Legacy of the Mist Clans Box Set (62 page)

“Then we’re stuck. Ye’ve been gone for quite some time. How are ye?”

“I’m well enough, but I have urgent news.”

“Aye?”

“Robert the Bruce slew his rival, Red Comyn.” Gordy took a deep breath and crossed himself. “In Dumfries, before the altar in Greyfriars Church.”

Aidan felt his jaw go slack and blinked at him, absolutely dumbfounded for a moment. “Surely this is some sort of jest.”

“Nay,” he said gravely. “I’ve heard rumor that the pope excommunicated him, but the Bruce confessed his crimes tae Bishop Wishart and was absolved. He travels tae Scone tae be crowned king.”

A dark rage rose within Aidan. The Bruce and his family had much to answer for in Aidan’s opinion, and he realized the cause of the melancholy within him. Aidan had found a certain freedom in this life, but he would never know the happiness his brother had achieved.

“We must tell Ronan,” Aidan growled, trying to shoving the memories away.

“Aye, but there is something else ye should ken.”

“Aye?”

“Ye asked me tae contact the other birds near Cumbria regarding Lia’s heritage.”

Aidan focused on the matter at hand. A foundling, Lia did not know her past. Ronan suspected she had come from a noble family, and Aidan had promised to help him find the truth. But with Longshanks’s war against the Scots concentrating on the east coast, Aidan had few birds in the area north of Cumbria on the west.

“What be the problem?” Aidan asked.

“I have sent several messages but havena heard from either of our birds in the area.”

Aidan scowled. “If I recall correctly, we should have Nevin and the lassie, Raven.” His lips tugged upward. Her name was Rhona, but because of her jet black hair, Aidan had started calling her Raven.

“Aye, and I have heard from neither despite numerous messages. Perhaps I should investigate in person.”

Aidan rubbed his jaw. “Nay, Gordy, I need ye here. Ye shall report directly tae my brother.”

“Pray pardon?”

“I’ll be traveling tae north of Cumbria come the dawn.”

Gordy opened his mouth to object.

“I havena been tae visit our birds there for quite some time. I canna always leave it tae ye.”

Gordy thought for a moment then nodded. “I will remain here.” He hesitated and his stern expression grew even more pensive. “’Tis been awhile since the Hawk has traveled the land minding his nests. Watch yerself out there.”

Aidan barked a laugh and slapped his shoulder. “Come, let us inform my brother of this strange turn of events with the Bruce.” He rose, tripped over Gordy’s foot, slammed his shin into the chest, and snarled a curse.

Glen Trool

Scottish West Coast

K
enna MacLean gritted her teeth and vowed not to wail right along with the tiny bairn one of her maids held. The banded wagon bumped and lurched down the rutted road, jarring Kenna’s bones. But she sat stoically, staring through the small opening that allowed her to see only a little of the men guarding her and her maids. She heard the sharp banter of the men and the monotonous rhythm of the horses’ hooves as they plodded forward. The air about the small party was more like that of a wake than a young maiden being escorted to wed her betrothed.

Kenna’s jaw tightened so much her teeth ached. The bairn continued to wail, his cries the same she uttered in her heart but would never allow the world to hear. Mairi struggled to soothe the infant but to no avail.

“Enough!” a harsh male voice barked outside, thumping his fist against the wagon. “Silence it or I will!”

Kenna, Mairi, and the second maid, Edana, all flinched. Kenna finally looked at Mairi, knowing the captain would make good on his threat. He was her father’s man, and even though she was a daughter of a laird, her word carried no weight.

“Forgive me,” Mairi whispered, tears filling her eyes. “I dinna ken what’s wrong.”

Kenna’s heart went out to her. Mairi was a beautiful girl but appeared so very young to have a child. Her hair was dark brown and probably would have been lovely if she didn’t always wear it in that unflattering braid. Her eyes were light brown but always seemed wide with fear. She jumped at every little thing. She was taller than Kenna by a full head but built like a willow. Unfortunately, her clothing never fit right, always too big for her. When Kenna had met Mairi in the village, begging for food for her tiny bairn, Kenna hadn’t been able to refuse her. Mairi said her husband had been killed in the war, and she had fled, fearing what the English would do to her and her child. Kenna had taken her in as a handmaiden.

Luckily, Kenna’s father only paid attention to his daughter when he was devising a plot to use her to torment someone, or if she was a bit slow serving dinner. He cared even less about handmaidens, and Kenna was extremely grateful for that small boon. As long as Mairi stayed out of his field of view, she was fine.

The wagon lurched again, only increasing little Adam’s wails.

“Let me try,” Kenna said and reached for the child.

Mairi hesitated, her arms automatically tightening around the bairn. Kenna could not quite understand why. After six months of residing under the same roof, Kenna had held little Adam many times, but every time, Mairi paused as if terrified she would never give him back.

Finally, Mairi placed Adam in Kenna’s arms. Kenna gently bounced the child, humming a lullaby that haunted her own memory from a happier time long since passed.

“He’s not hungry, milady,” Mairi said, “nor soiled, and I swaddled him right proper.”

