Eleanor walked up the steep banks of the river to the fort, Miriam in her arms. The baby had been weaned and was growing fast. Her bright blue eyes took in the unfamiliar fort, but when she caught a glance of Arran, she squealed and clapped her hands, causing Eleanor to turn his way.
James remained by Arran’s side as Eleanor walked toward them. West was close behind her, taking in the changes at Fort Douglas.
“Good day, Mr. McIntosh,” Eleanor said to James.
“Good day, Miss Brooke. ’Tis good to have you back at Fort Douglas.”
Eleanor smiled politely at James, but then looked at Arran, concern in her eyes. “Is it as bad as I fear?”
He did not want her to worry, but it was inevitable that she would hear the reports. “Aye. And worse.”
She held Miriam close as she surveyed their surroundings.
More than anything, Arran wanted to see Eleanor and Miriam safely removed from Assiniboia. Maybe now, with Semple’s departure, they could travel with him.
Hope filled his heart, but he knew he would need to convince Eleanor first. He would have to speak to her, and the sooner the better.
“Mr. MacLean.” Archie Currie, one of the company men who had held Fort Douglas with Arran a year ago, appeared at Arran’s elbow. “Governor Semple has asked that you oversee the armaments.”
“Aye.” Arran answered Archie and then turned back to Eleanor. “I need to speak with you, but it will have to wait.”
Eleanor nodded, her face as serious as he’d ever seen it.
There was no telling how much time they had until the battle would begin. He only hoped it would not start until after Eleanor and Miriam were gone.
Arran stood in the southwestern lookout tower, scanning the vast prairie one last time before he would take his leave. A brilliant full moon sat low in the night sky, casting elongated shadows across the land, making everything look larger than life. In the distance, cows and horses grazed, their movements drawing Arran’s wary eye.
“If you have no more need of me,” Arran said to James, who stood beside him in the tower, “I will try to get some sleep.” There was no telling what the morning would bring, and he would need all the rest he could get.
He also wanted to speak to Eleanor and hoped she had not gone to bed already.
“I thought you would return from Pembina a happier man.” James’s words made Arran pause on his way to the ladder.
“Happier?” Arran couldn’t hide the derision from his voice.
James lifted his eyebrows and nodded down to the governor’s house at the far end of the stockade. “I thought you might utilize the minister and be married to the lass by now.”
Arran wasn’t in the mood to talk about Eleanor.
“What went wrong?” James continued to press.
A movement caught his eye, and Arran crossed the small space again to stand on the opposite side. It was simply an owl, flying low, his wings spread wide. The creature was majestic in flight, but the wonder of seeing the bird was nothing compared to the pain in Arran’s heart. He was not prone to share his feelings easily, but James was a good friend, and he’d been holding them in for a long time. “She shouldna come.” Frustration tinted Arran’s words. “This is no place for her. I’m going to suggest she leave with Semple.” If it wasn’t too late. “I want her to be as far away from Assiniboia as possible when the fighting begins.”
“Does she want to leave?”
Arran couldn’t meet his friend’s gaze. “Nay.” But it didn’t matter.
“Do you want her to leave?”
“Are you daft? I just told you I did.”
James shook his head. “You told me she should not have come, and that this is no place for her. You dinna tell me if you want her to leave.”
A gentle breeze blew across the plains and swirled around the lookout tower. The scent of spring was in the air, of fresh starts and new beginnings. But for Arran, it was a reminder that his time with Eleanor had to come to an end.
“Of course I want her to stay.” There. He had finally admitted the truth, but it didn’t change the reality of the situation.
“Do you love her?”
