Marti Talbott's Highlander Series, Volume 5 Page 7

  “You will not tell even me?”

  “And why should I tell you and none other?”

  “Because I am the most curious. I lay awake nights trying to figure it out, you see.”

  Nessa tried not to smile. “Well, I could hardly keep a lad from his rest.”

  “Then you will tell me?”

  “Nay.”

  “If I guess correctly, then will you tell me?” he asked.

  “Nay.”

  “Perhaps bribery then. I will take you riding ... twice. I will build you a cottage and I will hunt just for you.”

  That made her stop walking and turn to stare at him. “How many nights has it been since you slept?”

  Ros laughed. Then he pulled the tie out and let his blond hair fall down around his shoulders. Still grinning, he held the tie up in front of her face. “This was a gift from my mother. It is yours to keep and all you need do is tell me your secret.”

  It was an ordinary length of wool string and Nessa rolled her eyes. “Your mother did not love you, did she?”

  He lowered the string and pretended to pout. “You will not tell anyone about my mother, will you?”

  “You want me to keep yet another secret? I will go daft.”

  He put his hands behind his back and started them walking again. “Do you know, you are the only one in the clan with a secret of any consequence, you and your sisters that is.”

  “It is a dreadful burden, but we manage. Hopefully, we will not have to do that again...kill a lad, I mean. We are not fond of killing, but when there was just the nine of us, we had little choice. Now we have all of you to protect us.”

  “You had all of us that night too. Why did you not let the lads rescue her?”

  She folded her arms and looked away. “We did not trust you.”

  He was surprised by her honesty. “And now? Do you trust us now?”

  “I do, although I admit it has taken these many months. Some things come natural when taught at an early age, and we were carefully taught to protect each other from the time we learned to walk.” Now that she had seen him up close, she thought him even more handsome, particularly with his hair let loose. Being so close made her sorry she was almost home.

  “Most lasses find it difficult to learn to kill.”

  “They would not hesitate to protect those they love. Being alert is learned, killing is something...”

  “That happens without thought?”

  “Aye, without any thought at all. The moment comes and the killing is done before one has time to think about it.”

  “But later, you think about it constantly until it mercifully fades into a memory.”

  “You have killed a lad?”

  He did not hesitate to answer, “Aye.”

  “Do you wish to tell me?”

  “Nay, it was a long time ago and best forgotten. Still, it is good to talk with someone who can truly understand.”

  Too soon she was home and standing in front of the cottage she shared with her younger sisters. “I am fortunate to have nine sisters who truly understand.” He did not seem to want to leave and she did not know what more to say, so she just stood there staring at the ground. He was finally looking at her and as Dolee instructed, she let him.

  “Nessa, what frightens you?”

  “A wild boar. I have only seen a few, but I have yet to see anything more terrifying. Why do you ask?”

  “I was just curious.” With that, he nodded and walked back down the path to the courtyard.

  A few moments later, he was out of sight and Nessa was left wondering what that was all about. Why did he want to know what frightened her?

  She frowned and turned the question over and over in her mind. Perhaps he and Emily planned to frighten her with a boar’s head as a jest, although she could not think why they would go to the trouble. Emily was nice enough, but the two women had not spent a lot of time together. With nine sisters, Nessa hardly had time to spend with any of the other young women. She slowly turned around and opened the door. Perhaps he was just curious as he said.

  FOR THE SECOND TIME in a few months, Ben quietly entered the Keep to wait for Neil to wake up. The sunrise promised good weather, not the crisp air that signaled winter. He again admired the colorful, stuffed pillows along the walls, the smell of the burning embers in the hearth and took a moment to get a close look at the sword that once belonged to Laird Kevin MacGreagor, a man he greatly loved and remembered from his childhood. Then Ben quietly sat down at the table and waited for Neil to come down the stairs. The news he had this day was not good and his concern was evident on his face.

  “What?” Neil asked, suddenly appearing in the doorway and then walking across the great hall to the table.

  “Two horses missing.” Ben quickly got to his feet so he could look his laird in the eye.”

  “They might have wandered away.”

  “Nay, both were tied to a tree awaiting the morning guards.”

  Neil lowered his eyes and ran his fingers through his tousled hair. “Have you any idea how long they have been gone?”

  “Two, maybe three hours. I remember seeing them when the moon was still high and it is down now. We gained a new colt in the night and I did not check on the horses.”

  “Were they packed with provisions?”

  “Aye, just as they always are and I have already sent lads to look for them. Perhaps I did not tie them well enough.”

  “That would surprise me. For years, you have been preparing horses for the morning guards and never have you been remiss. The Haldane were spotted in the woods yesterday, perhaps they are thieves. The Haldane trouble me, they say not a word to any of us and it is unsettling. Perhaps it is time to pay them a visit.”

  Ben kept quiet and just let Neil talk. On this subject, he did not feel qualified to offer advice and instead waited to be discharged. But Neil did not send him back to the animals, even when Walrick, Gelson and several of the other men came in to await the orders that would start their day. Each man was told the news immediately upon entering and each frowned. Missing horses were always a great concern.

