The Rock (21 page)

Once they’d crossed the border near the English-occupied Berwick Castle, Douglas slowed the pace. After the first break, where the prisoners had washed, had their wounds tended by MacKay, eaten, and drank a good draught of
uisge-beatha
, they were able to ride on their own.

But rest is what they most needed, and by early afternoon, Douglas halted for the night. Unlike the ride the day before, they had no cause to press. With the rain, sodden ground, and taking to the hills whenever possible to avoid the main roads and running into any English patrols, the ride was slow-going and treacherous to say the least.

They’d stopped somewhere in the Cheviot Hills, near what appeared to be an old hill fort. Archie and the other two lads were asleep on bedrolls in the canopy of the forest, while Thom relaxed with a skin of ale and some of the other warriors around the fire. MacLean and Lamont were on guard duty, and MacLeod and Douglas had gone somewhere—probably to hunt for food—but the other men were enjoying their well-earned rest. Thom was content just to listen to the conversation (most of which consisted of pointed barbs and needling), but he found himself drawn in more than once.

He’d already heard the story of how a dog had foiled the taking of Berwick Castle (when MacGregor hesitated to shoot it), and how they’d narrowly escaped capture afterward due to a resourceful young girl from the family who was hiding them deciding to sell tickets to see “the most handsome man in Scotland,” when the conversation turned to the most recent—and more successful—mission.

MacSorley, whose wicked smile was matched by his sense of humor, clearly liked to needle the others. His current target, however, was surprising. From everything Thom had heard of Lachlan MacRuairi, he was not a man to prod. His reputation as a black-hearted scourge and the most feared pirate in a Western Isles kingdom of pirates was well known. Thom had been shocked when MacRuairi had been unmasked as one of Bruce’s Phantoms and assumed he had been paid a fortune for his sword. But after watching him for the past couple of days, Thom was no longer certain his loyalty had been bought. Still, MacRuairi wasn’t a man Thom would want to cross swords with in a dark wynd or close.

MacSorley, however, seemed undaunted by the infamous mercenary’s reputation. “I think that pretty wife of yours and all those bairns you were never going to have made you soft, cousin.” They were kinsmen? Thom couldn’t hide his shock. The two couldn’t have been more different in appearance and temperament. “I thought you said climbing that cliff was ‘impossible.’ ” The big, fair-haired seafarer who would have made his Viking ancestors proud grinned. “MacGowan here didn’t seem to have any problems.”

“Sod off, Hawk. I think you are confused. I’m built like a rock, but that doesn’t mean I am one.”

MacSorley—Thom wondered where the name Hawk came from—chuckled and turned his gaze to Thom assessingly. “Interesting theory. Rock. I like it. It fits.”

Thom had no idea what he was talking about, but the others seemed to, as he saw more than one man smile.

MacRuairi wasn’t finished. “Anytime you want to show me how it’s done, cousin, be my guest. But I didn’t hear you volunteering to lead the way.”

MacSorley gave a dramatic shudder. “Nor will you. Christ, I didn’t even like being up that high with a rope. Be it good old terra firma
or the wooden planks of a ship, I need something under my feet.”

MacRuairi leaned back, kicked his legs out, and crossed his arms, eyeing his cousin slyly. “I didn’t think you were scared of anything, cousin—other than your wife.”

A few of the men laughed, and MacSorley grinned. “And people say you have no sense of humor.” He shook his head. “Let’s just say I have a healthy respect for both.” He turned to Thom. “So,
Rock
, how the hell did you learn to climb like that? I’ve never seen anyone scale a cliff so high or sheer.”

Thom smiled at the name—understanding the others’ amusement earlier—and shrugged. “I don’t know. It was just something I enjoyed, so I kept doing it. I like the challenge, I suppose, and the satisfaction of doing something no one else has before.”

A few of the men exchanged glances, and Thom wondered what he’d said.

“Well, that’s an understatement. I’d wager the English are still scratching their tails, wondering how we got in there.”

