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a and Alex were exhausted. Getting two of the larger ewes free from the bog had been an ordeal. The old gals were heavy and not smart enough to stop fighting you when you tried to help them. Finally, Alex put a rope around their necks and had Zeus do the pulling. Not much of an effort for him, but now he was covered with muck as well as the men. So the first order would be to clean the horse and then himself.
Da went to the lodge after cleaning most of the mire off outside in the shower Jack had rigged for them. They used it in the summer months, but in the winter a bath in one of the rectangular baths that Da had installed inside was much better. He'd put one in for Mam originally, then as the lads came he'd added two more, one in each wing. He headed to one of those to wash. He'd never speak of it, but he was beginning to feel his age. The cold seemed to have seeped into his bones. A warm bath and a wee dram would take care of that, though. He got his bath and went to sit by the fire, where Andrew and Jamie were discussing their ailments.
Uncle Andrew was just a couple of years younger than Daniel, and the only sibling still living. There had been several others, but all died in infancy. Thus it was that these two brothers were exceptionally close. For most of his life, Andrew had lived on the sheep farm. His Florence had passed away a number of years ago now, and he moved into the lodge. His own place was just too lonely without her. So now the two were both widowers and took pains to be as useful as possible.
Old Jamie, a distant cousin, rounded out the trio of oldsters. He had lived in the lodge for years too, and was about most of the time. He was rather quiet, and kept his thoughts to himself. But he still contributed to the running of the place and was very much a part of the family.
"A little arthritis now and then. And the heartburn, fer sure," Da reported.
"Aye, and as it should be," Andrew said when Daniel made mention of his ailments.
"Jamie, ye got any complaints that need airing?" Da smiled at his old friend and cousin.
"Nae, none that would be any worse than what ye two talk about." He laughed and sipped at his cider. The three of them could tell stories till the sheep came home.
"Not one of us is what ye'd call spring chickens, Daniel, but we ain't done fer just yet. In fact, I'm feeling younger than I have in years." Andrew grinned.
"Ye think maybe it might be those trips to Edinburgh? Checking out those records?"
"Yep. Could be. Could be."
Daniel nodded to his brother, and winked at old Jamie. "So when are ye going to bring her here? She'll have to pass our inspection, ye ken?"
"What? How did ye know about her? Why, a fellow can't keep a secret to himself around this place." But he smiled and the three of them shared a dram and reminisced about the good old days.
~ * ~
ALEX WORKED TO CLEAN the mire off Zeus and then quickly got the worst off himself. The sticky muck clung to his shoulders. But Jesus, that was cold! He was finishing as Da came out the door.
"Alex, do ye know where Caitlin's got off to? I told her I'd help get the vittles on the table, but she's not in the lodge. Was she headed to the village maybe?"
Alex stepped out of the cold shower, wrapped a large towel around his body and stared at Da.
"She's not inside? She knows not to leave without one of us going with her. Maybe she's upstairs. What about Willie? Is he inside?"
"Nae, lad. They're not in the lodge. I checked everywhere."
Alex hurried inside, washed quickly, put on a clean kilt and shirt and tried to find a pair of boots that were dry enough to put on. Walking in this snow all winter didn't allow much time for drying out.
"Da, I've got to go look for her. What if Deirdre's found her again? I tell ye it was her. I haven't been able to prove it yet, but my gut knows it was her."
"Hold on a minute. I'll go with ye."
"Nae, Da. Stay here. It's getting even colder out there now."
"Lad, I know how cold it is and I'll thank ye to let me make my own decisions as long as I can. Now let's stop talking and get to the stable." Da could make a point when he needed to.
Alex was only halfway across the yard, however, when he heard a voice calling.
"Alex, we're coming. Over here!"
Caitlin had seen Alex when he came out the back door of the lodge. She'd never been so glad to see anyone. She had no doubt he would be angry, but also knew he would come to her side now and help her with Deirdre. The anger would hold for a while.
"Jesus, Caitlin, what's happened?"
He helped Caitlin off first, then, looking at the other woman who was slumped over, he saw red. Deirdre! Even in his angry state, however, it was apparent to him that she needed help.
"Have ye lost yer mind? I told ye she's the one who kidnapped ye. Didn't ye even think about that before ye brought her here? She's the enemy, lass. Listen to me, ye ken?"
"I found her out under the waterfall, lying on a ledge. I couldn't just leave her there. She's in a bad way whether we like it or not. Now help me with her."
Alex's first inclination was to take the woman and tie her up so she couldn't harm anyone. When he got closer to her, however, he saw she was in no position to harm anyone. So against his better judgment, he looked at Caitlin, who nodded at him, then turned to Deirdre.
"Here. Lean over here. I'll take ye, now."
Alex felt the woman lean slightly in his direction and he cradled her in his arms and headed for the lodge.
"Let's put her in Mam's sewing room. I spent weeks recovering in there and I can tell you it's a most comforting room. Trust me on this."
Alex would rather not have this woman anywhere near Caitlin, or any of them as far as that went, but there didn't seem to be anything to do but follow Caitlin's suggestion.
