Chapter 12

He took his leave of the women to go and locate Bran, hoping they would be late, and he could leave without them. However, when he went to the guardhouse in search of his brother, he found to his horror that Bran had already ridden out about a quarter of an hour before.

Kira had swapped her gown for warrior’s clothing, a steel helmet, leather lined trews, and a padded sheepskin coat to protect her from blades. He noticed she was wearing a kerchief, which covered her scar, and smiled to himself; it was their secret.

At her side was a fine sword, at her waist a deadly looking dirk, and on her back the small round shield of the Highland warrior. For some reason, seeing her this way made Alec’s heart swell with pride even as he feared for her safety. The urge to protect her was so strong, he had to remind himself she was a trained warrior and could look after herself. And to enforce that thought, he made a mental note to make sure she kept up her training. Since she had arrived at the castle there had been no opportunities for her to spar, and if she was going to fight, she had to be as prepared as possible.

He signaled for the gates to be opened, and with two mounted guards at their backs, they rode out into the gathering darkness. Alec took the lead, for he knew the way like the back of his hand, with Kira riding next to him. By the light of the moon and stars, they followed the route Bran had so recently taken to the nearby village, and the inn where the meeting with the mysterious informant was due to take place.

“I dinnae like this,” he murmured to Kira. “We should have caught him up by now.”

“Maybe, but perhaps because he was alone, he made better time,” she suggested, but her words held little comfort for Alec. His belly was in knots when they eventually approached the outskirts of the village where the inn was situated. He reigned in his horse and signaled for the others to stop behind him as the ancient, sprawling building appeared in the gloom up ahead. It stood in a clearing backed by forest, its windows ablaze with light. The sound of loud voices, raucous laughter, and fiddle music floated on the chilly breeze.

“This is the place,” Alec said over his shoulder. “I want tae check the stable fer Bran’s horse. Kira, ye stand guard here—” His orders were cut short by a loud cry that sliced through the air.

Fear gripped Alec. “That’s Bran,” he shouted. “Follow me.” he commanded, kicking up his horse and heading towards the source of the cry, which he figured had come from the rear of the inn, among some outbuildings. He heard and felt Kira and his men right behind him.

As they drew nearer to the inn and headed around the corner of the main building towards the rear, he could discern the grunting and panting of men, and the reverberating clash of metal upon metal. A fight!

He slowed his horse and exchanged a look with Kira. He made a sign that they should all stop and dismount. They did so silently, tying their reins to a post before drawing their swords. The sounds of fighting intensified as they crept forward along the wall and peered around the corner of the building.

Alec’s heart leaped in shock to see Bran and the Mackintosh soldier who had accompanied him fighting for their lives. Bran was doing his best to fight off three assailants armed with blades. A few feet away, the Mackintosh guard was engaged in furious combat with other men. The bodies of two attackers lay motionless on the ground.

Alec’s heart clenched to see that his brother had sustained a nasty injury; blood was pouring from a gaping slash in the leather of Bran’s padded jerkin, on his upper left arm, and his face was drained of color. Even though his brother was fighting skillfully and ferociously, Alec could see that three assailants were too many and that he was tiring from the pain.

Without hesitation, with a great, bellowing shout, he leaped into the fray. The men attacking Bran were taken by complete surprise. Alec immediately engaged one of them, while, at his side, Kira the guards took on the others.

“Am I glad tae see ye, braither,” Bran bellowed, laughing as he set about his lone assailant with renewed vigor. But Alec knew loss of blood from Bran’s injury was weakening him and that he had to get him away from the conflict and to the castle healer as soon as possible. But first, he had to dispatch his own assailant.

He increased his assault on his foe, determined to vanquish him quickly, but the man was putting up a determined fight, parrying every blow Alec rained down upon his targe with his sword. Seconds later, Alec saw from the corner of his eye Kira’s opponent go down on his knees.

Crimson liquid was flooding from a long, horizontal slash on the man’s chest. She finished him off with a savage kick to the ribs before pouncing on him and ruthlessly stabbing her dirk into his throat. The man toppled to the ground, clutching at his neck, then lay still. Even as he hammered at his own opponent, Alec felt the glow of pride in his chest to see his wife’s deadly fighting skills firsthand.

They both sprang towards Bran and the man who was still trying to bring the big warrior down.

