Chapter Fourteen

At first light, Rose saw Rob off.

“Are you sure you remember the way?” she asked him for probably the third time.

“Aye, miss. This thicket is well hidden if ye dinna ken what ye’re looking for, but once I’m out of this tangle, it’s a straight journey north to Kirkenroch.”

She nodded, absently patting the horse’s neck. Sending the lad off on his own sat ill with her. He wasn’t really much younger than her. Still, if there’d been any other choice… But there wasn’t. Will needed help.

“All right, then. Off you go.” She forced a smile and stood back.

He nodded and turned the horse, but she ran forward again and he stopped, eyebrows raised in question.

“Be careful,” she said. “Ramsay was defeated but it’s possible some of his men are still about.”

He smiled down at her. “Aye, miss. I’ll be most careful.”

She smiled and stood back, lifting her hand in farewell as the horse slowly pushed through the bushes and trees that hid the small cottage from sight.

She watched the spot where they’d disappeared until she could no longer hear them and then took a deep breath, lifting her head to the weak morning sunlight. Will’s bandage would need changing soon, and she didn’t want to leave him long. But she also needed to gather more willow bark. Rob had shown her where to get more, along with a few more herbs that might aid in healing Will’s wounds. She’d get those before she went back in. And with any luck, Rob would be back with help before nightfall.

She untied her horse and turned to lead him down to the stream. He could drink and graze while she foraged, and he would make carrying everything back much easier.

A gunshot rang out, echoing through the forest. Her horse reared, yanking the leads from her hands and taking off at a dead run, crashing through the thick foliage around their clearing. She cursed under her breath. Damn that horse! And whoever had scared him off.

Her blood ran cold. Who had it been? She crouched down, her heart pounding frantically. While the loss of the horse was devastating, she prayed it would run off instead of returning. If it returned home, at least it would alert everyone that they needed help, even if it couldn’t lead them back to the cottage. But if it returned to the cottage, it might lead whoever had shot that gun right to them.

“Rob,” she whispered.

She glanced back at the cottage door, but there was no sound from within. She waited a few more seconds. No one came through the trees. No other sounds floated to her on the wind. The woods were silent once again.

Still she waited, arguing with herself what she should do. The thought of leaving Will, even for a few minutes, tore her to shreds. But Rob…if he’d run into any of Ramsay’s men, he could be hurt. Dying. Or already dead. She couldn’t leave him to suffer alone if that was the case. And she had to know. If Rob had been wounded or killed, there would be no help coming from Kirkenroch. She’d need to make plans…

Finally, she took a deep breath. Sitting there cowering wasn’t going to help anyone.

“Move,” she muttered to herself, forcing her terror-frozen limbs to get up. She hurried into the cottage and quickly checked on Will.

He hadn’t moved at all but still lay in the fever-induced stupor he’d fallen into the night before. She tucked his kilt about him and made sure he was fully covered. Then she kicked some dirt over the fire. There was only a tiny thread of smoke rising from it through the small hole in the ceiling, but she didn’t want to take the chance that someone might see it and be led to the cottage.

She wrapped her cloak tightly about her and went into the woods, following the path Rob had taken. Taking care to make no sound, she moved slowly, staying hidden in the trees and bushes. Every few steps she’d stop and listen. But the only sound she heard was her own breathing.

Finally, she came to a spot where the trees were thinner, creating a small clearing. There was evidence that several horses had been through. But there were none about now. No men either, but there were boot prints in the mud.

And no Rob.

She remained hunched in the bushes, debating if she should explore further or give up and go back to Will. The shot could have come from anyone. Perhaps Rob was shooting to scare off an animal. Yet another reason she should get back to the cottage. And if he’d been shooting at an enemy, she didn’t want to stick around and see who it was. The thought of Rob needing help was the only thing that made her decide to stay for a few more minutes. She couldn’t risk going farther out into the clearing. From that point on, the trees thinned out and there wouldn’t be any place for her to hide.

