Angus had had a very long and tiring day. He was not in the mood for some assertive stranger telling him what to do.
“‘Tis ye who have the manner o’ things wrong, fella! This room was hired by me daughter. If I have to call the innkeeper in here to turf ye out o’ doors, I will!”
By this time, the man had used his flint to light the lantern and was hopping around trying to find the leg holes in his trews.
“Ye’re drunk, ye mad sot!” the man shouted at Angus. “I paid for this room, and the maid showed me up here nae one hour ago! Begone before I fetch a soldier!”
He suddenly went quiet when he saw Slaine’s massive outline in the doorway behind Angus.
“It’s just a simple misunderstanding, I’m sure,” Slaine said calmly. “I, meself, commissioned this suite from the innkeeper this afternoon. Please stay here while I sort it out. There’s sure to be another room available somewhere.”
Both men simmered down at his words; Slaine was not the sort of man anyone was keen to ignore.
Angus and the stranger bowed politely to one another and Angus backed out as Slaine closed the door behind him.
The two men turned from the doorway to see Blair standing in the parlor behind them.
“Ye both have it wrong,” she said. “‘Twas I who told the innkeeper to let the other bedchamber go.”
It took a while for Slaine and Angus to process her words, but when they understood what she was implying, it had different effects on them.
A look of hope came into Slaine’s eyes, as though the dark thoughts he had been thinking by the fireplace had disappeared.
Angus, on the other hand, was furious all over again.
“Skuldudrie! I ken it! Oh, that I should live to see the day when me own daughter finds a way to lower herself in the eyes of her family and her neighbors.”
Blair had had enough. “Be quiet, Faither, and how dare ye lecture me on morals! ‘Tisyewho should be ashamed!”
Angus was silent at her words.
Blair continued, looking her father straight in the eyes as she spoke. “I’m auld enough to ken what I do, Faither, and Slaine has been there for me when ye most definitely werenae! He’s me hero, a fine figure of a man, and gentlemanly enough for me to have had to plan this without his knowledge.
“The two of ye must sort out yer differences in the morning, and I care nae where ye both sleep. I suggest ye ask the maid to push some truckle beds into the parlor if there be no more bedchambers.”
There was a bang from behind the other door. “Please be quiet, I want to sleep!”
“And so do I,” she said and on those words, Blair turned on her heels and went back into her room, closing the door with a loud click.
The two men said nothing more and went downstairs to find alternate sleeping arrangements.
16
A Normal Breakfast
When Blair went down to the taproom in the morning, she found Slaine and Angus sitting at the same table, breaking their fast together.
Angus was thoughtfully spooning porridge into his mouth while Slaine was breaking off pieces of bannock and taking bites of it in between drinking ale. The scene seemed peaceable enough, and Blain joined them after saying a brisk good morning.
“There are some parts of yer story still missing, Faither.” Blair, after taking a sip of cider, began her questions anew as though there had been no break in the conversation they had had the previous night. “How did ye ken to drop off the woman where ye did? Ye said something about it being close enough for her to walk into Cromachy but still far away enough from her final destination. What did ye mean by that?”
Angus heaved a sigh. “Losh, are ye still on about that?” He saw Blair’s face set in a determined expression and knew he would not be left in peace until she had all the details. “Very well. I have been to the Cromachy thieves’ den many times before. They are too clever to set up their business within the town walls. If the counselors are good men, they run the danger of being caught, and if the counselors are willing to turn a blind eye, then it means they would have to give them a cut of the booty.”
Slaine added his thoughts to what Angus had just said. “It sounds like they’ve been doing this for quite some time—long enough for the gang to have seen the comings and goings of more than a few counsels.”
Angus agreed. “That they have, young man. They are one o’ the largest gangs operating within His Majesty’s borders at this time, and have been steadily growing over the past ten or twenty years. They are adept at spying out towns where their enterprises will be tolerated, if nae actively encouraged, and then set up a network o’ criminals around its perimeter. With all the clan fighting we’ve been having in the Highlands, there’s plenty enough land without a laird to govern affairs.”
Blair scoffed as she buttered herself a slice of bread. “Faither, I’m sure ye exaggerate. No town or the townsfolk living within its walls would take kindly to an endless parade of ne’er-do-wells prancing along their streets, never mind all the thieving and pickpocketing.”
