Chapter Thirteen

They made it back to where their group had split up the previous day, though all three paths were empty.

"Which way do ye wish to travel?" Alaric asked. Eli grimaced, and she rubbed her knee again. "How is yer pain? Can ye ride, lass?"

"Better. Both spots ache, but the pain has eased. And as much as I have enjoyed our time together, I think I can confidently say that neither one of us is an expert at wayfinding, and I dread the thought of searching for the others blindly. We dinnae know the area, and we have no idea where they ended up. What if they got lost in the mist or have already turned back? We have no idea."

Alaric couldn't disagree with her. "I suppose we should head back to Ramsay land. We've only been gone a day, but I'm anxious to see if there is any word on my brother's recovery. 'Tis the safest place to rendezvous."

"Then we head north to Ramsay land. At least we know where we're going when we go in that direction."

"And since we are alone, I hope ye will share something with me."

She turned her horse to head north and rode abreast of him. "What can I tell ye?"

"Why do ye think yer grandsire dislikes ye? I dinnae think of Logan that way at all. He adores his family, his clan, and most of all his grandbairns. I think ye have it all wrong."

"Because whenever we were training in archery, he made me practice more than the others. I'm the weakest archer, and he couldn't accept that I'd never be as good as the other lasses. He was constantly pushing me to be better."

"All parents and grandparents do that, do they no'?"

"I suppose when we were young, it was all the same, but as we got older, he began to treat me differently. One time, I was shooting and I hit a rabbit by mistake. I ran to it and my grandsire went wild, yelling for me to stop, to go home, to get away from the poor creature. It was so bad, I embarrassed him and he sent me away. The others—my sister and cousins—all laughed at me."

Alaric couldn't help it—he moved his horse closer to her. "Poor wee Eli. I think he was trying to help ye, but the others shouldn't have laughed. Ye are the youngest, are ye no'?"

"One of the youngest. Lainey is younger by a long shot, but I was younger than the group being trained—Cadyn, Ceit, Ysenda, Reyna, Isla. And then there was me. And dinnae feel sorry for me, ye churlish bastard."

"We made love and handfasted and ye still curse at me?" What was it with this lass and the cursing? He had to admit that it was fun teasing her. It was easy to get a foul word from her if he tried.

"All right, I'll try to stop. But I make no promises and I do sincerely hope ye find yer brother is better. I know how it feels to worry and not be able to help. I felt the same when Ysenda broke her leg."

They topped a rise and caught sight of four riders ahead of them. Eli pointed. "Is that no' them?"

"I think it is." He let out a loud whistle, and one rider turned around. It was Tevis.

Eli yelled, "Wait! We'll join ye!"

Alaric sighed in relief, glad to see their group. They could have made it home, but with both of their senses of direction being poor, there were no promises. He would make sure they didn't travel alone again if they were heading into a new area.

"What happened to ye?" Dyna asked as soon as they were within earshot.

Eli replied quickly. "We found a cave to wait out the downpour and then when we tried to leave, the damn mist was everywhere. We couldn't retrace our steps when we couldn't see any landmarks."

"We waited for ye but when ye didn't come, we decided to ride back north. I'm glad ye are well."

"Does anyone have a shoulder injury?" Eli asked, looking from one to the next. Wenna turned sideways to show the blood on her tunic. "Wenna! What happened?"

Wenna rolled her eyes. "An attack by the English, but in the mist, we never saw them coming."

"We were badly outnumbered," Maitland explained. "Nearly a score to our four. We needed ye, surely, but I still would not have taken on a score. Dyna hit her marks as usual, and Wenna hit two herself before she was wounded. We put up enough of a fuss that even though we were already running, they were pulling back. I was pleased they didnae decide to pursue us."

"Why would they attack ye for just being on the road?" Alaric asked. What would the English want with four Scottish travelers? "If ye had been carrying provisions, I might understand. But why would they bother with the four of ye? They have naught to gain from ye."

"Bragging, I suppose. Possibly our horses or just the killing of four Scots."

"They looked hungry in more than the usual way," Tevis added. "They probably had ideas for the two women. If they were from Edinburgh, they haven't had women in Berwick for quite some time. I didnae like the way they looked at Dyna and Wenna."

Maitland nodded. "I thought the same. Now we are headed to Ramsay land to get Wenna's wound tended, then we shall return. I'll no' chase that group down unless we have at least eight and have the high ground. I didnae like the numbers we just encountered. We need to recruit before we can join with Sir James."

"If ye arenae in a hurry, I can return to Grant land and see if I can recruit anyone," Alaric said. "I'd like to check on my brother, if ye dinnae mind. One night and I'll head back."

"Suits me fine," Maitland said. "We'll return to Ramsay land together, then send Dyna with ye and we'll await yer return."

Dyna turned to assess Eli and Alaric, her gaze narrowing at both of them. "Anything happen between ye two? Ye seem on edge."

Eli narrowed her eyes at Alaric in apparent warning, so he said nothing, waiting for her to answer.

"It's just that I'm sure Grandmama's knee is worse. Sometimes I can feel it, just like my shoulder began to ache this morn. I want to see what's happening at home. And sleeping in a cold, damp cave is no' very restful."

Alaric nodded in agreement, unsure of what to add.

Maitland smirked, and Dyna arched a brow at both of them.

Eli, in her finest scornful tone, drawled, "And if ye think we are anything like Brin and Ceit, ye can be sure we werenae. He's lucky he's still alive, the churlish bastard, with all the teasing and taunting he threw my way. I told him if we didnae find ye quickly, he would surely regret it."

Alaric shrugged. "I was worried about my brother, and she's worried about her grandmother.

"Thank the Lord we're going our separate ways soon."

And he had to wonder if she meant it.