“Easy, lass,” he said. “I know ye are eager to be off, but that’s ridiculous.”
Lily looked at him, surprised. Had he just made ajoke?
“Sorry,” she muttered. “Must have slipped.”
She seated herself on the hard wooden seat beside him and took a deep, steadying breath. She was not looking forward to this journey. If yesterday was any indication, the ride was likely to be bumpy and uncomfortable, but if it took her a little closer to getting home, she could put up with it.
They set off into the cold winter morning, the cart creaking and rattling, the horses snorting great clouds of vapor into the frigid air.
“Here, lass,” Oskar muttered, reaching behind and pulling a blanket out of the back of the cart. “Wrap this around yerself.”
She took it gratefully and spread it across her shoulders. It helped a little, but the air was still so chilly that she could see her breath in front of her face.
“I can’t believe it’s winter,” she muttered.
“What’s that?” Oskar said, glancing at her.
“It was spring when I left. The daffodils were in bloom and the birds were nesting.”
Oskar looked around at the frosty landscape. “I love winter mornings like this,” he said in a low voice. “Everything so clean and crisp and still.”
Lily had to admit that it was beautiful, with the wide blue sky and the curled bracken fronds that blanketed the road sparkling with frost. She just wished it wasn’t so cold.
They traveled in silence, the three men alert and watchful, Alfred Brewer surly and withdrawn. Despite herself, Lily found herself starting to doze. She slumped against Oskar and jerked herself upright.
“Sorry,” she mumbled.
He glanced at her but didn’t reply. She tried to keep her eyes open, but the monotonous swaying motion of the cart soon lulled her again and she found herself drifting down into fitful sleep.
THE LASS HAD FALLENasleep. Her weight pressed against his side and her head rested on his shoulder, bobbing slightly with the movement of the wagon. Her weight felt oddly pleasant, and he could feel the warmth from her body seeping into him. He made no move to wake her. In fact, he carefully reached over with one hand and pulled the blanket tighter about her. He heard a soft snort of laughter behind him and turned to see Magnus grinning at him.
“What?” he demanded.
Magnus spread his hands. “Nothing, my friend, nothing. It’s just I dinna think I’ve ever seen ye show such tenderness before. I like this new side of ye.”
“Oh, shut it. I just dinna want the lass to catch cold, that’s all. We dinna want any more delays.”
“Whatever ye say, my friend. Whatever ye say.”
Oskar turned back to face the front. The horses Lord Eberwyn had given them were possibly the slowest, laziest horses he’d ever encountered. Large and strong, with long manes and hairy feet, they were what could be called ‘sturdy’ but quick they were not. They plodded along at little faster than walking pace, despite all Oskar’s efforts to coax greater speed out of them.
God’s teeth! They would be lucky to reach Edinburgh before the week was out at this rate! It would be quicker to walk with Alfred Brewer slung over his shoulder!
He realized he was grinding his teeth and forced himself to relax. There was nothing to be done about their pace, so he’d do better to stop griping about it. But it was hard. The need to complete his mission burned like a whip across his shoulders.
He knew that he had none of the easy-going charm of his commander, Kai Stewart, or the intelligence of his sword-brother Conall Sinclair. He had none of the warmth and openness of Magnus, nor the quick-witted resourcefulness of Emeric. No, he was surly, quick to anger, and his temper had almost brought them all to ruin on more than one occasion. He was the least of the five of them, the one most ill-suited to being a warrior of the Order and he was determined to prove that Laird Sutherland, the head of the Order, had been right to admit him into its exalted ranks.
For some reason, Laird Sutherland had seen something in him that he’d never seen in himself, and he would repay thatfaith by keeping his oath and completing his mission, whatever it took.
The day grew overcast as they traveled, and the wind dropped. Clouds rolled in from the south, threatening rain, although thankfully it held off. They saw not another living soul on the road, and that didn’t surprise him. This upland route was seldom traveled, especially in winter, which is why they’d taken it.
They traveled all morning, until some time near midday, Emeric stretched his arms above his head.
“It’s about time we stopped for a bite to eat, dinna ye reckon? I dinna know about ye, but I’m starving. There’s a copse over there that should give us a bit of shelter and I think I can see a burn running from it.”
“We shouldnae stop,” Oskar replied. “We could go for a few more hours yet.”
“Oskar, if it were up to ye, we wouldnae stop at all, even for sleep, until we got where we were going. Ye might be able to keep going for hours on end, but us mere mortals would like a break. Magnus, talk to him would ye?”
