“Come, come, there’s no need for that,” Bryan soothed, helping her to her feet again. “This might just as well have happened even if ye had chosen tae aid us sooner, and ‘tis not yer fault—only yer father’s, for preying upon those who cannae defend themselves. We must return tae Castle Oliphant at once, so that Laird Alex may be informed of what has transpired here. We must dispatch soldiers tae guard our borderlands and repel further raids. It will be a hard ride, and we willnae be able tae stop.”
But Katherine was already running to Bluebell and grabbing the reins. Bryan nodded to himself and followed, mounting Heather. Within moments, they were riding hard in the direction they’d come from.
He thanked the heavens that she had finally seen the light. He only wished it had not taken something so horrible to persuade her, but, he reasoned, at least the loss of the village would not have been in vain.
They rode for most of the night, and arrived at the gates of the castle less than an hour before the pale light ofdawn caressed the surrounding hilltops. The guardsmen were surprised to see Bryan back so soon, and even more surprised to see that Katherine was still with him. They opened the gates and allowed them in without question, as, even in the near-dawn gloom, they could see the urgency of his countenance, and did not dare delay him.
They dismounted in the courtyard, and although their legs were sore and their bodies weary from all they had been put through over the previous day, they ran up the stone steps to Laird Alex’s private study.
Before they got to the door, though, they found Alex himself standing in the center of the corridor, waiting for them with folded arms. He looked as though he had risen from bed hastily; his clothes were messily assembled, his blonde hair was tousled, and his eyes were bloodshot and heavy-lidded. His brow furrowed with confusion and concern.
“I heard the commotion at the gates,” he said. Though he may have been still shaking off sleep, his voice was as sharp and focused as ever. “Two travelers return, when only one was expected? And before the sun is up? What is the meaning of this?”
“There has been an unfortunate new development,” Bryan informed him. “We shall tell ye of it, but first, we must find a place for Katherine tae sit and rest. She has been through so much.”
“There’s no need tae coddle me,” Katherine protested, speaking over him. “None of this would have happened if only I had?—”
Alex raised his hands, quieting both of them. “We shallalladjourn tae my study and sit, and ye can tell me what has transpired this night. And Lady Katherine,” he added. “Regardless of the circumstances, it is good tae have ye back in the castle. Ye are most welcome here.”
Despite her exhaustion and shock, Katherine managed a tired smile of gratitude.
As it turned out, it was not difficult for Alex to figure out what had happened to them on the way to the McGregor lands. The ash streaked on their faces and clothes, and the thick smell of smoke clinging to them, told most of the story.
Still, he listened to their account of the raid, his frown growing deeper.
“Well, we knew there would be some sort of eventual retaliation for taking Angus’s daughters,” Alex said once they had finished. “We should have prepared for the worst. We should have deployed cadres of soldiers tae the outlying villages, rather than letting them fend for themselves.”
“By now, the victims of that raid will have found shelter in the neighboring towns,” Bryan pointed out. “They’ll spread the word, so that the other villages near the border will be prepared for more raids. And I shall send some of my men there tae join them, and bolster their defenses.”
“But what if next time, Angus sends his soldiers in full force?” Alex challenged. He turned to Katherine. “Do ye believe he might do so? Would he risk all-out war at this stage?”
“I dinnae know,” she answered honestly. “His state of mind was deeply troubled when last I saw him. My abduction might have driven him utterly mad, in which case?—”
“He might be capable of anything,” Alex finished for her, shaking his head. “And if his armies do arrive, then the men we send tae the villages will be forced tae fall back and defend Castle Oliphant. Even so, we cannot leave our people unprotected.” He slammed a fist down on his desk, frustrated. “Damn it, Bryan, what are we tae do?”
“Call Kirk and the rest of yer advisors tae consult with ye,” the captain suggested. “Whatever course of action ye choose, itwill surely affect the rest of the clan, and so we’ll need their council.”
“Somehow,” Alex mused, looking at Katherine again, “I think this lass will be counted among my most valuable advisors in the days ahead.”
Messengers were hastily dispatched, and within two hours, the elders of the Oliphant Clan were assembled in the Great Hall of the castle. Predictably, news of the raid had already reached many of them, and a few had set out toward the castle on their own in anticipation of Laird Alex calling the meeting.
They took their seats around the table, and as they did, several among them looked askance at Katherine.
“Are we quite certain we ought tae be discussing our plans in front of her?” grumbled Barclay Acheson, the clan’s wealthiest merchant.
“My sentiments as well,” Rory Aitkin chimed in, shaking his head gravely. “Why is a McGregor at this table? Why, ye might as well bring her sister up from the dungeons and make it a matched set.”
There were uneasy chuckles from the others, but Alex’s expression remained neutral.
“The lass was meant tae return tae her homeland, was she not?” Barclay inquired. “Perhaps if she’d been transported there with greater haste, Angus would not have ordered the attack.”
“We have no way of knowing that for certain,” Alex told him sternly. “So such speculation serves no purpose. What we do know, however, is that after witnessing the raid, Lady Katherine has chosen tae help us prevent a war against her father—or win one, if it comes tae that.”
Katherine shuddered at those words. She had not considered that it might already be too late to stop the bloodshed.
And if that proved to be the case?
How far was she willing to go to help the Oliphants defeat her own people?
