“This is bad, very bad, indeed.” James looked serious as Murdo and Emily crossed to where he was helping two men load his tent onto a horse. “They are much nearer than I thought. They must hae ridden very hard tae cover so much ground. The road loops well out o’ the way frae Inveraray and they must have ridden night and day tae cover so much ground so quickly. We hae taken the mair direct route north up the glens, and I had counted on that tae keep them aff our heels for a time. Well, mair fool me. Murdo, help me wi’ this strap. Miss Emily, hae ye everything ready tae go?”
Emily found that Alice had packed up efficiently and quickly as soon as the news had arrived. There would be no time to wash clothes now. Emily hauled on her riding clothes and met Alice’s eye. They did not speak, but the moment of acknowledgement was all the two needed. Before much more time had passed, they were back in the saddle.
They rode hard, but not fast enough for James, who continually looked around the glen, watching the sun as it dipped toward the edge of the horizon.
“We must pass the place where this glen opens out tae the west before night is ower,” he said to Murdo. “If the redcoats pass the town o’ Kinlochetrick and sweep round into the valley, we’ll be cut aff. I dinnae ken how many there are, and I dinnae want tae fight them here. We need to get the treasure back tae our own country before anything else, and it’s no’ just the gold I mean either.” He looked over knowingly towards Emily.
They managed it, but only just. As the last of the light faded, they left the looming slopes of Ben Etrick, from which the glen and the nearby town and loch took their name, far behind.
“Yon hilltop is as good a vantage point as any near here,” Murdo spoke to James as they rode along. “If the redcoats come intae the glen and dinnae carry on along the road, they’ll nae doubt climb Ben Etrick tae get a look around. That may buy us a little mair time.”
“Dinnae count on it,” said James grimly. “I want tae be well awa’ ‘afore the sun rises.”
They rode long into the night but did not make as much progress as they had hoped, hampered by the large size of their party. In the grey hour before dawn, their plans changed.
A scout rode up at a gallop on a fast little horse. Foam flecked the exhausted animal’s flanks as the man reported in a breathless voice that the soldiers had not passed the town on Kinlochetrick. The party stopped, and Murdo and Emily gathered round with the men as the messenger gave his report.
“They burned the town tae the ground, sir,” he said to James, and the old man’s lips grew tight. “We dinnae ken what they did wi’ the folk that lived there. Hopefully, they were able tae get awa’ wi some o’ their possessions, but they burned the town, and I could see the smoke behind me even after I came off the road into the glen. I waited on the road for some time, but I didnae meet anybody coming frae the town. One of my men said he heard women screaming and the sound o’ shots being fired.”
There was an angry muttering in the crowd, and Emily saw that Ewan looked deathly pale. His jaw was clenched and the veins stuck out in his temples as he breathed heavily through his flared nostrils. James did not wait to take his decision.
“We cannae walk awa’ frae this, and that is just their plan. They wish tae draw us out. Weel, we shall gie them a shock! Murdo, you shall tak’ the treasure and a small group o’ men on horses. Head for the hideout at the head o’ Glen Marnoch, for that, is the border o’ the Macpherson lands. Await me there. For my part, I will tak’ the rest of the men here, and we shall ride back hard to avenge the folk o’ Kinlochetrick!”
There was a loud clamour of agreement at his words. It did not take long for the party to divide. Emily was pleased to see that Ewan and Alice seemed to share a tender moment of farewell. They did not kiss or embrace, but he took her hand and spoke quiet words to her, and she gave a faint smile as he rode away. Father Colum went along with James to give the people spiritual help.
Murdo and his father clasped hands before embracing warmly; wishing each other good luck and God speed; Murdo and Ewan did the same. Then the whole party rode off at a gallop, leaving a much smaller group standing on the rough track which wound its way up between the hills. As well as Alice, Emily, and Murdo, there were ten Highlander soldiers, all big, experienced and well-equipped men. These Highlanders were stolid and dour, but they formed up around the women at Murdo’s order, and he took the lead as the little party set off at a trot towards the rising dawn.
