Chapter 36
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
The surprising warmth of the morning put Leo in a good mood as he returned to the inn, the horses loping steadily alongside him.
It was bright out, brighter than he had expected it to be in the earlier hours before the haze and mist left over from the previous night burned off.
I havenae felt like this in… well, in some time. If ever.
He tried to remember the last time he had felt so light, like he was gliding more than walking. So often, there was a heavy weight on his shoulders, driving him deeper into his own footprints. Bright moments were not particularly common for men like him.
Opening the door to the inn, he gave the innkeeper his friendliest grunt and started towards the room where he and Beatrice had spent the night, heated by the diminishing fire and each other’s warmth.
He hadn’t noticed the innkeeper’s tight expression and the way his eyes followed him as he made his way to the room.
What will I say to her?
Leo paused outside the door for a brief moment.
How do I address her, now that we’ve become so familiar with each other?
His thoughts rattled him almost as much as Beatrice had just a few hours ago in the dark. He didn’t want to be too gruff with her now or trip over his own feet.
For weeks, he had looked at her as a means to an end, but a new layer of feeling had been growing all along, like fresh skin under a burn. She was important to him in a way that was unexpected and still difficult to fathom.
If she tells me that she is leavin', what would I say to her?
He decided he couldn’t wait any longer, both because he wanted to see her face and because he had been standing outside the door with his hand resting on the knob long enough to look a bit unhinged.
The innkeeper was still watching him, but he took no notice of it.
Beatrice was the only thing on his mind.
When he pushed open the door and found the room empty, his heart sank into his stomach, which then knotted up.
“Och, innkeeper,” he called over his shoulder, not wanting to walk away from the room just yet, “where’s the lass I arrived with last night?”
“The lass?” the innkeeper repeated, stepping towards him and furrowing his brow.
“Aye. It’s nae as if many lasses came through the past day. The one with the auburn hair and hazel eyes?” Leo paused, waiting for a response. “Ye do remember me comin’ in with a lass, daenae ye?”
Stay calm. There’s nay reason to believe anythin’s gone wrong.
But that was easier said than done.
A thudding started in his chest, rang in his ears. His mouth went dry as the innkeeper folded his arms over his chest and spoke so slowly that Leo wanted to throttle him.
“Aye, I do. The lass left a little while back. She just took off down the road.”
Leo lunged at him and grabbed the collar of his shirt. “And ye just let her go?”
“I couldnae chain her to the bed,” The innkeeper yanked himself free of his grasp and cowered against the wall. “I surely cannae be expected keep track of every lassie a guest brings here, can I?”
Leo bolted to the door and threw it open.
The road uncoiled before him in both directions; neither seemed more or less likely for Beatrice to take.
The pleasant warmth from earlier turned into a glacial chill as he stared out into the vastness of the landscape, knowing that Beatrice could be anywhere.
Dear God, what did I say to her last night? Did she wake up alone and think I had left her?
Even as that thought rolled through his mind, Leo couldn’t fully accept it.
Beatrice might have been hurt or surprised by his words, but she was smart.
She certainly wasn’t reckless. Leo found it hard to believe that she’d disappear so quickly, no matter what she was feeling.
No horse, no companion, miles away from anywhere she knew well enough to traverse on her own.
Nay, she isnae foolish. She’d stay here until I returned, even if she was upset with me. Unless…
He thought of how many dangers lurked in the woods, along the roads.
Men and beasts and all matters of creatures that would see a lone woman and think nothing of snatching her up.
She had no money on her, which only made her being on her own more dangerous.
At least a thief and a scoundrel could be distracted by money, but if there was none to give, they would want the only other thing she could give them.
If anyone touches her, I’ll cut off their fingers. I’ll rip their filthy tongues from their mouths.
The imaginary foes were not what he was actually angry at. It was his fault that Beatrice had thought she was left alone. His fault and the fault of the innkeeper, who had done nothing to keep her from leaving.
