Louis knew. He could revel in it while the coach lulled everyone into a stupor. Ellen leaned her head against the wall, and her eyes drifted closed. He didn’t get a chance to watch her sleep last night, and now could feast his eyes on her relaxed features. Feminine power radiated from every hair on her head. Every inch of skin captivated him until he couldn’t look away.
Once he glanced aside and noticed the Englishman scowling at him. Louis had to suppress a grin of sadistic glee. That idiot wanted to protect Ellen from the heathen Scotchman. He probably hated Louis for entertaining impure thoughts about the lady.
Louis pursed his lips and cast his gaze out through the window, then gasped aloud at what he saw. A tall man in a tailored gray suit and coattails stood at a crossroads where the coach had just turned onto the main highway. He wore a faultless satin waistcoat and gold watch chain, and he twirled a gold-handled walking cane in one hand.
Ellen snapped awake. “What? What is it?”
Louis blurted out, “Blast it! I should have kenned!”
“What?” Ellen asked. “What’s the matter?”
The coach rumbled down the highway, leaving the man behind.
Louis let out a heavy breath and jerked his thumb toward the window. “The wizard. He’s standing there at the crossroads. I’ve just seen him.”
“Hold your tongue, you rascal,” the Englishman snarled. “Wizard, indeed!”
Wide-eyed, Ellen leaned toward Louis. “Are you certain it was him? What’s he doing out here?”
“Following us, of course,” Louis returned. “What do you suppose? How do you reckon he got from Aberdeen to here, within miles of where we spent the night?”
Ellen bolted upright in her seat. “Are you sure? How is that possible?”
“Think, lass,” he replied. “I told ye the wizard belonged to the Gunns. Obasi must have contacted him and told him he was on the way. The news of…well, the news of the disturbance at the garrison would have spread all over Aberdeen by the end of the day. He found out, and he tracked us down.”
Ellen glanced around the coach with wild eyes. “What are we going to do? He’ll follow us to Inverness.”
The Englishman wagged his finger in Louis’s face. “I might have known you were a fugitive from justice. If whoever’s following you doesn’t catch you in Inverness, I’ll report you to the constable myself. I suppose you’ve been keeping this lady as a hostage to facilitate your escape.”
Louis pounded his fist into the ceiling, then stuck his head out the window and bellowed at the top of his lungs. “Stop the coach! Stop at once!”
The wheels grated in the gravel as the coach lurched to a standstill on the muddy verge. Louis plunged through the door, whirled around, and stuck out his hand to Ellen. “Come on. Hurry!”
She lunged for the door, but the Englishman held her back. “Don’t go with him, madam. You don’t have to do this. Come with us to Inverness, and you can tell the whole story to the major in charge of the garrison there. They’ll come after this blackguard and string him up for what he’s done to you. Stay.”
Ellen turned back to argue, but Louis shot out an arm and chopped the man’s wrist, breaking his grip on her hand. He slammed the Englishman back into his seat and flung the door shut. “Drive on! Drive on!”
The driver whipped the horses, and the coach lurched forward before the Englishman could react. It rattled away around the next bend and disappeared.
Ellen rounded on Louis. “What do we do now? That man will report us as soon as he gets to Inverness. We’ll never make the ship now.”
“Never ye mind. We’re going to Inverness one way or the other.”
“How can we?” she countered. “The wizard will be coming along this road following us, and the coach will get to town long before we do. The army will come out to meet us.”
“That’s precisely why they’ll no’ be expecting us in town.” He took her hand. “Come along. We’ve a few miles ahead of us, and no’ much time to get there. We must put on speed so we get to town before they muster the army.”
She sighed defeat and fell in step at his side still hand in hand. A mile down the road, she asked, “What’s the plan? How are we going to get around them?”
