“Like it or not, Eoin and I are the best trackers you’ll find here. None of these Lowlanders parading around in their silk and velvet will find her. You need men like me and my brother who are used to being outdoors, used to hunting. Rather than argue, tell me where you think she would go first.”
“I don’t bluidy know. She won’t go to our home because she knows her mother will send her back. She might consider her friend, Isabella, but Allyson has enough sense to realize she can’t travel all the way to the Sinclairs alone. I’m certain she’s not in Stirling, so mayhap Glasgow or Edinburgh.”
“I’d check with my brother and Lady Elizabeth at Culcreuch,” King Robert offered. “The ladies are friends, and it’s a short ride that she could have made with no one noticing.” The Bruce paused. “Gordon, set this right, or it won’t be Laird Elliot who cuts off your cods.”
* * *
Ewan and Eoin charged out of the castle’s bailey with Kenneth and a mixture of Elliot and Gordon warriors following them. They made good time, and when they arrived at Culcreuch, they found Edward Bruce preparing to mount his horse as they clattered into the bailey. Edward strode over to Kenneth Elliot and clasped forearms.
“She was here, but she disappeared before sunrise,” Edward stated by way of a greeting. “We couldn’t figure out how she disappeared until a village fisherman notified the head of the guard that he discovered a ladder hidden beneath some shrubs near the loch. We’ve deduced she must have scaled the ladder left propped against the western wall, then lowered it on the opposite side to make her getaway. I’ve already had scouts out looking along the shore and through the village. I was just about to ride out to Fintry, which is the closest village beyond the walls.”
“We’ll join you,” Ewan responded. The look of revulsion that crossed Edward’s face took him aback when the Earl of Badenoch and Lockerbie swung his gaze toward Ewan. “I take it she spoke of what happened when we learned of the betrothal.”
“If finding her wasn’t so dire, I’d challenge you right here and now,” Edward spat. Ewan wisely remained quiet during the ride and while Edward questioned villagers in Fintry. They learned that a young woman claiming to be a Buchanan purchased food and a horse before sunrise and was headed southeast. Ewan and Eoin dismounted and searched for tracks that led in the direction they were told. The hoofprints were easy to find, but it wasn’t long before they disappeared once they left the village behind.
“She’s changed directions. Allyson has no intention of traveling to the Buchanans. She must have used their name because they’re large with plenty of septs. No one would know whether she was one.” Kenneth shifted in his saddle as he leaned over his horse’s shoulder to catch sight of any traces of the way Allyson headed.
“She’s headed southwest,” Ewan announced. He’d found the hoofprints that proved she turned away from her original path and estimated where the horse would step. His search took him several yards from the others before he picked up her trail again. “She intends to go to Glasgow.”
“She’ll be halfway there by now,” Eoin tilted his head to look toward the sun. It was midmorning, and she’d had at least a four-hour head start.
“More likely, she’s already there,” Kenneth muttered. He wheeled his horse around and set off, leaving the other men to catch up.
* * *
Allyson approached the Glasgow city gates just before midday. Smaller than Stirling, Allyson could weave her way through the streets until she reached the marketplace. Vendors called out their wares, and Allyson was relieved to see she arrived on market day; she’d be able to trade her finer clothes for money. The coin would replace what she’d already spent to secure two horses and some food. Allyson left her horse in the town’s stable, but was careful not to allow anyone to see more than her eyes. She kept the rest of her face and her hair covered. She imagined her father had discovered her disappearance by now and Edward Bruce had informed him of her visit the night prior. She approached a haberdasher and listened as he haggled with the customer before her. She noted what he said and how he said it as she prepared for her own negotiations. When it was her turn, she approached the booth and angled her body so few people could see what she withdrew from her satchel.
“I have some fine items given to me by a lady when she and her husband sought shelter during a storm. I have no use for them.” Allyson kept her voice low, hiding the noticeable refinement in her speech, and she was careful not to show the man her palms. He would see her smooth skin and realize in an instant that she wasn’t a farmer’s widow.
