Page 36 of The Highlander’s Unexpected Wife

Bob pulled the carriage to the side of the road and stopped.

Cameron opened the door and jumped to the ground. He faced James. “Try to get a little sleep. I wager tomorrow will be a busy day.”

James nodded and Cameron closed the door, then strode to the back of the carriage. He grabbed his horse’s reins and began to untie them from the carriage, then halted at sight of a scrap of fabric caught on the left wheel. Bending over, he yanked the material free. His blood chilled. He recognized that damn light blue cotton.

“James.” He crushed the fabric in his fist.

James stuck his head out the carriage window. “What is it?”

“She was here. By all that is holy, why does that woman insist on getting herself into situations?” This time, it wasn’t her reputation at stake, but her very life.

James threw open the door and vaulted from the vehicle. He reached Cameron an instant later. Cameron unfisted his hand to reveal the fabric.

James lifted his head, brow furrowed. “Where did that come from?”

“The wheel.” Cameron nodded toward the wheel to his left. “It was caught on the spokes near the hub.”

James blinked. “Are you saying she rode on the back of my carriage all the way from your home?”

Cameron nodded. He stared at the fabric. Unlike the four women they’d sent away as prisoners of John Napier, Lady Alison Clarenton was completely unequipped to deal with criminals. Not to mention, Sallie would have no idea who the brunette was who had unexpectedly joined their ranks.

“Don’t let your imagination run wild,” James’s voice cut into his thoughts. “We have no proof they took her. The women were taken to a cottage on the far side of Napier’s estate. Lady Alison wouldn’t have wondered that far away.”

“Not wandered. She would investigate.” He swore. “You know full well that if one of Napier’s men caught her, Napier would consign her to hell before releasing her.”

“You said you believed she was eavesdropping on us. Perhaps she was standing behind the coach and tore her dress. Come now,” he added when Cameron started to reply, “how likely is it that a woman could have the strength to hold onto the carriage for such a long drive?”

“She might have fallen off along the way,” Cameron blurted.

“Christ, Cameron. It is far more likely my first theory is correct; she hid behind the carriage and her dress caught on the wheel.”

“It would be like her to simply walk to her cousin’s from there,” Cameron said.

James nodded. “Exactly.”

Still… Cameron fitted his booted foot into the stirrup and swung into the saddle.

“You are going to Dingwall, I take it?” James said.

“I will arrive about the time the coach arrives,” Cameron said. “Once I have established that she isn’t there, I can return to Inverness in an hour and a half.”

“If you ride like the devil,” James said.

“Exactly.”

“Shall I come with you?” James asked.

Cameron shook his head. “Go to her cousin’s home, Lennox’s place. That is likely where she is. For me to check there and Welbourne would take at least another hour. I would rather ride to Dingwall and find she isn’t there, then take the extra hour only to discover she is there. Whichever is the case, I will blister her pretty backside.”