Chapter 18
Logan rode away from the estate back to his keep, where the men were already gathered and armed.
Luke and Lyle were still begging to join him, saying that it was their right as the sons of the laird to ride into battle, and since Logan was the firstborn, he should really be the one to wait out the battle in the safety of the keep to protect himself.
This made Logan bristle, but he could not argue with their logic and knew that he would need all the help he could get.
His brothers clenched their fists in triumph as they quickly prepared for battle.
The men were lined up as Logan addressed them.
“Based on what I hae been told, Bram haes around a dozen men, but we should be prepared for more. He also haes children in his camp, sae we are nae gaeing tae gae in and attack anything on sight. Be careful with who ye attack.
“We are gaeing tae split intae two groups. I will lead the assault on the camp and try and find Bram. Try and capture as many of his men as possible. I dinnae know how many of them are gaeing tae try and fight tae the death.
“The other group is gaeing tae find the children and get them out of there as quickly as possible. If any of them are wounded, take them tae Aman—” He caught himself.
“I mean, Lady Fernsby’s estate. A battle is nay place for wee ones, and I would nae want tae see them hurt.
Does everyone understand?” he asked, and he was met with assenting nods.
He walked through the men and assigned them their groups, and after this, they mounted their horses and followed the directions that Lydia had given Logan.
Logan dearly hoped that Lydia had not been lying about what she knew and that Stevie had given her accurate information.
There had been too many times over the years where Bram had managed to get away clean.
If Logan didn’t find him this time, then he worried that Bram would just disappear entirely and never be found again.
He feared more for the children, though, worried that more of them would be in the same state as Lillie.
There was no telling what Bram could do.
He also thought about Amanda. They had promised to remain silent with each other until the battle was over, as though this promise would somehow protect him from suffering a violent end.
He now regretted it. If he died without telling her how he felt then, the regret would be immense, even if it only lasted for moments.
He could still taste her on his lips, and he thought that if this was his day to die, then at least he would know what it was like to die with the taste of the woman he loved upon his lips.
The horses rode through the forest, whipping through trees and crunching bracken underneath their mighty hooves.
They rode swiftly as night fell, wanting to use their cover of darkness to hide their approach.
As they got near Bram’s camp, Logan held up a fist, indicating that they should halt their movements.
The men dismounted and crouched low. Horses stampeding through the forest would be heard, especially at night, but men creeping around would be undetected.
Logan led the way, following the path through the forest. He strained his ears and peered through the dim light.
The moon was large, hanging in the sky like a silver coin and spreading its light across the forest as though it was aiding him in his search for Bram.
Eventually he saw flickers of amber light in the distance and a wispy spire of smoke—signs of a camp.
Lydia had told him that Bram had a man patrolling the boundary of the camp, so he crept up with two of his men and waited for the sentry to pass by.
There was a low whistle of an old folk tune, and Logan got ready.
As soon as the patrol walked past, Logan leaped out and wrestled the man to the ground, clamping his hand around the man’s mouth to ensure that he made no sound.
With his other hand, Logan thumped him in the gut.
Logan’s two allies came by and gagged the sentry, dragging him away into the darkness. Now Logan could approach unencumbered.
As he grew closer to the camp, he could see that there were wagons arranged as buildings, which would explain how Bram could move his camp so swiftly.
He did not see any children present, but there were some large wagons toward the rear of the camp, and he thought it likely that they were kept there.
He directed his men to skirt around the perimeter and make their way to the children, ordering them to take them back to the keep no matter what was happening in the battle.
Their only mission was to get the children back, not to fight, even if Logan and his group of men were suffering.
Logan had about twenty men in total, but around half were sent to free the children, meaning that he was slightly outnumbered.
Logan was still resolute in his determination, though, and he would bet on his men over the wild and unruly group of bandits and thieves.
It would have been prudent for them to sneak up on Bram’s men and take them out methodically, but they needed to make a distraction to stop any of Bram’s men from noticing that the children were being freed.
So Logan charged. He roared at the top of his lungs and went storming into the camp, swinging and slashing his sword wildly at any man who got in his way.
The number of Bram’s men was thinned quickly as some of them were indeed taken by surprise; they had been eating and drinking, and their movements were sluggish because of the amount of alcohol they had imbibed.
They were soon looking up at the stars with a distant look in their lifeless eyes, their arms limp and splayed out while a dark shadow oozed out of their wounds.
But once the attack began, Bram’s warriors roused themselves and came out to defend their home.
They were a motley band of men who had nothing to live for other than their ill-gotten gains, but fighting was second nature to them.
Many of them had been fighting since the day they were born, and they weren’t going to stop now.
