Chapter 16
CHAPTER 16
T he flirtation between Annabelle and Jamie continued as they changed their post, moving to the higher ground of the roof top above the stables so they could stay out of sight. They kept their banter and voices soft so that anyone passing by would not know they were there. Annabelle liked how they huddled together, keeping watch over the small town. She knew there were others out there as well, standing guard from various points around the area. All were told to inform Jamie, Eamon or Artair, whoever happened to be the closest, if they noticed something peculiar.
So when a village guard climbed the boxes and joined them upon the roof, Annabelle wasn’t surprised. The village guard moved up next to them and crouched low next to Jamie. "I've just seen four cloaked figures slip quietly into the town on foot on the north side. It looked suspicious as they are attempting to keep to the shadows, and I thought you should know."
Jamie nodded. "Thank you for the warning. Good eye, keep at it and we’ll nab these bandits when they return to their camp."
Annabelle's heart raced as she clung to the roof's edge, her senses heightened. The village guard, Annabelle, and Jamie each descended from the roof, their movements as silent as humanly possible. Each step was a calculated risk, every corner rounded with the utmost caution, as they inched closer to the cloaked figures that had slipped into the village. The guard showed them the direction and then returned to his post as Jamie and Annabelle trailed the bandits.
Jamie's eyes met Annabelle's in the muted glow of the night, and he placed a finger to his lips. Peering out from behind a building, they observed the figures, their dark cloaks obscuring their identities. They were engaged in a surreptitious act, emptying apple barrels into the saddlebags they were carrying.
Silently, Jamie pointed back to the stables, mimicked getting the horses and Annabelle nodded. The thieves were on foot at the moment, but they could have left horses in the trees. If they were going to follow them, they’d need their own horses. Annabelle indicated that she would go retrieve their horses and meet up with Jamie out of sight of the bandits as they headed back to the forest. He hesitated only a moment, but then agreed that was best, so they didn’t lose sight of them. He pointed to his ear and then made a long low hooting sound three times. It sounded exactly like the owls she’d heard in the evenings outside Fort Donald. Jamie had taken her to see them one evening and called them long-eared owls.
Annabelle mouthed, “Okay, I’ll listen for that and bring the horses.” With that, she headed back to the stables while Jamie kept watch over the bandits. She quickly got their horses out of the stables, cooing at them to keep them quiet. They’d prepared them earlier so if they’d need them, they wouldn’t have to take the time to saddle them. Using the reins, she led them out to the street, then kept to the shadows with them as she led them to the edge of town. She stayed close to the last building, hiding herself and the horses in the shadows as she waited for Jamie’s call.
It didn’t take long for the hooting to start. She urged the horse to move toward the edge of the woods, and found Jamie. She handed him his reins and they both mounted. With the softest of hoofbeats, Jamie and Annabelle followed the path the bandits had taken, their eyes fixed on the darkened trail. They were acutely aware that they were treading the fine line between discovery and danger. The journey seemed interminable as they shadowed the thieves, maintaining a discreet distance behind them. At one point they had to quickly direct their horses off the path and into the trees as one of the bandits turned back toward them, presumably looking to make sure they weren’t followed. Thankfully, they weren’t seen and the thief returned to his comrades. Annabelle and Jamie waited a couple of heartbeats before walking their horses back to the path.
Annabelle had tracked perpetrators before as a cop, but this was unlike anything she had ever done before. The challenge of keeping her horse silent added a layer of complexity that she’d never had to account for, yet it was invigorating, a thrill that surged through her veins.
Jamie turned his head slightly toward Annabelle, his voice barely a murmur. "Do you think these are the ones we've been seekin', lass?"
Annabelle shifted her gaze from the bandits to Jamie. Her voice matched his hushed tone. "It's hard to say, but they did seem to act suspiciously in the village, and their presence there is highly coincidental. I’d say they have to be the ones we’re after. We can't afford to lose them now."
Jamie nodded in agreement, his rugged face illuminated by the pale moonlight. "Aye, let us hope they are leading us to their camp where we’ll find Maeve, and not on a fool’s errand.”
Annabelle's eyes remained locked on the bandits who were half a mile ahead of them, her mind racing with thoughts of the impending confrontation. She knew that their fate, and that of the fort, rested on the outcome of this pursuit. With every passing second, the tension mounted, and the forest seemed to hold its breath in anticipation of what was coming. The air was thick with the heady scent of pine, moss, and damp earth, a stark contrast to the urban environment of San Francisco that Annabelle was accustomed to.
Annabelle's gaze shifted to Jamie. A feeling of safety washed over her, and she realized that there was no one else she would trust more to be her partner in this unfamiliar world. His loyalty and unwavering strength had become a constant in her life, and as her heart quickened, she couldn't deny that she was falling deeply in love with him. She couldn’t wait for all of this to be over so she could tell him, but first they had to catch these murderers and save Fort Donald from the Campbell’s attack.