  Glenna brought Justin and the baby down, the serving women began to serve their morning meal and the men began to discuss the situation. Such a gathering so early always made Glenna smile. The men could not help but watch her eat and if Neil would let them, they would have one morning meal in the cottage with their wives and another in the Keep with them. Some of the men, she feared never managed to quench their abundant appetites no matter how much they ate.

  Normally she ignored the men as they talked. Instead, she kept an eye out to be sure enough food was sent to the middle floor, where some of Walrick’s adopted children yet resided. Then she turned her attention to considering how many could live on all three floors, should the winter be as cold as they feared.

  On the other hand, it took considerable wood and perhaps trying to keep such a large building warm was not the best way to conserve. If the families doubled up and even tripled in the smaller cottages, they would use only one third of the wood. But when should they begin to share provisions? And what if they did not begin soon enough? It was not an easy question to answer.

  Normally there was nothing fascinating in what the men had to say, but when Camran bolted through the door, everyone looked up including Glenna.

  He nearly shouted, “I cannot find Dolee.” Camran’s face was pale, his hair tousled and his kilt haphazardly tucked under his belt. “She was gone when I woke up. She built no fire in the hearth as she always does and I have looked everywhere.”

  CHAPTER V

  NEIL SHOVED HIS BOWL away and stood up. “We have two horses missing also.” He glanced at Walrick but gave his orders to all the men. “Find her. Wake everyone up and see if anyone else is missing, then search the woods.” In an instant, the men filed out and scattered in all directions, each wanting to assure himself that his family was accounted for before they began the search.

  Walrick headed ups
tairs, made sure his children were there and then headed off to fetch Steppen. Whatever was to come, he would be happier if Steppen was in the Keep with Glenna.

  With the great hall suddenly empty except for her small family, Glenna remained quiet and let her husband think. For the sake of two stolen horses, he would not go to war, but for a woman—aye, her beloved husband would fight to the death if anyone took one of the women.

  The children were finally fed and she was no longer hungry, but still she did not go back upstairs. Instead, Glenna played with the baby and watched Neil pace in front of the hearth.

  CAMRAN KNEW NOT WHERE to go or what to do, so he stood alone in the courtyard facing one direction, and then turned to face another. He too was terrified someone had taken his wife and he would surely kill the scunner, if he could manage to figure out whom it was. But for now, his heart was filled with terror. Was she hurt, was she this moment being forced, was she dead? He brought his hands up and covered his eyes. She can’t be dead—he would not let her be dead.

  Walrick was the first one back and brought Steppen with him. He immediately went to Neil and she went to sit by Glenna at the table. “The two might not be connected,” Walrick said.

  “I have considered that. But if a lad came in the night on foot, he might take two horses to carry her off.”

  “If a lad came to take her away, he would only need one horse and the better to keep her quiet if he had her on his horse.”

  “True, but both are possible. He might have pulled the other horse behind him.”

  “Or someone stole two horses and Dolee just got lost in the forest.”

  Neil grabbed his friend’s upper arms. “I pray that is exactly what happened. Send the men who were on guard last night to me. Someone must have seen something.” He expected Walrick to leave straight away, but when he didn’t Neil waited for him to speak.

  “Camran is standing in the courtyard befuddled.”

  “Bring him in here. She is his wife and he has a right to know what is happening.” But instead of waiting for Walrick to do it, Neil went out and got him. He brought Camran in, led him to the table and was about to tell him to sit down when he noticed his disheveled kilt. “Have you forgotten how to dress yourself?” Neil meant it as a jest, but as soon as Camran turned his hands over and showed his injured fingers, Neil slumped. “Forgive me.”

  Neil sat down at the table, waited for the women to turn so they were facing away from them and pulled some of the pleats out of Camran’s belt. Then he expertly began to put them back. “When my father was near the end of his life, I often pleated his kilt. It is not as easy as it seems for it is backwards, you see.” He glanced up at Camran’s attempt to smile. “We will find her. We will not rest until she is back in your arms, I swear it.” He finished and stood back up.

  “Thank you.” Camran did not know if he should leave again so he waited.

  Neil, on the other hand was well aware that Camran needed something to do. But with his injured hands, a task would not be so easily found.

  Glenna motioned for Camran to sit down at the table. “Perhaps you might teach Justin how to count. As soon as he is more fully awake, he will be chattering away. It would be a great favor to me if he had you to answer all his questions.” The nod of appreciation Glenna got from her husband warmed her heart. Feeling useful for something other than bearing children was important to her.

  OUTSIDE, GELSON BEGAN giving orders. He sent men to walk along the riverbank in case she fell in. Others gave the village a thorough search, walking down every path and looking between the cottages. But the bulk of the men fanned out and disappeared into the forest on opposite sides of the glen. The night guards had not seen her or anything suspicious, and as soon as they reported it to Neil, they joined in the search.

  THERE WAS AN EERIE silence as most of the women stood outside their cottages and listened to an occasional far off man shouting Dolee’s name. As the time went by, they drifted back inside. The children still had to be fed, the animals needed tending and there were chores to be done. And when they happened to be together, they speculated on what had happened, and who might be to blame in soft tones just above a whisper.