* * *
Two days passed without the ground or the scenery changing. With a smaller party, they made better progress, and by the second day, they had left the slopes of Ben Etrick far behind them. They camped by a little body of water which the Highlanders called a ‘lochan’ – a small loch. As far as Emily could tell, it had no name of its own. The weather turned to rain.
“We’ll camp here the night,” said Murdo. “And it’ll be the best rest we’ve had for a while. But we must be up and awa’ come the dawn! We’ve a long way tae go yet. We’re at the head o’ Glen Marnoch, and the clan here are friendly tae us, so we may rest safely. But we’ve many days tae go ‘afore we’re truly safe.”
There were few enough of them to fit under the shelter. The Highlanders set up a large yet simple tent, and Alice and Emily had a smaller tent to themselves. They were still making camp as the light faded and Emily had wandered off down to the lochan, leaving Murdo and Alice to set up the small tent together. Alice had become silent and reserved, but he didn’t press her, and they worked together in silence. After a while, she made an effort to speak.
“Emily told me about yer engagement,” she offered, trying to put some cheer into her voice. “I wish ye baith a’ the best in the future.”
“I thank ye, Miss Alice. I am a happy man now and will be a’ the happier when we get to where we are going. She’s a good woman your mistress, and you are a good friend tae come wi’ her a’ this way.”
“Aye, weel, he was a terrible man that Clairmont; a cruel, cold man. I would hae done much tae see her freed from that fate.”
He nodded. “Our Ewan told ye that he kent yer brother Alastair.” It was not quite a question. She nodded, lips tight, as she worked the ropes that lashed the tent to the poles.
“Aye, weel, I kent him also. And I was there at the skirmish at Rosekirk three days frae the battle where it a’ went wrong for us. Now I’ve meant tae get a moment tae speak wi’ ye, but wi’ a’ that’s been going on... anyway, I couldhae brained Ewan for the way he telt ye about that fight. It wasnae as clear cut as Ewan maybe gave ye tae think.”
He took a deep breath as if ordering his thoughts before continuing.
“Ye see, there were women and bairns wi’ us at that camp; the wives and bairns o’ some o’ the men. It was foolish, but they wouldnae be parted frae us, and we hoped that we could get them tae the coast ‘afore the battle broke, get them on a boat south tae Edinburgh, or north up intae the highlands. Well, somehow the enemy got wind o’ this and when they came upon us at night it was the women and the bairns they went for, hoping tae capture them, maybe for a ransom, or tae kill them tae break our morale.”
The tent was finished. He stood and stretched, cracking his back before continuing. As he talked, they began to wander down toward the lochan in the direction of Emily.
“Yer brother, young Alastair was one of the men on watch that night. By chance, he was near the place where the women and bairns were camped when the attackers came. I saw him mysel’ when the attack came, standing fast before their charge. They came wi’ swords ye see, no’ guns, tae be as quiet as possible and your Alastair was a braw man wi’ a sword.”
“Och, man,” he said, shaking his head in disbelief at the memory. “I hae ne’er seen a sword sae wielded, neither ‘afore nor since. I seen him hold aff six men single-handed and still manage tae cry the warning tae the rest o’ us. It was because o’ him that we were able tae get the women and the bairns awa’, and because o’ him that we had time tae gather our men and attack them in turn. Yer
brother saved us, Alice, that he did.”
She was going to speak, to thank him, but he went on.
“And I’ll tell ye something else for yer comfort, Alice. When we returned tae the battlefield the next day tae retrieve the fallen, yer brother wasnae among the deid. I ken well because I looked for him, seeing as how we owed him so much. I dinnae ken whit happened tae him. Maybe he was taken prisoner, but if so we ne’er heard anything more about it. But there was one other thing. We didnae find his sword. If they had captured him, they wouldhae disarmed him, and they had nae room to be looting weapons. No, I dinnae ken whit happened tae him for sure, but deid? I dinnae think so. I think something happened that we didnae anticipate and he left us for some reason o’ his own. That’s whit, I think.”