He pointed straight ahead. “Do ye see that little village? It’s Killiecrankie. Just beyond, the road enters the Cairngorms Forest, but it skirts around the edge. We’re going straight through the middle. If we move fast, we can get back to the road afore the coach does, but we’ll have to work at it. Are ye up for that, lass? It’ll be hard going. If ye cannae do it, tell me now and I’ll think on another way.”
“I’ll do it,” she replied. “You don’t have to worry about me slowing you down.”
Something in her tone made him stop and lock eyes with her. She still shone with that subtle inner glow from last night, but the determined fire in her eyes told him all he needed to know. He never had to doubt her. She could do whatever she set her mind to do.
“What do you want to do about the wizard?” she asked.
“Do about him?” he replied. “There’s naught to do about him. If he catches us, we’re done for. That’s all. We cannae do aught against his magic unless ye ken a few spells I dinnae ken about.”
“Sorry. No.”
“We’ll just have to put our shoulder to the wheel and force our way through the wood,” he replied. “We’ll just have to hope to Heaven he follows the road and we get ahead of him. It’s a long way. The coach stops the night at Aviemore, but we’ll just have to carry on until we get there. I cannae say I’m sorry about this, with ye having no sleep last night.”
Her eyebrows flew up, and ever so slowly, a mischievous grin spread over her face. “All right. We better get to it, then.”
He took her hand one more time, and on they went. They followed the road to the village and just beyond, to the black, towering forest obscuring the horizon. Louis cast a few sidelong glances over his shoulder along the way.
Ellen murmured in his ear, “If he used his magic to find us out here,” she remarked, “he’ll probably be able to track us into the forest. Don’t you think?”
“Likely so,” he replied. “I dinnae like to think on it since there’s naught either of us can do about it. We’ll just have to trust to speed. Here we are. Come along.”
He veered off the road, onto a tiny path behind the last house that cut straight into the woods. The dark chilled the air. A few more paces and the path rounded an old stone well, and then it petered out amongst the dense trees. In a few minutes, the pair were surrounded fully by the raw wild woods.
“How will you find our way through?” Ellen asked. “We better not get lost in here.”
He put his hand into his sporran and pulled out a gold compass. The needle swiveled until it settled on the big decorative N. “Here. Ye take this in case we get separated. Just keep heading north no matter what. It’ll lead ye out of these woods, and ye’ll be near Inverness. Anybody’ll help a lady on her own with no one to help her.”
She stuck the compass into her dress pocket and shook her hair out of her eyes. “We’ll just have to make sure we don’t get separated.”
Without another word, they set off. Louis led the way, breaking through the undergrowth. Every time he turned around to check on Ellen, he found her right behind him. She breathed heavily climbing the hills but never slacked and they never had to stop to let her rest.
Pretty soon, the undergrowth got so dense that he had to thrash his way through with both arms. He panted from the effort, and she had to wait more than once for him to force his way onward.
After several hours, she laid a hand on his shoulder. “Take a rest. I had no idea it would be this hard going.”
“Cannae,” he gasped. “Have to keep going.”
She shook her head and stood back to let him continue. This went on half the day before they broke into open country where the going got easier. They circled lakes, and no trees grew on the mountaintops at all.
Before long, Louis mounted a peak overlooking the whole immense countryside and stopped.
Ellen reached his side and raised her hand to shade her eyes. “How much farther?”
He bent over to rest his hands on his knees. “Halfway, I’d say. Are ye ready for the other side? It’ll be like the first, I expect, only reversed.”
“I’m fine,” she replied. “It’s you I’m worried about. You’re doing the hard part.”
“Dinnae concern yerself with me,” he told her. “There’s one thing, though.”
“As long as it’s not worse than getting arrested by the British Army, I can handle it.”
He chuckled under his breath and shook his head. She had spirit. That’s what he liked about her. After all this, and she never shied away from a joke. “That’s up to ye. I dinnae think we’ll get out of these woods afore nightfall, and we definitely cannae get to Inverness without spending at least one night in the open. It’s no’ a situation befitting a lady, but it’ll have to do. I’m sorry.”
