by Barbara Bard
Denholm stood, limping and readying his sword as the rider took aim with his bow and arrow. Denholm charged—but he was hit in the sternum with a clean blow by the arrow and fell to his knees as the rider attempted to fire another.
Fallen but not dead, Denholm rushed the man, as another arrow was released and planted in his stomach, the last arrow the rider was able to let off as Denholm buried the blade of his broadsword in the man’s chest and watched the life fleet from his eyes.
Denholm fell onto his back, his breathing becoming shallower as small ribbons of blood began to pour from the wounds. “Gavina,” he said weakly. “Gavina…”
A hundred yards away, Benson, still pursuing the other rider, could hear Gavina’s cries off in the distance as her and the rider turned into but a sliver of an outline off in the distance. The rider was fast, faster than Benson was able to keep up with.
Eventually, the rider took off and vanished to the east, Benson coming to a full stop and staring on in horror as he realized he had failed to rescue his Lady’s youngest sibling.
Benson turned his horse, riding back toward the lookout point where Denholm began breathing his last gasps of air.
“Denholm!” Benson said, falling to Denholm’ side. “They are gone! They took her! They took Gavina! I lost the chase! God, please forgive me!”
Denholm, a warm sensation now overcoming him, grabbed the man by his arm and looked him square in the eye. “Bring…her…back…”
Benson nodded repeatedly. “I will, Denholm! I will!”
Denholm pulled him in close. “Trust…Finlay Baird…He…He is a good man…”
Benson held Denholm close as Denholm then drew one final breath, released it, and collapsed. Benson wept for a moment before he mounted his horse and returned to the village, greeted by Finlay and Isla at the front gate before telling them every detail of what had transpired.
Isla looked sick with fear, practically collapsing into Finlay’s arm as she looked upon him pleadingly for answers.
“We will find her,” Finlay assured her. “We will. We must.”
Tears streamed down her face. “My brother,” she wept. “He…He is gone!”
Finlay pulled her in close as the group of clan members circled around them with concern.
“I ken,” he said, pressing his cheek close to hers. “I ken.”
They held the moment for a long while as Isla wept. Eventually, her sadness transformed into anger, and she wiped the tears from her eyes as she stood up and charged through the crowd like the parting of the Red Sea and stormed into Riley’s quarters.
“We must abandon this plan,” she said.
Riley squinted. “Me lady?”
“Ye heard me. We must mount a rescue. Two bastard riders of Lord Henry have taken me sister.”
Riley held up his hands. “Me lady—”
“Naw,” she protested, alternating her gaze between Finlay and Riley.
“This plan is naw mair. I need every able-bodied man or woman from both of our clan tae volunteer. The rest can ride ahead tae the final destination.”
She turned to Finlay. “Have Benson’s wounds tended tae. We will then retrieve me brother’s body and set about ending this once and fer all.”
Isla stormed out of Riley’s quarters, Finlay following hot on her heels as she marched toward her horse and began preparing it to ride.
“Me lady—” Finlay offered up in protest.
“Naw,” she said. “Enough is enough. Gather what men ye can. Lord Henry’s life ends tonight.”
“We must rally. We must form a plan.”
“Every second that is wasted brings Gavina closer tae death. I will nae stand fer this. I dinnae care any longer…”
A group of men accompanied by three women approached with haste.
“Me lady,” one of the women said. “We hae heard of what transpired. We will ride with ye.”
“We move noo,” Isla said. “Grab what weapons ye can. We shall ride east and nae stop until we hae retrieved me sister.” Finlay pulled her aside. “Dinnae offer up protest tae me.”
“I will do naw such thing,” Finlay said. “I will ride with ye. I will abandon the original plan tae find Gavina. But me lady, please think this through. We cannae take Lord Henry head on. Ye ken this. Let us find him and form a plan.”
Isla took a breath and a moment to calm herself. Finlay was right. She knew it to be true. But her rage and her resentment had finally gotten the better of her, and the time had come to bring the justice that was long overdue to Lord Henry.
She looked at Finlay and nodded.
“We will burn me brother’s body,” she said. “We will have Benson help us track where they went, and then we shall pursue them with all of our might.”
A nod. “Aye, me lady.”
“As soon as we can,” Riley chimed in, “we will send more riders tae reinforce ye. I will ride with them myself. Ye have my support, Lady Isla.”
Moments later, a group of twelve riders mounted their horses and set about toward the east with Benson leading the way After taking a moment to grieve, the bodies were removed and burned, and the Sassenach archer who had killed them was discarded in a ditch as Benson then pointed to the east in the direction the rider who had taken Gavina had fled to.