She’d finally determined to go back to the cottage when a raspy sigh stopped her. Heart thudding in her ears, she listened again. It was coming from several yards away. She crept closer, her dagger tight in her hand. A boot stuck out from under one of the bushes, and she eased over. Whoever it was didn’t seem to be in a position to threaten her.

With a final glance around to make sure there was no one else nearby, she finally pushed through the remaining bushes and uncovered the man lying on the forest floor.

“Rob,” she gasped, dropping to her knees beside him.

He blinked up at her when he heard his name. “Miss Rose?”

Her hands quickly searched him, looking for his wound.

Wounds, it turned out. A shallow dagger wound on his forearm where he’d blocked a blow aimed for his neck. And a more concerning wound from the pistol shot in his thigh.

She closed her eyes and cursed under her breath. What more could possibly happen to them?

“Who did this?” she asked.

He snorted. “I’m no’ sure. Ramsay’s men, mayhap. There were three of them. Came at me from nowhere. They wanted the horse. One o’ them slashed at me, cut my arm and managed to knock me from the saddle. When I tried to run after them, one of them shot me. Then the other horse charged through. Was it yers?”

Rose nodded and he sighed. “I thought it might be. They were worried about where it had come from, but they werena in any shape to be fighting for it if the owner came looking. They grabbed both horses and left. Or seemed to. I couldna be sure. I didna want to lead them back to ye. They didna seem keen to stay in the area, but I thought to hide here until I was sure they were gone. Just in case. But I must have…must have fallen asleep…maybe…”

“Shh,” Rose said, pulling the scarf from her neck to wrap around his leg. It wasn’t the cleanest cloth. But it would have to do until she got him back to the cottage.

“Can you walk if I help you?” she asked.

Rob stared at her, his pale face pinched with determination. “Aye, miss.”

She nodded and pocketed her dagger, then looped an arm around his back. It took them a few moments, but they got him on his feet. Getting him back to the cottage was another matter. The forest growth was thick, and there were several places where Rose had to let Rob go and resort to pulling and dragging to help him get through. They were slowed even more by Rob’s insistence they obscure their trail as they moved. She understood the reason and even heartily agreed. But it took time. And every second away from Will stoked her anxiety until she was nearly at her breaking point by the time they reached the cottage.

She managed to get Rob inside and settled on his pallet from the night before. Then she hurried to Will’s side. He still breathed. He was far too pale aside from his fever-flushed cheeks. But he lived. Considering their circumstances, that was almost more than she dared to hope.

She sat back on her heels, pressing her hand to her forehead while she took a couple of deep breaths. The pit of panic in her chest squeezed like a vise, and she focused on staying calm. They couldn’t afford for her to lose it now. Both men needed care. And help wasn’t coming.

“Right, then,” she muttered, getting to her feet.

First things first. She needed to get Rob patched up and comfortable. Then she should probably get more tea into Will. And she needed to gather more herbs, especially as Rob would be needing them as well. And food. They needed food.

The panic threatened to spill over again, and she swallowed hard against the tears that burned in her throat. She desperately longed for her old life when the most she had to worry about was whether Lady Alice would like the new hairstyle Rose had fashioned for her, or occasionally helping Cook in the kitchen. But she wasn’t home. She was in the middle of nowhere with two wounded men who were depending on her for their lives. So she tried to push any other thoughts from her mind. There was no time for that.

She took off her petticoat and ripped a strip from it. She’d shred the rest once she’d gotten Rob taken care of. Between him and Will, she’d need every inch of cloth she had.

She cleansed his wounds, thanking whatever saints were listening that they weren’t worse. The cut on his arm wasn’t deep enough to need stitching, thankfully. So she cleaned it the best she could and wrapped it tightly.

His leg wound was another matter. The ball had gone straight through, so at least she didn’t have to dig for it. But it had done a messy job when it had passed through. Again, she cleaned and bandaged it as best she could.

“Thank ye, miss,” Rob said, his voice quiet and strained. “I’m sorry I couldna help…”

“Oh, hush,” she said, handing him a cup of cold willow bark tea left over from that morning. “It wasn’t your fault those men were still in the woods. Hopefully, they are gone now.”

