“I cannae tell them that though, as I dinnae ken if it is true. I will nae feed them a lie simply so they can feel better.”
“We must do something for them. We cannae leave them here to suffer. We cannae hide out in the tavern until something happens.”
“I ken.”
“So what are we going to do?”
“We are going to do nothing. I am going to the guard tower.”
“What? Have ye lost yer mind?”
“Brid, think about it,” he implored, finally looking up to look her in the eye. “We have nay idea what is happening inside the keep. With all the doors and windows boarded up, there is nay telling what Campbell is up to. None of it is making any sense.”
“What do ye mean?”
“I mean, this village should be teaming with Campbell's guards. They should be patrolling every street. That blockade should never have been put in place. Campbell would have never allowed it. Yet, I have nae seen a single Campbell guard the entire time we have been here. There has been nay one to put a stop to what the rebels are doing. I want to ken why.”
“Aye, I do find that odd.”
“If everything has gone to plan, then Seamus should have already sent word to Campbell. Glenkirk will have already fallen. Campbell's army should have been on the move, or at least preparing to go fight the rebel forces to try to reclaim Glenkirk. But there has been nothing; no movement, no soldiers, nothing.”
“And ye think going to the guard tower will do anything?” she questioned, swirling the now half empty mug of ale around.
“I think if I can sneak into the guard tower, or at least get closer to Murray Castle, I will be able to find some old friends. I ken of a few men who were friends; they shared our way of thinking. I could get them to tell me what is going on. At the verra least, it would mean being able to give the village a real answer as to what is going to become of them. And if I find anything truly valuable out, we can send word to Seamus so he kens it too.”
Brid swallowed the rest of her ale with a nod.
“When do we leave?”
Connor swung his legs towards her so that he faced her head on.
“Brid, I already told ye. Ye are nae going with me. Ye must stay here.”
She set her mug on the counter, slowly, gently, before swinging her own legs around to face Connor. Their knees touched, but she hardly noticed. She was too frustrated to be flustered by him.
“I dinnae ken why ye must always insist on doing the most dangerous things alone. There is nay need.”
Connor sighed in frustration. Shaking his head, he pushed himself off the stool and stalked outside. Brid followed, unwilling to let this go in the slightest.
“Ye cannae simply walk away and think that means the conversation is over,” she told him once they made it outside the tavern.
The sky had fallen at least an hour ago, leaving the street empty and still.
“I am nae rushing into dangerous things, insisting I go alone because I like the thrill, Brid,” he argued, running a hand over his horse.
She moved to stand in his way and crossed her arms over her chest, unmoving both physically and in her stance on him going alone.
“Then explain it to me.”
“I will nae be noticed if I go alone. I ken their routines, their habits. I ken how to sneak in and out without being seen. And if I am found, I am familiar enough that nay one will question me. I can lie and tell them Campbell sent me on a mission. Nay one would bat an eye. But if ye are there, everything becomes much harder. I cannae ride as fast or move through the tower as quickly. Can ye scale a wall or lift yerself through a window?”
She didn't answer, which was an answer enough for Connor.
“I did nae think so. Both of those things I will need to do if I am to be successful. Please dinnae think me vain or so arrogant that I would risk the success of our mission simply to show off. I want ye to stay here for my sake as much as for yers. I could nae bare it if something were to happen to ye. It would be all I think about while out there. I need ye to stay here, where I ken ye are safe, so that I can do my part.”
Before either of them knew what she was doing, Brid stepped into Connor and grabbed the collar of his shirt. Rising on the tips of her toes, she brought his face down to hers, tilting her chin up. Their lips met with a passion she had not known before, but one she felt was only right. Just as quickly as she had gone to him, she stepped away, putting space between them once more. With his eyes still closed, Connor's hands reached out for her, as though he wanted more. When he came up empty, he blinked in surprise. They stared at each other for a moment,both bewildered over what had just happened. He looked just as flushed and off kilter as she felt.
“Promise me that ye will come back to me. That is the only way ye will make me stay. If ye must ken that I am here, safe, then I must ken that ye will return.”
“I promise ye, Brid. There is nothing that would keep me from coming back to ye now.”
