Border Fire by Amanda Scott

Author:Amanda Scott [Scott, Amanda]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Romance
ISBN: 9780739409657
Goodreads: 1488967
Publisher: Zebra
Published: 2000-01-01T06:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14

“The English rogues may hear, and drie

The weight o’ their braid swords to feel.”

THOUGH JANET WISHED SHE could disappear into the earth, she sat up and brushed off her hands, then nearly held one out for the man to help her up before she recalled her disguise. Remembering, she got slowly to her feet, fearing that if she got up too quickly he might knock her down again.

“Ye frighted me, sir,” she said, trying to make her voice sound low and common, and succeeding only in making it sound gruff.

“What the devil are ye doin’ here, lad? I might as easily have spit ye through as stepped on ye.”

“I thank ye for doing nowt o’ the sort,” she said. Though it was her nature to stand straight and look directly at people, she kept her eyes lowered and let her shoulders slump, knowing that it would make her look smaller and less threatening.

“What ha’ ye found there, Gibby?”

A second man approached, and the one called Gibby said, “Just a lad out on the prowl, Lem. Tell me, lad, ha’ ye seen any raiders the night?”

“Nay, sir,” Janet said. “I’m shamed to tell ye something spooked my pony when I were riding half asleep. Might ha’ been raiders, though I think ’twas naught but a night bird’s call.”

The newcomer came nearer, leading two ponies by their reins, and Janet watched him warily from the corner of one eye, sizing him up. She did not think Gibby would notice her interest in his companion. The light was not strong enough for him to perceive that she was not still looking at the ground.

The one called Lem looked taller and much thinner than Gibby, for Gibby’s shadowy figure seemed almost square. There was not enough light to see their faces clearly, but Lem sported a pointy beard and Gibby looked clean-shaven, albeit a trifle scruffy.

A rustle in nearby shrubbery made both men jump, but when no other sound rose above the bubbling of the burn, they returned their attention to Janet.

She wondered where Tip had gone and hoped that he would not make his presence known if he came back while the two were still with her. He was unarmed, just as she was, but for her dagger, and he would be of little help to her.

“Where d’ye hail from, lad?” It was the second man, Lem, who asked.

“Brackengill,” she said instantly. “What of ye? Be ye land sergeant’s men?”

“Aye, from Bewcastle,” Lem said. “Brackengill, eh? Who’s your master?”

“Sir Hugh Graham,” she said, as if surprised that he would ask. “D’ye no ken the man?”

Gibby said, “I saw him once. He’s a big man, Sir Hugh is, wi’ a fearsome temper to match his size.”

“Aye,” Janet agreed. The two clearly were not Grahams then. She had thought they could not be, but with a clan so large, and with members living on both sides of the line, she did not know them all.

“Let’s ha’ a closer look at ye, lad,” Lem said, and before Janet realized his intent, he snatched the knitted cap from her head.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.