Chapter Twenty-Five #3
Clova forced a smile. “Ye have so much of him in ye,” she said. “He must have been very proud of ye.”
“And I of him.”
“Then live the life with Issie that Nikolaus and I couldna share. For us… be happy.”
Cam nodded and kissed her hand. Gently, she patted him on the cheek and shuffled away, finally accepting Niall’s hug when he came near her again.
Cam watched the pair for a moment, feeling sorrow that Clova and his grandfather never knew what he and Isadora would.
It was a sad little epitaph for a doomed Keith-Lindsay affair.
“What did she mean?” Ewan was standing beside him. “Who is Nikolaus?”
Cam hadn’t realized that Ewan was within earshot. His gaze lingered on the old woman. “If she doesna tell ye someday, then I will,” he said. “Leave it at that.”
Nosy Ewan would have a difficult time with that directive and was about to say so when they could all hear some commotion on the northern end of the village. There were some cries going up which turned into calls for help.
Immediately, Cam, Niall, and about half of the crowd that had gathered around them began to move in that direction only to see a hysterical young lass with dark hair being comforted by several villagers.
“Here, here!” Niall demanded. “What’s this about?”
The young woman looked at Niall, tears and dirt smeared on her face. “She sent me back,” she wept. “The Lindsay—they came and took my mother, but Isadora sent me back. She sent me tae tell ye!”
Fear stabbed Cam in the gut. “Where is Isadora?” he demanded.
The girl was sobbing. “In the vale,” she said. “She was going tae fight them. She sent me back!”
Niall dropped to his knees in front of the girl, grabbing her by the arms. “Where, Aggie?” he demanded. “Where did ye leave her?”
Aggie was a trembling mess. “The chestnut trees,” she said. “She was going tae gather chestnuts. But the Lindsay came and Isadora beat a man who grabbed me. She told me tae run!”
Niall looked at Cam and his sons, his face pale with terror. “Ewie, Ossian,” he said, his voice thin and breathless. “Arm yerselves. Go help them.”
Cam was beside himself, feeling panic like he’d never felt in his life. “There’s no time,” he said. “There are chestnut trees all through the vale. Which ones does she mean?”
Niall staggered to his feet. “Down the trail tae the bottom,” he said, waving an arm. “Cross the stream and they’re off tae the north. Ye canna miss them.”
Cam took off at a dead run.
*
They were gone.
Cam realized that the moment he raced through the trees, calling Isadora’s name, and then circling out and ending up in a clearing where there was evidence that the ground had been recently disturbed.
He saw a hoe and a basket that contained some kind of wild vegetable in it.
He also saw a large stick lying there. He looked around to see evidence of footprints, mashing the frozen grass.
But no one was there.
Cam stood with his hands on his head, having no idea what to do. He shouted for Isadora again but all he heard in response was the soft swish of the trees as an icy wind blew. Then, he saw it, glistening on the ground—something shiny and copper. Rushing to it, he picked it up and his heart sank.
It was the bracelet he’d given Isadora.
Thu fhèin.
Cam was beside himself with grief but the sounds of hooves came up behind him quickly and he whirled around to see Ewan and Niall making an appearance along with several other men on horseback.
They were armed with clubs and pikes, ready to do battle.
“Where are they?” Niall shouted.
Cam was struggling not to give in to panic. “There is no one,” he said, tucking the bracelet into a tunic pocket. “They were here. Ye can see the footprints. But they’ve gone and the women along with them.”
Ewan and several other men began to circle the area, shouting the names of the women who had been in the group, but there were no answers. Cam was listening carefully for any responses as he made his way over to Niall.
“Ye said this has happened before,” he said, fighting to stay on an even keel and not think about Isadora in the hands of the enemy. “Ye said they have abducted yer women before and taken them back tae Kirkburn Castle.”
Niall was very close to being despondent. He climbed off his pony, his movements slow, as if carrying the weight of an entire clan on his shoulders. Women had been abducted before and it had always affected him, infuriated him, but now… now, it was different.
Isadora was involved.
“Aye,” he said. “They take them back tae Kirkburn and… Sweet Mary, they take them back and molest them.”
Cam felt sick. “What does that mean?”
Niall nodded, now blinking back the tears. “Deflower them and send them back tae us. They did it tae Tyrone’s daughter last year and she still willna leave her cottage. The lass sits alone in her chamber, fearful of everything. It destroyed her.”
Cam closed his eyes to the horror of it. My sweet and brave Isadora…
He wasn’t used to something like this. He’d lived his life peacefully until that fateful day when Netherton burned.
Now, he felt like he did when he returned home to the death of his grandfather and all he held dear.
He felt fear and grief. He couldn’t do anything for his grandfather; he’d been too late.
But this time, he wasn’t going to be too late to prevent the worst from happening to Isadora.
With every last drop of blood in his body, he was going to save her or die trying.
“Tell me,” he said, his fear turning into something rage-driven. “When they take the lasses, have ye ever gone after them?”
Niall shook his head. “How? Ye know we have half the men they have. ’Twould be futile tae attack Kirkburn. ’Twould mean the deaths of the few men we have.”
“Then ye’ve never tried?”
Niall closed his eyes and hung his head. “Nay.”
Cam was trying very hard to think clearly, to concoct a plan. Not only did Isadora’s life depend on it, but so did his.
“Listen tae me,” he said, laying a big hand on Niall’s shoulder. “I willna sit here and wait for them tae return an abused woman tae me. I must go after her. Do ye understand me? I’ve seen what the Lindsay can do with the loss of Netherton. I willna go through it again.”
Niall looked at him with great concern. “What are ye going tae do?”
Cam thought quickly, thinking back to Drostan Lindsay and what he knew of the man. He began to work his way through the situation. “As far as Drostan knows, I’m still at The Cal,” he said. “Or mayhap he thinks I’m dead. In any case, he doesna know I’m here, with the Keith.”
“And?”
Cam was starting to think more clearly. “And, if I go tae Kirkburn Castle, I could get in. It wouldna be strange because as far as he knows, we’re still allies. I’m still the crushed smithy from Netherton and he is still my laird.”
Niall was very interested now. “What will ye do?”
Cam wished with all of his heart that Isadora was here with him, advising him, but this was something he was going to have to figure out on his own. For the first time, he didn’t have her telling him what tactics to use.
It was up to him now.
Instinct told him what to do.
“I’ll demand he release the Keith women tae me,” he said. “I’ll tell him that I heard he has Keith hostages and because the Keith destroyed Netherton, I demand my right tae have the hostages turned over tae me, but Isadora in particular.”
“And if he doesna?”
“Then I’ll offer him money. How much coinage do ye have?”
Niall sighed heavily. “We paid all we had for ye.”
Cam waved him off. “I received money when I defeated The Beast, so I’ll offer him what I have,” he said. “’Tis not much, but it’s better than nothing.”
“And if he willna sell her tae ye?”
“Then I’ll fight him for her. One way or the other, I’ll not leave Kirkburn without her. Ye have my promise.”
Niall didn’t know if he felt better or worse at that, but with very few options, he had no choice.
He wanted his daughter back.
“Dunna get yerself killed, lad,” he said. “I expect ye tae live a long life, Lion. I want my money’s worth.”
Cam patted him on the shoulder before taking Niall’s pony and heading back for Auchnacree. Niall watched him go, praying it wasn’t the last time he ever saw the man alive.
The Lion of Caledonia was about to head straight into the viper’s pit.