Page 65 of Taken By the Ruthless Highlander
“Yer faither banished ye?” Morgana whispered.
“Aye. He called it an act of mercy, when I ken very well that it was a punishment. He wanted me to live with failure. I suppose he was hopin’ ye’d give him a son before he left this life. Someone to assume the lairdship, ye ken. I didnae think for a minute he thought I’d be here.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Morgana offered, her heart aching.
“Well, it was Cohen who wanted to see me dead. Thought it would be only right to mete out such a punishment. My faither thought humiliation would be a far better teacher than death. It was a compromise. And so they kicked me out. To be honest, I’m surprised I was informed of my faither’s passing. I think I could’ve gone my whole life without kennin’ that.”
“Someone would have said somethin’ to ye, eventually,” Morgana said. “Sent a letter or even a messenger.”
“Well, we’ll never ken now, will we? It’s nae like we can change the past.”
“All we can do is learn from it and hope we do better.”
Suddenly, thunder cracked overhead, stealing the warmth from her blood. She glanced over her shoulder down the path they had come from.
“We need to go,” Ryder said urgently. Morgana nodded her head as they turned back for the horse. “And pray the bridge is still dry. We willnae be able to leave if it’s wet. I’ll nae risk our necks gettin’ across.”
21
Ryder’s chest tightened as he settled into the saddle. Morgana nestled once again between his thighs, but there was no time for his fantasies to run amok. He turned the horse around and started for the path.
As they pushed through the shrubs, fat droplets started falling from the sky. There was no dodging them.
Had Ryder thought it would rain, he would have been better prepared. But what was a little water? He’d been through much worse, trekking through the open fields of Scotland with Laird McCallum’s soldiers.
His banishment had put him through many ordeals, but as he glared up at the sky, his thoughts shifted to Morgana. She’d be soaked to the bone by the time they got back—ifthey got back. Then, his thoughts shifted to the dangers lurking ahead. Each drop would only add to the slickness of the stone bridge, making the crossing even more perilous.
“Ryder.”
The panic in Morgana’s voice pulled him out of his thoughts.
He pulled the reins as he tried to wrap his head around what he was seeing. The stone bridge was submerged in a roaring deluge. His heart stopped as he glanced back over his shoulder at the pond. It was only a matter of time before it would overflow, and then where would the water go? Where wouldtheygo?
“Aye, I see it.”
“Is there any other crossing, or is this it?” Morgana asked, her voice rising above the thunder of the waterfall.
“This is it,” he answered as he scanned the rocks for another route.
The walls were climbable, but they’d be abandoning the horse to an uncertain death. Ryder had to make a choice before the water rose too high in the canyon and swept them out.
“There.” Morgana pointed at the switchback trail.
Ryder’s chest tightened. “That’s impossible. The path gets too narrow.”
“What other path do ye see? The water is already slappin’ over the bank of the pond. We cannae wait this out, we’ll drown.”
“At least we’ll go together,” Ryder muttered as he jumped down from the horse. He wagged his fingers at Morgana, prompting her to dismount.
“What are ye doin’?” she asked as he removed the saddle.
“Givin’ the horse a chance. She will drown if we leave the saddle on. But the reins I’m keepin’ on. At least we’ll have somethin’ to grab if she slips by.”
Ryder moved swiftly, removing anything that could weigh the horse down. He gave her a final pat on the neck and sent her off.
“We need to keep a keen eye on her. She’ll be the first to get out if there is a way before the water comes in,” Ryder explained.
Fear flickered in Morgana’s eyes like a candle in the wind, but then her determination kicked in.