“Leave him tae me,” Kira shouted to Alec, inserting herself into the fight and taking took over the onslaught on Bran’s enemy with practiced ease. Now confident in her fighting abilities, Alec rushed to Bran’s side and caught his brother as he swayed unsteadily on his feet.

“Ye’re loosin’ too much blood, braither,” Alec told him, pulling Bran away from danger. He pulled off his kerchief, wadded it up, then placing it over the wound on Bran’s arm, with steel upon steel ringing out behind him. He pressed Bran’s hand against the kerchief. “Hold that in place. Ye need tae get back tae the castle and see the healer at once.”

“I’m nae leavin’ ye,” Bran panted stubbornly, his sword dangling in his hand and dripping with blood.

“Ach, ye fool, ye’re about ready tae fall down. Dae as yer laird commands!” Alec shouted, exasperated.

“Ach, all right me laird,” Bran grumbled, grimacing with pain. Alec immediately went to engage with the man fighting with his soldier.

“Take me braither with ye tae safety,” Alec ordered the soldier as he relieved him of the fight, “our two guards will help us.”

“Aye, me laird,” the soldier panted, clearly also the worse for wear, rushing over to lend a supporting shoulder to Bran whilst leading him away.

Alec and Kira, who now adopted a back-to-back stance as they fought off the attackers. His own assailant was tiring, and he knew it would not be long before he would make a fatal mistake. His opportunity came a few moments later, when he caught the other man’s sword blade with his and flipped it aside before stabbing the man in the belly with his dirk. The man fell to his knees, holding his entrails in, but before Alec could finish him off, there came a loud cry from Kira. She fell against him, and he looked around to see she had slipped in a pool of gore. Her foe saw his moment, and raised his dirk in an arcing strike, aiming for her chest.

“Watch out!” Alec yelled, pivoting on the balls of his feet, intending to intercept the blade with his left arm, only to feel a sharp blow impacting the upper right portion of his chest. He felt himself stagger under the force of the blow, and as the man pulled the knife free, his chest flooded with the liquid warmth of his own blood.

“Ye bastard… how dare ye hurt me husband!” Kira yelled, having quickly regained her balance. Before the knifeman knew what was happening, she was on him, running him through the belly with her sword in a decisive thrust. The man toppled over onto the wounded one.

Alec watched as Kira rested her boot against one man’s chest for purchase while pulling her weapon free before plunging it into the wounded man’s neck, finishing them both off. Blood flew everywhere as the blade arced in the air when she retracted it.

She rushed to Alec’s side. “Are ye all right, Alec?” she asked, her eyes big with fear in her blood-spattered face.

“I dinnae ken,” he replied, trying to staunch the flow of blood with his hand and finding it hard to pull air into his lungs.

“Ach, Jesus!” she exclaimed, getting under his good shoulder to lend him her support as they moved slowly back to their horses. “We’ve got tae get ye tae the healer at once,” she declared. The guards came running after making sure everyone had been defeated, so as not to encounter any unpleasant surprises once they turned their backs.

She pushed back her helmet and let it hang by its ties at her back before nodding at Alec. “Here, yer laird needs yer help.” Following her instructions, the two guards helped Alec into the saddle.

“I can manage from here, lads,” Alec told them thorough teeth clenched with the pain that was now spreading throughout his body. He held onto the reins, but the strength was leaving him. He drooped in the saddle, finding it hard to catch his breath. He feared he was in no fit state to ride home.

Before he knew what was happening, he heard Kira tell the men, “I’ll ride with the laird. Search the slain men first, see if ye can find any information on them that may be useful. Then go back tae the inn and collect the horses Bran and his man left in the stable. Bring them along with mine back tae the castle. If ye find out anythin’ in the meantime, report it tae the laird when ye get back.”

Alec was quietly impressed when the men made no word of dissent but went to obey her instantly with compliant nods. Despite her small stature, she had an air of authority that seemed to demand obedience.

She sprang lightly up in front of him in the saddle. “Hold on tae me,” she told him, turning the horse carefully around. Alec leaned against her, looping his arms around her small body, fighting back the pain that was making him want to pass out. Clearly conscious of the agony every movement was sending shooting through Alec’s frame, Kira restricted the horse to a slow, steady walking pace as they made their way home, for which he was grateful.

When they finally clattered into the courtyard and helpers rushed forward, he had to let go of Kira as she slid from the saddle. He felt the absence of her warmth at once, and pain lanced through him with renewed ferocity, making him cough violently as he tried to pull in air.

