Bent at the waist, she rushed into the woods and past several huts. Behind one, she crawled under a short shelter and grabbed a bag of clothing. The old woman who lived there had never asked why she kept clothes there. She was probably too scared to ask the laird’s daughter and be thrown out.
She lifted a hood to conceal herself and pulled a scarf that she wore around her neck to cover the bottom of her face. Then she bent and pulled a dark cloak over her shoulders and tied it around her neck. The tie would keep the mouth cover and hood in place.
Once she was fully covered from head to toe, she hurried into the forest. Having lived in this place all her life, often spending long days walking and exploring as a child, every area was familiar to her.
Despite the fact the land surrounding the keep was heavily guarded, this portion of the forest rarely was. There was no need, the land leading to it was open, and the only people who lived there were somehow related to the laird.
However, Ava had once caught sight of a man skulking about. He’d not seen her, but she had gotten a clear view of him. When she’d seen Keithen Fraser, it became clear that he was the man she’d spied in the forest. Now, he was to become her betrothed and if he was killing guards, the man would not live long enough to marry her.
She wasn’t keen on marriage but was less than enthusiastic for another war between her clan and one that did not deserve it.
It was only moments later that she heard the grunts and clashing of metal, a sure sign of a fight. Slowly, she made her way past low growing brush until she was able to catch sight of who was fighting.
The scene was mesmerizing, three men surrounded one, each one moving with a mixture of care and fury. One would reach forward with a blade, while another would retreat to keep from being cut.
The one in the middle, who was masked, was undoubtedly Keithen Fraser. Not that she could make out much, but his body and the way he moved was very much like the man she’d seen before.
When two men grappled with Keithen, Ava came up behind the third and hit him on the head with a thick branch. The man fell unconscious to the ground just as she hid behind some bushes.
One of the men fighting Keithen stopped and turned to see what had happened but was tripped by the other two fighting. He scrambled away and moved closer to where Ava was hiding. She waited until he came closer and quickly came from behind the tree, swinging the branch and knocking him out as well. She dropped to the ground with him to keep from being seen.
The other two continued to fight until the lone Mackenzie guard realized his comrades were missing.
The man turned in a circle, calling out their names. Before he caught sight of her, she half-crawled to hide behind a different tree. Keithen had backed away, seeming unsure of what had happened. He did not wish to be out in the open. Ava took advantage and hit him, knocking him to the ground.
At this point, noting he was alone, the last guard yelped and said some sort of prayer before turning and running away.
Rumors of the forest being haunted at night during a full moon helped her that night.
“Who are ye?” Keithen asked, pushing to his feet. He swayed just a bit as she backed away.
“Whoever ye are, I will return and finish what I started.”
Ava purposely deepened her voice, although she doubted it was deep enough to fool him. “Then ye are a fool.”
He didn’t reply but, instead, began walking away. Upon nearing the first man on the ground, he lowered and stabbed him in the chest. Then did the same with the second.
Without looking back, he continued walking away.
It had not been a good idea to interfere. But it was better to have done so than to allow the arrogant man to start a war.
Not wishing to be found there if the guard who’d raced away returned with others, Ava dashed away, running as fast as she could through the forest.
Once she arrived at the widow’s hut, she quickly removed her disguise and tucked it neatly into the bag.
Moments later, she slipped in through the kitchen doorway at the keep.
“Ye should not go that way, lass.” The cook’s head nodded to the doorway. “Yer da and several men are drinking. They’ve drank quite a bit.”
“Thank ye, Maddie,” she said to the older woman. “I’ll find another way in.”
Once Ava was back outside, she hurried down a pathway and to a side door that opened by a staircase.
She hurried up the stairs that were partially hidden from the great room, thanking every saint for her father not seeing her.
Once in her chamber, Ava went to the window and peered out into the night. Her lips curved. It had turned out to be quite an adventure.
“Where is my sister?” Alastair’s voice boomed.
Ava quickly kicked off her shoes and pushed them under her bed. She then grabbed a tome from her bedside and leaped onto the bed.
When he opened the door, he found her reading, with part of her hair down and a comb in her opposite hand.
She looked up as if she’d been shocked out of her reading. “What is happening? Is Mother unwell?”
Alastair entered and went to the window where he peered out just like she’d just done. “I was told ye were out.”
“When?”
“Now. Someone came to yer chamber and did not see ye.” He looked around the room as if sensing her deception. “Men were attacked by a masked assailant.”
Ava put the book down and laughed at him. “Do ye think it was me?”
“Of course not.” Alastair’s expression of annoyance made her want to grin wider.
“Then why are ye coming to seek me?”
“I thought perhaps ye were escaping with whoever it was that attacked our men.”
“If I were to escape with someone, it would not be with a man, but with a group of darkly draped women. According to Father, he is to send me away to a nunnery if I do not do as told.”
Her brother had never been warm, but he was the closest she had to a friend. “Alastair. Who do ye think ye will marry?”
