Chapter 21
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
B ack in their tent, Colin stood listening to Ewan’s report of the fight, whilst Isla tried to tend to his wound as best she could. The gash seemed worryingly deep to her and would not stop bleeding, even though she laid many strips of clean cloth over it and bandaged them in place. The men’s voices went over her head as she worked, for she was terrified the wound would become infected and Ewan might die. She wanted desperately to get him to Ella’s, thinking her friend’s expertise was urgently needed.
After she had finished cleaning and dressing his wound, she made him some of the herbal tea Ella had given her for her headache, knowing it would help a little with the pain until she could get him to Ella’s place. She made him drink it and waited impatiently for him to finish his conversation with Colin. But before that happened, there was a commotion outside the tent that attracted their attention.
Colin broke off talking and said, “I’ll go and see what goin’ on.” He went outside to look. There was murmured talk outside, and Colin returned a few minutes later. He grinned at Ewan. “Good news,” he said, rubbing his hands together. “One of the scouting parties has found an old fellow who claims tae ken the secret way intae the castle, and he’s willin’ tae part with the information for the right amount of gold.”
Ewan rose without a word and made for the exit at once, following Colin outside. Isla crept over to the tent flap and listened to the conversation with mounting fear as the old man, whose voice she did not recognize, negotiated his price. She heard the chink of coins, and then her heart sank with dread as the old man told Ewan exactly how to get into the tunnel system that ran beneath the castle.
“I need the layout as well, fer when we get inside,” Ewan said. Isla kept on eavesdropping, listening in angry, terrified silence when the man offered to draw a map of how to get from the tunnels into the main part of the castle without being seen and details of the floor plan.
When the man had gone, Ewan and Colin remained talking outside for a while. Isla continued listening, her alarm growing by the minute as they began formulating a plan to send soldiers to penetrate the castle and, once inside, open the gates to admit the rest of the army.
I havetae get away long enough tae warn Gregory before Ewan attacks. But how?!
She wracked her brains, and after a few minutes, she had an idea of how she might be able to do it. It was risky, and she would need Ella’s help to make it work. But if it saved Gregory’s life and Ewan’s and prevented needless bloodshed, she knew she had to try.
“We must ride tae the healer’s house right this minute,” she told Ewan when he came back into the tent. He looked pleased with the agreement he had struck with the informant, but his face was as white as milk, so she knew his injury was paining him.
“Can ye ride?” she asked him, secretly determined to visit Ella as soon as possible, but now with more than one aim in mind.
“Aye, all right, as long as it daesnae take too long,” he agreed.
She brought the horses right up to the tent and helped Ewan into his saddle before levering herself up in front of him and taking hold of the reins. “Hold on tae me,” she instructed him, holding down her anxiety as she waited for him to drape himself across her shoulders and lean against her back, hissing occasionally at the pain it caused him.
“All right?” She felt him nod. “Here we go. I’ll try tae avoid the bumps as much as I can.” She clicked her tongue, the horse moved off, and they set off out of the camp at a brisk trot, heading for Ella’s place. As she guided the horse onward and Ewan tied to suppress his groans, it really brought home to her how desperately she wanted him alive and not dead. In fact, she never wanted to leave his side.
But she knew the situation was closing in on them. Laird Allan’s men were already here. Who knew if the soldier Ewan had killed after attacking her during the fight had been truthful. Allan’s army could be two days away, or ten minutes away. And when it arrived and joined forces with Gregory’s, the combined force would attack Ewan and his men. Ewan had told her himself he did not rate their chances of winning in an all-out battle, which was what Allan wanted. Allan wanted to destroy him, and there was every likelihood Ewan would be killed. And then, if he was right about Allan’s secret motives, so would Gregory.
The thought made Isla feel sick with dread. If anything happened to either of them she knew she would not be able to bear it. She would be more than heartbroken. Somehow, she knew she had to find a way to stop the clash from happening. But though she needed it now more than ever, that peaceful solution Ella had hinted at seemed further away than ever.
Just over half an hour later, they were standing at Ella’s door.
“Again? This is gettin’ tae be quite a habit,” her friend said with obvious surprise when she first opened the door and found them there, Isla dressed like a soldier. But when she saw how Ewan was leaning heavily on Isla’s shoulder and realized he was badly injured, she immediately got under his other shoulder and helped Isla get him inside the cottage.
