Page 44 of Highland Slayer
“Cae!” Zora said again as he came near. “Mama says we can ride. Can ye please bring us horses?”
Caelus lifted an eyebrow. “I hate tae say that I dunna trust ye, but I dunna trust ye,” he said. Then he leaned down so he could look inside of the window and spied his mother. “Mae, is this true?”
The sons sometimes called their mother by her given name purely because they’d grown up with their father revering the name of his wife—Mae, the affectionate nickname. When Laresspoke it, it was like a prayer, so they’d grown up hearing their father call their mother by her name in the most respectful way possible, and in time, it came to supersede even the titles “Mother” or “Mama.” Therefore, “Mae” and “Mama” were interchangeable and Mabel did not mind in the least. The name was spoken with love. She set down the sewing in her hands as Caelus asked the question.
“I’m afraid it is,” she said, sighing. “The carriage ride is terribly rough. Find your sister and I horses, Caelus, before our heads are shaken right off our shoulders.”
Caelus grinned. Sitting up straight, he reined his horse back toward the rear where horses to replace the ones pulling the wagons and the carriage were tethered. His brother, Lucan, was guarding the rear of the escort along with about fifty soldiers, and he came forward when he saw Caelus heading in his direction.
Lucan was one of two brothers in the family that had a shade of red hair. In Lucan’s case, it was auburn and flowing, and, coupled with his pale hazel eyes, made him quite the handsome lad. He had Mabel’s bold temperament and a stunning intellect. There wasn’t much Lucan didn’t know or couldn’t figure out, and he had women chasing after him from one side of Scotland to the other.
He met his brother near one of the provision wagons.
“What’s amiss?” Lucan asked.
Caelus threw his thumb back in the direction of the fortified carriage. “Mama and Zora are uncomfortable in the carriage,” he said. “Pick a couple of horses and bring them forward. They want tae ride.”
Lucan turned around and went to work. Soon enough, Mabel had an enormous, stocky horse to ride comfortably, while Zora had been given a younger mare who had a good deal of energy. Soon, Zora was galloping up and down the column, howlingwith pleasure, delirious with the freedom of being outside of the carriage. The men in the army were grinning at her as she rode up one way, singing and squealing, and then back down the other way doing the same thing.
She was having a marvelous time.
Mabel was riding in the front with her husband, plodding along companionably and watching their daughter ride around as if she’d lost her mind. Lares was smiling as he watched Zora, his baby, while Mabel thought that her daughter would sleep well tonight with all of the activity.
Sometimes, a girl just had to have a little fun.
“Should I stop her?” Lares asked, watching Zora charge across the road and down an incline, spraying mud as she went. “I dunna want the lass tae fall and hurt herself.”
Just as he said that, the horse slipped and tossed Zora off into more muddy grass. She landed on her side, rolled to her belly, and slid ten or twelve feet down, laughing the entire time. Lucan went after the horse as Caelus, riding beside his mother, shook his head with disapproval.
“She acts like a child,” he said. “Mae, ye need tae do something about her or no man will ever want tae marry her. Ye’ll never be rid of her.”
Mabel started to chuckle while Lares frowned. “What if I dunna want tae be rid of her?” he said. Then he pointed an imperious finger. “Go down there and help her. Dunna let her lie in the mud.”
Rolling his eyes, Caelus did as he was told. As Mabel and Lares watched, Caelus reached a hand down to his sister, who was just picking herself up. She placed her hand in his and he lifted her onto his horse behind him, complaining because she was getting him muddy. That caused her to hug him tightly from behind, coating his entire back in the dark, rich mud. Greatlyirritated, he spurred his horse up onto the road, taking off at a run as she screamed and held on tightly.
Mabel and Lares watched them go.
“He’s trying to punish her,” Mabel said. “If she falls off and hurts herself, Caelus and I will come to blows.”
Lares growled. “I’ll bloody well murder him,” he said. “He shouldna be so rough.”
“Lilliana was never like that,” Mabel said, thinking on her eldest daughter, who was quiet and elegant. “We never had to worry about her.”
“Nay, we did not. But Zora…”
“She’s a lively one.”
The parents could both agree on that. As they debated whether or not to try to rein in Zora’s wild nature, for Mabel was in favor of it and Lares wasn’t, Caelus and Zora were thundering down the road as Zora squealed with delight. The road was still muddy from the rain and they probably shouldn’t have been going as fast as they were, but Caelus trusted his mount. He was very sure-footed. However, after about a mile, he slowed down to a walk and Zora slid off the horse, rubbing her buttocks.
“That hurt,” she grumbled. “Ye tried tae throw me off, Caelus.”
Caelus fought off a grin. “If I were trying tae throw ye off, ye’d be lying on our back somewhere back on the road.”
Zora frowned, but she didn’t snap back at him. She could see the party from Ashkirk in the distance. It would be a while before they caught up to them. Still rubbing her arse, she began to walk with Caelus plodding alongside her.
“We’re going back tae the Hydra rather early,” she complained. “I was hoping tae stay at Ashkirk at least intae the autumn season.”
Caelus knew why. “Ye’re the daughter of an earl, Zee,” he said quietly. “Ye canna marry a blacksmith.”
