Page 11 of The Forest Bride
“You hit one. He complained about it. And your bow fell, I saw it. I wish I had a weapon. My father would have killed those men,” he added, scowling. Margaret knew Andrew idolized his heroic father, although he barely remembered him.
“Your father was a great man, and he would be proud of you for being strong and clever with a righteous heart. We both tried. Remember that. And we have each other. We can solve this. I just wish I knew where we are now.”
“This part of the forest runs east away from Loch Lomond,” Andrew said. “Sir Hugh told me they were taking us northeast. We went about four miles north, then east, he figured.”
“Sir Hugh—was he hurt?”
“He took a blow to the head, otherwise they would never have taken him. Four others were with us. And Sir Quentin Douglas, a young knight sent by Bruce.”
“I remember him. Did Sir Hugh say if this forest is in the Lennox?”
“Aye, he said we were not far from Dunbarton Castle when we were attacked just south of the loch. Sir John Menteith holds Dunbarton. He is sheriff of Dunbartonshire. I think he is not well liked, though.”
“Could we go to him for help? We need a sheriff.”
“Not him! He may be part of this. I saw the badges some of the attackers wore. The design was a yellow shield with a band of black and white checks. That is Menteith’s crest.”
“Are you sure?”
“Sir Hugh saw it too and mentioned it to me and Quentin. One of the attackers struck him for saying so. He fell, and Quentin helped him up.”
Margaret frowned. “If Menteith has Lilias and the men, we should try to find a Scottish sheriff, not an English one, to confront him.”
“Sir John Menteith is Scots, but he supports Edward. I have heard that. But why would he send men after us?”
“Lilias,” she said. “I think that would be the reason. Was she hurt?”
“Not hurt, but angry. She fought like a wildcat, did you see?”
“I saw some of it. I took a knock to the head and was foggy for a bit.” She touched her temple. “It feels somewhat better now.”
“Good. Best be careful, though. Lilias put up a fuss for sure. She called them names until someone gagged her and bound her wrists and feet so she would stop punching and yelling. Sir Quentin demanded they let her go, but they struck him with a pole and gave him a broken nose and black eye. Oh, Meg, this is awful! Perhaps we should go to Kincraig right away for help.”
“We would need horses or a cart. It would take too long. When our escort does not arrive to meet the boat, men will come looking for us, but we cannot wait for that. We must do something quickly.” Margaret shook her head, thinking. “Whoever took Lilias and the others will act swiftly to hide them. Perhaps even ransom them.”
“We passed an inn along the way just before we were attacked. I will go there to see if I can hear any news. We might be able to hire a messenger to ride to Kincraig.”
“Possibly. We will go in the morning.” She glanced through the pine boughs, seeing the gathering darkness. She hoped they had not been followed.
“If we can find the place where we were attacked, we might find your bow and some other things there.”
“And we should find a priest to bless the dead. But we do need a sheriff,” she said. “There is one in Stirlingshire. I wonder where we could find him.”
“I will ask at the inn.”
She began to feel a tiny ray of hope. As darkness fell, she and Andrew made beds of pine needles and oak leaves. The stream provided cold, clear water that they drank from cupped hands, and Margaret found wild strawberries along the banks, as well as dandelion greens. They ate in silence and slept exhausted under the eaves of the pine.
*
“That bright hairwill give you away,” Andrew said next morning as they neared the inn. “The thugs will be searching for a red-haired girl. Stay under those trees while I go to the inn to ask around.”
She paced—the long walk had tried her sore knee—and worried for a while until he returned. He carried a bulky cloth bag on one shoulder and her quiver and bow on the other. His grin was wide.
“My things!” she cried. “Where did you find them?”
“I ran past the inn a bit and found the place where we were taken down. I found this too.” He opened the cloth sack and brought out an unsheathed dagger. “It was lost by one of the men. There are three dead there.”
“A priest must bless them and arrange burial. And a sheriff can help find whoever attacked and stole the king’s daughter. What else do you have there?”
