“Yes.”
Arne stopped and stared at his brother’s back, until he turned to face him. He wasn’t ready to admit Ulf might be correct.
“If we rule out the notion she is bringing an army of Britons to attack us,” Ulf’s expression was one of amusement, “then we must work out which direction she would go. There is nothing for her in Nevyth. The church there remains deserted and the spit is too difficult to cross without a boat most of the time. North is the most likely.” Ulf looked up at the sky. “I don’t think we have long before the snows come. She may have headed to Car Cadell to Lord Cenydd.”
Arne nodded slowly, considering his brother’s words. What Ulf said made sense. He just couldn’t believe it was true. Why would Gemma go to Lord Cenydd now? Why not just stay there in the first place?
“That is more than a day’s walk. And we do not know how well she knows these lands.” Arne looked across the firth, then turned to look north. If she stuck to the coast, they should find her easily. If she headed into the hills, it would be harder. They were mainly grazing lands and empty during the winter. There was even less for her there than if she headed to Car Cadell.
“If she hasn’t returned to Ir Ysgyn, then I don’t know where she is heading.”
“I don’t understand why she decided to leave in the first place,” said Ulf. “They were safe here. We would have taken her to Lord Cenydd if she had asked. Or even taken her home. It is not safe for them to be travelling alone in these lands, never mind at this time of year. What on earth would have prompted her to leave?”
Arne said nothing, his sense of guilt growing.
“Well…” he began, but had no idea how to continue.
“What did you say to her, brother?”
“Only the truth. That she was a danger to the settlement. And… I think Rhiannon may have said something similar,” Arne muttered, pushing his hands into his pockets. “And told her about soldiers offering a reward for her in Ir Ysgyn.”
Ulf stopped moving and shook his head, resignation etched into his features. “And you think she is bringing soldiers to attack us? Let’s hope they have not got far. Tormod will not be happy if it turns out it is your fault someone as valuable as Gemma has left the safety of the settlement.”
“The settlement is not safe for us as long as she is here.”
Ulf was right, but Arne wasn’t willing to admit it. He needed to find her and sort the situation out before Tormod was not distracted by the birth of his child. Still, what right did Ulf have to judge him? Arne folded his arms and glared at his brother. Ulf merely regarded him, an amused smirk playing at his lips, as if there was no need to bother replying to such a statement.
“I will find her,” he assured Ulf, gritting his teeth. “And Rhiannon did not help the situation.”
Just then they heard another scream coming from the hall and Arne sighed. “Let us hope that today ends more fortuitously than it is beginning.”
“Should we saddle the horses? We will cover the ground faster.”
“Yes, but we might miss something.” Arne looked north, where the only path led out of the settlement. “They can’t have got far.”
The two brothers set off along the path northwards out of Kirkjaster at a fast pace. By the time they had reached the pass which led eastwards towards Lord Cenydd’s lands, they had still seen no sign of them and it was well past midday.
“We should have brought the horses,” Ulf said.
Arne studied the pass through the glen on the east, remembering a similar time the previous year when they had met Lord Cadell’s men there and Lady Aoife had been unceremoniouslyhanded over as Tormod’s bride. He was still reluctant to accept that Gemma would have gone to Lord Cenydd.
“I will keep looking. You go back to Kirkjaster and get the horses, then catch up with me.”
Ulf nodded. “Very well. Take care, brother. I will return as quickly as I can. Watch for the snow. Don’t get caught out in it.”
“I will head for the shieling on the moors if it snows. I should reach there well before nightfall.”
“Then that is where I will meet you,” Ulf said.
They parted, and Arne continued northwards. He kept to the well-trodden route through the forest, hoping Gemma would take the easiest paths in one way, and in another praying she would keep her distance from any other travellers. Not that there would be many at this time of year in this spot. The route led to high moorlands, used mainly by shepherds in the summer and for the occasional hunting party in winter. But this was not the right weather for hunting. It was growing ever colder, and the sky was thick with clouds. Arne was sure Ulf’s prediction of snow had been correct.
So far, he had seen nothing to indicate anyone else on this road until he reached a patch of muddy ground that was going to be almost impossible to avoid. As he picked his way over it as best he could, he noticed two sets of footprints. One small enough to be a woman’s, and the other most definitely a child’s. When he reached the other side, he increased his pace. Soon, he would catch up with them and be able to take them back to Kirkjaster.
Chapter Six
Gemma pulled her cloaktightly around herself and reached for Caelin’s hand once again. She took a step forward, but he didn’t follow her. She yanked at his arm, turning to look at him when he didn’t move.
“Mama, I can’t go any further. When are we going home?”
