A man sat on the edge of the cliff with his back turned. A small girl sat beside him, both close enough for the man to rest a broad hand on her back if he wanted. Place and push.
Creighton’s stomach knotted up. A lump lodged in his throat, and he swallowed it down resolutely.
“See that?” the man was saying. “That’s a falcon. They call it a bird of prey.”
“Prey?” the little girl answered. Laurie. Of course, it was Laurie. Creighton rested a hand on a nearby tree trunk to steady himself, fingers pressing into the bark.
“Aye, prey. See, birds like a falcon daenae just eat insects and wee mice. Nay, a bird like a falcon eats other birds.”
“Otherbirds?”
“Aye. Just small ones. Wee robins, sparrows, little birds like that. Nae other birds of prey, ye will notice. Nay, a falcon kens which target to choose. Often, the poor wee bird doesnae kenwhat’s hit it. But do ye ken what the birds do, if they see a falcon hoverin’ above it?”
“What?”
“They dive. There’s nay sense in tryin’ to fly faster than the falcon—they cannae. Some very fast birds can evade the falcon, but nae many. That’s a tricky game. So, they dive. Down they go, faster and faster. They tuck in their wings and fall to the ground. Once they’re low enough, it’s easier to hide from the falcon. They scamper into the undergrowth, getting where the bigger bird cannae follow. They’re clever creatures.”
“Oh.”
There was a brief silence after this. The man leaned forward, peering down over the edge of the cliff. With a rush of nausea, Creighton realized that they must be sitting with their legs dangling over the edge.
“We should play a game, ye and I,” the man continued, as if the idea had just occurred to him. “We can play at falcon and sparrow. See which one of us reaches that wee pool at the bottom first, eh?”
Laurie leaned forward, tentatively. “It doesnnae seem very deep. And it’s a long way down.”
“Ach, we’ll be fine. Shall we try it? A fun wee game before we go back to the keep. Unless…” he paused, head turning towardthe forest. “Unless we have a wee spy watchin’ us. Is that ye, Creighton?”
Laurie made to get up, to move over to the trees, but the man’s hand shot out, clamping around her upper arm.
There was no sense in hiding. Creighton stepped out of the trees, meeting the man’s gaze squarely.
“Dallas,” he said shortly. “Expectin’ me, were ye?”
CHAPTER 24
Nora scrambledup the last ridge, panting and exhausted. The hem of her gown was torn and ragged from the sharp shale, and she was pretty sure her fingers and palms were bleeding. It was a grueling climb, but Creighton almost seemed to float upward effortlessly.
Straightening up, she paused, tilting her head to listen. Voices drifted through the trees, so she moved toward them, pushing through dense undergrowth and darting between trees. At last, she stumbled out to a thin strip of greenery, a nasty drop waiting beyond.
Nora’s heart dropped as if she’d gone stumbling over the edge. There sat Laurie, dangerously near the edge, her little face pale and nervous.
Beside her sat Dallas Anderson. He had one hand clamped around Laurie’s upper arm, and even the slightest movement would send him—and her—toppling over the edge of that cliff.
Nausea roiled in Nora’s stomach. Slowly, she glanced over to where Creighton stood, about ten feet away from the pair.
“I’d nae come any closer if I were ye,” Dallas said conversationally. “This situation could go wrong very quickly, daenae ye think?”
“Dallas,” Creighton spoke, sparing only a quick, grim glance for Nora. “What is this? Let Laurie go.”
“I want to go to Crey,” Laurie murmured, trying and failing to twist her arm out of Dallas’ grip. Something like panic was beginning to spread over her young features. She knew, then, that something was wrong.
Too late.
“Ye will stay here, lassie,” Dallas responded, without even looking at her. In one smooth, easy movement, he rose to his feet, pulling Laurie with him. She fidgeted and twisted, her arm now pulled uncomfortably high above her head.
“Ye are hurtin’ me,” she pleaded. When no response came, she glanced over between Nora and Creighton. “I want to go home.”
Nora’s heart twisted.