She swept her raven eyes over the countryside one more time. No softness or gentle breezes soothed that harsh landscape. A brisk wind whipped her hair in her face. Her gaze drifted back around to his. “You might be interested to know,” she replied, “where I come from, calling a woman a lady is almost an insult.”
His head shot up, but when he saw her grinning, he couldn’t contain his laughter. “I’ll remember that.”
They set off down the mountain side by side, her presence and closeness warming him in ways he’d long forgotten. The more time he spent with her, the more comfortable he felt with her, which disturbed him more than anything. She rose to every challenge with a smile on her face. He couldn’t let himself get used to this. His heart couldn’t tolerate another trouncing when she disappeared out of his life for good, but he made up his mind to enjoy it while it lasted.
At the mountain’s foot, they hit the forest again. Louis refused to let Ellen go in front. He thrashed his way through the woods, but they didn’t get anywhere near their destination before the sun went down.
Ellen checked the compass in the last light of evening. “Where do you think we are?”
He settled down and leaned his back against a tree. “We’re no’ far from the road. We’ll have to meet up with it and make a break for Inverness afore daybreak. Get yer sleep while ye can, lass. I’ll wake ye at moonrise, and we’ll press on.”
He spread out his plaid and wrapped it around his shoulders, then propped his head against the bark. He closed his eyes, but when she didn’t move, he opened them again. She stood a few paces away, looking all around her with a curious expression.
“Lassie?” he asked.
She shrugged but wouldn’t look at him. “Where do I sleep?”
He held out his arm. “Come here, lass.”
She looked around one more time, then shuffled over and sat down next to him.
He eased her down against his chest and kissed her hair. “Shh. Go to sleep.”
She took a few seconds to relax, but after a while, she pulled her shawl tighter and settled her head on his shoulder. He covered her with his plaid, and they fell asleep.
Chapter 13
Ellen bolted upright and looked all around in a panic. “What? Where are we? What’s happening?”
Louis laid a hand on her shoulder and murmured in her ear, “Wheesht, lassie! It’s all right.”
“What’s going on?” she blurted out. “The moon’s up. Why didn’t you wake me?”
“Never ye mind,” he whispered. “Ye’re awake now.”
She peered at him in the silvery light. It shimmered through the treetops and set off his cheekbones. His eyes glistened inches away from her face. He was wide-awake. He must have been awake for a while but let her sleep. Why?
He caressed her cheek and draped a stray wisp of hair behind her ear. Then, with no warning, he darted in and kissed her. Quick as a flash, he scooted out from under her and stood up, then folded his plaid back into place while she got to her feet.
When she pulled herself up, she found him regarding her again. In that instant, she understood. This was the first time she’d ever curled up with him and really slept. He’d woken up first and wanted to enjoy having her there, in his arms, before he had to disturb her. She blushed and turned away. At least he couldn’t see her cheeks burning in this dark.
He nodded over his shoulder. “Are ye ready? We’ll make the road in a few moments.”
“I’m ready.”
They set off without another word. The moon and the night cast a mysterious spell over the landscape, giving everything a magical appearance. Ellen found herself drifting closer to him and, without thinking, she took his hand.
Soon, Louis poked his head through the trees, into the open. He checked both ways before he led her up the verge, onto the road. Their feet crunched in the gravel and made a deafening racket as they started north, but no one heard. They traveled on, footsore and exhausted, until the sun rose. They turned off at a crossroads, but Louis never slackened his pace. They hurried on their way. The sun rose high, and the sky rang clear and beautiful. They climbed a hill, and from the top, beheld the icy North Sea spread out beyond the coast.
Louis sighed. “There it is.”
Inverness lay bright and inviting in the Moray Firth where the Scottish coast cut into the land. The sun shimmered on rooves and windows so close Ellen could put out her hand and touch it.
The rattle of wheels echoed down the road.
Louis shoved her in the shoulder, almost knocking her off her feet. “Down!”