“Aye, I think they are,” he said, grimacing as he sipped. “With their master gone, they have no reason to stick about. Several of their men were wounded as well. I think that is the only reason they were still here. With our horses, they’ll travel that much faster.”

He grimaced again, and Rose patted his hand.

“Get some rest. I’m going to gather some more of those herbs that you showed me. I won’t be long.”

He nodded. “I’ll keep watch over Will until ye return.”

She knew she should insist he sleep, but knowing he’d be there to keep an eye on Will lifted a huge weight from her shoulders. So instead of protesting, she nodded and patted his hand.

She didn’t tarry outside but gathered as many herbs and plants as she could in a few minutes and immediately returned.

She didn’t want to light a fire, too afraid the smoke might draw anyone who still lingered in the forest. But she needed hot water to make tea for both men and to cleanse their wounds. Finally, deciding the benefits were worth the risk, she lit a small fire. But she didn’t sleep a wink that night, jumping at every sound. By morning, when the only things to invade their clearing were a few birds and a rabbit or two, she relaxed enough to doze fitfully by Will’s side. She didn’t touch him again, though, except for when she needed to tend to him. The rush of emotion that had overwhelmed her upon her first sight of him remained. Strengthened, even, with every passing day. But giving in would do little good for either of them.

If Will survived, he’d be returning to John’s side. Or maybe the clan would send him out on some other fool’s errand. Either way, it would take him in the opposite direction of where Rose belonged. With Lady Alice, who would surely wish to return home after all the danger and heartache of the last few weeks. If she decided to stay with Philip in Scotland…Rose wasn’t sure what she would do.

Her place was with Lady Alice. But she’d never truly considered leaving London permanently. Scotland had its beauty. But it was a wild, untamed place compared to the city of her birth. And now more than ever, Rose longed for the familiarity of her home.

The next week was a haze of caring for both men. Rob was lucid enough to talk her through setting a trap for small game, and on the second night she managed to catch a fat rabbit. Skinning and dressing it for cooking wasn’t her favorite task and certainly wasn’t something she’d ever had to do before. But once her belly was full of the delicious roasted meat, her squeamishness over the task dissipated greatly.

Better still was the broth she made from the animal’s bones and some of the herbs she’d found. She managed to get a good portion of it into William. He needed the nourishment desperately, and if it meant skinning a hundred rabbits to keep his cheeks from growing sunken and hollow, she’d do it.

By the second week, Will had improved enough he could sit up, and he stayed awake for longer and longer periods of time. Rob managed to hobble around with the aid of a tree branch he’d found. He still couldn’t do much, but he took over herb gathering and animal trapping for Rose. She didn’t want him to do too much, but she was grateful for the help. Mostly because it meant she could spend more time with Will.

He’d graduated from eating a mash she’d make of a handful of oats, broth, and whatever meat Rob had found to eating the meat straight from the bone. But he still couldn’t stand for more than a few minutes before he broke out in a sweat. Still, the improvement was heartening to her. Anything was better than him lying beside the fire looking pale as death.

And at night when she lay beside him, he now wrapped his arm about her and held her close to his side. They never spoke of it. It never went any further. But each continued to seek out comfort from the other in the dark of night.

As horrible as the last weeks had been, Rose would miss those quiet moments in the night. They couldn’t continue once they made it home. She and Will had an unspoken truce while they focused on surviving, but that would surely end once they were safe. She could hardly imagine what life would look like then. They’d done little else since that morning he’d taken her. They’d gone from one danger-laden situation to the next. How would they even interact with each other without death hanging over their heads? The few moments they’d had that were not fraught with danger had been filled with their bickering. Perhaps they could get along only at the point of a gun.

It was a sobering notion. But not one she had to dwell on yet. Will was improving, but he couldn’t travel yet. So for now, she’d lay her head on his chest and pretend it was the most natural thing in the world. Thoughts of the future could wait.