“Aye,and your brother. I thank God that He has sent us aid, for we are in sore needof it, but I dearly wish He had chosen others to be our saviors.”
Notquite sure what he meant, Sorcha defended her clansmen. “They are all goodfighters.”
“Oh,aye, I have no doubt that we shall now send the English scurrying for home. ‘Tisthe confrontation that must come after the victory I would cheerfully haveavoided.”
Shecursed as she finally understood what he was talking about. There wouldcertainly be trouble once the fighting was over. Sorcha had the sinking feelingthat whatshewanted and needed was not going to be the firstconsideration of either her brother or her lover when the two men cameface-to-face at last. It would not be a good time for her to try to assertherself either. As she watched her brother quickly dispatch an Englishman,Sorcha shared Ruari’s mixed feelings of gratitude and apprehension.
Beforeshe could say anything to Ruari, Simon Treacher elbowed his way through hisfighting and fleeing men. Occasionally he paused to threaten or push hisretreating men back into the fray, but it was useless. A rout was in themaking. Even as Simon reached out toward her with one gauntleted hand, Ruarigrabbed her by the arm and nearly flung her behind him. She decided to staywhere he had placed her, but kept her sword at the ready.
“Youwill pay a high price for taking what is mine,” Simon said as he confrontedRuari.
“Yours?”Sorcha cried, but both men ignored her.
“Shewas never yours, Treacher,” Ruari replied. “Ye but saw her, and with the sickgreed suffered by so many Sassenachs, ye decided to take her.”
“Suchrighteousness from the man who kidnapped her from a fair,” Simon drawled as heand Ruari began to warily circle each other, carefully studying each other’sstrength. “You are no more than a base reiver, Kerr.”
“Aye?Then what are ye who ride into another mon’s country to steal his women?”
Sorchabarely nodded to Neil and her brother as they each grabbed her by an arm andtugged her a little farther away from Ruari and Simon. A small part of heracknowledged the fact that the English had been successfully routed, those whowere not dead or so badly wounded they could not mount their horses, fleeingthe field and callously leaving their lord to his fate. She dared not take herfull attention from Ruari. When the two men finally clashed swords, she wasstartled by the sound, then tensely watched each parry and thrust. Neil lightlyrested her arm around Sorcha’s shoulders, and she was thankful for the silentand subtle support.
Thefight between Ruari and Simon dragged on for what felt like hours to Sorcha.The two men were well matched in skill and strength despite Simon’s muchthinner build. Although she did not like actively wishing for someone’s death,even Simon Treacher’s, Sorcha almost sagged with relief when the Englishmanbegan to show signs of weakening. Ruari was still strong, still calm, and hismovements still held a deadly grace. He now possessed a clear advantage.
WhenRuari finally delivered the death stroke to Simon, piercing the Englishman’sheart with one swift thrust of his sword, Sorcha felt no sense of victory, justrelief. Only in the heat of battle when her own life was clearly in jeopardycould she push aside the horror of taking a man’s life. She moved to go toRuari as he turned to face her, only to be caught up hard by Dougal’s tightgrip on her arm.
Asshe started to protest, she caught sight of Neil’s frown and the slight shakeof her aunt’s head. The woman’s message was clear—do not argue now. It washard, but Sorcha decided she would bow to the woman’s proven wisdom. She triedto relay her disappointment in the look she gave Ruari, and the crooked smilehe gave her made her sure she had succeeded. There was so much more she wantedto say and do, but now was not the time. Judging by the tension in the Hay menand what remained of Ruari’s group, Sorcha knew that speaking too freely couldmake matters far worse than they already were.
“Ilooked o’er your men, Sir Ruari,” Neil said, breaking the tight silence. “Ifear two are dead, one may yet die, and nearly half the rest are wounded,although I dinnae believe they risk dying if they are treated weel.”
“Theywill be. Thank ye, Neil,” he said, severing his steady gaze at Dougal onlybriefly to glance her way and nod his gratitude. “We had best get them back toGartmhor as soon as possible.” He reached for Sorcha, but was not really surprisedwhen Dougal, his sword still bloodied from the battle, yanked Sorcha evenfarther away from him. “I believe ye have my prisoner.”
Sorchaglanced at Neil who responded by rolling her eyes heavenward. She was somewhatglad that she was not the only one who thought that was a particularly stupidthing for Ruari to say. A brief, painful tightening of Dougal’s hand on her armtold her that he had responded to Ruari’s brash statement with a sudden surgeof anger. That had to be no surprise to Ruari. What puzzled her was why Ruariwould try to enrage Dougal instead of placating him. She decided it had to besomething only a man could really understand. She simply could not believe thatRuari would purposely act in a way that would force Dougal, through pride oranger, to take her away.
“AndI believe I have just saved your worthless hide, though it galled me to do so,”said Dougal.
TheKerrs who had the strength to do so grumbled threateningly, and the Haysbristled back. Nearly every man had his hand on his sword. Neil was right. Shecould not step into the middle of such intense male posturing. When she didhave the opportunity to speak to Ruari again, she intended to give him a soundscolding about indulging in such nonsense.
“Iwas considering the ransoming a thing apart from this,” Ruari said.
“Yedo that a lot,” Sorcha murmured, earning a glare from both men.
“Itcannae be a thing apart,” snapped Dougal. “I wouldnae have e’en been here if yehadnae stolen my sister from the fair. Nor would Simon have tracked her downhere.”
“Nay,he would have come for her at Dunweare.”
“Wewould have been able to protect her. Aye, and we wouldnae have been fool enoughto take her outside the walls where that cursed Englishmon could get her.”
“Dougal,”Sorcha protested. “To be fair to Ruari, he didnae ken about Sir Simon until Itold him only a few hours ago.”
Bothmen glared at her again, clearly annoyed at her interruptions. She was about totell them they were both idiots when suddenly her Aunt Neil grabbed her and yankedher completely away from the men. Sorcha looked at the woman, considering herthe worst of all traitors, as Ruari and Dougal returned to their argument withno one attempting to talk sense to them.
“Theyneed their heads banged together,” she muttered as she fruitlessly tried towriggle free of her aunt’s iron grip.
“Aye,they do, but it will do no good now,” Neil advised, looking around at the menand shaking her head. “This is a particular sort of male stupidity that needsto be treated carefully, lass. Ye will only make matters worse if ye reveal tothem what fools they are or even that ye think they are being foolish.Especially while they are all still seething with the bloodlust of battle. Nay,lass, as hard as it is to do so, leave this be.”
“ButI shall be taken back to Dunweare.”
“Aye,as will Margaret and I. That cannae be stopped, but we can correct this idiocythere, when tempers have cooled.”
