“I’ll go see if Bacon is awake,” Jamie chirped, scurrying off with Annys following happily behind him.
“Come on, Da,” George said to his father-in-law. “Let’s get ye back to Jeanie before she has our heids on pikes.”
Cicilia watched them all leave, then took a deep, settling breath. She was unsure how the Laird had managed to get so close without anyone notifying her long before now.
Her father had set up people along the road to the central clan many years past, and they had served Cicilia faithfully since her father’s death. The Laird, surely, would be traveling with servants, grandeur, and the kind of showy poshness that Lillian had called ‘wealth gone to ruin.’
How had nae body thought to alert me?
She grimaced. She’d worry about it later. For now, though… “Angelica?”
“Aye, ma’am,” the cook said, immediately attentive.
“Let’s get to work,” Cicilia said determinedly. “We dinnae have much time.”
Let’s let the Laird know what it means when he will nae leave me and me family well enough alone.
Chapter 5
Ophidia in Herba
A Snake in the Grass
It took approximately three hours before they reached the borders of the Gallagher land and realized that the old man had sent them to chase a wild goose rather than in the direction of the farm. They might not have realized at all were it not for a friendly border patroller of the Magee Clan, who politely pointed out they’d crossed the line in error.
“The ol’ codger kent precisely what he was doin’,” Alexander fumed. He was angrier than he perhaps needed to be, because he was tired, because his backside hurt from riding, and because he was embarrassed by being corrected by a foot soldier. “I ken he did. He probably went off to warn the farmer that we’re on our way.”
They’d paused at a small burn to let the horses drink and regain their bearings. Contrary to Alexander’s anger, Nathair seemed to find this whole thing hilarious, which only fueled the Laird’s irritation even further.
“Is nae it worse if he did mean it, Sandy?” Nathair chuckled. “The mighty Laird o’ Gallagher and his battle-hardened Man-at-arms, brought down by a wee old grandfaither?”
“Quit yer japin’, ye big fool,” Alexander demanded, which only made Nathair laugh harder.
Alexander was in no mood for laughter. As soon as they’d re-mounted and trotted for a little to warm up, he spurred Aibreann back into a full gallop, riding as quickly as he could in the direction they’d come. Nathair let out a surprised yelp behind him, then there was a sudden whoop as the Chieftain encouraged Ailill to run faster to keep up.
They rode as hard as possible, Alexander barely knowing where he’d go as he took turns in the direction they’d been warned away from long before they even reached the crossroads. Nathair cackled at every sharp turn Alexander took.
I wonder how much it would cost to get meself a new Man-at-arms an’ best friend?
“Och, ye love me really,” Nathair called after him, as though he could read his mind.
He did, the cursed man. Like a brother. An annoying brother whose mother should have left him with the midwife who’d helped birth him.
Despite his annoyance, Nathair’s relentless teasing actually relaxed him a little as they traveled along the road, and it wasn’t long before they spotted the cottage.
As they slowed the horses down to a trot once more, Nathair let out a low whistle. “Well,” he said after a moment. “That ol’ spunkie was tellin’ the truth about one thing a’ least. We couldn’ae o’ missed this eyesore if we’d tried.”
Alexander gave an absent nod, staring in something close to horror at the cottage ahead of them at the forefront of miles of farmland. ‘Cottage’ was an underwhelming term for it, really. ‘Monstrosity’ was closer to the word Alexander’s brain was looking for.
What kind o’ place is this disaster?!
They dismounted their horses, leading the poor tired creatures to the fence and tying them there until they could find someone to take them to the stables. It seemed oddly quiet. Nobody had come out to meet them, there were no farmhands at all, in fact. Even though it was late, there was usually someone around.
Frowning, he bid Nathair finish tending the horses while he went to introduce himself at the door. He walked along the fencing until he found the gap, lined on the other side with a wild hedge, and stared at the building ahead.
It’s like it was designed just to mess about inside me heid!
It might have been a pretty building, once, but no longer. Everywhere that Alexander tried to rest his eyes, he saw flaws, imperfections. They were the kind of little but glaring details that activated the worst kind of warning bells in his head.