Kenna adjusted the child against her shoulder and patted his back. But she glanced at Mairi curiously. Sometimes, when she was really upset, her words sounded strange, her brogue vanishing altogether. But as always, Kenna dismissed the question. Mairi was a lowlander, and they usually spoke differently from those raised in the highlands. Adam grunted and squirmed then suddenly belched loudly.

Edana laughed softly and Kenna smiled as Adam quieted. Mairi turned bright red and her gaze fell to the floor. “Forgive me, but I didna forget this time.”

“I didna think ye did, Mairi,” Kenna said gently. “Sometimes they don’t clear their bellies right away.”

“I’m sorry tae trouble ye, milady.”

“Dinna vex yerself, ye ken I enjoy helping with the wee bairn.”

Adam, now much happier, began to burble and coo.

Finally, Mairi smiled timidly. “Aye, and I thank ye for it.”

The wagon lurched again, threatening to toss Kenna onto the floor. Mairi caught her shoulders and Adam voiced his displeasure, but thankfully he didn’t start crying again.

Kenna handed the bairn back to her mother. Mairi had told Kenna she had seen twenty seasons, but to Kenna she appeared as if she had barely seen sixteen. But appearances could be deceiving, she knew for a fact. Because Kenna was so small and petite, many thought she was much younger than she actually was.

Still, Kenna couldn’t help but thank the Good Lord she had found the lass when she did. Not only was she young, she had no knowledge of how to care for a seven-month-old infant. About the only thing she really knew how to do was hold the babe to breast. Mairi had told her she lost her mother at a very young age and had no other family. She had also told Kenna a horrifying tale of going into labor alone in her home. She had cried for help, but no one heard her. She went through it all terrified and alone. Only because the old healer came to check on her the next day was she found.

Kenna pushed her thoughts down. “If we reach a decent part of the trail, he might be able tae fall asleep.”

“If they keep hitting every bloody bump in the trail,” Edana said, “I’ll be having words with the captain.”

Kenna fought down a smile. As petite as Kenna was, Edana was the opposite. She was a giant of a woman, big boned and strong as an ox. Kenna had witnessed Edana ball up her meaty fist and knock a man flat on his back. Edana was quite plain, and the young lads often teased her, calling her horse-face, but only when they knew they could escape. If Edana managed to catch one, the lad wouldn’t be able to sit for two days after she took him over her knee. But a more loyal maid Kenna had never known. It was improper for Kenna to think of her maids as friends, but Edana was the closest she had ever known.

And living under her father’s roof, Kenna had no one to call friend but Edana and now Mairi. Hopefully, once she was married to her betrothed, he would allow them to stay on as her maids.

Tears blurred her eyes, and she again looked to the slot of the banded wagon that allowed her to view something of the trail. She didn’t want anyone to see her tears.

The trail finally grew smoother, and little Adam soon fell asleep.

“I hope the roads will improve from here,” Edana said.

“As do I,” Kenna replied, her throat tight. “But not so much, as it speeds our journey.”

Edana sighed then gently patted Kenna’s hand. “Dinna fret so, milady. This should be the happiest day of yer life.”

“Aye,” she said, her voice growing thicker. “I am finally free of the bastard.” A tear managed to escape, and she hastily wiped it away. “I wonder what sport he will adopt now that he canna beat me.”

“I dinna mean tae speak out of turn, but are ye sure ye will be wed this time?” Mairi asked.

At twenty and five, Kenna was growing old to be unwed. Her father lived for scheming and political intrigue. At first, she had hoped as soon as she started her cycle that she would be married off. No such luck as her looks had made her a feast for the eyes, to hear other men tell it.

“My father quickly realized the power he could possess over others by dangling me as the carrot before the proverbial ass, but the older I get, the more that power wanes. This time I witnessed the contract signed.” Kenna paused and shrugged. “If my father has a mind tae slither out of his oath, he will do it.”

“But yer betrothed isna a man tae be trifled with,” Edana said. “Laird Stewart has a powerful reputation.”

If Kenna could have bolted from the wagon, she would have. She swallowed her revulsion and almost choked on it. “His reputation is as black as my father’s. He’s even a pair of years older than my father too.” She shivered. She had met the man once. Laird Stewart’s appearance made Edana’s look like a beautiful swan.

“Is it true?” Mairi whispered, her eyes wide and frightened again.

“What?” Kenna asked.

“His three wives . . . ” she paused and swallowed hard. “All died mysteriously.”

Kenna’s shivering grew into a quake, and she battled the fear growing in power within her. “’Tis said the first died in childbirth, the second fell down the stairs and broke her neck, the third . . . went insane and leapt tae her death from the top of the keep.” She couldn’t help but wonder how long it would be before she stood in the same spot on the keep and followed wife number three.

“Now, now,” Edana said sternly, wrapping her arm around Kenna’s shoulders. “Ye are only scaring yerself, milady. Pay no mind tae the rumors, for that be all they are.”

“Ye be right, Edana,” Kenna said, firmly wiping away the tears gathering on her lashes. “The Almighty kens what I endured after he called my mother home. Surely he wouldna curse me with worse.”

