It was a moment before Jaime shut the tunnel door behind them. Ailis held the candle and struggled to subdue her own rising fear. She eagerly took Jaime’s hand when he reached out for her. There was a faint tremor in his grip, and she gave his hand a gentle squeeze. As they started to go through the tunnel, Jaime had to walk slightly crouched over and tug Ailis along behind him. In an attempt to keep his mind from preying upon his own fears, Ailis began to softly hum an old song. She found the sound comforting for herself as well.
Once at the end of the tunnel Jaime hurried to open the small hatch. Yet again neglect had made it more work than it should have been. Ailis stepped back as he put all of his strength and weight behind forcing the door open. When the hatch finally gave, Jaime quickly pushed it open, sidestepping the debris that fell into the tunnel. Ailis took a deep breath of the cool night air as it rushed into the tunnel and heard Jaime do the same.
Jaime climbed out first, then gently helped her get out. As Jaime shut the hatch and covered it with dead leaves and other debris, she looked around. They had come up inside of a tiny, ruined stone cottage. As long as they were careful, they were far enough from the walls of Craigandubh to escape unseen. If only the weather were more hospitable, she thought with a grimace and better secured the hood of her cloak in hopes of keeping dry despite the continuous and very cold drizzle. Soft as it was, that rain could easily prove to be their biggest foe.
“Where are we going?” she asked Jaime when, as they left the poor ruin, Jaime turned north instead of west, which was the direction of Rathmor and safety.
“We canna head straight for Rathmor, lass.”
“Nay? ‘Tis where we want to go. All things considered, I am not sure that adding to the miles we must travel is the wisest thing to do.” She tucked her skirts up, securing them under the loose girdle she wore, so that they would not be dragging in the wet and the mud and slowing her down. “I am in no condition to endure a long march.”
“If we travel for Rathmor in a fine straight line, we willna reach there. We will just make ourselves very tired ere the MacCordys and your uncle ride out and fetch us back to Craigandubh.”
“Do ye think it would be that simple?”
“Mayhaps not that simple, but very nearly so. We are an odd pair, lass. ‘Twill be very hard for us to hide. The best we can do is to try and hide our trail.”
“Ah, I see, and going in a roundabout way will do that?”
“It could help.” He lifted her over a fallen log, then paused. “Do ye think it a foolish plan? I tried to think slow and careful, and to see all my choices as ye once told me to do. I thought this would trick Donald, at least for a wee while.”
Ailis nodded and patted his arm. “Ye have planned well, far better than I. My only real plan was to flee, to get back to Rathmor. Ye gave the how of it a great deal more thought. Aye, Donald would never think that we would show any cleverness. He will hie straight for Rathmor. It will take him a while to realize he has seennosign of his prey and pause to consider the why of it.”
“So I thought. It could buy us at least a day, mayhaps more. We shall make a gentle turn toward Rathmor. Then, once it lies straight ahead of us, we shall try to move as swiftly as we can, yet stay hidden.”
“Do ye think we can stay hidden with all the MacCordys and MacFarlanes beating the bushes for us?”
“Aye, I do. We are but two people on foot. Most times we can see our hunters ere they can see us. Aye, or hear them. If we keep close to shelter, never get caught out in the open, it could prove easier than ye think.”
“Oh, it would have to. I think we face a very great challenge.”
“We are up to the challenge,” he said. “Ye have to believe that.”
“I will try,” she murmured and prayed that she could maintain the strength she would need not to become a burden.
