“Then as I see it,” Joanna began, “ye have three options. The first step is that ye have to run away. Ye have to get out of this place if ye’re going to be with Richard. But the question, once ye’re gone from here, is where do ye go?
“Ye can try to find Richard, and undoubtedly get in a mess of trouble as ye search. Or ye can ride north. Once there, ye have the option of going to Colla or to Grace. Ye ken one of them will help ye find Richard safely. Grace will give ye wisdom in finding him and Colla will give ye boldness. It’s yer choice how ye do it.”
Adeline sat for a moment, unsure what option would be best. The boldness of Colla or the wisdom of Grace? Both options were tempting. None was more tempting than the option of going straight to Richard, danger be damned.
“Oh I can see yer silly brain working itself into a tizzy of temptation. Fine, go, find him. If ye think that’s the best choice, then who’m I to warn ye against it?” Joanna asked, letting go of all her warnings.
“I ken that ye’re right, Joanna, but ye cannae deny that I’m not as wise as Grace. And I’ll not claim to be bold as Colla, but right now, I’m more desperate than either of the two ever was. So I’ve no choice except to ride to Richard’s camp and find him,” Adeline decided.
“Then that’s what ye’ll do,” Joanna said.
“There is, however, the small matter of how I’m to get out of the castle…” Adeline said.
“Aye, and that’s not going to be easy. What are ye thinking?” Joanna asked.
“Well, I’ve got to get past the guards somehow. But those brutes are always up and alert. They never change over without ensuring their space is covered. There’s very little option when ye think about it. I’m not quite certain. Maybe out me window? But that’s a terrifying thought,” Adeline brainstormed.
“Ha! Out yer window?” Joanna scoffed.
“Do ye have any better ideas?” Adeline barked harshly, embarrassed that her ideas were so pitiful.
“As a matter of fact, I do,” Joanna answered with a mischievous smirk.
“Oh? Then why’ve ye been holding out on me this whole time?” Adeline asked with a gentle laugh. “What are ye thinking?”
“Adeline, me lass. What is it that I do best?” Joanna asked.
“Frustrate me?” Adeline said, trying to contain her smile.
Joanna rolled her eyes. “Aye, that and medicine.”
“So what, ye’re going to heal them? Ye really think that will win me freedom?”
“I’m not going to heal them, ye fool. I’m going to drug them. I’ll put them all to sleep. Ye ken the way they look at me. If, one by one, I go and flirt with a glass of wine, what do ye think they’ll do but drink it?” Joanna asked.
“Terribly arrogant of yerself, aren’t ye?” Adeline replied dryly.
“Come now, the lads who guard the back way, ye ken what they’re like. It’s not as great a risk to the castle, a weak spot, so they put those silly boys on guard. They’re easy to manipulate. And in the morning, they will just think the wine was too strong. It’s simply enough,” Joanna declared, offended by Adeline’s remark.
“Alright then, let’s do it. I trust ye to make it happen tonight,” Adeline decided.
“Good. And I’ll make sure to get the stable hand as well. He’s even easier than the young guards. Too bad Beiste is gone. Our horses will probably vanish before ye ken it any time a pretty girl walks by,” Joanna said.
“Aye, well if ye’re certain that it’ll work, ye ken I’m ready for it. I have to do all I can to get to Richard and avoid being wed to Camry. I cannae thank ye enough for being willing to do all this for me. Truly, Joanna, it means the world,” Adeline said, softening her words and meaning them with all her heart.
Joanna looked slightly uncomfortable and squinted out the window again.
* * *
Night had fallen. Adeline was wrapped up well, even though spring had come. She couldn’t allow herself to get caught in the cold of the night.
Waiting for Joanna’s signal, Adeline remained comfortable in her room, with a small bag to hold a few of her belongings so she could stay fresh and clean on her journey.
These journeys had been growing so frequent that she was nearly used to them now. Grand escapes and dreams of being in Richard’s arms felt more real now than life in the castle.
She desperately hoped that she would soon be in Richard’s arms. Somehow she would stealthily find her way into the camp and hide in his tent until he came in and found her.
That was, if she could figure out which tent was his.
The reality of her mission was growing in Adeline’s mind and she was beginning to feel foolish. It wasn’t too late; she could easily change her plan and head for Colla or Grace. They lived close to one another, so she could even enlist the help of both of them.
Even as she considered this, Adeline knew she would remain true to her original plan. She needed Richard immediately. She could not go on being far from him. It was worth the risk she had not allowed him to take.
Just then, a knock came on her bedroom door. Adeline was relieved that it was Joanna, with a satisfied smile set across her pale face.
“Ye have to admit, I’m rather excellent. In fact, me talents arnae to be compared with any other,” she said with great pride.
“I never did say otherwise,” Adeline replied with a smile of her own.
It had worked. The guards and the stable boy were all asleep and Joanna promised that they would remain so for at least another two hours.
It would surely not take Adeline a full two hours to make her escape. She had made herself ready for just this moment and it would be a breeze now to make her way out the back door and to the stable before getting to the woods and beyond.
“I cannae thank ye enough,” Adeline said, giving Joanna a comforting hug.