“Where did you say you were from?” The man countered.
“I don’t recall that I did, but I’m from Inverlochy.”
“You don’t sound like a Highlander.”
Allyson fought to keep from clenching her jaw. “I want to blend in. I dinna need anyone wondering what I’m aboot on account of them thinking to thieve me.” She attempted to sound like Maude Sutherland and the other Highland ladies she knew, whose brogue slipped out from time to time.
“Right you are, right you are.” The vendor examined the gloves and stockings Allyson placed on the counter of the stall. “These are fine quality. What do you want for them?”
“That they are. Tell me what you’re willing to pay, and I’ll tell you whether I’m willing to sell them to you.”
“A silver groat.”
Allyson laughed. “Four pence is what you’ll pay? I’ll be saying good day for aught under a gold quarter-noble.”
“That’s the real thievery. I won’t pay more than a shilling, let alone a shilling and eight pence.”
“Sold for a shilling!” Allyson grinned as the man realized his error. They exchanged the goods for the coin, and Allyson tucked it away but once more didn’t touch the pouch she had hidden. She pushed through the crowd until she made her way to the far end of the market, where the least profitable vendors set up their stands. She would make her money stretch since she didn’t know how long she would be on her own. She found a woman selling material, but Allyson had no time or way to sew her own clothes while she was on the run. She feared there wouldn’t be a merchant with premade gowns at a price she was willing to pay, but the last stall had what she needed. She purchased two more kirtles before leaving the market and moved along the streets to find the more permanent shops.
Allyson peeked through open doors, scanning the occupants for elderly shopkeepers most likely to need an assistant. She came to a bakery, where an old couple attempted to serve a line of customers while the woman shuffled back and forth between the counter and the kitchens. The smells wafting from the oven made Allyson’s stomach growl, and the long line was a testament to the shop’s popularity. Allyson lingered in a corner out of the way, attempting to appear inconspicuous. She was about to approach the couple as the crowd thinned when she was certain her father’s voice carried through the open door. She peeked around the edge of her hood and caught sight of her father standing in the street with Ewan and Eoin. Allyson forced herself not to panic, but she slid past the counter while the couple was busy and darted through the kitchen, praying that there would be a second door that led outside from the kitchen. Otherwise, she would hide abovestairs in the couple’s private residence. She breathed easier when she spotted the door and dashed toward the town stables. She hadn’t expected the search party to reach Glasgow so soon. While she was in a city, it wasn’t large enough for her to go undetected her first day. Allyson would stand out as a stranger. She approached the stables but ducked around a corner when she recognized men in both the Elliot and the Gordon plaid. She cursed under her breath as she tried to figure out how she would gather her horse and escape with none of the guardsmen spying her. She made her way to the back of the stables and found a stable boy mucking out the back of a stall.
“I need your help,” she whispered and waved the boy over. He couldn’t have been over ten or eleven summers, but he appeared strong. “I fear those men will make shameful comments if they see me retrieving my horse. Could you bring him to me?”
The boy narrowed his eyes at her until she lowered her scarf but kept her head covered. The boy nodded his head several times, understanding the beautiful woman before him would draw unwanted attention. Allyson covered her face again and waited until the boy returned with her mount; then she slipped several pence into his hand and mounted on her own. She kept off the main thoroughfares and galloped out of Glasgow without looking back.
Chapter Eight
Ewan wanted to drive his fist into something or someone. He couldn’t explain why his senses screamed that Allyson was nearby, but his temper was running thin as Kenneth continued to ignore his suggestion that they divide into smaller groups and work their way through the vendors. Ewan was certain Allyson would need less-conspicuous clothes than what she wore at court. Elizabeth informed them that Allyson was wearing a plain gown and carried one satchel, which Ewan also guessed had no food or provisions.
