The Empire and the Wolf King (Kaitlyn and the Highlander #21)

8. Chapter 8 - Kaitlyn

CHAPTER 8 - KAITLYN

LEAVING SIDDALL’S FARM - 1775

M agnus pulled his pants up and buttoned the buttons.

“We really are leaving, just like that?” I began wrapping the shawl around my shoulders.

“Aye, he has offered us a ride intae town. I daena see why we need it, we can walk. If we leave afore dawn, we can go without any trouble.”

I turned around so Magnus could tie my apron strings in the back. “There could be trouble?”

“I daena ken, but now I hae it in m’head I daena want tae find out. I daena usually sneak away, but this is not a usual time, or a common situation.”

“Besides, this isn’t sneaking away, we just want to get going, we have a journey and we need to embark on it.” I pulled the bonnet on my head and tied it under my chin. “If you think about it, we’re giving them more payment by leaving before they have to feed us again, and saving them the trouble of us. It’s not sneaking, it’s leaving with dignity.”

I crawled to the ladder and began my descent. I went slowly because I had to feel behind me with my foot and make sure I had the step before I went to the next.

As soon as my foot touched the ground, Magnus followed me down, the ladder creaking under his weight and speed. It took him a quarter of the time, one, two, three, and he all but jumped the last part.

“You made that look easy.”

“Ye made it look verra hard, ye daena climb ladders verra often, Kaitlyn?”

“Rarely, I can’t even remember the last time.”

“Och, I learn something new about ye every day.”

We crept across the barn to the door, shoved it open, and peered out. There was moonlight and it seemed very late. I sensed it was about three in the morning, but there was a candle glow in the window of the house.

Then a woman’s long wail.

Magnus said, “Och nae, what…?”

I froze. “She’s giving birth.”

He asked, “Och nae, will ye be needed?”

I listened for a few minutes, then shook my head. “No, it’s tempting to go offer, and that’s very sweet you think I will be needed, but no, though I am good at it, there are a lot of women here and quite a few kids, I think they’ve got it. Besides, most of my magic requires a first-aid kit. My best advice would be to have someone be a mountain and yell ‘Cruachan!’ during it, but I really appreciate your vote of confidence.”

He hugged me. “There is likely tae be activity. Now we are sneaking. We will hae tae relieve ourselves in the woods, we canna risk the outhouse.” But then he pointed, there were our clothes, strung up over a line near the back door.

I said, “We want those.”

He said, “Let’s grab a sack from the barn, then I will steal our clothes.”

We crept back into the barn.

Magnus found a sack with a drawstring top from a stack in the barn. He sniffed it, screwed up his face, then said, “Twill do.” We snuck out to the line and he yanked our clothes down and I stuffed them into the sack. Magnus tied it closed and slung the whole thing over his shoulder.

I said, “Damn, now you’re a Founding Father and Santa, could you get any hotter?”

He laughed.

There was another long wail from the house.

I whispered, “Of course, if I could somehow get my name on that birth certificate, but I doubt that would work, we need to get out of here and find someone with a big ol’ library and possibly treaties and leases for you to sign.”

“I agree.”

He led me around the back of the barn and we slunk into the shadows when we saw a couple rushing through the night, carrying a lantern up to the house.

We ran across a dark field to the woods and felt our way through the trees, until we found a path to walk down, heading east in the moonlight.

We came to the village just before dawn. There was a row of shops and a street market beginning to open. Magnus spent too much on bread for us with a silver coin. The farmer gave us butter, cheese, and a cup, all in a string bag.

We tried to pretend we weren’t famished, and were civilized, so we waited to eat until we had walked behind a shop. Then we dug through the bag, stuffing hunks of bread in our mouths, biting into the block of cheese, passing it all back and forth.

Then, so thirsty, I couldn’t eat anymore, I gasped, “I need water.”

His hands full of bread and cheese he pointed with his elbow. “I saw a well over there.”

