Page 37 of Highlander’s Quest of Desire

Looking Bruce up and down with disdain, he then turned to Elspeth, talking directly to her. “Yer brother is beside himself with worry. He hasnae heard from ye in weeks. If I were nae there at the spring festival I wouldnae have ken of yer foolish behavior. Since I was present yer brother entrusted me with keeping eyes and ears open if ye were ever near Balquhidder. My spies spotted ye at the Lonely Inn and got word to us at once. My men were trying to rescue ye.”

Bruce didn’t believe a word he said. This was just more lies to give Elspeth a false sense of security so she would reveal what Bruce had been up to these past weeks. He had been right not to share too much with her. It was a secret he could tell no one.

Elspeth stepped forward, her back straight, but Bruce could see her lower lip shaking a little. She was nervous but putting a brave face on it. “Why should I believe ye?” Elspeth asked, rubbing at her chafed wrists. “Yer men never identified themselves. They kept their hoods up, and nae once did they reveal who they were. I was kept in a covered cart. Why would ye do that if nae to keep the destination a secret? I have come to Balquhidder once every three years for the past ten years. Did ye nae ken I would recognize it? Why did they take pains to hide it from me?”

Bruce was impressed. Her voice hadn’t wavered once. She had put forth her argument in a clear and concise manner. Bruce had shouted like a barbarian while Elspeth had shown her true colors, that she was a lady through and through.

“Why my men kept their hoods up only they can explain,” Laird Labert spread his hands. “But I can tell ye why the cart was covered. Domnhall has taken pains to make sure nae one kens of yer disappearance. He has spread it far and wide that ye are ill and have cloistered yerself so the disease doesnae spread to the rest of the castle. How do ye think people will talk about the Buchan clan if they find out another woman of the house has run away?”

Elspeth flinched. Her eyes widened, and her cheeks became red. Bruce recalled that her sister-in-law Adamina had also ran away. Since there was no love lost between the two women, he was sure Elspeth felt rage at being compared to someone like Adamina.

“He is worried about yer reputation, as am I. This is why we took pains to cover ye.”

“For the hoods,” Eric stepped forward. “Since ye left Blair Atholl we speculated where ye might be. We expected ye to show up at Dunnottar with Sinclair but when he returned and ye were nae of his party we assumed ye had stayed with Laird Grant. But our spy gave an inaccurate description of Laird Grant. We assumed ye were with someone else, maybe a hostile man who had kidnapped ye. So, we came with our hoods up to surprise and frighten yer assailant.”

“It was a foolish thing to do, now that we look back on it,” Brian, the man with the bite mark, said. “But ye were so busy eating us alive we had nae time to explain ourselves. I am very sorry to have lifted my hand against ye, Lady Elspeth,” He went down on his knees. “Please forgive us.”

Bruce glowered at the man. He had not known Elspeth had been harmed in her capture. He made a vow that he would wring Brian’s neck before climbing the gallows.

“Then ye saw me,” Bruce jeered. “And ye must have thought of the price on my head. Is it nae so? Ye sent me to prison before, nae if ye send me to the hangman’s noose it willnae prick yer conscious much.”

“We saw ye, indeed,” Eric said. “But before we could lift our hoods, ye attacked us! What were we to do? And after hearing the choice words ye have for our Laird I’m glad we didnae identify ourselves. Ye donae show him the respect of an ally. In fact, it seems ye donnae trust our Laird. Would ye have come willingly if we met ye on the road? Would ye be willing to visit Balquhidder?”

Bruce sneered. “Nae. I donae visit traitors to Scotland.”

“That’s thrice ye have called me traitor, Bruce,” Laird Labert said in a dangerously calm voice. “Be warned I willnae tolerate another.”

“He is hurt, Laird,” Elspeth said. “Both in body and spirit. Bass Rock was nae kind to him. But ye would ken all about that.”

Laird Labert’s cool demeanor wavered. He looked from Elspeth to Bruce and he paled. “Ye were at Bass Rock?” he asked.

Bruce thought it cruel of him to pretend he did not know of the damage he had caused. The nightmares Bass Rock had gifted him would be his life-long companions. His body was still recovering from the ravages of that place. Never before had he felt such an urge to hurt someone as he did now with Laird Labert.

“Aye,” Bruce curled his lip in contempt. “That’s where they took me when ye told them I had left Dunnottar. Would ye like to see the scars they left on my body? Ye’d like the sight of them, eh? My father thought ye his brother!”

“He was my brother,” Laird Labert said with emotion. “As was Andrew Buchan! They were both my brothers, and ye are dear to me like my own children. To have to see the day when I’d have to prove my loyalty to ye!”

Elspeth went forward and touched the old man’s arm. Bruce wanted to snap at her to get back from him, but he knew she had a soft spot for Laird Labert. It would be the undoing of her. Women weren’t known to show reason. They were emotional beings, ruled by their hearts and humors.

“Ye ken better than anyone that these are treacherous times. We have suffered many an injustice from the English. They have broken our resolve, thrown our dignity and honor in the dirt, and walked all over it. Bonnet lairds have betrayed their lairds, fathers have betrayed their sons, all to appease the English. If ye were threatened into giving them Bruce, we would understand. But ye need to tell us the truth.”

That wasn’t the speech Bruce had expected. He had expected her to agree with Laird Labert and take his side. But she stood firmly in his camp. He could see she was struggling with her affection and regard for the man who had shown her kindness when she had felt invisible as a young girl. He had never thought her braver than in this moment.

Footsteps announced new arrivals. Master Faraday walked in, his hands holding a tray with pots, herbs, and a mortar and pestle.

“Aye, then it is the truth ye shall have.” Laird Labert took Elspeth’s hand gently and bade her sit in a chair. He took the salve himself and began to tend to her bruised wrists. “Tell me Bruce, who warned ye of the English plot to lay false claims at yer door and oust ye of yer home?”

Bruce was taken aback by the question. Instead of giving proof of his innocence, Laird Labert was turning the accusing finger on him.

“Ye did, and now I suspect ye did it to goad me to leave the castle.”

“I didnae goad ye,” Laird Labert sighed. “I got the information from my spies in Edinburgh. Lord Westerly is a dear friend, but he is an Englishman, and nae to be trusted to have our best interests at heart. So, I have spies in his castle. They told me that Dunnottar was in trouble. The English took a liking to its strategic position and wanted to claim it for themselves. But how to do so when the Laird was in residence and a staunch follower of the law?”

Laird Labert gently covered Elspeth’s injury with a clean cloth. “I sent ye a letter warning ye nae to leave Dunnottar. Ye wrote back and gave me yer solemn promise that ye would abide by my request. It was Domnhall who told me of yer imprisonment. Sinclair had warned him nae to share the information with me for he suspected that I had tipped the English of yer whereabouts. But answer me this, Bruce. How was I to ken where ye were when ye had assured me ye were in yer castle?”

“Ye must have spies at Dunnottar.”

Laird Labert laughed. “Perhaps,” he shrugged. “But did ye tell yer staff where ye were headed?”