A Forbidden Night with a Scot (Sins in a Kilt #1)

Chapter 18

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

A strange feeling had settled over Samuel from the moment they entered the woods near his castle. After riding for the better part of the morning, with a brief rest for them and the horses, he and the rest of the party had continued down the path to Castle MacLachlan, but something had been bothering him ever since.

He didn’t think they were alone in the woods.

Someone had been watching them, though Samuel couldn’t tell who it was or if it was more than just one person. It must have been a group, he thought, as the enemy always travelled in numbers, whether said enemy was brigands or rival soldiers. Either way, Samuel kept glancing over his shoulder, waiting for the moment he would inevitably spot someone, but that moment never came.

Where are they? Why can I nae see them?

The stealth with which whoever was trailing after them proved to Samuel that this wasn’t a case of mere brigands—no brigands were this organized, this disciplined, he thought. These men had to be trained, whoever they were.

Next to him, Nerian kept glancing his way, unease painted clearly on his features. He, too, was looking over his shoulder every now and then, and Samuel knew his friend must have had the same thoughts he did.

“Dae ye sense it, too?” Nerian asked in a quiet voice, so that the girls wouldn’t hear him.

Samuel nodded, his unease only growing with every passing moment. He was glad, at least, that he wasn’t the only one who had noticed, though that meant it wasn’t simply all in his head. Someone was out there, and they were watching them.

As he and Nerian spoke, Gavin broke away from his daughters and moved forward, falling into step next to the two of them. Samuel needed to only glance at him to know he, too, had the same concerns, though he refrained from expressing them in front of Alicia and Katherine. Even with the three of them there, Samuel couldn’t help but worry that if an attack was imminent, then they would all be in grave danger. He couldn’t tell the number of enemies surrounding them. He didn’t know who they were or how well they fought. But the biggest issue was that they were so far away from the castle still. No help would be coming out to them, not for a long time, and if they weren’t careful, they could be trapped in that forest with their attackers.

Samuel hoped the girls could escape, at least, while he, Nerian, and Gavin kept the attention of the attackers away from them. But if there were so many as to overwhelm the three of them, then the girls’ safety could not be guaranteed.

Could they be MacLaine’s men?

It sounded very likely. Samuel’s lands rarely suffered from bands of brigands, and whenever brigands were found, they were closer to the borders than to the castle. MacLaine’s men had been spotted in his lands before—that was the entire reason for Samuel’s hasty return, after all—and so it wouldn’t surprise him if they had managed to reach that far into his lands.

“Faither?” Alicia called from behind them, and all three men turned around to look at her. “What is happenin’? Is somethin’ wrong?”

Though they had been quiet as they spoke among them, they clearly had not been subtle enough for the two girls to remain oblivious to the danger that lurked in the shadows of the forest. Gavin slowed down his horse, falling into step with Alicia and Katherine to explain to them their concerns, while Samuel and Nerian continued to look around, hands poised over the handles of their swords as they rode.

And then, just as they passed a small clearing near the path, six men jumped out of the trees, surrounding them and forcing them all to pull to a sudden halt.

Both Samuel and Nerian were off their horses in an instant, their swords drawn at the first sign of danger. Samuel wasted no time before he rushed to Alicia and Katherine, putting himself in front of them to work as a shield, as Nerian and Gavin flanked him on both sides. Samuel couldn’t help but glance at Alicia and Katherine from the corner of his eye again and again as he waited for his enemies to make the first move. The two girls looked frightened, Katherine more so than Alicia, who was trying to calm her sister with hushed reassurances. They were both pale, terror etched on their faces, and Samuel could only hope they could get away from there without being harmed.

When the men finally attacked a few moments later, two of them rushed towards Samuel, while the others were intercepted by Gavin and Nerian. Assuming a fighting stance, Samuel easily parried the first blow that came from the man in front of him, then pirouetted to the side in an attempt to avoid the man who approached him from behind.

He managed to duck just in time for the latter’s sword to miss him, the blade splitting the air above his head in two. The odds were not in their favor, and Samuel was well aware of that, but he trusted in the abilities of his friends. Gavin and Nerian were both seasoned fighters, with plenty of battles under their belts. He had to believe they could defeat them or at least flee before too much damage was done.

Around him, the clang of sword against sword filled the air, along with the thundering sound of the horses’ hooves against the ground and the shouts of the two girls as they tried to control them. The horses, frightened as they were, stomped and neighed, desperately trying to get away into the forest, even as Alicia and Katherine pulled at their reins to correct their course.

