Chapter 8
CHAPTER 8
A nnabelle waited outside the Chief’s meeting rooms, wishing she could go in and listen to what was going on. Of course, she wasn’t invited, so instead she paced outside of the room. They’d been within for nearly an hour and with each passing moment her nerves frayed more.
Eventually the door opened, and the men stepped out. “We’ll gather our men and set out now,” Eamon said.
“Mine are weary from our last patrol, I’ll gather four others from the guard to go with me,” Jamie added.
“And I’ll brief those who will stay behind, we’ll gather the people from the village and bring them into the fort for protection,” Shaw said as they swiftly moved toward the door to the courtyard.
Annabelle trailed behind them, trying to keep up. She hurried to Jamie’s side. “What’s been decided?”
“We’re going back out to look for the envoy, lass. As soon as we find them, we’ll return.”
Annabelle pursed her lips. “I want to go.”
“Lass, no, you cannae, tis too dangerous.”
Annabelle grabbed his arms and stopped him. “I am a police officer, Jamie. I know how dangerous it is. I am not afraid.”
He gave her a tender look. “Aye, I know that, lass. Tis a different world here, though. You’re not trained with a sword and have no way to protect yourself.”
Annabelle knew he was right. He’d taught her to shoot the bow, but that wouldn’t do her any good on horseback, not when she might have to fight up close. She half wished she’d had her gun on her when Dub Sith had brought her back in time, but it had been left behind in her purse on the passenger seat of her car.
She sighed. “All right, then allow me to ride with you all and if a fight breaks out, I will ride back to the fort.” She desperately needed to go. She needed to be sure he was safe but also because she was feeling called to do this.
Jamie sighed. “Very well, lass. You are very stubborn.” He smiled. “Let me gather the men, go see to your horse. And you will listen to my directions. One hint of trouble and you race back here.”
“Absolutely.” Annabelle nodded. She hurried to the stables and got her horse saddled and then mounted and waited in the courtyard.
"Leave no area unsearched," Jamie urged his men, his eyes scanning the terrain ahead.
They had ridden toward the Glenn Road that would take them toward Mulindry, which was the last known location of the envoy. Eamon and his men had gone the opposite direction, toward Ballygrant, thinking maybe the envoy had backtracked and gone through Bridgend instead of Mulindry. Annabelle kept her eyes peeled, searching for anything that looked off. She rode in the middle of the group, protected from anyone coming at them from any side. She was sure that Jamie had set them up that way on purpose.
“Jamie! Up ahead!” one of the guards called out.
That was when Annabelle noticed it. A carriage lay on its side, its once-sturdy wooden frame splintered and shattered. The horses were nowhere to be seen, leaving only vacant reins swaying in the wind. The imprint of chaos and violence hung heavy in the air.
Jamie’s eyes swept the nearby woods, Annabelle was sure he was looking for any sign of danger or disturbance, same as she was. He looked to her and said, “Annabelle, stay there, Artair, stay with her.”
“Aye,” Artair said with a nod from next to me.
Jamie dismounted and his boots crunched on the forest floor as he approached the scene. A moment later he backed up again, looking pale as a ghost. He glanced at Artair and said, “Get her out of here, take her back to the fort.” His tone was commanding and sent a shiver of fear down Annabelle’s spine.
“Wait, what is it?” Annabelle asked.
“Annabelle, you need to go. Get to safety. Now.”
“But—”
“They’re dead, Annabelle, they’re all dead. Now go!”
Instead of doing as he asked immediately, Annabelle rode forward to see what he saw. She’d seen death before. She’d caused death before, that was nothing new to her, but this scene… it was awful. She counted six bodies, all male, three beheaded, others bleeding out around the wreckage of the carriage.
“Annabelle, now!” Jamie demanded, his voice harsh. “Artair, inform the Chief what has happened.”
“Aye, Jamie.”
Finally Annabelle nodded and turned her horse back, joining Artair as they rode back to the fort.
She could hear Jamie issuing orders to the rest of the men as she and Artair rode back to the fort. Annabelle felt horrible for him having to deal with that aftermath. She wished he’d have allowed her to stay and help figure out what happened to them. At this point she wasn’t sure if that was a battle or if it was a horrible, terrible carriage accident.
“Donnae worry, lass, I will get you back to safety,” Artair said as they rode.
“I’m not worried about us, Artair, I’m thinking about the scene. I don’t know a lot about carriages, but shouldn’t there have been some horses?”
“Aye, likely the bandits took them.”
“So it wasn’t an accident, they were ambushed?” Annabelle said, finally figuring out why they were all so somber over the Campbells deaths when they didn’t like the Campbells at all.
“Aye, and more ‘an likely, the Laird will be blamin’ us Donalds for their deaths.”
Annabelle sucked in a breath. That was the worst possible outcome. She needed to help. She wanted to turn back and investigate. She nearly did, but didn’t want to piss Jamie off. Frustration filled her as they completed the ride back to the fort. She heard the men on the wall calling down to the courtyard about their return and as soon as she and Artair rode through the gate, they were met by Shaw and Cam.
“Artair, what news do you bring?” Cam asked.
Shaw reached up and helped Annabelle dismount. “Thank you,” she murmured.
“Tis not good news, Chief. We found the wreckage of the carriage, and all the men were slain.”
Cam paled and ran a hand through his thick red hair. "Did you see Maeve's body among the others?"
“There wasn’t a woman’s body that I saw. I counted six dead men,” Annabelle answered. “Was there supposed to be a woman traveling with them?”
“Aye,” Cam said, his expression darkening. “Maeve Campbell, Brandon’s sister. We had a letter last week that she wished to visit with him and would like her own bedchamber.”
“So not only do we have the dead, we have a missing woman,” Annabelle replied.
“Aye.” Artair nodded.
“Where are Jamie and the others?” Cam asked.
“Looking for signs of where the bandits have gone,” Artair answered.
“Good. Ride out to Eamon, Artair, tell him the envoy’s been found and to return here.”
“Aye, sir.” Artair remounted and rode back out.
It took several hours for Jamie and his men to return. They looked weary and filled with sadness. Annabelle ran to him, and he wrapped his arms around her, just holding her for a few minutes.
"Are you alright, Jamie?" she asked.
He swallowed hard and nodded. “Aye.”
“I’ve seen sites like that before Jamie. I know how devastating they can be, especially when the victims are known to you. I know the Campbells and the Donalds weren’t friendly, but seeing them like that had to screw with your head.”
Jamie turned to her, his gaze heavy with the weight of the tragedy they had witnessed. "Aye," he admitted, "the dead men might well be from the Campbells Clan, but they didnae deserve such a gruesome end." His voice trembled with a mix of sorrow and anger. "And the Campbell woman," he added, "she doesnae deserve what the bandits—or whoever they are—will do to her while she's captive."
Annabelle held him tighter. “No woman ever does. Men can be brutal to women.”
“Aye. And Laird Colin will likely blame us Donalds for this murder, unless we can find the true culprits and prove our innocence."
“I will do whatever I can to help, Jamie. You know I will,” Annabelle offered.
“Thank you, lass.” Jamie kissed her temple.