Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

The horses and carriage rode throughout the day, only stopping briefly for a drink of water. They rode away from Blair's home and family, and toward a future she was very unsure of. The landscape around her shifted from broad sweeping landscapes back to forest, the tree limbs hanging high above, shading the path. She found herself not recognizing the land any longer, and it was both a relief and a disappointment for her.

When the sun had reached the horizon, the colors of the sky gleaming oranges and reds, the caravan pulled off the muddy road and made camp just inside the woodline. Blair kept to herself, her ears perked like they always had been, listening to the various conversations between the guards. As she rolled out her blanket in a small area cleared of leaves and sticks, she watched the three guards build a fire, while James walked a small perimeter around them.

The road they traveled wasn't known to be dangerous, but Blair knew that it could be, especially for her. Despite the lack of care for her by her uncle, people knew she was blood of the clan, which would in turn make her a good bargaining chip for her uncle. They had to keep their eyes clear and their ears perked as they settled down for the night.

Daley, older than Blair, but not quite her uncle's age, walked up to her, smoothing back the wild red hairs that protruded from his low ponytail. He was tall and a bit overweight but carried himself well. Blair stared at him with caution as he nervously cleared his throat. "Why don't ye join us by the fire? Warm up and have some supper."

Blair pursed her lips, eyeing him before taking his hand and letting him help her onto the ground. She held her cloak tightly around her as the temperature was quickly dropping with the light in the sky. She stepped into the circle and took a seat on a small log, feeling the warmth of the flames rising in front of her.

Callum and Bain sat to her right and left, and Daley took a seat across the fire from her. They passed around the bread, ripping chunks off and taking some of the cured meat from the pouch before passing it on. Blair smiled kindly at Callum as he passed it to her, taking a bite even though she wasn't hungry.

James appeared next to her, taking a seat on the ground. Blair glanced at him, wanting him to talk to her, but quickly looked away as he took the meat and bread from her. She knew he couldn't let the other guards know how well he knew her, but still, she felt like he was almost avoiding her on purpose.

"I haven't been to the McFerguson land in quite a long time," Callum said.

Blair perked up, speaking without thinking. "You've met Laird McFerguson?"

Callum nodded, not noticing her intrusion on the conversation. "Aye. A long time ago, but aye. He's a bit younger than meself. I knew his father as well. I just didnae know his children, not until he passed and the Laird…took his place."

Blair nodded, swallowing a small piece of bread. "May I ask what he's like? I am to marry him after all."

Callum chuckled, glancing at James and then back at Blair. He nodded, his eyes shifting to the flames in front of him. "He's a strong Laird. His people are taken care of. His lands are maintained. A Laird has to be a certain type of man, strong in mind and body. He won't be like any of us, but he must be a fair man, at least what I can remember of his father."

Daley chuckled. "I heard he's quite the…"

Callum cleared his throat, kicking dirt at Daley, his head slightly shaking back and forth. Blair looked quickly down so he wouldn't know she saw his motion. Daley cleared his throat and straightened his amused look. "I heard he's quite the leader."

Blair wasn't sure what all of that meant, but she couldn't really do anything other than take them for their word. She glanced around at the men, their faces familiar to her. They had been at the keep for many years, having all worked for her father when he was still alive. She had wanted, so many times through the years, to ask them about her father, but she never had. Speaking of her father was nearly forbidden, and none of the guards or the clanspeople took the chance of speaking about him. Especially to her or her sisters. She wasn't sure why, as that would hardly count as a threat to the Laird or the land. But she would take their lead and bite her tongue all of those years.

Sitting there, watching the sparks from the fire flutter up toward the canopy like fireflies, she couldn't help but take the chance, and finally ask about her father to men that knew him well. "And my father? I remember him as my father, but not so much as the leader. I guess I knew a different side of 'im."

The men all glanced around at each other until finally, Bain spoke up. He was a skinny man, frail-looking almost. "Yer father was a good man. He was one of the most fair and kind Lairds I have ever met. What happened after the wise woman…"

"Bain," Callum snapped.

Blair sat forward, staring at Bain. "No, please. Finish. What about the wise woman?"