The only thing that saved them was their skill. Had they been lesser riders, they would have already fallen off their saddles.

Out of Samuel’s two opponents, the larger one, a young man who was as tall as him and perhaps even broader, attacked again. His blows were vicious, strength packed behind every movement, every step, every swing of his blade. The smaller one didn’t seem as strong to Samuel, but he was swift, and together they made for a good team. Attacking one after the other, they gave Samuel no time to rest between parries, and he had to deal with blow after blow, the two of them eager to tire him out.

It was working. His breath came in labored puffs, hard and fast and erratic, like the rhythm of his heart. Though his muscles had not yet begun to ache, he knew it would happen soon and then it would only be a matter of time before the two soldiers would overpower him.

Drawing in a deep breath, Samuel decided to deal with the smaller man first. With him gone, the other would be unable to rely on those quick attacks that were meant to disorient Samuel and corner him before he could defend himself, and so he focused his attention there, quickly deflecting the hit that followed before moving in a counterattack. His sword met the other man’s with a deafening clang, the force of the impact reverberating down Samuel’s arm. Though the man was quick to strike again, that was also his mistake; had he moved away, jumping out of Samuel’s reach, he would have managed to prolong the fight, maybe even save himself. But as he brought his sword down, Samuel struck from the bottom, disarming him and then delivering the killing blow.

The man collapsed to the ground, his gaze empty and distant, before the life seeped out of him entirely, leaving him crumpled in the dirt. Samuel dragged his gaze from him to the other man, who circled his fallen fellow soldier with a smile on his face, much to Samuel’s surprise.

“Samuel!”

The shout of his name rang out through the air, and Samuel, startled by the sudden call, turned around to see another of the soldiers right behind him, ready to strike. There was no time for Samuel to defend himself; there was no time for him to do anything but stare, wide-eyed, as the blade approached his neck.

It never reached him. Instead, a blade pierced the man through his chest, and he coughed once, blood splattering Samuel’s face as it poured out of his mouth.

When he fell to the ground, Nerian was revealed behind him. His shout had saved Samuel, making his attacker hesitate for just one moment—enough for Nerian to kill him.

It was not the first time one of them had saved the other’s life, but Samuel had never ceased to be grateful. Still, there was no time to thank Nerian, not when the fight was still raging, the other man’s footsteps echoing around them as he ran towards Gavin, who had killed one of his opponents but was still fighting the other and was not so lucky to have Nerian close enough to stop the imminent attack.

Samuel watched in horror as the large man brought down his sword. The air was pierced by two cries of terror, Alicia and Katherine watching as their father was struck over the shoulder, managing to slip away just in time to avoid a fatal blow. Still, blood fountained out of a wound, covering Gavin’s clothes in thick, viscous red, and he crumpled between his two attackers, the pain too much to bear, his right hand hanging uselessly by his side.

Within moments, Samuel and Nerian were both by his side, putting themselves between him and his attackers. Sweat dripped down Samuel’s forehead as he fought the same man who had attacked him before, their swords meeting again and again in a frenzy.

He saw his opening moments later, when the man left his right side unguarded, too tired now and too open without his partner’s help. With a swing of his sword, he finally managed to strike, killing the man instantly.

When he looked over his shoulder, he met Nerian’s gaze, who stood over the body of his own opponent, breathing heavily through his nose. Both men were covered in blood, but little of it belonged to either of them. Distantly, Samuel realized he bore a scratch on his forearm, but it was nothing that bothered him. What truly unsettled him was the sight of his friend on the ground, bleeding profusely from his shoulder.

“Faither!” Alicia screamed as she jumped off her horse, rushing to Gavin. She fell to her knees next to him, tears streaming down her cheeks as she grabbed his shoulders with uncertainty, at a loss for what to do. Katherine was close behind, joining the two of them on the ground, but from the distant look on her face, the blankness of her expression, Samuel could only assume she was in so much shock that she could hardly act at all.

“Gavin,” Samuel said, he and Nerian crouching down next to him. “Can ye stand?”

“Aye,” said Gavin, and though his voice was strained, he seemed to be entirely lucid, at least. “It’s only me shoulder he injured. I can stand an’ I can ride.”

“I dinnae think ye’re in any position tae ride,” said Samuel, before he turned to Alicia. “Can ye take him? Can yer horse carry ye both?”

“Aye,” said Alicia with no hesitation.

“An’ ye can control it?”

“Aye.”

Samuel nodded, not doubting her for a moment. “We’ll help ye onto the horse, Gavin.”

