The clerk—a gangly young man—smirked. “We doona give out that information.”
Rory put his hand on his sword hilt. “Answer the question.”
The clerk gave him a wary look, then widened his eyes as Rory’s hand tightened its grasp. “He is nae here.”
Rory took a menacing step forward. “Doona speak in riddles. Do ye mean ‘he is nae herenow’ or do ye mean he was here and he left?”
The clerk swallowed hard. “He left a few days ago.” He pushed the register toward him. “See for yourself.”
Rory glanced at the book. According to the dates, Neal and his men had only spent the night of the morning he’d found their makeshift camp. He narrowed his eyes in consternation. It wasn’t like Cameron to admit defeat, nor to retreat so quickly. Had he actually returned home? It was possible since the MacLean holding was only about fifteen miles from here and thirty miles from Invergarry. And it probably made sense since it was Yuletide.
Rory pushed the register back and plopped a coin on top of it. “For your troubles,” he said.
The clerk grabbed the coin and pocketed it. “No trouble. No trouble at all.”
Rory didn’t bother to answer as he left. Once he was back on the road home, he considered the facts.
Just because Cameron had gone home didn’t mean the man would not be returning once the festivities were done. One more reason to get on the road as quickly as possible. He just wished they could leave tomorrow, but that would be a slap to the MacDonnells, since they’d invited the two of them to stay for Yule. And he didn’t need to insult them. He already had Morag to deal with.
It was late afternoon by the time he reined in a tired Baron to a walk about a mile from the castle. The sun was already low in the west, but he wanted a chance to cool his horse down before they got home. Then, out of his peripheral vision, he sensed movement to his right. Turning in the saddle, he saw what looked like a cloaked figure through the thick pine. Then he caught a glimpse of bright-red hair. He frowned.
What in the world was Juliana doing this far away from the castle?
…
Juliana paused, gazing up at the dense ceiling of conifers that towered over her. It was getting dark among the trees, which meant the sun was setting. She should return to the others. She turned around, searching for the deer trail she’d followed earlier. With the light fading, she couldn’t find it. The bracken that covered the forest floor was bare this time of year, and none of it looked broken or even bent. There wasn’t even any snow under the thick cover of trees for her to look for tracks.
Tracks. A bubble of hysterical laughter rose in her throat, and she quickly quelled it. Rory would probably have been able to find the invisible trail in seconds. He had managed to follow her to the MacLean holding, and there had been myriad trails through those foothills. But he wasn’t here. She looked around. Every tree looked the same.What direction did I come from?
A chill slid down her spine that had nothing to do with the weather, although now she realized dampness was seeping through her boots, making her feet cold. And so were her hands, in spite of her mittens. With one hand, she pulled the collar of her cloak closer and forced herself not to panic.
She’d been stupid to wander off from the group, but the thought of spending the whole afternoon with Morag—who alternated between giving her dagger looks and talking about Rory as though the two ofthemwere betrothed—made her want to throw something at the girl. While she could probably restrain herself from doing that, she wasn’t sure if she could keep foul words from coming out of her mouth, so she’d decided to separate from the rest.
She hadn’t realized she’d wandered so far. At first, she could hear the sounds of voices as the women of the castle, servants included, laughed and talked as they collected holly and ivy. The sounds had become muted and had eventually faded as she wandered, although she hadn’t been aware, since the forest had a voice of its own.
Now the forest had grown still, its daytime residents settling in for the evening and the night creatures not yet roaming. She had no desire to meet any of those, but she had no idea how to get back to the castle.
Hysteria threatened again, and she took a deep breath. Nothing was going to be accomplished if she gave in to a case of the vapors. Besides, she wasn’t a ninnyhammered, delicate debutante, and she wasn’t about to spend the night in the cold woods.
Juliana unsheathed the knife Sima had given her to cut the greens. It wasn’t as balanced as the one she’d used when Rory had taught her to throw, but she wasn’t planning on defending herself. Her intent for now was to make a mark on the side of a tree so she’d see it if she started walking in circles. And also… She bit her lip, not wanting to think on it, but the marks might also serve as clues if someone finally came looking for her. Although it might be too late. She took another deep breath.I can’t think of that right now.
She made her first mark and took a step, hoping she wasn’t going farther into the forest. Then she took another and another. And one more. She looked back. So far, her marks were in a straight line. She moved forward with a little more confidence. And then she heard a shout. It sounded like her name.
Rory?
But it couldn’t be. He’d left early this morning, and Calum had said he might not be back until tomorrow. Besides, how would he know where she was?Shedidn’t know where she was. Then she heard it again. Her name.
“I’m here!” she shouted and began running toward the sound.
“Doona move! Stay where ye are!” The voice sounded louder and was definitely Rory’s. “I will come to ye. Just keep shouting, lass!”
Juliana stopped as understanding dawned. With darkness settling in, she might very well pass by him and not know it. She started yelling and heard him crashing through the bracken. In another moment, he burst through the trees.
“What the hell are ye doing out here? ’Tis near dark!”
Well.Her relief turned to indignation.He doesn’t have to takethattone, does he?She knew very well it was near dark. She had two perfectly good eyes.
“And what are ye doing by yourself? Do ye nae ken ’tis dangerous?”