“How did this happen?” she asked as they peeled away Ewan’s top clothing.
“’Tis a long story, but we were attacked by some enemy soldiers. We are Ballentine’s soldiers,” Isla explained as best she could to justify their appearance and the fact that was dressed as a man for Ewan’s sake. Ella, of course, knew the whole truth but played along. She began removing her hastily applied dressing from earlier.
“We won,” Ewan muttered, grimacing as Ella pulled away the blood-soaked dressing and bent down to examine the wound closely. It was a long, bloody slit with a swollen lip on either side.
“Well, that’s makes this worthwhile, I suppose, eh?” She gestured at the nasty gash and shook her head. “Ye ken, ye’re very lucky the cut didnae go any deeper, and that ye’ve still got yer chest intact. Half an inch lower and things would have been much worse. The bad news is, ye’re gonnae need some stitches,” she told him as she straightened up.
“Grand,” Ewan replied with a resigned sigh, his shoulders sagging.
“He’s lost an awful lot of blood, Ella. D’ye think he’ll be all right?” Isla asked anxiously, wincing as she looked at the seeping wound.
“Aye, he’s fit and strong. So long as its kept clean and he daesnae pull the stitches out by movin’ about too much, and with the right salve, I think it’ll heal nicely. Get me some hot water in a bowl, will ye?” she asked Isla.
“Aye, right away,” Isla said, grabbing a bowl from one of the shelves and hurrying to fetch the water from the kettle hanging over the fire. While she did that, Ella turned to her shelves and began gathering the things she needed to clean and dress the wound properly. These included a curved needle and some strong thread. When Isla returned with the bowl of water and saw them on the table, she felt queasy.
She acted as Ella’s assistant as the healer set to work. When it was time to put in the stitches—which she thought Ewan bore with amazing fortitude, gritting his teeth and only swearing a few times—she wielded the shears for Ella, snipping off the ends of the thread neatly each time.
“Another scar tae add tae me collection,” Ewan put in drily when the stitches were done, and Ella was painting the entirety of the wound with some strong-smelling salve. “This is much stronger than the one I gave ye fer yer head,” she told Isla, “so make sure tae use it when ye change the dressing. He’ll havetae come back tae have the stitches out once it’s healed enough.”
“I hope I’ll still be around fer that,” Ewan said.
“Ach, dinnae speak like that, Ewan,” Isla burst out, her nerves already terribly on edge because of the danger he was in. “Of course, ye’ll be here. I’ll bring ye back mesel’,” she added.
He caught one of her wrists gently in his large hand and made her look at him. His dark eyes were soft as he said, “Hey, hey, dinnae get upset, lass, I was only jokin’.”
“Well, dinnae joke about such things!”
“All right, all right, I’m sorry,” he agreed, releasing her wrist, a smile ghosting across his lips. Ella stood with her hands on her hips, watching them with obvious fascination. When Isla noticed, her friend winked at her. As always, Ella could read her like a book. To her chagrin, Isla found herself blushing.
Ella gave Ewan a concoction to help ease the pain, which he drank down obediently. He swallowed it and made a grimace of disgust.
Ella laughed. “The worse it tastes, the more effective it is, think of it like that.”
“Ugh! I’ll try,” he replied, and then added, “Can I have some water tae wash away the taste, please?”
The two women helped Ewan back into his clothes. He was anxious to get back to the camp. “I’m worried about the men,” he told them, frowning. “Allan’s army could be there right now.” His concern for his troops moved Isla deeply.
“We’re almost done,” Ella told him. “I’ll just give Annie some supplies tae take back with ye.” Ella grasped Isla’s arm and pulled her over to the shelves. Isla was grateful, for she desperately needed to speak to her friend without Ewan overhearing.
“D’ye still have some of the willow bark tea left that I gave ye fer yer head?” the healer asked in a normal voice. “Which I see has healed up very nicely, by the way,” she added, eyeing the yellowing bruise.
“Aye, and there’s still some of the stuff ye gave me fer a hangover cure left over,” Isla told her.
“Hmm, I think he’ll need something a bit stronger fer the first few days. But as soon as he starts tae feel more comfortable, ye can give him some of the other. I’ll give ye a stronger salve as well.”