“We ride,” Isla said. “And we dinnae stop until we retrieve me sister.”
Chapter 24
The rider who had taken Gavina arrived back at Lord Henry’s camp a half day after the assault that occurred just outside Riley’s village. It did not bother Lord Henry in the slightest that another one of his men had perished when he saw Gavina being brought to him kicking and screaming in protest.
“Well done, good man,” Lord Henry said as the rider bound Gavina’s hands and tossed her in a corner of his tent.
Gavina cowered and turned away as Lord Henry approached her, propping down on one knee and forcing a paternal tone. “Are you all right, young one?”
Gavina said nothing as she stifled her tears and shut her eyelids as tight as possible.
“Oh, do not fret,” Lord Henry said. “All is well, child.”
He stood up and approached Stephen, standing at the entrance to the tent.
“A splendid notion it was to send out a rider early,” he said. “Now we have leverage.”
A nod from Stephen. “I felt that the Highlanders might have a ploy under the sleeve. We’ve taken the proper action towards securing our victory.”
He gestured to Gavina. “They will now come to us. They will walk themselves right to their own demise.”
“We divided their numbers. We’ve put a hindrance in their plans.”
He cast a look at Gavina and stepped toward her.
“And perhaps this young lass will know more in detail about their plans.”
He stooped next to her, touching her lightly on the back before Gavina turned around and slapped his hand violently away.
“Aw,” he said. “That’s the spirit. You are much like your sister, little one.”
“I may be little,” Gavina said through tears, “but I will kill ye all the same!”
“A fighting spirit you have, but young one…” he gripped her arm tight, “understand that you are now under my control. You will do my bidding as I see fit. If you struggle, should you disobey me at any time—I will slit your throat and leave your body for your sister to find.”
The tears were now uncontrollable for Gavina. “Ye are a monster,” she said through hushed tones.
Lord Henry shrugged and nodded. “Yes. Yes, I am, my dear little lass.”
He then shoved her into a corner, ordered one of his men to stand guard, and walked with Stephen up to the rider that had brought Gavina back to the camp.
“My lord,” the rider said with a bow. “I had scouted the camp with the other rider for only a brief moment. We were attempting to get a better view of the clan’s numbers and what exactly they were planning when another scouting party was approaching. I decided that the
best course of action was to strike. If I have failed you, my lord, for that I greatly apologize.”
Lord Henry smiled and placed his hands on the man’s shoulders.
“I am quite far from upset, my dear man,” he said. “You have brought me the sister of Lady Isla. I see this as a fortuitous moment indeed! Now, tell me what you saw. And in regard to the death of my man, well…” he shrugged, “I guess I could care less!”
“Indeed, my Lord,” the rider said. “We were able to make out a strong number of clan members in that village that belongs to Lord Riley.”
Lord Henry held up a finger. “Lord Riley stole those lands. And if it is all the same to everyone here, I would prefer that we stop addressing these Highlander savages with titles of royalty. We do not put silk on beasts from where I hail from.”
“Yes, my Lord. As I was saying, Riley and Isla’s clan were attempting to mount some kind of offensive. I believe that tonight’s events will have put them in a frenzied state. I have no doubt that they will abandon their original plan and must be searching for us as we speak.”
“Let them!” Lord Henry said with much enthusiasm. “As my good man Stephen has stated, they will probably arrive by this evening or tomorrow morning. We have more than enough men on hand to dispatch of all of them.”
“Very good, my lord. But we must not underestimate them. When these savage Highlanders are distraught, they attack with a fury like no other.”
Lord Henry scowled and shook his head. “Are you questioning my abilities, good sir?”
The rider shook his head with fear. “No, my lord, no. I have the upmost faith in your abilities.”
He bowed as low as he could to show his contrition, a man who had witnessed the lord in front of him murder his own father and knew that the Sassenach royalty would kill him without a second’s hesitation.
“Excellent,” Lord Henry said. “Then ready the men. Have multiple patrols set in place and scouts set on either side of the camp. We shall await the arrival of the Highlanders and dispatch of them swiftly and without hesitation.”
The rider dispersed and set about organizing the men as Stephen followed Lord Henry back into his tent. Gavina was in the corner, biting on her fist and feeling depleted from the ride and the amount of weeping she had done.
“What of her?” Stephen inquired. “Should we feed her?”
Lord Henry shook his head. “Treat her like any other prisoner. She will not be long for this world anyway.”
Gavina, her eyes filled with fire, stared at Lord Henry with a defiant and rage-filled expression.
“I’d like tae see ye try, ye filthy Sassenach scum!”
Lord Henry couldn’t help but laugh and see glimpses of Isla in Gavina’s eyes as he sucked air through his yellow teeth and said: “This shall be an interesting event to behold. An interesting event indeed.”
