Page 6 of A Forbidden Night with a Scot
“He must have fled,” Samuel said. Looking at the ground, he saw a trail that led towards the door of the tavern, as though someone had dragged themselves all the way there.
He had hardly managed to finish his sentence, though, when that very same door was thrown open. No fewer than four men stood there, and among them, Samuel saw the man he had attacked, swaying on his feet as two of them supported him.
Och, this cannae be good.
“Run,” Samuel told the two sisters, pulling himself apart from them so that the men would target only him. When neither Alicia nor Katherine moved, he turned to look at them, this time shouting. “I said go!”
It was only then that the two girls fled, their feet stomping against the ground as they ran. Samuel didn’t have the luxury of time to wait for them to disappear before he turned back towards the men, tossing the book to the ground and pulling out his sword.
Four against one… well, I’ve had worse odds.
CHAPTER THREE
“We cannae simply leave him there!” Katherine shouted as she and Alicia ran to the horses. “What if they kill him?”
Alicia glanced over her shoulder at Samuel, who was fighting all four of those men at once as they all threw themselves at him at the same time, while their friend was propped against the outside wall of the tavern, still swaying on his feet as though he could hardly keep himself upright.
They willnae kill him. He’s too good fer that.
But they could still harm him, Alicia supposed, and even Katherine was reluctant to flee and leave him there all alone. Her fear for Samuel’s life seemed stronger than her fear for her own and Alicia couldn’t help but think she had a point. They couldn’t leave him there to fight all alone. The least they could do was help him escape, if not fight the men.
Though he had his sword in his hand, Alicia saw that he was hardly using the blade, as if he didn’t want to cause too much damage. As the men rushed towards him, he punched and kicked his way out of the cage they tried to form with their bodies to contain him, doing his best to fight them off without killing them.
“Quickly!” Alicia told Katherine. “Get on yer horse.”
Katherine, never one to not listen to her sister, did as she was told and Alicia followed her, jumping on her own after she grabbed a fallen branch from under the tree where they kept the animals. As Katherine lingered by that tree, Alicia put her horse in motion, but instead of fleeing like Samuel wanted her to do, she galloped towards him just as one of the men attacked him from the back, a knife’s blade glinting in his hand as he raised it to strike.
Before he could, Alicia reached them and swung the branch, hitting the man right on the side of his head and knocking him out cold.
“Jump on!” she called to Samuel as she brought the horse to a sudden halt. Her hands gripped the saddle, holding on as the horse reared and stomped its front legs at the harsh command, before finally calming and allowing Samuel to climb up behind her.
Alicia wasted no time before turning the horse around and fleeing that place, following Katherine down the path, who had already begun to ride when she saw that Alicia had rescuedSamuel. Behind them, the men shouted drunkenly at their retreating backs, throwing insults and taunts at them, but neither Alicia nor Samuel paid them any mind. It would be foolish to go back to finish a fight just to prove themselves to a group of drunkards, after all.
Instead, she and Katherine rode back to Castle MacCallum, on the same dark path they had taken earlier that night, when they were making their way to the village, only this time, they were in a frenzied hurry, uncaring of who may see or hear them even as they reached the castle gates.
Behind Alicia, Samuel was a solid presence, his chest brushing against her back with every movement the horse made. His arms circled her waist as he held onto the front of the saddle, and Alicia was painfully aware of their proximity, as well as of the fact that they had never been this close before. Whenever Samuel had visited the castle, they had always kept a respectful distance from each other, especially after Alicia had grown into a young woman, but now his warmth was all she could think about—those strong arms around her, the ripple of his muscles as he adjusted his stance on the horse, his breath on the back of her neck occupied her mind entirely.
It was only when they were close—too close—to the castle that Alicia brought her horse to a halt once more, Katherine stopping too when she realized Alicia wasn’t following her anymore.
“We cannae go in through the gates,” she reminded her sister. “Dae ye think they have seen us?”
“They havenae raised the alarm,” Katherine said. “Nor does it seem like they have sent someone out.”
Samuel’s laugh rang in her ears. “Ye wish tae go inside unseen? It willnae happen. Yer faither’s men are better trained than this.”
“We left unseen,” Alicia said, looking at Samuel over her shoulder. There was hardly any light around them, only that of the moon, but she could see the humor drain out of him as his expression turned serious—perhaps even a little impressed. “So we can return unseen.”
Alicia and Katherine guided the horses to the same opening in the walls, hoping that the same men who had been there when they had left would still be there to let them in. A little flirting was all it had taken them to slip out undetected by everyone else, but now Alicia trembled at the mere thought that she would have to charm the guards with Samuel there, listening to her. What other choice did she have, though? If she wanted to go back inside the castle without the other guards noticing and notifying her father, then some sacrifices had to be made.
Upon their approach, she saw that the soldiers were, indeed, the same, and they stood straighter as Alicia and the others jumped off the horses, their hands on their swords, ready to draw them. Alicia was quick to wave at them, rushing alone towards them so they wouldn’t raise the alarm.
“We’re back,” she told them, relief washing over her as they finally relaxed when they recognized her.
“Me lady, ye’ve brought someone with ye?” one of the guards asked when he spotted Samuel. “I dinnae ken if we should?—”
“That man is Laird MacDougall,” Alicia interrupted him before he could finish his sentence. “Surely, ye willnae refuse entry tae me faither’s good friend?”
Once again, the guards snapped at attention, standing tall upon hearing Samuel’s name. “Forgive us, me lady,” said the other man. “But why does Laird MacDougall nae come in through the front gates?”