"Caitlin, I don't want that woman in our home for one minute. Do ye not understand what a danger she is to ye, to all of us? Ye have to hear me on this lass. Listen to me, I tell ye." Containing his anger was very challenging.
"Perhaps what you say is true. But we can't just turn her out to fend for herself under the circumstances. Now, put her here on the bed and I'll give her a good going over. Then we'll talk."
Alex stood next to Caitlin, unwilling to leave her side. Willie stood so close to her she could hardly move. Alex had not missed the underlying, reverberating growl coming from the beast. He was certain the wolf felt the same way he did, and neither of them was going to leave Caitlin alone with Deirdre.
Caitlin lifted the woman's head and poured some liquid down her throat, causing her to cough. "I've given her a dose of laudanum. She'll sleep now and tomorrow she'll be able to tell us what she was doing out there. You can go now, Alex. She's unable to harm anyone at this moment. Willie can stay here with me. I'll watch her a few moments, then I'll join you."
Alex stood there for another minute, then walked out, confident Willie would stand guard.
"That wolf has better sense than his master. Damnation! She's got to realize this woman might have killed her." Alex vented his frustration, and Da just nodded and poured both of them a dram to settle their nerves.
"Lad, Caitlin's no fool. But her first calling is to heal. Ye'll never get her to let go of that. I have to tell ye, lad, she and yer mam have a number of similar traits. My advice to ye is to hold yer tongue and accommodate whenever possible. It's a lot easier that way." He laughed as he watched Alex's expression.
The effects of the laudanum only lasted a couple of hours, which was most unusual. Caitlin heard Deirdre calling, so she and Willie, followed by Alex, went to see about her. She was complaining about her foot and her hip.
"You've got a sprained ankle and a nasty bruise on your hip. Those will heal and you'll be good as new. For now, just rest here and we'll see how you feel tomorrow."
"There's another problem."
"What? You're hurting? Where?"
"No. Not that. It's me mam. She's all alone. I'm the only one to take care of her and she's bedridden, ye ken? She'll wonder what happened to me. And she can't get her own food. I have to go to her."
Caitlin glanced at Alex, who stood by the bedside, still unwilling to leave Caitlin alone in the same room with Deirdre. He didn't trust her for a second.
"We'll get over to yer mam's place. Don't worry about her. Do what Caitlin tells ye now. We'll take care of yer mam."
"Alex, I'm afraid of that wolf. He growls at me constantly. Don't leave him in here with me, please."
Caitlin ran her hand along Willie's back then scratched him briefly behind his ears. "I'll put him away. He's got a place in the stable. He'll not mind staying there a night or so. He's got a friend that likes to sleep out there so he'll not be alone."
Alex looked at Caitlin as they left the room and she closed the door behind her. "Caitlin, ye can't be alone with that woman. I tell ye she's not to be trusted. Ye must hear me on this, lass."
"She's not well, Alex. Just look at her skin. She'll be better tomorrow. Then we'll decide what to do."
"Better or not, she leaves tomorrow. I'll drag her out myself if I must, but she will leave here tomorrow. Now I'll get over to the Taggart place and check on her mam. The old woman's not in good shape, either, but maybe I can take food and see how she's faring. If she needs more than that, I'll go to the village and find one of the young lasses to stay with her. But you stay with Da and don't go into that room without him being with ye. She's dangerous and she'll still try to hurt ye."
Deirdre could feel the medicine working again. Sleep would be good. She hadn't gotten much of it lately. No matter how hard she tried, she didn't sleep much and certainly not well. When she did sleep her dreams were filled with disturbing images. It was like being pulled into a dark tunnel, hands pulling at you as you walked past. What did they want? Who were they? She always awoke in a sweat and the only relief she got was from drinking just a taste of Nezzie's potion, the one she had prepared for Deirdre to give to Alex. She'd tried it once and learned that it helped soothe her nerves and allowed sleep for short periods. But she needed to save the rest of it to put in Alex's whiskey.
At the moment, just before sleep did finally rescue her, she remembered the feel of Alex's arms when he lifted her from the horse and carried her to this room.
Warm, caring. Safe. He's supposed to be mine. Mine.
Taking Daniel aside, Alex explained his plan. "Da, I'm off to see about Mrs. Taggart. I'll check on her and if she needs someone to stay with her I'll go to the village and find a lass. But while I'm gone, I'm counting on ye to not let Caitlin be alone in the room with Deirdre. Trust me, she's not in her right mind. I can't get Caitlin to understand that, but I know that woman. She cares only for herself."
"I'm here and so is Jamie. We'll take care of Caitlin, lad. Go now."
Alex left and Caitlin took Willie to the barn as promised. He continued growling when they left Deirdre's room. Caitlin put him in the stable even as he made it plain this was not what he wanted. He actually barked at her and refused her command at first.
"Willie, come here. It's just for the night. I know you don't care for the woman, but I'll be fine. She's too tired and sick to cause any trouble. Stay here with Henson."
She closed the door and Willie whimpered again, not liking this arrangement.