“Take the laird up tae the healer immediately,” he heard Kira bark. Servants rushed to obey her, forming a cradle with their arms to support him as they hurriedly made for the infirmary on the first floor of the keep. Kira bounded up the stairs after them.

“How is he?” Alec managed to gasp out as he was brought into the infirmary and saw Sofia, the clan healer. He quickly spotted Bran laying on a couch, with Sofia standing over him. He could see his brother was bare chested, and the healer was inspecting the bloody gash on his upper arm. Catreena was assisting her, passing her clean cloths soaked in steaming water to clean away the blood. A white-faced Ilyssa waited nearby, watching. She was sobbing and looking terrified as she gazed down at Bran. “Will he be all right?” he asked, more concerned for Bran than himself.

Before Sofia could answer, Catreena saw that Alec too was injured. She gave a small cry of dismay as Kira and the servants helped him into a chair. Kira thanked them and then dismissed the servants before standing next to him as he waited for Sofia to reply. He felt Kira place her hand on his good shoulder. The warmth spread through him comfortingly, taking the edge off the pain. He put his hand over hers and squeezed it, grateful for the calm air of authority with which she was dealing with the situation. But despite her calm demeanor, he could feel her hand trembling beneath his, and he knew she was worried about him. The knowledge warmed his insides despite his agony.

Sofia finally turned to him. “I dinnae ken yet, me laird. I’m only just lookin’ at his wound now. He insisted that I see tae the injured guard before treatin’ him. But the guard only has some small wounds and sprain tae his knee. He’ll be fine,” the healer explained. “As tae yer braither, it looks worse than it is. ’Tis a deep flesh wound tae his arm, but there’s nae bad damage done,” she added, looking at him and frowning. She nodded to Catreena to indicate that she could continue cleaning and binding Bran’s wound.

“Thank the Wee Man fer that!” Alec muttered under his breath, weak with pain and relief.

“Which is more than I can say fer ye, me laird,” Sofia added as she came over and frowned at Alec’s stab wound. “That’s nasty. Are ye havin’ trouble breathin’?” she asked, lifting his eyelids one by one and examining his eyes.

He nodded, reluctant to let everyone know how bad he was feeling. He heard Kira’s sharp intake of breath as he spoke.

“Let’s get these clothes off ye. I need tae have a proper look at it,” Sofia said, and she and Kira gradually peeled off his layers, trying their hardest not to cause him any more pain than they could help. Finally, he was down to his shirt.

“Will ye hold that aside fer me, me lady?” Sofia asked Kira, who immediately obliged, pulling the neck of his shirt to one side and exposing the painful entrance to the knife wound. The healer palpitated the area round the wound, noting Alec’s silent grimaces. “Take a couple of deep breaths fer me, please, me laird.” Alec did as he was told with difficulty, while Sofia bent and listened to his chest and back as he breathed in and out.

“I think ’tis just the shock making’ it hard fer ye tae take in air,” she said. “It will pass. The good news is that I cannae hear any damage tae yer lungs. The blade went under yer shoulder joint and hit the bone, it appears. But apart from a deep incision, I think ye’ll be fine, though it’ll be tender fer a while. All that needs doin’ is cleanin’ the wound, puttin’ some salve on it, and bindin’ it up so nae dirt gets intae it. The dressin’ will need changin’ daily.”

It was strange, but as soon as Sofia told him there was no damage to his lungs, Alec suddenly found he could breathe more easily.

“I can dae that,” Kira pipped up in a decisive tone. Within a few minutes, Sofia was handing her some clean cloths, a pot of salve, and some clean bandages.

“I’ve put up a wee packet of willow bark tea fer the laird as well, me lady,” Sofia added, “which should help him with the pain. Give him a good strong brew.”

“Thank ye, Sofia, I will,” Kira said, efficiently stowing the things about her person and then collecting Alec’s clothes under one arm. Thus laden, she offered Alec her shoulder.

“Can ye make it tae our chambers?” she asked.

“Aye,” he told her, pushing himself up and leaning on her as she put a supporting arm around his waist. He turned back to the couch where his brother was lying. Bran appeared to be unconscious. “Bring me any news on how he is,” Alec instructed Catreena.

“Aye, of course,” his sister murmured, still working on cleaning the wound. As Kira helped him to the door, he could not help noticing again how badly Ilyssa was taking Bran’s injury. It was obvious to all how much she cared for him, and it seemed to Alec that her tears were prompted by something more than simply friendship.