch the swine. I didnae want tae marry him in the first place. My faither wanted the match, an' when I told him Hector wis beatin' me, he said that it wis the sin o' Eve that all women had to bear for leadin' Adam astray."
Alexa sighed.
"I have heard that before," she said heavily, then her tone changed. "Enough gloom and doom. We need to figure out a plan for the next few weeks."
Alexa smiled at Mairi.
"You are going to stay here," she added. "Just until the fuss dies down. How would you like that?"
Mairi and Donella hugged each other.
"Mistress," Donella said, "God bless ye – ye are the kindest person I hae ever met!"
"No, I'm not!" Alexa replied smartly. "I am one of the most selfish. But thank you. In the meantime, we'll find out where Hector Sutherland is, and when we have done that, he will hang."