***
Isla, Finlay, and the twelve riders rode for six hours as the sun rose in the East. They were tired, fatigued, with the lack of rest in the past twenty-four hours finally catching up to them.
“We should rest,” Finlay said, riding next to her. “Three hours at the maist, then we can move again.”
After another mile, Isla ordered the group of twelve to cease the ride. A temporary camp was set up, a fire was pitched, and everyone kept a watchful eye on their surroundings as everyone slept in shifts.
“How,” Isla said, shaking her head and cozied next to Finlay, the two of them seated just outside the view of the others. “How did they ken where we were? Riley said that Lord Henry’s men were two days out.”
“It doesn’ae matter,” Finlay said. “And Lord Henry is constantly sending out scouts throughout the area. Many of his men have died as a result.”
She closed her eyes. “I allowed this tae happen.”
Finlay tucked his finger under her chin and delicately tilted up Isla’s gaze to meet his own.
“It was nae yer fault. We are living in troubled times. And I am certain that Lord Henry grows more desperate with his tactics by the hour.”
Isla nodded her head like it was filled with a heavy weight, her eyes on the fire in front of them, the twisting flames lighting up her already frenzied demeanor.
“This,” she said, “is by fae the most erroneous mistake that he has made.”
“I agree.”
They listened to the sounds of the flames crackle in front of them, Isla eventually resting her head on Finlay’s shoulder as she looked up at the stars above.
“I am sorry,” she said. “Fer what I have put ye through.”
Finlay shook his head and kissed the top of hers.
“Naw mair apologies, me lady. Ye were just uncertain of how tae feel. Given the circumstances, it is mair than understandable.”
“I just dinnae ken how life can always be this way…” she saw the twinkling of the stars glistening like gems in the black of night, thoughts of her past, present, and future scattered as far and as wide as all the gems that seemed to be winking right back at her.
“I always thought since I was a child that one day I would awaken and all would be right, that all would make sense.” She snickered.
“Me mother and father always told me that I was waiting fer some kind of message or prophesy or, I dinnae, certainty tae come along and tell me what I needed tae ken, that I was always looking at the stars and awaiting a day that would never come.”
“What dae ye mean?”
“I always thought that one day I would be free from affliction, free of feeling scared or unsure.”
She hung her head.
“I am now starting tae understand that I just simply wanted control over things I cannae control. I wanted control over everything in my life…”
Finlay ran his fingers through her hair. It was inspiring to see a woman who was so strong, both physically and emotionally, to still have moments were her guard could be lowered and the softer parts of her soul could be exposed. It was a rarity in these lands and during that time.
“Ye are nae alone, me lady,” he cooed. “Ye and I and maist of the people here are one and the same.”
Isla smiled and flattened her palm, pressing it against Finlay’s bearded cheek and staring lovingly into his eyes.
“I was wrong,” she said. “I was wrong tae sit her and deny how I felt about ye, as inane as it may be that I feel the way I feel.”
“It is nae a crazed thought, my love. Love is love. Sometimes it grows and builds like a fire, taking its time to kindle and finally fulfill its destiny. Other times it strikes like a bolt of lightning, in all of an instant without warning or time to prepare.”
“Is that what we are, Finlay Baird? A bolt of lightning?”
He smiled, pressed his forehead to hers, and then whispered in her ear. “Wait until we have time alone and I will show ye…”
Isla stifled her laughter with the back of her hand and went back to becoming lost in the moment with Finlay.
“Nae a worse time could arrive fae this,” she said. “But I no longer want tae dwell on it. I dinnae want tae lose ye before it was tae late tae confess how I felt.”
“Which is why I told ye I loved ye, my love. I dinnae want tae let any more time pass as well.”
Isla held Finlay close, burying her head in his chest and allowing herself to become enthralled in his warmth against the nighttime chill.
“I am strong,” she said, “but I can admit when there are moments when I am weak.”
She looked up at him, desperate to be soothed.
“Promise me,” she said. “Promise that we will find her, that we can end this and be happy. Together. Promise me that, Finlay Baird. Tell me that ye love me and that this will all be over soon.”
Finlay took her hand into his, tight but with a delicate grip as he placed his lips on hers, and said: “I love ye, Isla. And I promise, no matter what I hae tae dae, that ye and I will happy and together. I promise ye with all me being that this will all be over soon.”
Isla then wept briefly with joy, kissed Finlay on the cheek, and said: “I love ye, Finlay Baird.”
Wiping the tears from her eyes and knowing that they had but one hour left before they needed to move, replied: “I ken.”
Chapter 25