He shoved his way back into the inn just as the innkeeper was starting to shut the door. The old man gaped at him, very nearly knocked off his feet.
“What did ye say to her?” Leo growled.
“About what?”
“Why would she leave on her own like that? She doesnae have a horse or money. She wouldnae go off unless she was told something.”
“I didnae say much to her,” the innkeeper protested. “She asked if ye had gone, and I told her ye had left before the sun rose. Nothing else was said between us.”
She thought I had left her. She thought I had returned to the castle and had nay qualms about abandonin’ her.
Leo reached for the innkeeper again. The man clumsily dodged him and groped around for a heavy item to protect himself.
He stepped back, his hands raised in a gesture of peace.
“Do ye have any lads around here who can ride quickly?” he asked. “I willnae hurt ye. I just need to find the lass before she gets lost out there and cannae find her way back.”
The innkeeper nodded. “Me son can ride.”
“Aye? Get him for me, will ye?”
The innkeeper made no move to do anything of the sort.
Leo stamped his foot into the wooden floor, rattling the windows next to the door. He stopped short of bellowing at the man to do as he was told, though he was ready to do it if needed.
“We have nay time to waste,” he barked, even as he tried to keep himself steady. “Get yer son. I need someone to send a message to MacSween Castle.”
The innkeeper nodded again, then scurried away. He returned with his son, a boy much younger than Leo had expected.
“Do ye ken where MacSween Castle is laddie?” he asked.
“Aye,” the boy answered, his gaze darting between Leo and the innkeeper.
“Good. I’m goin' to lend ye a horse, and ye’re going to ride in that direction as fast as ye possibly can, understand? When ye get there, tell them Laird MacSween needs every available man to get on his horse and come out this way. Can ye do that?”
The boy locked eyes with his father, who shrugged but made no other gesture.
All right, laddie, we daenae have the time to waste on askin’ yer old man.
“I can do it,” the boy replied, swallowing hard. “Show me to yer horse.”
Leo clapped him on the shoulder. “Good lad. Let’s get ye in the saddle and on yer way.”
As he helped the boy onto the horse, the innkeeper watched from the doorway of the inn. Leo ignored him, though he had the feeling the man had not been entirely honest with him. He must have said something to Beatrice to chase her off.
But I might also be a bit paranoid at the moment.
Arsenic on a shawl meant for one’s betrothed could cause more than a little concern.
Leo gave no more thought to the innkeeper. No matter what his small role was, Leo knew he was only a pawn. Someone else was pulling the strings and planning the moves, someone who lurked in the corridors of his castle and called themselves a friend to his face.
“Ye willnae stop for anything,” Leo instructed the boy as he secured the saddle. “The only time ye can stop is when ye get to the castle. Do I make meself clear?”
“As a bell,” the boy answered, squinting at the windswept vista.
“Aye, that’s what I want to hear.” Leo pointed in the direction of the castle. “Go there, lad. As fast as ye can.”
The boy kicked the horse in the flanks and was off like a shot.
He was faster than Leo had expected, but despite that bit of good fortune, Leo could not ignore the sinking feeling in his stomach.
He hoped that Beatrice hadn’t gotten too far or that she hadn’t been foolish enough to veer off the main road.
If ye’re listening up there, God, he prayed, something he hadn’t done in quite some time, please keep her safe until I find her.
He swung himself up onto the other horse, watching the boy’s figure getting smaller and smaller as he sped onward towards the castle.
The message would reach the guards, even though the only message Leo wanted to deliver was the one meant for Bea.
That he didn’t want her to flee. That he wanted her to stay with him, whatever that meant.
He kicked his heels into the horse’s flanks and took off in the opposite direction, scanning every inch of the forested world flying past him at an impossible speed.
The prayer kept repeating in his mind, looping in a rhythm like the pulse at his temples.
Keep her safe until I find her.