Logan heard some of his men cry out in pain.
The night would extract a heavy toll, and he mourned all those who had died, but they would fight until the children were rescued or until all of Bram’s men had been captured or killed.
And Logan only had one man on his mind: Bram.
Given what he knew about Bram, he suspected that Bram would use the attack as an opportunity to flee.
He would likely already be planning to start a new group of bandits elsewhere, and Logan wasn’t going to let that happen.
He sprinted through the camp, his blade gleaming as he deflected blows from onrushing men and pushed them aside, leaving them to his allies.
In the distance, he saw a silhouette dart out of a wagon and onto a horse.
“Bram MacGavin, stop what ye are daeing!” Logan bellowed.
He could hear the horses whinnying, preparing to set off.
He looked around and saw a fire nearby. He braced the heat and grabbed a log, flinging it to the wagon.
It was set ablaze and the fire crackled, startling the horses, illuminating Bram.
Bram was a thin, wiry man with straggling black hair.
He had beady eyes, like a rat, and one tooth was made of gold.
He was dressed in a nightshirt, but as soon as he noticed the fire, he jumped off the back of the horse and grabbed his sword, the blade glowing amber as it reflected the light of the fire.
Logan approached him.
“I hae been hunting ye for tae long,” he said as he approached.
Half of Bram was cast in shadow, while the other was lit by the naked fire.
“The last time I was close tae ye I ran out. It was the night my child was tae be born. I failed in capturing ye, and then when I returned, my wife and child died.”
“Probably because they could nae stand living a life with ye,” Bram said in a cackling, grisly voice that sounded strangled. “Well, ye hae managed tae get me now, but it’s nae gaeing tae dae ye any good. I’ll leave ye bleeding on the ground.”
“Nae taeday. It’s time tae rid the world of ye. I know what ye hae been daeing with the children. It’s over, Bram. I’m taking them with me.”
“There are always more children. Dinnae ye think it’s sad that they end up by themselves with naybody tae care for them? I gave them a home. I gave them purpose,” he said.
“Ye gae them naything. Now surrender or die,” Logan said, and strode forward.
Rage bubbled inside him. He had enough of talking to this worthless man.
Bram had no intention of surrendering, though.
As Logan approached, he was prepared to defend himself, but Bram did not make a motion with his sword.
Instead, when Logan came within range, the hand that was cast in shadow emerged and a dark, bitter liquid was flung at Logan. It flooded his eyes, stinging him.
He cried out and clawed at his eyes, trying to clear his vision.
Bram used the opportunity to come in and strike him.
Logan blinked frantically and tried his best to defend himself.
Bram’s strokes were wild and stabbing, showing no finesse at all, only brutality.
The steel sang as they clashed and Logan’s feet twisted into the ground.
Pain bloomed on his shoulder as Bram slashed at him.
Warm blood trickled out. Then Bram jabbed an elbow in his face and Logan staggered back.
His feet were then swept under him before Bram straddled his chest, pushing his long, taloned fingernails into the open wound on Logan’s shoulder.
Logan’s eyes opened wide in pain, and the tears helped to clear his vision. He screamed loudly and saw Bram’s wild, manic visage towering over him. Bram relished the mania and the frenzy, and Logan knew his death would not be a swift one.
But that meant he still had time to fight back.
Logan summoned his strength and thought of Amanda. He thought of the life that was waiting for him if he could just make it through this night.
Bram’s fingers opened the wound even wider, and blood gushed out like a frothing stream.
Logan reached across and grabbed Bram’s arm, gasping and grunting as he tried to pull it away.
Bram laughed and used his free hand to punch Logan in the face.
Logan felt blood swim along his tongue and through his teeth.
He pushed himself up using all his strength and then spat blood in Bram’s eyes.
It formed a crimson mask, and Bram reeled back.
Logan finally had the chance to pull Bram’s hand away.
He gasped with relief and then stood up, wasting no time in grabbing ahold of Bram and hurling him away.
Bram staggered and fell, carried by the momentum of Logan’s throw, and he crashed right into the fiery wagon.
The horses had by now freed themselves as Bram hadn’t been able to fully tie them to the wagon.
Bram’s body crashed into the flames and was embraced by them.
The fire took hold of his flesh, and he cried out, his yelping whimpers mixing with his maniacal laugh.
Logan gasped for breath as he fell to his hands and knees, watching as the fire took hold of Bram, melting his flesh and pulling him down into the abyss of hell.
There was no escape for him now. Logan sat back as the pain flooded through him. He winced as he watched the blood pour out of him, and he grew light-headed. He made sure that Bram didn’t escape, and then he stayed there as the world closed in on him and everything went black.