They walked on in silence for a little while by the still grey water of the lochan. Then she stopped and turned to look up at him. Her heart was lightened by the story, and she felt a shadow leave her. She took his hand.
“Thank ye kindly Murdo MacPherson,” she said simply, and he smiled down at her.
They both jumped as a woman’s scream tore across the still air. It came from the little scrub woodland not far from where they stood. They both recognised the voice and turned in mutual horror toward it. The scream rang out again, a yell of pain and anger and fear. It was Emily.
Chapter Twelve
Murdo’s sword was in his hand and Alice drew the long knife she carried at her side. Wordlessly, they sprinted toward the little woodland. Behind them, the men at the camp had turned out and were moving in their direction, fanning out with swords drawn.
“Where is she?” cried Murdo, glancing around desperately.
“There!” Alice grabbed his arm and pointed. Out of the trees, a man appeared. He was tall and scrawny, wild-looking, with straggling grey hair and beard and wild eyes. A drawn blade glittered in one hand, and in the other, he dragged Emily by a fistful of her red hair. She stumbled along with her head lowered, lashing at him with her fists, but he held her at arm’s length, and her blows did little against the thick leather of his jerkin. When he saw them the man called out cheerfully. Murdo stopped and let out an exasperated sigh, and Alice saw the tension leave him.
“Murdo, MacPherson!” cried the newcomer. “I thought it was ye! I hae brought ye a gift; a red heided English spy scouting it the bushes!”
“Neil McGraw!” Murdo called back to him. “That’s no’ a spy man. That’s my bride tae be. Let her go right now, please.”
“Yer... whit?” said the man in disbelief. “Yer... bride tae be? Ye mean yer wife, like?”
“Aye man, let her go now I say!”
Neil McGraw quickly let go of Emily’s hair with a doubtful look on his face. Immediately she darted toward him and dealt him a stinging blow across the cheek with the flat of her hand. Running with hair disarrayed, she flew wildly into Murdo’s arms.
The newcomer approached them slowly, rubbing his face with one hand and sheathing his blade with the other.
“Weel, weel, ye ken yer ain business nae doubt, and there’s a tale here that’s plain tae see. If I hurt ye,” he said, addressing Emily, “then I’m sure ye hae my sincere apologies.”
She glared at him from the protection of Murdo’s arms, and McGraw looked her and Alice up and down with a frankness which bordered on lasciviousness.
“And is this yer bride tae be also, Murdo MacPherson?” McGraw looked hard at Alice.
“No, this is her friend, Alice Murphy, also travelling wi’ me and under my protection.” He put a great deal of weight onto the last words and Neil McGraw held up his bony hands with a grin.
“Ah, dinnae mind me,” he said, laughing, “I’m a friend tae ye and a’ that ye call friends dinnae fear. But ye are in our country now and all o’ ye are under my protection and that o’ my men.”
With that he gave a loud and unintelligible cry and out from the woods came a strong band of ragged-looking Highland men, greeting Murdo and his companions cheerfully. Although Murdo greeted them cordially and invited them up to the camp, there was a tension in his stance, and he did not like the way some of them looked at the women.
The party proceeded back up the hill, and Murdo’s men mingled with the McGraw men and exchanged greetings, laughing and whispering. Evidently, the two clans were well known to each other, and once Emily had bound up her hair again, she joined Alice, and the pair looked on with interest.
They were a rough lot, louder and more rambunctious than the MacPhersons. There were many more of them than the MacPhersons; at least thirty. Murdo explained that they were long-time allies of the MacPhersons and their lands bordered on the MacPherson lands.
“And they are good in a fight, staunch and loyal; however they may look,” he said in answer to her doubtful glance.