She could feel her abrasive friend stiffen in her arms, unused to such warmth. However, Adeline didn’t care, her gratitude was more than she was able to express.
“Be safe,” Joanna instructed casually, as Adeline gave hr one last smile and made her way out of the room.
She quietly rushed, with her bag in tow, down the stairs and through the back door, where she saw the guards sleeping peacefully. It drew a smile to her lips, knowing that those fools had been intrigued by the elusive and harsh beauty that was Joanna. To everyone, she was a mystery.
Adeline reached the stables easily and saw the stable boy also, resting with a hint of a smile on his face.
Finding her mare, Adeline quickly saddled her and mounted before cautiously exiting the stable. There would be guards that Joanna had not drugged. They did not cover this area of the castle, but it didn’t mean they wouldn’t see her crossing the yard. She would have to be swift.
With a deep breath and a peak at the castle, Adeline kicked at the flank and shot straight into the dark cover of the forest.
And Unexpected Battle And A Grave Injury
“Ride on, there’s no need for you to stay while I track them,” Richard instructed to Mr. Hudson and the rest of the men. Under the pretense of seeking out the mutineers, Richard had decided he might get a little bit of alone time if he sent away his men.
“Are you certain, Lieutenant? What if you encounter them?” Mr. Hudson asked under his breath, knowing Richard well enough to realize that his master was being senseless in his need to think.
“Then I will fight them, as I have been well-trained to do,” Richard replied casually, as if completely unconcerned by all possible risk.
Mr. Hudson nodded in obedience, although Richard could see that the man was clearly uncomfortable with the arrangement.
They were close to Fort Amswold, but Richard thought he might take the rest of the day simply to linger and be alone with his thoughts before facing Major Dashfield, who would surely be dissatisfied by Richard’s decision to remain behind.
However, Richard could not take his mind of Adeline and his frustration with the fact that he had chosen to let
her go.
In the end, Richard agreed to allow a small team to remain with him, just in case they did run into trouble. However, he insisted that he be allowed to remain distant from them to keep guard.
With a sigh, Mr. Hudson had agreed and made his way back toward Fort Amswold with the other men.
Richard knew he was being reckless, but his frustrations were too much for him to think through his options. He had reread Adeline’s letter. He had seen her words about still being in love with him, he had sensed the desperation she felt to restore their love and undo what she had done.
However, he had made a decision. He had chosen to let her be. He would release her from his life and let her live her own freely. She was better off with her own people. She was happier there. She was happier there than she could be with him. He had to accept the truth of that.
His dreams of Adeline were too strong though, so all Richard could do was sit with his regret. He wished with all his heart that he had made a different choice, just as it seemed Adeline wished she had as well. The two of them were a fine pair, with all their constant personal struggles.
Yet he knew that she would be worth it, even now, if he chose to pursue her once more. If. That small word that held so much possibility…
Richard heard a faint sound ahead. His first thought was that perhaps one of his men had gone off on his own to relieve himself, but it wouldn’t make sense. The men were all behind him. They would not come toward him to do their business.
Then the sounds became louder, closer. There were multiple men. Richard couldn’t guess exactly how many, but it was only a handful, he thought.
Perhaps he had come upon the mutineers after all.
Richard considered his next move for only a moment. He should turn back, gather his men, form a circle around the mutineers, and take them into custody.
However, Richard was not in the mood for such things.
He charged forward alone, after only a moment hearing his soldiers calling for him. He’d gotten a head start.
Within seconds it seemed, he was upon the mutinous rebels. One man took aim and fired his gun, missing Richard by only a fraction.
Richard took aim with his own gun and fired back, right into the chest of one of the men, who fell from his horse to his death.
Dodging two more bullets by mere chance, Richard also missed a few more shots. Soon his men were upon him and the mutineers. Of the four remaining, three immediately surrendered, seeing that they were outnumbered, however slight it was.
Unwilling to let the other go, Richard continued to ride after him into the clearing. He charged forward, doing all he could to capture the rebel.
The man, with his swollen, ugly face, turned to look back. Richard saw his intentions in his eyes before they reached his hand.
The man brought up his pistol, took lazy aim, and fired.
Ready for the shot, Richard pulled his trigger in the same moment.
Richard cried out in pain that emanated from his leg just as the rebel fell in a slump from his mount, leaving his horse to ride away freely.
Weak and unable to pull the reins in the midst of the shock, Richard, too, fell from his horse. The violence of the fall knocked what little breath he had from his lungs.
His steed, lonely without a rider, did not get far before slowing his pace and coming back to his master.
Richard writhed upon the ground in his agony, unsure of what to do. His men were still behind in the woods, they had not yet made it through to the clearing where he knew they would find him. He was desperate for them to come, feeling that his bone must be shattered.
For a brief moment, Richard felt all consciousness drift from him, until shouts from his men drew nearer to where he had fallen.
“Lieutenant!” called a man named Hollis, as he kneeled above Richard. The man’s face was blurry in Richard’s eyes, but he could still hear Hollis’ voice over his own gasping breath.
“He’s down! We have to get him to the nearest surgical tent,” Hollis said to the other men as they road closer.