Tail
was a slur for coward, and Thom chuckled along with the others.

The Highlander Magnus MacKay, who was leaning against a tree next to Thom, gave him a long look. “I have to admit I share Hawk’s healthy respect for heights.”

“And for your wife?” Sutherland quipped.

MacKay grinned; his wife, Helen, was Sutherland’s sister. “Aye, with her knowledge of plants, I’d better.” He turned back to Thom. “How do you get past it?”

“The height?” Thom asked.

MacKay nodded.

He wasn’t aware Jamie had come up behind them until he heard him answer. “He doesn’t look down.”

Surprised—actually, shocked as hell—at the easy reference to the day of their first meeting and what had solidified their friendship, Thom snapped his head around to look at him.

There was something odd about Douglas’s expression. It took Thom a moment to pinpoint why: he wasn’t looking at him as if he was contemplating ways of sliding a blade between his ribs.

“Can I speak with you for a moment?” Douglas asked.

Thom nodded and stood from the rock he’d been sitting on. It wasn’t without some effort. His limbs ached from the long hours on horseback.

He was sure Douglas noticed, but he refrained from making a remark. They moved a short distance away toward the small stream where they’d watered the horses. It wasn’t exactly a comfortable silence, but he waited for Douglas to break it. When he did, he said the last thing Thom expected.

“Thank you,” Douglas said, stopping at the edge of the water and turning to face him. “I owe you . . .” His voice fell off, and when he spoke again, Thom could hear the emotion. “You saved my brother’s life.”

Maybe he should have just accepted his thanks and left it at that. But too much had passed between them, and the past burned with too much resentment. “I wasn’t left with much of a choice, was I?”

There was still enough light left to see the pulse below Douglas’s jaw tic, but it was clear he was making an effort not to lose his temper. “I couldn’t take any chances.”

“You could have tried asking.”

“You refused my sister, I didn’t think you would do it for me.”

“That’s a pile of shite,” Thom said angrily. “You didn’t ask because you couldn’t stand the thought of lowering yourself to ask me for anything.”

The anger and animosity were back, filling the air between them as they faced off in the semi-darkness.

“Maybe because I knew how much pleasure you would take in refusing me,” Jamie snapped back.

They knew each other too well—knew their weaknesses and the pride that was the source of the tension between them even when they were the closest of friends. Douglas was right. Thom would have refused, and after how they’d found Archie, the realization shamed him.

The anger seeped out of him. He drew back and raked his fingers through his hair in frustration. “No matter how it came about, I’m glad that I could help, but I wasn’t alone.”

Douglas gave him a wry look, apparently amused that Thom was seeking to share the credit. “Nay, but we wouldn’t have been able to do it without you.” His expression cracked, revealing the torment underneath. “Christ, if I hadn’t been so stubborn—if I’d listened to Ella and brought you in the first place we could have saved him two or three days of suffering. What he went through . . .”

Archie had told them that they hadn’t had food in days, and the only water they had was from the rain that backed up from a drain in the floor. They’d been left to freeze every night, and the only time they’d seen light was when they were taken out to be beaten by the bored soldiers. Three of the men they’d arrived with they suspected had been killed.

“MacKay said he will have no lasting injuries. He is fortunate nothing was broken.”

Why the hell was he trying to give him comfort?

“Maybe not his bones, but the spirit does not recover so easily. Christ, Archie told me they were planning to torture them. If we’d waited until tomorrow, God only knows in what state we might have found him.”

Both men were silent for a while, staring at the slow-moving water before them. There wasn’t much that could be said. Finally, Douglas straightened and turned back to him. “Anyway, I meant what I said. You acquitted yourself well today, and we wouldn’t have been able to do it without you. For what it’s worth, you have my thanks.”

Surprisingly, it was worth a lot. Thom nodded in acknowledgment, feeling as if an uneasy truce formed between them.

“I probably should be thanking you,” he said after a minute.