They both dove down the embankment to hide as a coach came rumbling up the hill. It rolled on by without stopping. The instant it disappeared, Louis lunged to his feet. “On yer feet, lass. Hurry!”
“We’re too late!” Ellen wailed. “They’ll get to Inverness before us.”
He seized her hand and towed her forward. “We must hurry! We can still get inside the city before they muster a search party to look for us out here. Come!”
They rushed down the road and raced down the last hill. Wagons and carts became more common on the road, but the pair never paused.
Ellen’s heart raced. She couldn’t get caught. She couldn’t go down for killing Obasi—not here in this primitive world. She’d have to spend who knew how long in jail before they tried her, and there was no hope for a fair trial because no one would believe the circumstances that led to her innocently defending herself in the first place. She’d come too far and endured too much for that, especially with an avenue of escape so near in sight.
The road flattened out as it entered the city’s outer neighborhoods. Fields and fenced pastures separated houses and sheds and barns. Taller buildings rose in the distance, and ship masts waved on the Firth.
Ellen’s spirits soared. They’d made it to Inverness before the army came out to get them. She cast a grin at Louis only to see him frowning as he looked all around and then glanced behind them.
In a flash, he hustled her behind a stone wall and pinned her there. She gasped in surprise, but he clapped his hand over her mouth to silence her. He implored her with a look and then glanced back toward the busy road into town. She followed his gaze, beholding a man in a long gray frock coat astride a magnificent spotted white stallion. His coattails draped the animal’s flanks, and he held a walking stick under one arm. Its gold head sparkled in the sunshine. He trotted on past. His horse’s neck arched against the tight rein as the breeze ruffled the animal’s mane.
Louis held his breath until the houses and buildings hid the stranger from view, and then he let go of Ellen and relaxed.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” she barked. “You could have warned me.”
“That was him,” Louis breathed. “I didnae want him to see us. He’ll be hearing the Englishman’s undoubtedly vivid description of us both soon enough. And that walloper will be telling him I bragged about killing Obasi, no matter the truth. It will no’ do to have hi
m pinpointing our whereabouts so quickly for having seen us on his way in.”
Ellen whipped around to face him. So he knew. He’d hinted at it but never acknowledged it. He knew she killed Obasi. “That…that was the wizard?”
He nodded. “Come on. We’ll have to keep our eyes open for him from now on. He caught up with us a lot faster than I expected.”
They continued on their way but barely made it two blocks when a shout went up ahead. Louis gripped Ellen’s elbow and steered her into an alley before a crowd of Redcoats trooped down the street going the opposite way.
As soon as the thuds of their marching faded, he ushered her into the open one more time. “We must hurry. We must get to the ship before they come back.” He took a step into the street, pulling her by the hand, and stopped dead in his tracks.
Ellen bumped into him, then stole a peek around his broad shoulders. At the sight of the man on the gray horse, she retreated into the shadows. Frozen in terror, she watched as he cast a ferocious eye back and forth at everyone he passed. He would ride level with the alley in a second and find her and Louis hiding there. Whoever he was, he must have some foolproof way to track her down. No matter what the Englishman said, he’d know it was a woman that had been seen in the garrison right before Obasi died. Now he was coming to pay her back for what she’d done to his friend.
Louis whipped around to hiss in her face. “Run, lass! Get out of here. Get to the ship. It’s called the Prometheus. Ye’ll find the first mate on board. Tell him everything. Do ye hear? Tell him everything—everything! Do ye understand? Dinnae hold back a single detail about any of it—no’ where ye come from, no’ what ye’re doing here—none of it! Understand? He’ll take ye on board and get ye to safety. Now go.”
“You’re coming with me, aren’t you?” she stammered.
“Go! I’ll hold the wizard off as long as I can. Go now. I need to ken ye’re safe.” He tried to push her farther down the alley.
Ellen held on to his arms with both hands. “No! I’m not leaving you behind.”
Spellbound by the Angui - Cipher's Kiss Book 2 Page 9