24
DARKENING SKIES
“Stay behind me,” Finn whispered, crouching behind a tree.
“What do ye see?” Iona whispered back, peering over his shoulder.
Together, they studied the forest, searching for any sign of the wounded animal. Or what they hoped was a wounded animal. Iona searched and scanned but found nothing. It was a surprise when Finn pointed to a group of trees sitting on the eastern side of the forest.
“There. A horse. That is probably what left us this trail.”
“The poor creature. We have to help him.”
“With as much blood as I see here, it will likely be a mercy to put the animal down. Do ye think ye can handle that, or would ye rather stay here?”
She hesitated for a moment, not sure how to answer.
“I will come with ye.”
He nodded, and they took off through the trees together. With their reins in hand, they walked carefully and slowly. Finn kept his eyes to the ground, following the trail of blood, while Iona kept her eyes on the trees, looking for anyone or anything that might be out there to harm them. It wasn't long before theycould hear the snickers, and whinnies of the horse, but the closer they got, the more strange it seemed.
“Finn, that horse is bridled.”
“What?”
He looked up, trying to find what she was talking about. The sun peered through the thick blanket of leaves overhead at just the right angle, shining off the metal bit that was clamped inside the horse's mouth.
“And there is a saddle.”
Finn stopped moving and turned around to look at her.
“Iona, I want ye to go back to the river and wait for me there.”
“Are ye daft? I will nae do that. I will nae leave ye here.”
“Do ye nae see, the horse has a bridle and saddle. That means it has a rider somewhere. We cannae be sure who this rider is, and I dinnae want to see ye hurt.”
“And what if ye are the one to get hurt? I could be here to help ye but, instead, ye want me to wait by the water while ye die. What if whoever is out here comes after me before ye find them? Nay,” she said firmly. “I will nae leave yer side.”
Finn studied her closely for a moment before he sighed heavily. Reaching around to his back, he pulled out a long dagger and forced the hilt into her hand.
“Take this then. Ye must do exactly as I say. And dinnae leave my side. Dinnae wander unless I tell ye otherwise.”
She took the weapon, the metal heavy in her hand but nodded all the same. Satisfied, Finn turned back around before he silently signaled for her to follow him.
They moved as one through the remainder of the trees. She was careful with her step, avoiding the branches on the ground and the dried leaves left over from the winter. The wind blew mercilessly, rattling the trees above, making a loud noise. While the loose strands of her hair whipped around her face, she wasgrateful for the racket that covered their sounds as they inched closer.
Approaching from behind the horse, Finn kept one hand on his sword while the other brushed along the horse's side, keeping it from spooking and giving them away. Iona, likewise, kept her fingers wrapped tightly around her dagger while the other fisted the back of Finn's shirt. They crept forward with their heads on a swivel until Finn looked over at her and pointed to something just around the tree trunk to her left.
She could only make out a pair of booted feet that lay haphazardly in the grass. Judging from the odd angle they rested at and how eerily still they were, she doubted that whoever those feet belonged to wasn't going to cause them any trouble.
Finn took a big step forward, moving out of her grasp, and pointed his sword at whoever was lying on the ground. He said nothing, as he studied her face. He motioned for Iona to stay where she was, but curiosity got the better of her. Stepping out from around the large oak, Iona glanced to the ground.
“Lord have mercy,” she cried before she tossed her dagger to the ground and fell to her knees.
“Iona! Get away from her! We dinnae ken who this is.”
“Aye, I do,” Iona told him, stroking the face of her old ally. “Och, Caitria, what have ye gotten yerself into?”
