Connell grabbed Ian’s hands and shoved him away. Ian stumbled backward, barely catching himself from falling onto the ground. He yelled in anger, his hand reaching for his sword. “Ye foolish ingrate!” Ian shouted while withdrawing his blade. “Do ye know how long I’ve had to suffer? All the nights standing in the rain, waiting to hear word of the great Lady McCormick. Only for ye to think with yer cock and not with yer head.”
“Ian,” Donald said, his tone ebbed with warning as he rested a hand on Ian’s shoulder. “Put away yer sword, ye daft man. Ye know ye cannot fight him.”
Ian didn’t say anything as he scowled at Connell, holding his sword with both hands. His nostrils flared. His face was flushed bright red while he glared back at Connell. Connell didn’t move as he waited for Ian to rush forward, to attack. However, something must have come over Ian, for, rather than making his first strike, he stomped his foot and cursed before tossing his sword onto the ground.
“All these months!” Ian shouted while pacing back and forth, running his hands through his hair. “Wasted I tell ye! Absolutely wasted!” He threw his hands in the air. “And for what, Connell? Could ye please inform me, for I am at a complete loss. Was it the way she batted her eyes at ye? Or was it the curve of her bosom? Pray tell, was it--”
“Because I love her!” Connell shouted while slamming his fist onto the table. He would take no more of Ian slandering Elsy’s good name. “Because I couldn’t bear any foul act to befall her. Because she is the only one I will ever love and I could not bear to see her treated so cruelly by the likes of ye.”
Ian blinked, his mouth hanging open. He looked around the room, his eyes landing on Brann. “Did ye know about this?”
Brann stiffened, his eyes finally lifting and meeting Ian’s. “I did and did not. Only now does Connell choose to confess. But I could see in the way he gazed at the Lady—" Brann paused, his brows pinching together as he shook his head, “at Elsy.”
Grant sighed; his mouth set in a firm line as he regarded Connell. “Ye say ye love the lass?”
Connell nodded. “With all my heart.”
“And ye had her sent away where?” Grant placed his hands on his hips, his eyes narrowing, a spark of anger in the way he held himself. “Did ye send her with any guards to tend to her on the road?”
Connell grimaced as he shook his head.
“He sent Scotty with her,” Brann said quickly, coming to Connell’s aid. Yet, unbeknownst to Brann, Scott was a young girl. She would not be able to provide Elsy with any protection.
Grant and Donald both shook their heads. “Sending a boy who can barely hold a sword,” Donald whispered, his tongue clucking in irritation. “What were ye thinking, Connell?”
Connell shook his head, not quite understanding what Donald was getting at. Was he upset with Connell for allowing Elsy to escape? Or was he upset that he’d permitted her to leave without an escort? “I feared ye would do something to her,” Connell said, his voice low.
Donald rolled his eyes while Grant groaned. “In all our years together, have we ever treated any lass cruelly?” Grant asked.
“Nae,” Connell breathed.
“We must retrieve her,” said Grant while turning on his heel and stalking out of Connell’s study.
Connell found himself following Grant. The others stepped behind him. Grant was walking briskly, his hands clenching and unclenching as he said, “Who knows what foul people have come upon her.”
“Ye will not harm her,” Connell said, his tone both question and accusatory.
Grant spun around; his gaze hard as he stared at Connell. “Of course, we will not. We will question her as we promised in our duties to Robert the Bruce and then we will escort her safely to her home. As should have been done the moment she came here.”
Connell nodded numbly. “Of course,” he whispered. He followed Grant out of the fortress and into the stables, mounting his horse quickly. Brann, Ian, and Donald copied him, moving their horses out into the courtyard. Ian grumbled but didn’t say much as he kicked his horse into a gallop. Connell focused on the path ahead of him as the wind whipped through his hair. His lips tugged into a smile, yet he couldn’t permit himself to feel any joy, yet. He still needed to find Elsy.
And when I do,he thought while urging his stallion forward,I will tell her exactly how much she means to me. And I will never let her go.