“I said I can ride,” Gavin protested, already using his uninjured arm to push himself up, only to fall back down, his eyes falling shut for a moment. He was dizzy, Samuel could tell. He was losing a lot of blood.

Glancing at Nerian, Samuel didn’t have to speak for his friend to know what they had to do. He nodded, and together, they grabbed Gavin, helping him up and guiding him to the horses, all of whom had gathered in the clearing, away from all the commotion, and were now grazing the grass there. Once they had Alicia and Gavin secured on the saddle, they all set off for the castle, trying to get there as fast as they could.

All Samuel could think about as they rode was how devastated he would have been if something had happened to him and Alicia didn’t know how much he loved her.

Tears blurred Alicia’s vision as she rushed to Castle MacLachlan. The sight of her father on the ground, bleeding and hurt, still lingered in her mind, the memory of it so strong she could almost see the scene replaying before her eyes.

It was a struggle to ride, to keep calm enough to follow the others while she could hardly see through the tears. The only thing that kept her going was the knowledge that her father needed immediate attention from a healer, and naturally, the closest place they could find one was Samuel’s castle. The sooner they got there, the better it would be for him.

And so, Alicia rode on, she and the rest of the party moving as fast as they could to get her father to the healer. The relief that washed over her the moment the castle walls appeared in the distance was unlike anything she had ever felt before, so all-encompassing that she couldn’t help the sob which escaped her.

Help was so close. They just needed to reach the castle.

That last part of their ride seemed the longest, the minutes trickling by torturously slowly. Gallop by gallop, they finally made it to the gates, and upon spotting their laird, the guards threw them open for them to pass. Alicia had hardly managed to bring her horse to a halt when Samuel took charge, yelling commands at the guards and the soldiers around him. Before she knew it, three of them were carting her father off to the healer, showing utmost care as they carried him, and she and Katherine quickly followed.

“Alicia,” her sister said, the word a quiet whimper, as she grabbed Alicia’s hand while they ran after the soldiers. “Faither… he…”

“He’ll be fine,” Alicia assured her, lacing their fingers together and holding tightly onto her hand. “I promise ye, Katherine. He’ll live.”

He had to live. That was what Alicia told herself again and again as she watched them carry her father to the healer’s quarters, as she watched the healer work on his wound, as she heard his muffled cries of pain. He didn’t want them to hear him, she knew. He didn’t want them to worry, but how could they not?

The minutes trickled by like rain drops from the edge of a roof, so slowly that Alicia feared time had stood still. By the time the healer, an older woman with long, greying hair, approached them, her dress spattered with blood, Alicia was close to bursting into tears once more and the only thing that stopped her was the thought that she had to remain strong for Katherine.

She wished Samuel was there with her, but understandably, he was too busy with his council. After such an attack, it was only natural that he would have to consult his people, and though she was certain he, too, feared her father’s fate, he could do little for him now. He had already made sure he would get the help he needed. Now, it was only a matter of waiting.

“How is he?” Katherine asked the healer as she came to stand in front of them. “Is he… will he live?”

“He will,” the healer assured them, and Alicia sobbed with relief, her arms wrapping around Katherine’s shoulders as her sister collapsed into her. “He needs plenty o’ rest an’ I will have tae make sure the wound doesnae get infected. It’s very deep an’ he has lost much blood. He will have tae stay here fer a while.”

Now that Alicia knew that her father was going to be alright, the other concerns began to creep into her mind. “How long?” She asked. “We were only meant tae stay here fer a few days afore we left fer Castle MacTavish.”

“Longer than that,” said the woman with a small shrug. “I cannae say how long, exactly. It depends on how fast yer faither heals. But I would say a week, at least, if nae two or three.”

That, too, was a relief of its own. Though Alicia would have done anything to prevent her father’s injury, the one good thing that came out of all this was that they had a good excuse to remain where they were instead of heading out to Castle MacTavish. For a while longer, at least, Alicia didn’t have to worry about Laird MacTavish or her marriage.

Nodding in understanding, Alicia exchanged a quick glance with her sister, who seemed to be having the same thoughts she was. Then, she looked back at the healer and said, “Can we see him?”

“It’s better tae let him rest,” the healer said. “He is sleepin’ now. When he wakes, I will have the guards call ye. It’s better if ye rest, too.”

Alicia doubted she would get any rest, but she didn’t argue with the woman. Her father was fine, she reminded himself. He was alive and he was on the mend, and sooner or later, Alicia would get to speak with him.

In the meantime, she could try to speak with Samuel, if he had time to spare.