“Whoever brings our clan something worthwhile.” He gave her a one-shouldered shrug. “Personally, I could care less who she is.”
“Would ye not like it to be someone ye could grow to care for?”
This time, he looked at her as if she’d gone mad. “Ye have known me all my life. Do ye really think I could grow to care for anyone?”
Her chest constricted, and she fought to swallow. “Does this mean ye could never care for me?”
Although she knew her relatives were hard people, it was unfathomable that they truly had no feelings. Alastair neared and touched the tip of her nose with his index finger. “I will always care for ye, dear sister.”
The words rang hollow. It was as if he had to fight to speak kindness. But when she looked up, there was warmth in his gaze.
“I will not run off with a strange man then. I promise.”
Alastair looked back out to the night sky. “I will find whoever it is attacking my guards and kill him.”
***
Her horse was swift, and Ava couldn’t hold back laughter when her hair fastenings gave way allowing her tresses to fly around her head. Although the clouds gathered threatening rain, in the moment, she couldn’t care less if it stormed.
After managing to slip away unseen, she relished the temporary freedom that would soon be taken from her. She’d not go far, just to the border of her family’s lands to the neighboring Chisholm lands. In a small village not too far away, there was a woman who made the most wonderful sweet tarts. Once she purchased a few, she’d eat them all on the ride back.
The only danger riding alone was the proximity to the Fraser land border.
It didn’t bother her as she’d gone many times without incident, and as long as she rode fast, the entire trip would not take more than a few hours. That morning, her mother had claimed to feel ill and wished to spend the day in bed. It was common knowledge that the mysterious illnesses were caused by pa
rtaking in too many honeyed meads the night before.
Her father and brother were also gone that day to visit her uncle, who’d requested their presence. No doubt, he wished to know the outcome of the alliance between her father and the Fraser.
Ava pushed the thoughts away. What mattered to her was an entire day of freedom to do as she wished.
When she entered the small bakery, no one took notice of the woman dressed in dour clothes wearing a simple kerchief and hunched under a shawl. Finally, when the other customers were gone, she was the only one left. Her mouth watered while watching the woman wrapping the tarts with care.
“Ye should send a messenger to pick them up for ye, Mistress Ava,” the woman whispered. “One day, ye will get caught and yer father will not be kind.”
Ava shrugged. “He will not find out. Besides, I am to be married and sent away soon. That is why I wish to take extras today. It is doubtful I will be able to get away again.” At the words, her bottom lip trembled, and she bit it to keep from looking childish.
“If ye tell me yer wedding day, I will be happy to send tarts,” the kind woman said, patting Ava’s hand with her own weathered one.
It made her heart leap with joy. “I will send a messenger with coin. Thank ye.”
“Nonsense, it will be my gift.”
Ava walked out feeling better. She’d missed the occasional escapes for the sweet fruit tarts.
On the ride back, the weather became much cooler, so Ava urger her horse to a faster trot. There were still several hours before she would arrive back at Mackenzie Keep and she wondered if perhaps a thicker cloak would have helped.
In the distance, three horsemen appeared, and she narrowed her eyes in an effort to see them better. Since the village fell under Laird Chisholm’s control, the men could be from that clan or hers. There was also the possibility that they were Frasers.
She continued on, thankful she’d plaited her hair and hoped that, from a distance, she would not be recognizable.
Unfortunately, the riders seemed to be in a hurry and soon caught up to her. Just as they rode past, one of them turned to look at her. It was Keithen Fraser.
Her blood went cold, and she shoved the tart she was about to eat back into the sack.
Leaving the other two riders, he rode closer, his green eyes meeting hers. “Why are ye out here, unescorted?”
“I do not have to answer to ye.” Ava lifted her chin. “Be on yer way.” She made a shooing motion with her hand.
The monster of a beast he rode pawed at the ground. It was either attempting to intimidate her or get her mare’s attention. Ava wasn’t sure which.
“Why are ye alone?” Keithen looked from her to the direction of her home. “These are dangerous times.”
“Aye, I know.” She arched an eyebrow, “Some lunatic is killing our guardsmen.”
His nostrils flared and eyes narrowed. “Which proves why ye should not be riding alone.”
Not wishing to continue the conversation, she urged the mare to continue toward her home. Unfortunately, the stubborn man came alongside her. “I will escort ye halfway. I am sure guards will be out searching for ye.”
“They are not.”
He gave her an unbelieving glance and then continued looking forward. “Where did ye go?”
Was he attempting a conversation? “I went to the village to get fruit tarts.”
“Tarts?”
“Yes.”
“Why are women so strong-willed? This is something my sister would do.”
“I met yer sister. I liked her.”
They rode in silence for a bit, and she considered that being around Keithen was not unpleasant. Nonetheless, the man did not deserve to marry someone who would trick him and could lead him to death. “Ye should not marry me.”
It surprised her when he nodded. “I agree.”
“But ye are?”
“By my honor, I pledged fealty and obedience to my father and laird. Therefore, I must.”