“All right, thank ye so much, Ella,” Isla told her with gratitude.
Ella reached for a jar and began measuring out the dried mixture inside into a paper spill. “I can see ye’re in love with him,” she suddenly whispered to Isla.
“Is it that obvious?” Isla whispered back, annoyed at herself for being so transparent. “I-I kissed him last night,” she confessed, glancing over at Ewan to see if he was listening. But he had gone over to the hearth and was standing in front of the fire, tentatively moving his arms back and forth to gauge his pain threshold.
She looked back to see Ella’s eyes were wide and full of curiosity. “And what happened? Did he kiss ye back?” she asked as she folded the paper packet neatly, then took a small pot of salve down from a higher shelf. She gave them to Isla, who put them in her trouser pocket.
“I’m nae sure. I lost me nerve and ran away,” she replied. Ella snorted and turned it hastily into cough. “I had tae dae somethin’ tae stop him from askin’ me questions,” Isla tried to explain.
“Och, of course, it was nae because ye can hardly keep yer hands off him,” Ella whispered, shooting her a skeptical look full of mirth. “Seein’ him with his shirt off, I cannae say I blame ye. I just dinnae understand why ye ran away.”
Isla huffed and, hearing Ewan starting to grow restless with waiting, changed the subject to her more immediate need. “Ella, somethin’s happened, somethin really bad. I need ye tae give me somethin’ I can use tae put the whole camp tae sleep.”
Ella’s brows shot up. “The whole camp?”
“Aye.” Isla quickly explained about Ewan’s plan to use the secret tunnels to launch an attack on the castle. “Puttin’ them all tae sleep is the only way I can think of tae give me enough time tae warn Gregory.”
“All right, but I need some time tae prepare a potion. Could ye comeback tomorrow?” Ella whispered.
Isla frowned, wondering how she would be able to manage to slip out without Ewan knowing.
What choice dae I have? I must find a way .
She nodded. “Thank ye, Ella, I’ll dae me best.”
With her plan in motion, she was ready to leave. “How much dae I owe ye?” Ewan asked Ella as they prepared to go.
“There’s nay charge,” Ella told him. “But if one of the men at the camp should happen tae pass by and drop off a load of firewood in the yard, it would be much appreciated.”
Ewan smiled. “I’m sure I can arrange that,” he said. “Thank ye fer everythin’. I’m very grateful fer yer help.”
“It’s been a pleasure,” the healer replied as he crossed the threshold. “Good luck,” she whispered to Isla as she followed Ewan out. The pair briefly pressed hands in farewell. Ewan declared he felt well enough to take charge of the horse, so Isla got up behind him and put her arms around his waist. She waved at Ella, who stood at the door, waving back as she watched them ride away.
As they journeyed, Isla was preoccupied with Ewan’s condition, but at the back of her mind, the problem of finding a way to warn Gregory of the imminent attack was nagging at her. So she did not immediately notice they were not heading back to the camp at all. In fact, they were going in the opposite direction, towards Killicraigie, the village they had visited the other night. “Um, Ewan, where are we goin’?” she asked him, puzzled.
“Tae the inn,” he said simply.
“The inn? This is nae the time tae be drinkin’, nae after that potion Ella just made ye swallow,” she replied, surprised. “I thought ye said ye wanted tae get back tae the camp in case Allan’s army arrives.”
“I did, but then I got tae thinkin’ about it. I’ve got men out all over the place watchin’ out fer his army, and so far, they’ve seen naethin’. Besides, that soldier this mornin’ said his army’s still two days away.”
“What if that man was lyin’? And how does that account fer those men this mornin’? How did they get through if ye’ve men watchin’ all the time?” she asked.
“Doubtful, and I reckon that was a very small advance party, so small it managed tae slip through the net. I think there’s still time fer me tae carry out me plans before Allan arrives. And since I’m wounded and need tae rest, I thought it would be nice tae stay at the inn fer the night and sleep in a proper bed.”
Isla was very surprised, but she saw no reason to argue if it was what he wanted. “All right. I agree, a nice comfy bed sounds very appealin’.”
“It certainly daes,” he replied, and although she could not see his face, Isla had the strange feeling he was smiling.