Richard’s vision was starting to clear from the pain and the shock of the fall. He saw that the three mutineers were bound together and being made to walk while tied between the saddles of two of his men. Those riders would have to maintain pace with the rebels as they walked.
However, the other four men in Richard’s troop were free to do as they pleased. It was decided then that two of them would stay with the others to guard the rebels while two of the men rushed Richard to Fort Amswold for surgery. His leg was in a dire situation, but he was unable to even ask about his condition.
Speaking caused far too much agony for him.
Richard’s mind was filled with the agony he was in, but it was only trumped by the knowledge that if he ended up being unable to recover, he would never find Adeline again to tell her how sorry he was and how dearly he loved her. She would live her whole life believing he had given up.
He was certain that he could not now. He had to push through this injury, had to fight off all infection, had to avoid anything that could make it worse. He would find her, tell her he loved her, and do all he could to prevent her from ever marrying Camry.
However, how could he prevent the marriage when he would be stuck in recovery? There was no way for him to get to Dunmore now.
Richard’s mind continued to drift in and out of consciousness from the pain. At one point, he woke to find himself in the surgical tent, being given an assortment of elixirs to drink in hopes that he would either remain unconscious or at least not feel the pain that the surgery would cause.
He briefly was aware of his own screaming and the man standing over him with a blade. Then he was lost to the world again.
When he came to, Richard could see the blood all around him. His own blood. He saw the wrapping of his leg. It was an odd shape. It did not seem like a man’s leg. It was still there in all its length, just with some sort of a gaping hole underneath all those wrappings.
When he woke again, Richard was in the wounded tent. There were another eight men, all of whom had a variety of injuries. Richard counted himself lucky when he saw that five of the men were now amputees. He was grateful that he had not lost a limb, although he knew each of those men to be strong and fully capable of adapting to life without an arm or a leg.
After a time, Mr. Hudson came in and Richard was able to remain awake long enough to look at his friend, and wait for him to speak.
“What led you to doing something as daft as running after them alone?” Mr. Hudson asked.
“You should know by now that when I am missing her, I am daft enough to wreak any havoc,” Richard said painfully, through a throat sore with disuse.
“Oh good heavens, over her again? Tell me, what is it all about now?” Mr. Hudson asked.
“Do I really need to have this discussion with you?” Richard asked in frustration, adjusting himself on the bed to try and get comfortable.
“Indeed you do, Richard. You have to understand something here. You are gravely injured. You will be lucky if you are ever able to walk on that leg of yours again without a crutch. Your days of using battle for distraction have come to an end,” Mr. Hudson informed him, bearing down the whole truth of the matter on Richard.
“Wh-what do you mean?” Richard asked.
“I mean that you had better stop being daft. It is time for you to let go of your identity as a soldier. You will not be one much longer. But you will still have an opportunity to be a husband.
“Did the girl not tell you that she loves you?” Mr. Hudson asked.
“Yes, she did. But she didn’t come when I went to rescue her. So it must not be true. She sent me off instead of coming along. Clearly she does not truly love me,” he reasoned.
“Don’t be foolish. You should have believed her. I’m sure she had her reasons for not joining you when you wished. But she clearly loves you and you need to trust in that. And that must be your new focus. Your new battle is finding h
er and believing with all your heart that she desires you as greatly as you desire her,” Mr. Hudson said wisely.
“But how am I to do that? How am I to get to Dunmore when I am in this state and she is now set to marry a man she doesn’t even love!” Richard exclaimed.
“I don’t know, Lieutenant, but it has to happen. And truthfully, it may not be before her wedding to this other man, but even if it is after, does it matter? You were her husband first. So unless she denies that, you can always go to the priest who first married the two of you,” Mr. Hudson reminded him.
“You think it would work? You think I could state my part even after their wedding has taken place?” Richard asked. It was certainly not an ideal plan, but it was something. He couldn’t bear the thought of Adeline having to live as a wife to Camry, but if he didn’t make it to her before he was healed, it might be his only choice.
“Let us focus first on getting you healed. But yes, I am certain that if she is willing, you will be able to claim her as your wife before she was the other man’s. Don’t worry, Lieutenant, it will all come together just fine. You are strong. You are no longer a soldier, but you will soon live as the husband you are,” Mr. Hudson encouraged.
“Right then. Once I have healed, that is my plan. I will return to her. And we shall finally live as husband and wife.”
The Stranger In The Camp
“I cannae see anything in here,” Adeline muttered under her breath. She was annoyed by the lack of moonlight, but knew that day would break any moment. The question was whether or not she would be able to see it through all the trees.
Confident that she was nearing the camp, she had tied her mare and made her way forward. It would not be long, she told herself. She would be in the camp and she would find Richard. All would be well.
A disturbing sensation was roiling within her. How could she possibly have thought this was a good idea?
Adeline continued walking and, after a half hour, saw that light was beginning to creep into the sky. She was a little bit lost, but it illuminated enough for her to see smoke drifting up ahead.
Kidnapped Highland Bride (Ladies of Dunmore Series) (A Medieval Scottish Romance Story) Page 15