Men and their pledges. Ava wanted to roll her eyes.
“I must thank ye for what ye did for the woman who was brought as a prisoner along with my mother,” he said.
It had been horrible to find the poor woman who’d been ravaged and beaten until she was unconscious by the guardsmen. She’d brought several men with her to rescue the woman from their clutches after hearing what they did. Ava had yet to get rid of the images and the many bruises she’d seen when helping to clean the woman’s tattered body.
“How does she fare?”
When she looked to him, his face was like stone. “She will never fully recover.”
“Ye have feelings for her?” Ava wasn’t sure why she asked the question, other than it would matter if they did get married. Better to know if her husband was already involved with another woman.
“Catriona and I grew up together. She is like a sister to me.”
Her heart broke for not only the woman, but for Keithen having to witness his lifelong friend so battered and bruised. “I can only offer my regret for what happened…”
“Do not offer something that cannot undo what happened. Yer father ordered her given to those bastards as if she were worthless.”
“I had nothing to do with it. Do ye take responsibility for what yer own father does?”
He reached over and yanked on her horse’s reins, bringing it to a stop. His eyes bored into hers. “Understand one thing, Ava Mackenzie,” he said as his lips twisted in distaste at stating her name. “My father would never commit the atrocities yer father seems to thrive upon.”
It was hard to swallow due to the constriction in her throat. There was nothing she could say because, for a long time, she knew everyone either hated or feared her family.
Ava stared at the man that she was to marry and could only see loathing in his eyes. There had to be something she could do to get out of the marriage.
“Release my horse,” she uttered. “And be gone from me.”
Surprisingly, he did. After turning his horse away, he urged his mount to a gallop.
Once she neared the keep, Ava slowed down and looked over her shoulder, almost expecting to see Keithen following her. The look of disgust and pure hatred he’d given her made Ava shiver with apprehension. Would he be cruel and unjust when they married?
Already, she expected the worst at going to live with Clan Fraser. What was her father thinking sending her to live among people they’d just recently gone to battle with? The Mackenzie warriors had killed many of their people. He was sending her into a lion’s den.
Not caring that Lady Fraser was supposedly ill, she stormed into her mother’s chamber and pulled back the curtains.
“I must speak to ye,” she announced, turning to the bed.
Her mother glowered at her. “Whatever it is that has ye going mad is about to get ye kicked out of my chambers.”
Ava ignored her. “Do ye realized Father is sending me to live with people that hate us? Do ye really expect me to live long enough to spy for him? They will no doubt poison my first meal.”
Her mother pushed up to a sitting position. “Ye have always been much more like my sister. Much too sensitive. They will do the opposite. They’ll make sure ye are protected so as not to earn yer father’s ire.”
“I saw Keithen Fraser today. I rode to the village on Chisholm lands.”
Instead of being upset at her going off without an escort or permission, her mother sighed. “Let me guess, it was a less than friendly exchange.”
“Does it not bother ye that I will live with people that hate me?” A tightness in her chest made Ava inhale sharply. “Mother, I am being sent away to a place where I will live in misery.”
When her mother patted the bed indicating that she should sit, Ava was apprehensive, but she sat.
“As Mackenzies, we all have a heavy burden to carry. We are strong people who adapt and change in order to protect ourselves. I expect that after ye are there for a spell, ye will learn the best way to
live among them.”
Something about the sound of her mother’s tone gave her pause. Had her mother been different when she arrived at Mackenzie Keep at the age of ten and six? Her mother had grown up in another Clan Mackenzie, from the northern region. Since both the clans were connected, as far as Ava knew, her mother had been immediately accepted. Had her mother always been so cold and distant?
Prompted by the notion, she asked the question that came to mind. “Mother, did ye change upon marrying Father?”
There was a faraway look in her mother’s gaze as she directed it toward the window. “Like most young lasses, I wished to live with my family longer. Once I caught yer father’s eye, there was nothing that could be done. I was obedient to my father and married.”
Her mother’s countenance hardened once again. “Ava, ye must be obedient to yer father and then to yer husband. Do yer best, appear to care about those who surround ye. Pleasure yer husband well, so that he will become protective of ye.”
Appear to care.
Is that what her mother thought she did? Because in Ava’s opinion she’d never once been kind to others, except maybe when her family visited.
Disheartened, she left her mother’s chamber and went to her own. There was little to do until last meal and, as usual, her heart felt as heavy as the air inside Mackenzie Keep.
When entering her chamber, she grabbed several items and articles of clothing that were serviceable.
If she was to escape, it had to be that night while her father and brother were gone. Otherwise, another opportunity would be scarce.
Chapter Five
Keithen woke with a start.
After a long day of patrolling, he’d been exhausted when he went to bed. He’d planned to sleep for a few hours before heading out to the Mackenzie lands. The sunlight through the window told him it was morning and he’d overslept.
A Fearless Rebel (Clan Ross Book 5) Page 4