They held a council of war in the camp. The men sat in a circle around Murdo and Neil, whilst Emily and Alice stood on the outside of the circle, some tradition at work which they did not quite grasp. The two leaders exchanged formal greetings, and the Murdo went on to tell Neil the news of the pursuit and the sacking of the town of Kinlochetrick. Emily noticed that he was careful not to tell of the treasure that lay in canvas sacks attached to the horses’ saddles. Neil McGraw spat with fury when he heard about the sacking of the town.
“Damn them,” he shouted. “Damn the English soldiers and their torches. Aye, yer faither did well tae go back and harry them. I must see ye and yer folk through our lands, but I shall put the word out tae all the McGraws o’ Glen Marnoch that they should gather near here and prepare tae raid. Once I hae seen ye safe across the northern border, I will go back mysel’ and give the English soldiers something to worry about!”
* * *
As evening fell, they built their usual small fire, but the McGraw men, apparently dissatisfied with this, trooped off into the woodland and returned with armloads of branches to build up the fire into a mighty blaze. It was so hot that they had to sit well back, but the McGraw men seemed to relish the light and heat. They were drinking too, drinking hard from leather flasks of whiskey which they passed about with a great deal of clamour and laughter. Murdo took a pull from one of the flasks as it came around, but no more. Emily noticed that the other MacPherson men did likewise. The McGraw men seemed content to let them be.
At least they did until one of them detached himself from his group and staggered over toward them. He was a young McGraw man but big and burly. He reeled a little and belched as he stood over them.
“Weel then,” he said in a slurred voice sitting down next to them and a little too close to Emily for comfort. “I hear ye are goin’ tae marry our Murdo then and ye an English lassie too eh? Will ye speak tae me then? I hae ne’er heard an English lassie speak; fancy I might like it, eh...”
Emily spoke a few words trying to greet him as politely as she could. She did not know where she stood. If she gave offense to this man, what damage might she do?
The man was encouraged by her attempt and leaned closer, breathing rank whiskey fumes over her.
“Aahh ye can dae better than that. Whit’s yer name, lassie, eh? Will ye introduce yersel’ tae me?”
He suddenly grasped her by the hand and rose unsteadily to his feet, bringing her up with him. Emily was glad to see Murdo following suit.
“My name,” said the drunken man, “is John Coll McGraw o’ Glen Marnoch and I am the son o’ John Dubh McGraw o’ that same place!”
He leaned over her hand and placed a wet kiss on it before leaning toward her. “And what is your name, lassie?”
“Emily Nas...”
“Enough.” Murdo cut in over her. He moved to her side and took her arm. “John Coll McGraw, will ye leave the lassie be? Ye hae had ower much tae drink, and ye should ken better than tae harass a lady like this. Be aff back tae yer fellows.”
The big man elaborately held up his hands to apologise.
“Ah, ‘tis yer wife-tae-be, o’ course, I dae apologise.” He turned, but instead of going back
to his fellows, he turned and went over to Alice.
“And are ye an English wench an’ a’?” he slurred. “Ye are naebody’s wife-tae-be, are ye? I willna offend if I ask ye for yer favour the night, will I? I have gold in my sporran and can pay ye if ye hae a mind tae.” He made a suggestive motion with his hands.
“John Coll McGraw!” Murdo shouted sternly. “Be back tae yer fellows, I telt ye. These women are under my protection, and they want nae attention frae ye. Ye insult this lady by offering her gold for her favours as if she were a common whore. There are nae whores here. Be aff wi’ ye.”
But John Coll McGraw was not so easily got rid of. A fatal mix of pride, drink, and frustrated lust caused him to turn his attention on Murdo. Emily realised that the McGraw men had become very quiet, all attention focussed on the standoff.
“Nae whores?” McGraw glared at Murdo through bleary eyes red with drink. “Nae whores? I think I see one right here, whae is wanting my attention. I’m no’ picky; maybe I’ll satisfy mysel’ wi’ you!”
Fighting For A Highland Rose (Defenders 0f The Highlands Book 1) Page 9