Page 53 of Highlander's Runaway Seductress
Frowning, Amelie asked, “I thought ye said Damien wants the reward.”
Shaking his head, Ben laughed. “I’m sorry, lass. I wasnae clear; Damien wants the reward for me, nae him. See he plans to stay here, while me life is back in Inverness. That’s where I feel comfortable.”
“I want to meet this Damien, and get the story from him too,” Colin said. “If he’s goin’ to be around soon, then what is the harm in waitin’ for him?”
“I dinnae see any reason we cannae wait,” Amelie replied. “Ben?”
A flash of anger, mixed with frustration ran over his face, but he did not protest. She felt that he had decided it would be very discourteous to refuse a Laird, especially when he had offered to eat with them.
“Nay,” he said. “I willnae object.”
“This way, please,” her father gestured to the main dining hall.
21
Amelie had only been in the great hall twice, as she and her father had shared meals in his quarters. Her eyes darted to Ben as her father led them forward, into the long rectangular space with an immense hearth at each end and a vaulted ceiling of timber overhead. Many trestle tables were there, but not once had Amelie seen anyone use them.
The head table, sitting on a dais, was laden with food and her father mounted the flat steps to sit in at the head of it.
“Help yerself,” he waved.
She reached for the roast beef and dropped it on her trencher, while Ben broke a hunk of bread.
“Tell me, Mister McLowe, who is this Damien?”
“He’s a lad I took in when he was a boy,” Ben replied. “His parents ran off and left him, and I couldnae leave him to die.”
“That’s very kind of ye,” Colin lifted his goblet high. “And when did Damien come across the announcement about findin’ me daughter?”
Ben’s mouth flattened a little. “I believe he was somewhere in Nairnshirewhen he came about hearin’ it. Took him a while to get back to Inverness, but when he did, he told me about it. I had me doubts, aye, who was to say this girl had nae died, but Damien had already sunk his teeth into it and there was nothin’ I could say to deter him from searchin’. So, he went ahead.”
“And where did ye find me daughter?” Colin asked.
Amelie flicked a look to her father, unsure why he was asking Ben these questions as she had told him everything before. Just where she had lived and where she had worked before Damien had entered the tavern that fateful night.
“I believe he said he found her on a tavern near the water,” Ben replied.
“And when he did find her, why did ye choose to come with them?” the Laird asked. “Ye could have easily stayed behind and waited for Damien to come back.”
Ben’s face warmed. “Ah, Damien is the only one who helps me back in Inverness. I am an old man as ye can see.”
“I do, but that begs the question, if Damien is plannin’ to stay here, why nae stay with him as he, as per yer words, is the only one who cares for ye?” her father rebutted.
“It’s—it’s only that I feel more comfortable there,” Ben said, his cheeks reddening, “I’m set in me ways, ye ken.”
“Aye,” her father nodded. “I ken how that is.”
Ben reached for his goblet and drank heavily. “So ye can see why I would prefer to be there instead of here. Nae to say that yer home isnae lovely, it’s just nae for me.”
Through the conversation, and while listening, Amelie kept silent, while her eyes kept snapping to the door, hoping to see Damien walk through.
“I understand, Mister McLowe,” her father said. “And I appreciate ye comin’ here, but if ye wouldnae mind, I daenae think it wise for ye to leave until Mister Glogow is here. It is sensible, daenae ye think?”
Ben’s face darkened but he nodded. “Aye…it is.”
* * *
The first thing Damien noticed was freezing cold and mud. He felt that his trews were on, but his feet were bare and then, as when his senses began to come back, he realized that his almost numb arms were tied at the wrists over his head. When he moved his stiff fingers, he could feel the rough twines of rope and when he flexed his legs found his ankles tied as well.
