Ivor drew his sword. And he smiled.
* * *
Eithne thought that she might be hallucinating. Ivor had just appeared as if from nowhere, his steel glinting, and he was fighting all five of Rory’s men without so much as a scratch on his body.
Myrna yelped as one of them approached him from behind, but Ivor reacted to that, dodging out of the way without any issue. He was like a wolf with its prey, taking on all of them at once without breaking a sweat. His sword moved like a hypnotizing dance through the air, the morning sun reflecting off the blade and creating prisms of light dancing on the ground.
One by one, Ivor’s attackers fell. One by one, Eithne’s captors’ lives left them, and their bodies fell to the ground. Soon enough, Ivor stood there, the five corpses fanning out around him like strange petals on a deadly flower. He was breathing heavily, then he stuck his sword into the ground, withdrawing it and leaving the blood behind. He wiped the dirt on one of the men's sleeves, then headed at last toward the tree.
“Ye’re late,” Eithne said as he knelt to deal with the ropes.
Ivor smiled. Oh, how she’d missed that smile. “I ken. Will ye ever forgive me?”
“I’ll think about it,” she replied. The ropes fell away, and she and Myrna were free. Eithne threw herself into Ivor’s arms, and he held her tight. She clung to him, his scent instantly comforting her, assuring her that everything from now on would be just fine.
When she finally released him, Myrna hugged him too. “Ye didnae need to come for me,” Myrna said. “Thank ye.”
“I did, for three reasons,” Ivor told her. He moved to the packs next to the fire, withdrawing some of the men’s provisions and indicating the girls should eat.
He’s right. We need our strength.
They sat around the dying fire as the sun continued to rise, enjoying the food as if it was the finest ambrosia. Ivor whistled like a bird at the edge of the clearing before joining them. Eventually, Myrna asked, “Three reasons? Eithne was one, I suppose – ye had to come for her.”
“That’s right,” Ivor replied. “I wouldnae have left her. But even if it had just been ye still alive, Myrna, I’d have done what I could.”
“The second reason is that I would never have forgiven him if I didnae,” Eithne said, and Ivor nodded.
“Ye’re me family,” Ivor told the younger girl. “I love yer sister, and yer sister adores ye. I loved yer brother – in a different way, true, but he was me closest friend. Ye’re me family twice over. I could never just leave ye.”
Myrna thought about this for a moment, then nodded. “And…the third reason?” she asked. “Ye said there were three.”
Ivor nodded. He pointedly glanced at her food until she took another bite. His arm was around Eithne’s shoulders, and he squeezed her in a hug as he said, “Well, I think me companion would have killed me if I’d left ye behind.”
“Companion?” Eithne asked.
As if summoned by the question, there was a rustling nearby, and a young man stepped through the bushes. “Ye found them!” he exclaimed. “Oh, thank God in Heaven for that.”
Eithne froze, but Myrna jumped to her feet.
“Jonah,” her voice wavered, but the young girl pointed in horror. “Ye traitor!”
“It’s nae as simple as that,” Ivor said, moving between the two of them. “Sit down, and I’ll explain.”
* * *
Eithne believed the things Ivor told her, of course – he would never lie to her – but it all seemed so horrible. She’d known Rory MacDuff to be a villain, but not how truly vile he was.
“And so even when Jonah realized what MacDuff had done to his faither, he still had his sister. Jonah couldnae act out of fear,” Ivor concluded. He glanced at the young man. “Did I leave anything out?”
“Only that I’m sorry, Myrna,” Jonah said earnestly. “I dinnae expect ye to forgive me – Lord kens I couldnae if someone betrayed me so – but please, at least let me help ye. Let me keep ye safe.”
Myrna hesitated. “I…I dinnae ken, Jonah.”
Jonah looked hurt, but he nodded. Eithne couldn’t help but feel a little pity for him. He’d betrayed them – but so had her own uncle. She couldn’t believe either of those men were genuinely evil. What did it take to get a good man to turn sour? A well-placed threat and some pressure had turned them against what they believed, but when it came down to it, Jonah seemed to want to do the right thing.
“There is something else, actually,” Jonah said as if suddenly remembering. “MacDuff made me his heir, in front of all his men. He may be keeping Betty and the bairn to make sure I return and serve under him like an heir is supposed to. I’ll need to save them.”
Ivor nodded. “All right. So, the plan is we get yer family out, we return them to yer mother, and ye and me and the lassies run. We get them somewhere safe, and—”
