Page 7 of Highland Spirit

“Where are ye goin’?” asked Kirstine.

“I think it’s time I do somethin’ to scare those Highlanders away before Diarmad kills them.”

“I understand,” said her sister with a nod. “I’ll find Isobel and keep her in the great hall until ye are finished.”

* * *

“Open the gate,” shouted Ethan, sure he’d seen Trapper run under the gate and into the castle’s courtyard when he approached. It shocked him that the castle seemed to be occupied when he was sure it was abandoned. But when he saw two guards up on the wallwalk, he realized he’d been mistaken.

“Nay! Go away,” shouted the guard atop the battlements. “No strangers are allowed in Blackbriar Castle.”

“I’m only lookin’ for my hound,” he told them. “I’m sure he went inside. Now, I’ll tell ye again, open the bluidy gate before I have to knock it down.”

The guard chuckled. “Ye just try,” he shouted down to Ethan. “If ye ken what’s guid for ye, ye’ll leave here and never return.”

“God’s eyes,” Ethan mumbled under his breath. All he wanted was to find his dog and leave, but they weren’t making it easy for him. He didn’t fancy being so close to this wretched place. If it weren’t for his hound running inside the courtyard, he’d gladly turn around and leave right now. “Trapper!” he called out, hearing the dog barking from somewhere inside the castle walls.

“Leave now, before we’re forced to make ye go.” Another guard from atop the battlements pulled back a bowstring with an arrow aimed right at Ethan.

“What in the Clootie’s name are ye doin’?” shouted Ethan in surprise. “Put down the bow! I’m leavin’,” he said, lifting his hands in the air. What the hell was the matter with these people? They were the most unfriendly lot of people he’d ever encountered in his life.

Ethan pretended to go but, instead, snuck around the back of the castle where he was sure there must be some sort of hidden postern gate. Now, if only he could find it. The winds picked up, blowing his cloak around him and sending a chill up his spine.

He was getting that bad feeling again. It was like something was about to happen and he shouldn’t be here.

The castle was in disrepair, with the outer curtain wall crumbling. He walked over the dry moat and pushed his way through the small opening that led to the wall of the inner bailey. Stopping directly under the window of a tower, he looked up, surveying the situation. There were thick vines on the walls and he was sure he could climb them if he tried. If he could just peek over the battlements, he might be able to spot his hound.

Holding on tightly to the vines, Ethan shimmied up the wall. It was high, but he was an experienced climber and had no trouble. When he got to the top, he hesitantly poked his head over the wall, surprised by what he saw. A little girl with dark curly hair and big brown eyes stared at him, her face bathed in moonlight.

“Hello,” he said, wondering what a young girl this age was doing unsupervised atop the battlements at night. He swore she had to be no more than about four years of age. She held a doll clutched to her chest that looked to be made of old rags in colors of red and blue. “Have ye seen a big white dog?” he asked, hoisting one leg up to the top of the battlements. “My hound, Trapper, is lost and I’m tryin’ to find him.”

The little girl nodded and pointed down into the courtyard. “The doggy is down there.” When Ethan got one leg over the wall, he heard barking and caught a glimpse of Trapper in the courtyard with several guards chasing him. That was probably why there were no guards on the battlements to stop him.

“Ah, there he is. Now, I’ll just have to find a way to sneak him out. Is there by any chance a hidden postern door nearby?”

The little girl once again nodded and pointed, this time to a wall covered in ivy, right behind the gong pit. “There’s one down there.”

“It figures,” he grumbled, not wanting to have to walk knee-deep through human waste to escape with his dog. “Oh well, if that’s what it takes,” he said, starting to hoist himself over the wall. He stopped abruptly when he heard the bloodcurdling scream of a woman coming from the tower directly above him. His head jerked upward and he saw what looked like the body of a falling woman. A whoosh of air went right past him, as well as a fluttering white gown and long, black hair trailing in the breeze.

“Losh me! What was that?” He was so startled at hearing and seeing the ghost so close up that he lost his grip on the wall. As he fell backward, his eyes fastened to the little girl still watching him curiously. She didn’t even seem shaken by what they’d just witnessed.

“Naaaaaay!” he cried out as he fell, trying to grab at the vines along the way so he wouldn’t break his damned neck when he hit the ground. He landed with a thud on his back, thankfully falling atop something soft. When he smelled the stench, he realized that he’d fallen into a large mound of horse manure that was hidden under dead leaves and a dusting of snow. Then again, mayhap he was closer to the garderobe than he thought. He could only hope it was a mare’s nest that was now smeared over his cloak and plaid and not something else. “God’s teeth, this isna turnin’ out to be a guid night at all.”

From his position on the ground, he could see the tower above him in the moonlight. To his surprise, a very beautiful woman peered out the tower window and glanced down to the ground. Her hair was long and blond and she wore a dark cloak over her plaid. The wind blew her hood from her head. Her eyes met his, and when they did, his mouth fell open. He couldn’t move nor could he believe what he saw.

Flat on his back and looking up at the sky, the woman looked very familiar to Ethan. Mayhap he’d died and gone to heaven or perhaps he was transported into the past somehow because he knew that girl! Aye, he recognized her face and it was one he despised as well as never wanted to forget for as long as he lived.

“Alana?” he said in confusion, blinking a few more times, not sure if he was only hallucinating because of the fall he’d just taken. Perhaps he’d hit his head.

The woman raised her hood, covering her head and hiding her face. Then she slowly stepped back into the shadows of the tower.

“Alana!” he called out again. Then he was distracted by an animal licking his face. “There ye are, Trapper.” He sat up and checked himself for broken bones. Thankfully, he didn’t find any. “Trapper, ye are in big trouble, boy,” he scolded the dog, standing up and brushing off his hands and plaid as best as possible. He could have stayed to investigate the ghost, but he didn’t want to. He was so shaken right now that all he wanted to do was leave. “Come on, boy. Let’s get the hell out of here before we’re hit with another ghost.”

He made his way down to the water, just as Hawke and Oliver were starting to sail away without him. “Hold up,” he called out, running for the boat with Trapper leading the way.

“It’s about time ye got here. I wasna goin’ to wait,” snorted Hawke.

“I can see that,” remarked Ethan, getting into the boat. His dog followed.