“I doubt it,” Gillis replied. “It’ll be ten years before it’s finished and until then all he has is children guarding his gates and that crumbling ruin to keep him safe.”
“Andrew MacIntyre,” a voice shouted from the doorway of the old keep. “Come inside.”
Duff was waving them over. Andrew nodded to his men before dismounting. Stableboys ran over at once, guiding the steeds away. There was more pointing and whispering from MacLeish people as Andrew headed over to the keep. He glanced around, wondering if he might see any faces he recognized from his swim with Beth. No luck.
“What do you think of the new keep?” Duff asked when Andrew reached him.
“Planning a war?” Andrew asked.
There was a gasp from the stewards behind Duff but the MacLeish laird didn’t rise to the bait. “You tell me,” he said. “Come, let us break bread together before we start the bickering.”
Once they were all seated in the hall around the long table, Duff tore a strip from the trencher in front of him, dipping it into a jug of gravy before chewing it slowly. Around him sat other MacLeishes, contempt visible on their faces as they stared at Andrew.
“What brings you here?” Duff asked when he was done with the ceremonial first bite. “You dinnae look so well.
Andrew chewed his own bread, thinking how best to word things. “I was attacked.”
“That I can see. Who by?”
“I thought you might know.”
Duff’s brow furrowed. “Careful, laddie. That’s the second time you’ve accused me of something recently. It’s almost as if you want a clan war.”
“I want peace, MacLeish. That’s all I’ve ever wanted. And yet my people are burned and I barely escape death when half a dozen mercenaries attack me. I think you hired them and I think you should tell me why you’re so desperate to get rid of me. I thought Derek was your peace offering to end our feuds.”
“And I think you should leave,” Duff said, getting to his feet, his voice cold. “If I were you I’d think hard before making any more accusations of this nature.”
Andrew wasn’t finished yet. “Are you telling me you had nothing to do with this?”
“I swear on the bones of my ancestors I dinnae have any idea what you’re blathering about. Now be off with you laddie and dinnae come back unless it’s with a peace offering of your own, not accusations with no proof beyond your own prejudice.”
Andrew stood up, picking up the last of his bread and swallowing it as was the custom. “This isnae over,” he said, turning and heading for the door.
Outside he stood in the rain a few feet from the new keep, looking up at it and the laborers still working despite the appalling conditions. “That was foolish,” Gillis said, coming to stand next to him. “Antagonizing him was not a good idea.”
“Aye, maybe you’re right,” Andrew replied. “I cannae help my anger when enemies appear around every corner. Where the blazes are the horses?”
“Coming,” a boy’s voice shouted, waving at them from the stables. “Sorry, my laird. Forgive me.”
“He’s no your laird,” Duff shouted from the keep doorway. “He’s an unwelcome guest and he’s not welcome back until he learns some manners.”
Andrew bowed theatrically to Duff before mounting his horse. “Come on,” he said to his men. “Before we get arrows in our backs.”
They rode swiftly out the gate, none of them breathing easy until they were back on their own territory. He blinked the rain from his eyes as they passed the cairn. In all that time none of his men had spoken a word. He himself was lost in thought. Was Duff telling the truth? Or was it all bluster to try and distract him?
Not for the first time he wished his father was still alive to consult. He wanted help deciding what to do next and neither of the potential options seemed ideal. Start a war or live in fear for the rest of his life.
As they rode past Pluscarden, Andrew noticed the window in the wrong place. He made a mental note to have a word with them about that. Not now though, he had too many other things to think about.
They were about five miles from the castle when he saw something in the corner of his eye. “Hold,” he said, stopping his horse in the middle of the road.
“What is it?” Gillis asked, looking where he was staring.
It was hard to tell but in a wood to his left he’d seen something. He looked again. “I saw someone over there.”
“Who? A verderer?”
“No. It looked like one of the men who attacked me. Wait there.”
