Page 4 of A Virgin for the Highland Beast
“Isobel,” Emma answered, although she knew she couldn’t put the full blame on her sister’s shoulders. It was Geoffrey pushing them to their breaking point. “We’ve got the guards on us. We have to get out of here.”
“But some of those men were Faither’s best friends. Surely they’ll help us,” Nora said as Emma snatched her wrist and hurried past the befuddled scullery maid.
“We cannae trust anyone but ourselves,” Emma said, pulling her sister to the tree line.
“What about Isobel and Lydia? We cannae just leave them,” Nora said as they took refuge under the brush.
As if on cue, the call of a crow echoed behind them. They turned to find Lydia and Isobel emerging from the shadows of the trees.
“We cannae stay here,” Emma declared, her face hardened with resolve. “Geoffrey will have every guard lookin’ for us.”
“Och, Geoffrey was puttin’ his hands on ye,” Isobel snapped defensively. “I’ll nae apologize for helpin’ ye.”
“And I’ll be forever grateful to ye for that, truly, but we have bigger issues here. Every guard in the keep is after us,” Emma said, glancing around for an escape route.
“Emma is right, we dinnae have time for this,” Lydia whispered. “If we’re to go, we need to leave before we’re all caught.”
Nora’s eyes reflected the fear they all felt. “Where will we go?”
“Anywhere is better than here,” said Emma, her voice filled with grim determination.
In the black expanse of the forest, the four women pressed on as day turned into night, each wrestling with her own fear and exhaustion. By the time the moon was high overhead, and their old home was nothing but a dot on the black horizon, the girls paused.
“This is hopeless,” Lydia bemoaned.
“We’re lost, are we nae?” Nora’s voice echoed in the darkness, a tremor evident in her tone.
“We arenae lost,” Emma whispered, trying to hide her own insecurities.
“Without light, we’re just wanderin’ aimlessly,” Isobel said.
“We cannae afford to stop now,” Emma replied, her gaze fixed on the flickering glow of torches behind them. Through the shadows of the night, she could still see remnants of dim torch lights that were too close for comfort. “We have to move on.”
“Look,” Isobel pointed out, “lights through the trees. Maybe we can find refuge there.”
Emma frowned, uncertainty clouding her features. She questioned whether they had put enough distance between themselves and their old home.
“I’m cold, Emma. I dinnae want to spend the night outside,” Lydia mumbled, her voice small and trembling as she clung to the bit of warmth she could.
Their whispered deliberations were interrupted by a low, eerie howl that sent a ripple of fear through them. Emma surveyed their surroundings with a new intensity, her mind made up.
“We’ll head towards the lights. If it’s a castle, we can ask for refuge there,” Emma said.
“Have ye lost yer wits? Nay one will take us in. They wouldnae dare risk a war with Laird Clyde,” Nora said.
The girls fell silent, their spirits dampened amidst the grim reality.
“What would ye have me do? Lydia is frozen to the bone, we dinnae have a plan, or even ken where we’re at. We can go there and seek shelter just for the night and move on durin’ daylight,” Emma interjected.
“We need to make a decision, those hounds will be on us sooner rather than later if we dinnae keep goin’,” Isobel said, glancing over her shoulder.
With a resolute nod, they pressed on as the unfamiliar sounds of the night fueled their urgency.
As they trudged through the trees and bushes, the lights of the castle grew brighter. Emma couldn’t shake the foreboding feeling rising within her.
“Oy, what are ye doin’ here?” a hard voice barked in the still night, causing the girls to freeze.
Emma glanced around until she found her mark. Standing at the top of the stone wall, a large figure glared down at them.