  Some of the women were near tears as the morning turned toward afternoon. Others were beginning to get angry at the thought that someone might have taken her.

  Most of the men were getting angry too. The longer they searched the more likely it seemed that someone had taken her and war was on every man’s mind. Still they searched, looking between trees and behind bushes just in case she was unwell and passed out somewhere. But Dolee had simply vanished and by the noon meal, the men began to come back to the hold to collect a meal and mount their horses.

  Camran spent the morning going out to look for her and then coming back several minutes later to see if anyone had found her. It was making everyone daft, but none of them knew how to help him or what they would do in his position. They only thanked God it was not their wife, mother or daughter who was missing.

  ROS RETURNED FROM SEARCHING to find both Emily and Nessa in the courtyard, although they were on opposite sides. Emily smiled and was happy to see him, but Nessa didn’t notice his return and he found that disappointing. Instead, she was standing near the rock wall, staring down the path toward the pasture. He ignored Emily and went to Nessa. “Are you lost again?”

  But this time when she turned to look at him, there were tears forming in the bottom of her eyes. Alarmed, he took hold of her arms and turned her to face him. “What is it?”

  “Nothing.”

  “You do not strike me as the kind of woman who cries for nothing. Is it Dolee? I saw you talking to her yesterday.”

  “You saw us? Did you hear what we were talking about?”

  “Nay, what were you talking about?”

  “Nothing important.”

  She would not look at him, which convinced Ros she was hiding something. “If you know where she is, you must tell us.”

  “I thought they would find her by now, but...Neil will send me away and I will not blame him if he does.”

  “I have never known Neil to banish a good lass. Why would he send you away?”

  The tears clouded her eyes again and she hung her head. “I did not mean to, but I have done something wrong.”

  Ros did not wait for her full confession. Instead, he grabbed her hand, pulled her across the courtyard and then through the door of the Keep. He had her standing directly in front of Neil before he let go of her hand.

  Nessa began to sob. “It is my fault.”

  Neil wrinkled his brow, “What is your fault?”

  “It is my fault Dolee is missing.”

  “How could it be your fault?”

  “Please do not banish me.”

  Neil lifted her chin with his hand and made her look at him. “I will not banish you unless you have killed her. Have you killed her?”

  “Nay, I swear it!”

  “I thought not, but you do know where she is?”

  Nessa accepted the cloth Steppen handed her and dried the tears on her cheeks. “She has gone to see the Widow Kennedy.”

  “The soothsayer?” A very pregnant Edana hurried to stand right behind her sister. “Nessa, what have you done?”

  CHAPTER VI

  NESSA QUICKLY TURNED to face the eldest of her sisters. Always when the sisters confronted her, it made her mind go blank and she struggled to find the words. “I did not think...she wants a child and I said the Widow Kennedy might be able to help. I told her not to go...at least I think I told her not to go. I truly did caution her to stay clear of the Kennedys.”

  The great hall was quickly filling with sisters, who seemed to magically know where the others were at all times. Said Charlotte, “Did you tell her how to find the Widow Kennedy?”

  “I might have.” Nessa backed up a step nearly running into Neil. “I believe I did, come to think of it. But she said her husband would take her. I did not know she would go alone. How could
I know that?” When she looked, Alison mouthed the word, “witless” and Aleen rolled her eyes.

  It was Neil who turned Nessa back around to face him. “You will tell us where the Widow Kennedy lives.”

  “Nay, I will take you there,” said Slava.

  Neil looked at her and then at each of the married sisters, the each of whom had the swell of a child at various stages. Nessa was now the eldest unmarried woman and the logical choice. “Nessa will take the lads.”

  The sisters wanted to object, but Neil was right and if they went now, the men might quickly catch up with Dolee and be back the next day. Reluctantly, Edana nodded and gathered Nessa in her arms. Then she walked her sister out the door. “You best take my dagger; it is the sharpest. You will also need...”

  TWENTY MEN, INCLUDING Camran and Ros, whom Neil chose to lead them, were waiting for Nessa when Neil lifted her onto her horse and handed her the reins. “Godspeed.”

  She nodded, said, “Whoa,” to her horse, which caused the horse to go forward, and then smiled at the stunned look on the face of one of the men standing in the courtyard. “Ask my sisters to explain.”

  They rode to the end of the valley and then just as Nessa instructed Dolee, they turned east. It did not take but a few hours for Nessa to see the futility of the search. The men spread out as far as they dared and still the amount of land they were able to cover was relatively small. Dolee could be anywhere—down in a valley, up on a hill or one mile over in any direction.

  Searching east offered the more difficult terrain with steeper hills and abrupt cliffs. Occasionally, they stopped to examine the dirt for tracks, but even when they did find some, they did not look fresh.

  If Dolee heeded Nessa’s advice and went east, how far east would she go before she turned south? Nessa remembered drawing a map of sorts in the dirt, but she did not say—when you see this or that, turn south.