Pain tightened Arran’s chest as he went to her and drew her into his embrace.
She came willingly, weeping into his shoulder. “What will I do if I lose her?”
This was the very thing he had wanted to spare Eleanor when she’d arrived in Assiniboia. Death and disappointment were so much a part of their lives, it would be impossible for her to avoid it.
He held her tight, whispering comforting words against her hair. “The battle is not lost yet,” he said. “We will keep fighting until there’s no fight left in us.”
She sniffed and nodded, then pulled away from his embrace, wiping her cheeks with the backs of her hands.
A knock at the door tore Arran’s attention off Eleanor.
“I do not wish to see anyone,” she said.
He nodded, then waited until she reentered her room before he walked across the floor to answer the call.
Colin Robertson stood just outside the door. “Can I speak to you?”
Arran stepped aside to allow Colin to enter and then closed the door behind him.
“What news do you bring?” Arran asked, fearing there was more illness to report.
“A company man arrived from the post near Qu’Appelle today.” Robertson’s voice held a dire warning. “The Bois-Brûlés are gathering there in large numbers under the leadership of Cuthbert Grant. They are making plans to attack Assiniboia in the spring and have vowed to burn down Fort Douglas and drive off every settler, once and for all.”
The news was not surprising, though it was not what Arran had hoped to hear. The Bois- Brûlés saw the colony as a threat to their way of life and were just as determined as the North West Company to see them gone. “Has Duncan been a part of the plans?”
Colin nodded. “He went to Qu’Appelle after we left Fort Douglas and might be there still. He and Grant are working together.”
No doubt Duncan would return to his fort soon. His main responsibility was to gain the fur trade, with hopes of pushing the Hudson’s Bay Company out of the region and would not leave his post for long.
“There is other news,” Colin said.
Arran was almost afraid to ask. He crossed his arms and took a wider stance. “What have you heard?”
“There are rumors that Lord Selkirk was in New York earlier this fall, on his way to Assiniboia.”
“Selkirk is in North America?” Arran could hardly believe the news. If it was true, it was the best thing he’d heard in years.
“It’s only a rumor at this point. When was the last time you received word from him?”
“His last letter arrived with Governor Semple. It was dated from May of this year. He wrote from his home at St. Mary’s Isle and made no mention of planning a trip to Assiniboia.” Though Lord Selkirk had founded the colony, he had never been to the Red River Valley himself. The idea that he might be on his way was the first glimmer of hope Arran had felt in months. But was it only a rumor, or was it fact? And, if he was on his way, would he arrive in time to help? Moreover, what might he do to stop Duncan and Cuthbert Grant that Arran had not already tried himself?
“Selkirk holds the deed to all the land along the entire Red River Valley,” Robertson said. “Though Duncan doesn’t want to admit the truth, he is a squatter and poacher on Selkirk’s land. If anyone can hold him accountable, it would be the earl.”
“Aye. If Selkirk can survive the journey.” Arran had long feared that the North West Company would find a way to assassinate Lord Selkirk and make it look like an accident. If the founder of the colony died, the settlement would die with him. “If he is in New York, he will probably wait until spring to make the journey to the colony.”
And, by then, it might be too late for him to help against the plans the Bois-Brûlés and Nor’westers were making to destroy the colony for good.
“When do you expect Semple to return?” Robertson asked.
“In a week or two. When he is back, we will make our own plan.”
Robertson nodded, his dark eyes squinting in thought. “We will need to remove Duncan.”
“Aye. It should have been done already. Semple shouldn’t have let him go when we had him.”
Both Arran and Robertson had agreed about what to do with Duncan Cameron, though Governor Semple had the final say. “I wish we could apprehend Grant, as well,” Robertson added. Theman had made several threats but had not personally attacked the settlement. He would be harder to apprehend and bring to trial.
Duncan, on the other hand, had a long list of transgressions against the colony.