Bain glanced at Callum and shrugged toward Blair. "I ain't sayin' nothing that we haven't all heard before. We're off clan land and the girl has a right to hear it."

Callum sighed and nodded. Bain turned back to Blair. "Yer father was an exceptional man, before he went mad from hearing the wise woman's prophecy."

Blair was taken by surprise. "Prophecy?"

She had never known her father to be mad, and her first instinct was to defend him, but then she thought back to the evenings leading up to his death. He had been fearful, whispering in the shadows, talking quietly to only a handful of people. While Blair knew nothing of prophecies outside of story books, it made sense that her father had been holding a secret.

"That's enough," Callum barked. "We're not sittin' out here to gossip. Many men are good men until they're not."

Daley nodded. "Like yer uncle. He was a good man as well, before he had to kill his own mad brother. I can't even imagine what that does to a man's soul, havin' to kill his own blood for survival. It'll change a man."

Blair could feel all the air leave her lungs. She pressed her hand to her chest and shook her head. "You have to be mistaken. My uncle was cold and disconnected from me and my sisters, but he would have never done that."

She looked around for someone, anyone to tell her that it was a lie. When none of the guards would say it, she turned to James, who gave her a saddened nod. Blair couldn't believe it. After all these years of fear, she was to find out that her uncle was the one who took her father's life. Anger flooded her, but there was nothing she could do. She wanted to ask about the prophecy, but Callum had shut that down before it could even get started.

Bain leaned back, shaking his head. "Everybody thinks that the Laird is hard on the clan, but I'll tell ye. I'm not looking forward to the day he dies, and his evil son takes over. He's a bit mad, and I just know things will go badly for the clan."

Though Blair could tell that all of the men feared her cousin, her head was swimming with the news about her uncle. After all that time in the keep, she had never thought that her uncle had been the one to take her father's life. What could some old woman's prophecy have been that would have made her uncle turn on her father like that? He may have been scared, but Blair knew her father was not crazy. He wanted what was best for the clan, and he wanted her and her sisters to rule the clan when he died.

As the conversation shifted, Blair pulled her hood up and her cloak around her, trailing back into her own mind. She stared into the flames in front of her and let the heaviness wash over her. The only thing she had ever really remembered about her uncle from before her father died was his kindness. He had always smiled, laughed, and had been someone that Blair was happy to see when he came to the castle for dinners, or to meet with her father.

The shock she felt quickly gave way to anger again, and she stood up as the conversation between the men halted. They looked up at her confused. Blair kept her face down, hiding it beneath the hood of her cloak. "I'm awfully tired this evenin'. If ye don't mind, I'd like to retire to my pallet."

Callum stood up and nodded. "Of course. We'll have rovin' watches all night and we'll make sure ye're safe. Hopefully, we can get back on the road before the sun tomorrow, continue makin' good time."

"Thank you," she managed to get out.

Turning, she headed over to her pallet on the ground and laid on the blanket Hannah had packed for her. She stared at the men around the fire, her heart breaking in her chest. She knew that if her uncle was capable of killing her father, even if it were for a reason she couldn't yet understand, he might be capable of doing the same to her sisters. And if he wasn't, she knew that her cousin definitely was.

It was all starting to make sense, though. She didn't know why it had happened, but she did know that her uncle had kept them there under his charge. It hadn't been the best way to live, but they weren't cast out. He had cared for them even though he had killed their father. Blair wondered if her uncle did it because he felt responsible. Maybe he was doing what he felt right in his heart, but looking back, it seemed just as likely that he had been doing it because he was trying to escape the guilt he felt for killing her father.

Everything had become so confusing, and Blair wasn't sure if there was anything she could do to get the answers she wanted. Talking with the guards had only made things worse for her, and she had more questions then than when she left the castle. Questions she had a feeling she would never get the answers to. Unless…

Blair reached back, feeling the book still stuck in the back of her skirts. Finding the wise woman was something she wanted to do now more than ever. Unfortunately, the road to the old woman's house was paved with guards, and without James' help, she knew she would probably just have to forget about it. Her father's secrets might never be told, and Blair knew her sisters needed to be her first priority. She just had no idea if she'd be able to help them.