At the well, he pulled up the bucket and dipped our cup in and drank, we passed the cup back and forth. Finally I leaned against the well and said, “It’s official, I have had enough.”

“Aye, it has been days since I was satiated and had enough sleep.” He straightened himself to walk. “But this village is an easy walk or cart ride from Siddall’s farm. He might come any minute now, we need tae procure a ride east… Where does Tom Jefferson live, ye think? Ye ken the name of the town?”

“I know the name of his estate, Monticello. That’s something I learned in school, maybe it can prove helpful.”

“Twill be helpful if tis helpful.” He looked up and down the lane and then said, “Follow me.”

Ten minutes later we were sitting in the back of a cart, leaning against large bundles, as it shifted back and forth. We were rolling down the road headed toward Charlottesville, the biggest town near the Monticello estate.

I said, my legs tucked up under my skirts. “It was helpful, huh?”

“Aye.” He took my hand and squeezed it. “I was thinking once we procure a room in an inn, we will send a messenger tae Monticello, informin’ Tommy that I am a visitin’ dignitary who wants tae set up a meetin’—”

“What kind of dignitary, a king or a?—?”

“I will be Magnus, the Duke of Awe. He winna be able tae doubt me, he canna prove I am not who I say I am.”

“Yeah, that sounds good. We can get you outfitted with a horse and better clothes for the meeting.”

“Aye, but tae get the meeting on his register might be enough, ye ken? If Lady Mairead hears Tom Jefferson had a meetin’ planned with Magnus, the Duke of Awe, it might be enough for her tae investigate.”

“This is a plan.”

“Aye.”

We grew quiet as the cart shifted and rolled under us. Then finally he said, “Daena grow sad, mo reul-iuil.”

“How did you know I was…?”

“Because I am growin’ sad, tis a long journey and our plan will take many days tae complete. We must put one foot in front of the other, we canna despair.”

I squeezed his hand. “I agree. I won’t grow sad, not at all. I’m your rock, my love, cruachan.”

He said, “Cruachan.”

And then we stared out at the unfamiliar landscape as we rolled by.

We had been traveling most of the day only stopping for quick breaks to urinate. We passed small farms, and I stared at them longingly as we passed, my ass aching from the bottom of the cart, but I knew if we stopped we would be guests again, and I would still have to get on a cart the next day.

Finally Magnus said, “I canna bear it a moment longer. I see a village up ahead. We will walk, stretch our legs and hire a carriage from there.”

He spoke at length with the cart driver, sending him away, then Magnus and I walked down the road. We were only a wee bit slower than the cart, and man, it felt good to be out of it. I stretched my back and swung my arms and did a couple of kicks. “Need to get my blood pumping. That was hard.”

Magnus said, “Aye, I couldna bear another minute of it. I thought twould break m’back.”

It took about twenty minutes to get to the small town. We ate lunch in a tavern and then Magnus found a carriage for hire to Charlottesville. The driver was perched right in front of us and we were exposed to the air like a convertible, and although it was still bouncy at least it wasn’t ‘back-breaking.’

Kind of.

We hit a rut and bounced into the air. I gripped the door, “Needs rubber tires and shocks.”

He chuckled. “Dost ye remember when we…?”

“...Had sex in the carriage on the way to London from the party? Oh, I remember, I remember so well. But alas, Master Magnus, that is not going to happen here. We are not in your cousin’s borrowed luxurious covered carriage, we are in a hired cab and it is a bit stinky, and the guy is literally,” I whispered, “Right there.” I pointed at the driver’s back.

Magnus chuckled and whispered, “Aye, I miss the luxury and m’wife on my lap.”

“Dear me, you are incorrigible. Do you think of anything else?”

“Nae, not really.” He grinned. “Especially when I am tryin’ tae keep m’mind off our plight.” He put his arm out along the back of the seat so we could try to relax as we bounced and rocked and shimmied down the road.