Page 52 of Desiring the Highland Laird
“Headed here?” Malcolm asked.
“I dinnae like the looks of them,” Callum said.
There was a heartbeat of silence, then Hamish shouted, “Close the gates!”
Callum turned to her then, grasping her by the shoulders. “Go inside and find Roslyn. Stay with her until I come for ye. Do ye understand?”
“What’s happening?” she asked, trying to squelch the terror that shifted through her.
“I dinnae ken. But I dinnae want ye in harm’s way. Go, now, lass.”
“But, Callum—”
“Go.” He turned her toward the door and gave her a gentle nudge.
Evie did what she was told and hurried into the keep, closing the door behind her. She paused there, wondering what was going to happen to him, his father, and brother. Something told her the riders approaching were not friendly and the three of them intended to face them in whatever capacity they needed.
She hurried through the keep to find Roslyn. She was in the kitchen preparing the evening meal by kneading bread. Flour was smudged across the front of her gown. She glanced up when Evie entered.
“Ah, lass, there ye are. Did ye have a nice ride with Callum?”
Evie rushed over to her. “I did but…Roslyn, something is happening.”
Sensing her near panic, she put aside the dough and reached for a kitchen towel, wiping her hands on it. “What is it, lass?”
“There are men approaching on horseback. Callum told me to find you and stay inside the keep.” She took several steps toward the woman, reaching for her and grasping her by the arm. “It’s something bad, isn’t it?”
The woman’s face drained of color as she pressed her lips together into a thin line. Then she reached for Evie’s hands, squeezing them in hers.
“Everything will be all right, lass. Dougal!”
The man came from a back room. He was the same man Evie had seen when she first woke in Callum’s bed. “What is it now, woman?” When he saw the two of them standing together, he halted. “What is it?”
“Riders,” Roslyn said. She jerked her head toward the front of the keep. “Best go see.”
He said nothing as he hurried by her. Roslyn grasped her by the hand and pulled her deep into the kitchen.
“What’s going on?” Evie demanded.
“If it’s what I think, they’ll be fighting before too long.”
“Fighting? Who?” Alarm bells went through her.
Roslyn tugged her toward a set of stairs off the kitchen that led down. They headed toward a room at the bottom where she pushed open a door and led her inside. It was well stocked with sacks of flour, oats, rye, and other grains on one side. On the other, dried beans, peas, and lentils, as well as salted and cured meats. There were oak barrels she assumed contained their favorite ale. She spied large wheels of hard cheese and one area reserved for herbs and spices.
“We’ll wait here in the larder,” Roslyn said as she closed the door behind her, plunging them into cool darkness.
“Here?” Her voice quivered. She was unsure what to make of that.
She struck a match and lit a couple of candles. It didn’t do much to illuminate the room, but at least they weren’t in total darkness.
“The men will be fine,” she added. “Dougal will come for us when we can leave.”
“I don’t understand what’s happening.” Evie clutched her elbows to ward off the impending chill.
Worry flickered through the older woman’s eyes. “If the riders are who I think, then it’s a long-standing feud between the clans.”
Evie didn’t like where this was going. “Between which clans?”