Jamie didn’t hide his shock. “For what?”

“Giving me a chance to fight alongside the best warriors in Scotland—hell, probably in Christendom.”

Only someone who knew him as well as Thom did would see the hint of wariness that returned to Jamie’s expression. But he needn’t worry; Thom wasn’t looking for confirmation. He didn’t need it. If these men weren’t Bruce’s illustrious Phantoms (and at least two were), then they might as well be.

Perhaps recognizing that, Douglas relaxed. “Aye, they are that.”

“They?” Not Douglas, too?

Jamie lifted a brow. “If I didn’t know you better, I would think that was a compliment.”

“And if I didn’t know you better, I’d think that was you being modest.”

Jamie laughed, and Thom found himself smiling as well. For a moment, it almost felt like old times. The easy exchange, the jests, the prodding—he’d forgotten how it had been. It was probably why despite the danger he’d been enjoying himself so much the past couple of days. These men had a bond not unlike the one he’d had with Jamie all those years ago.

He’d never let himself acknowledge how much he’d missed it.

“What will you do now?” Jamie asked as they started to walk back.

“Nothing as exciting as this. But thankfully not taking down any more castle walls—at least for a while. Although with the weeks of boredom ahead at Stirling during the siege, I might be wishing for an excuse to swing a hammer.”

Jamie frowned. “I thought Ella said that you had something else to do first? Something about an engagement to the widow?”

The reason for the frown became apparent. Undoubtedly, the knowledge of his betrothal had been met with considerable relief by Jamie—which might explain some of the easing of tensions between them—and he wanted to make sure what Elizabeth had told him was the truth.

Thom nodded, allaying his fears. “Lady Marjorie Rutherford.”

Douglas lifted both brows, clearly impressed. “I’ve met her before—you have done well for yourself.”

Thom shrugged. “Nothing has been formalized.”

“But it will be?”

If the question was more intense than the situation warranted, Thom pretended not to notice. “Aye.”

A broad smile spread across Jamie’s face, and once again, he was relaxed. “Well, then you have my congratulations. Jo will be beside herself with two betrothals to celebrate.”

“Two?”

Jamie stopped to stare at him, his expression recovering some of its wariness. “Ella didn’t tell you?”

Thom heard the irritation in his voice. “Tell me what?”

Sensing he wasn’t going to like what Douglas had to say, Thom braced himself.

“My sister is to be betrothed to Randolph.”

No amount of bracing could have prepared him for the blow. For the white-hot ball of pain that had shot into his chest and exploded.

He flinched—maybe even staggered.

Elizabeth was getting married.

Why hadn’t she told him?

Because he had nothing to do with it. She’d never looked at him as a potential suitor. Christ, why should she? She was about to marry one of the most important men in the realm. And he was just a lad from the village.

Damn it, he’d thought he was immune. He thought she’d lost the power to hurt him.

Anger at his own weakness made him stiffen. Pride schooled his features into a hard mask, but he knew Douglas had seen the toll his words had taken.

Forcing the bitterness from his voice, Thom said, “She did not mention it. But when you see her, please give her my congratulations. To you both,” he amended. “An alliance with the new Earl of Moray . . .” He let his voice fall off. Not even Douglas with his well-known ambition could have reached much higher. “You must be thrilled.”

Douglas swore. “Fuck, Thom, I’m—”

But his apology—if that’s what he intended—was lost when Thom walked away.

For good.

Y
OU
’
LL MAKE YOURSELF
sick if you don’t eat,” Joanna said. A small smiled turned her lips, and she placed her hand on her stomach. “And take it from someone who has had her head in a basin for the past couple of weeks—there are far more pleasant ways to spend your day.”

Elizabeth’s eyes widened. “Oh, Jo, a new babe? I’m so happy for you!”

She was thrilled to hear her suspicion confirmed, although beneath her smile of joy was a fresh wave of stomach-churning, chest-twisting horror.