A sharp laugh came from outside the wagon. Kenna jumped and looked through the slot. The captain sneered at her. “Keep telling yerself that, lassie, for in a few days, the devil himself will take ye tae his bed.”

Kenna glared at him then turned away, refusing to look at him again, and praying her stomach wouldn’t rebel completely.

They continued down the trail in silence for about another hour. Kenna’s stomach remained knotted, but she heard Edana’s rumble. It was well past the midday meal, and Kenna certainly needed a break, but as she looked again through the slot, she saw only the rugged terrain of the Highlands and no sign of civilization.

The captain still rode next to the wagon. Very few of her guards had decent armor or mounts, her father unwilling to spend the coin. Most ranged around the party on foot armed with broadswords or axes and no armor to speak of.

“Captain,” she snapped. “Will we be stopping for our midday meal soon?”

He rolled his eyes at her. “We’d be safer continuing on till we reach the inn this evening. But I dinna need spoiled lassies swooning on me.”

Kenna bit back her sharp retort. Swooning indeed! If the sod went ten feet without drinking from his flask, he began to shake. But then she realized he wanted her to accept the challenge so they wouldn’t have to stop. Nay, she would do nothing to speed this journey along. As a matter of fact, she decided then and there to insist on privy breaks as often as she could get away with it.

“Captain, we shall stop in the next glade for our meal.”

He opened his mouth and Kenna knew what was coming.

“Captain, I suggest ye rethink your stance. Ye may be my father’s man, but my father isna here. And if I am tae marry the devil himself, perhaps angering the lass who is tae become Satan’s wife isna the wisest course of action.”

He blinked at her, surprised at her sudden boldness, but his anger quickly returned. He spat in the general direction of the wagon and kicked his horse ahead.

The moment he was out of earshot, Edana cackled gleefully, and even Mairi managed a smile.

“Well, if the thought scared me, maybe I could use it tae scare him too,” Kenna growled, but she felt her lips twitch.

Edana laughed harder and Mairi giggled.

Finally, they stopped in a small glade with a stream trickling through it. The captain opened the door to the wagon but turned his back, not offering to help the women out. Kenna didn’t care. She was so grateful to be out of that bloody box. She nimbly jumped out then turned back to take the bairn from Mairi.

Mairi handed Adam over but hesitated, as if uncertain how to gracefully exit the wagon.

“Ye can jump like I did,” Kenna said.

“Och, Mairi,” Edana said, clucking like an overprotective hen. Without warning, Edana grabbed Mairi’s arms, picked her up as if she were nothing more than a waif, and gently deposited her onto the ground before jumping down behind her. “Goodness, lassie, ye weigh nothing more than yer wee bairn.”

Mairi gave her a shy smile, but it quickly vanished as she looked around and nervously rubbed her hands on her skirts. Her gaze flicked from person to person, then studied the glade, and finally looked up at the bright blue sky above them. She recoiled and swallowed hard.

Kenna feared any little noise might send her diving under the wagon.

Edana reached back into the wagon and pulled out a basket. “I prepared a nice meal for us today. Bread, cheese, and a bit of salted meat.” She paused and lowered her voice to a conspiring whisper. “I also brought some wine, and my dear cousin Jamie gifted us with our own flask of whiskey.”

Kenna looked over her shoulder, fearing one of the men might overhear. If they learned Edana had whiskey, they would abscond with it. But no one even glanced in their direction. Kenna looked to Edana and winked. “Perhaps this journey won’t be as dismal as I originally thought.”

“Damnation, Ross!” the captain barked. “I told ye tae check the tree line north first, then ye can take yer shite behind them and we dinna have tae smell it. Meadhran, get yer hairy arse tae the east by them rocks and sod off over there.”

Kenna rolled her eyes and inclined her head toward the stream a distance away. They found a pleasant place in the grass near it to sit. Kenna continued to hold Adam while Edana placed a blanket on the grass and Mairi opened the basket to set out the food.

At least the day was pleasant enough. For once, the air felt as if it tried to turn toward spring instead of clinging to the icy chill of winter. But as Kenna looked at the trees overhead, she thought it strange she didn’t hear birds singing. In fact, aside from the men cursing and tossing insults at each other, the glade seemed unusually quiet. No rabbits or squirrels to be seen anywhere.

She gave Adam back to Mairi but continued to look around, trying to figure out exactly what bothered her. No doubt the men had offended every living creature within a mile, and anything with a sense of smell had probably run for cover.

She heard the snort of a horse to her left and peered intently into the trees but saw nothing.

Now that made no sense. The wagon horses and the three other mounts were tethered well away from her on her right.

“Milady?” Edana asked watching her. “Will ye not eat?”

“There’s . . . something odd about this place.”

Edana scowled and looked around. “Seems fine tae me.” She discreetly handed her the flask. “Yer nerves are just in knots, milady.”

Kenna looked around again and sighed. “Ye probably be right.” She opened the flask and quickly took a healthy drink, feeling the whiskey warm her gut. “That is better,” she said with a grin and handed it back.