Page 29 of Highland Guard
“Wench! Are you going to lie there all day gawking like a bird? Do something useful and get up off the bloody road!”Kieran roared.
Naomi scowled; how could she forget he was still an infuriating ogre? She huffed and rolled to her feet, picked up her quarterstaff and braced. Just as Kieran, with one last sweep of his targe, sent the monk to meet his maker.
***
Chapter 8
Road to Perthshire
Kieran dragged thelast body off the road and under the cover of the trees. There was nothing more to be done. He was grumbling as he worked. “I am telling you, lass, you’re daft if you think you can just hie off all over the countryside with nothing but a stick.”
“Tis not a stick,idiota. Tis a quarterstaff. A proper weapon and I am trained by the best. How would you like it if I called your claymore a knife?”
Kieran just snorted and replied, “At least mine does damage.”
That just made Naomi twice as annoyed. Before she thought better of it, she spun her staff and whacked Kieran on the shoulder.
“Ouch!” he said. “You violent wench.”
“Did it hurt? But tis only a harmless littlestick. Honestly, Kieran, you’re such a baby,” Naomi replied sarcastically.
“You evil banshee. Stop fighting me. In case you have forgotten, I just saved your life. That man was determined to kill you. I saw it in his eyes. He would not stop attacking until you were dead.”
Naomi sobered and replied, “Yes, and I thank you for it. But what did you think I had been doing before you arrived? In case you have not noticed, there was not one, but three men lying in the dirt when you joined in.”
“No doubt Dermid dealt with them,” Kieran muttered.
“Oh, you mean the same Dermid who is passed out right alongside them?”
Kieran realized she had a point. The thought of Dermid not protecting her made him angry. “Well, it serves you right for choosing that dunderhead to be your guard.”
Naomi just shook her head and bade a silent prayer over the deceased. She hated that there was violence in the world, but she also knew sometimes when up against a foe that intends to kill, it’s almost impossible to do otherwise.
Kieran asked, “Are these men part of theBrotherhoodYesenda and Iain encountered months ago?”
“Yes.”
