Page 54 of How to Woo a Highlander

"It was nae our fault. I mean, ye saw her, boundin' away like a spooked deer. She's quite fast," another responded as they continued to trudge away.

"It is nae our problem anyway. The McKenzie spy is the one that wants her. He is a tracker, so it will be easy for him to find her," another added.

She stayed still, breathing shallow breaths as she tried to listen until she would no longer be able to hear them. She peeked out of the tree, checking to make sure that they were out of sight and that no one was hanging back.

Satisfied that it was clear to run, she made quick work of climbing down from the tree, landing with a crouch. Glancing around to make sure again there was no one to spot her, she set off running.

She took off in a burst of speed, making sure to put effort into creating space between herself and her former hiding place just in case they returned quicker than she thought. As she continued to run, she noted that no one was pursuing, so she slowed down into a jog.

There was no way that she could stop to rest. She knew better than that. She was worried that Lain was already hot on her tail, and could not shake the feeling. Her stomach growled with hunger. She had not eaten anything since the day before.

It was the first time in her life that she had missed four meals in a row. Her body was running on fear and willpower. If she rested at all, she knew that her strength would leave her.

She continued to alternate between running hard and jogging. She had run for a full hour before she collapsed, gasping for breath, all of her strength escaping her as though she were an overturned drum.

Though she tried, Jane could not find the will to return to her feet, or to drag herself to hiding. She had never run for so long in her life, not even when she used to practice running in the fields in her teenage years. It was the most she had ever pushed herself.

She couldn't even find the strength to cry. The knife remained in her hand. Not that it would do her much good now, however, out in the open for all to see.

"Is that… a woman?" A sudden voice startled her. The strength that had eluded her moments ago returned with a surge, and she sat up, clutching her knife defensively and glaring in the direction of the voice, looking for the speaker.

She was much more of a fighter than she had thought. Still wheezing for breath, she clutched the knife, knowing that she would fight to the end.

"I cannae believe this; it is a lass! It must be the Englishman's daughter," another voice said.

The Englishman? What Englishman? Do they know my father?

Two men suddenly appeared from the trees, landing on the forest floor at the same time. She jumped back at their movement, shuffling back on her bottom, wide-eyed and waving her knife threateningly.

They both held their hands up in a non-threatening manner, and she finally noticed that they were wearing McKenzie colors. Relief flooded through her, despite the tiny nagging voice that said they might be spies posing as McKenzie soldiers.

However, she had dropped her hand already, tired of running.

"Miss, we mean ye nay harm, will ye come with us to our Laird?" A raven-haired man asked as he approached. She nodded, allowing once again for Mackenzie soldiers to carry her between them.

She closed her eyes wearily. The last time this had happened, the soldiers had been carrying her to meet Alastair. It seemed like just moments ago, and now Alastair was gone.

"Jane?!" William's voice caused her eyes to fly open. It was then that sadness overcame her. The moment the soldiers let her feet touch the floor, she ran into his arms. He could barely react in time to catch her before her legs gave way, and she sobbed, deep wracking cries straight from her heart.

"She came runnin' towards the area where we stood watch, and then she collapsed. We brought her because she fit the description of the Englishman's daughter we were supposed to find with Alastair," one of the soldiers was explaining as William wrapped his arms around her comfortingly.

"Thank ye, yer decision was correct," William said, waving them away. “I suppose this means ye willnae need to accompany Alastair anymore. Ye may go join the others.”

"Are ye alright? Are ye hurt? We were comin' to rescue ye… did ye escape on yer own?" William asked, still shocked to see her.

"I did… I ran from the camp. When I was hiding from their soldiers, they said Lain would come after me, so I did not stop," she began between sobs. Realizing that William might not yet know of Lain's betrayal, she looked up at him desperately.

"Lain is a traitor! He joined the Grant army, and killed Alastair!" she cried, her heart full of sorrow. Looking at William, he only reminded her of Alastair, making her even sadder than before.

William patted her head comfortingly. "I ken that Lain is a traitor, and I ken that he attacked Alastair. Yer faither and I found him, but he is nae dead," he added.

Jane froze at his words, her mind reeling as she tried to discern whether or not she heard him correctly.

"What?" she asked breathlessly. William smiled.

"Aye, Lain left him nearly dead, but luckily, our Alastair is strong. He is badly injured, but he is alive. He was just here, and he only left to clear his mind in the forest." Jane felt her heart begin to beat so loudly that it echoed through her head.

"Yer faither treated his wounds and went to join his English soldiers just beyond the border. He is going to attack Grant with the English army because they took ye. We never expected that ye would escape on yer own," William continued, gently smiling as he wiped the new tears that spilled onto her cheeks.