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He started to speak.

I held up a finger. “I know you’re about to say, but we won, but we are trapped in the past, Torin, and our memories are suspect. Who knows what happened to the uncles and Max, and you’ve been at death’s door. So we aren’t doing that anymore.” I stamped my foot, keeping my voice as low as I could while still making the point, glancing toward the guards who had drifted a little closer. “If we get out of here and —”

“We are goin’ tae get out of here, I just need tae⁠—”

“Torin! Stop it!”

He looked at me shocked.

Guards peered over the edge of the wall at us, a group whispered in the corner. I pulled him a few steps farther into the relative shelter of the tunnel mouth so fewer eyes and ears were on us.

“What are ye sayin’, Princess? Ye yelling at me again?”

“Yes.” I stamped my foot again, but was quieter this time. “We are in dire straits and you keep saying you have this under control. You’re lying to me, it’s freaking me out⁠—”

His face turned down. “I am doin’ it so ye winna be scared.”

“It’s scaring me more! When you were dying in the priory you kept saying you were going to be fine. It sounded delusional and it scared me even more, and now this⁠—”

“I dinna die, Princess, I was correct on it.”

“Argh. You know what I mean! It took hours, it took days, I’m so mad at you.” I turned and stormed a few paces down the tunnel, still trying not to draw every eye in the courtyard.

He followed behind me. “Where are ye goin’?”

“I don’t know, but I’m leaving here. You’re going to tell me this will turn out okay, you will survive, we will be fine, Max will be back any day now — “ I spun around. “Do you see Max?”

“Nae, I⁠—”

“Don’t say it, you’re going to say we need to leave. You want us to ride to the meeting place, simple, without the ten guardsmen the King told you I needed and deserved, by the way⁠—”

“Och, ye are yellin’ at me and takin’ the king’s side. He daena ken everything. Sometimes tis true that a smaller group can move through the woods safer than a large party. We can use stealth and hide, a laird and lady with many guards would attract attention. Och, ye are being senseless.”

“The point is, Torin, you keep saying it will be easy and we will be there in… how long will it take?”

I tapped my foot.

“Now that ye hae a horse, it would take… three days, two nights in inns.”

I rolled my eyes. “And that’s just to see if Max is there. You won’t have anyone there to help us… we are all alone in this time with no protection, not a friend in this whole century. You’re charming, but not this charming. We are in a world of shit.”

He said, “Except Niall. And if I needed tae, I could get Douglas and the King of Scots on my side, I hae turned worse tae my cause. And even though the King is mistrustful, he still owes me a favor. Tis never so dire when the king owes ye a favor.” He added, “Ye canna be mad at yer Torin for tellin’ ye this will turn out well.”

“I can and I will…” I crossed my arms. “We are supposed to be a team. You need to tell me how you’re doing and you need to tell me what the plan is and stop being so damn positive about the outcome. We are really really really screwed.”

He said, “Och ye sound like yer brother.”

I glared and then said, “I do?”

“Aye, he is always wantin’ tae ken the truth of everything, but sometimes, mo leannan, a man canna face the truth without burdenin’ his heart, so he must lie tae himself about how he will live tae carry the weight of it. I hae put ye in hardship. I told ye I would nae and I hae, just days later. I daena want tae face it fully.”

“Did Max complain about you being so positive?”

“Aye, he would tell me that I was too boastful about all I was goin’ tae do. I would answer that tis my way… Honestly yer brother would get verra dark in his heart about havin’ lost his kingdom and his sister. I had tae reassure him that I was going tae win them back for him. I did it tae lift his spirits. He dinna believe me. He was sometimes angry at my unwavering assertions, but I was right in the end, his kingdom is won.”

“The case could be made, Torin, that sitting with Max in front of a hearth, boasting about your plans is a far different thing than you nearly dying in a bed in a monastery centuries away from everyone we know. Maybe when things are this bad we need to plan together instead of you patting me on the head and telling me it will be fine. You have to be truthful about what is happening, or how can I help?”

He raised his brow. “How can ye help? I love ye, but ye are from the modern world. I am grateful ye can ride a horse now, that is verra valuable, but until ye can swing a sword…” He shook his head and lowered his voice. “Ye are a princess and if any of these men knew, especially the king, ye would be in grave danger.”