Highland Legends 04 - Captive Highlander by Connie C. Scharon

Author:Connie C. Scharon [Scharon, Connie C.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2015-03-27T07:00:00+00:00

Chapter 20

Ian woke to a wet cloth wiping his face. He tried hard to focus on the face of the man bent over him. “Ah, you live,” Jared MacLean said.

“Jared?” Ian could not fathom how his brother-in-law suddenly appeared. The last he remembered he watched his father and Erland slain by Draco’s sword.

“My father?”

“He is alive, but seriously wounded. I already sent him to Asilinn.” Jared’s dark eyes swept over him. “My wife will not be pleased I didna send you to Dunbocan with your father.”

“You did the right thing.” Ian tried to sit up. His head spun at the movement and forced him back down into the soft bedding. “Katie? What of Katie?”

“Katie Blackburn?”

“Aye, did you find a woman on the battlefield?”

Jared’s jaw went taut. “One of Rannoch’s men told me the order was to take Katie and kill the rest. I am sure he took her. We searched for hours and found no woman. Only you and your father survived this travesty.” Jared let out a short, bitter laugh. “The two men I am sure Rannoch wanted dead more than all the rest.”

“Erland gave his life to save my father.”

“Aye, so. We shall have to wait on Asilinn’s cures to see if he succeeded.”

“Where are we?”

Jared looked around the room. “At The Stagg Inn, your father’s rider found us out on a hunt. We came as fast as we could, but only arrived in time to kill the men Rannoch left behind to bury his dead.”

“The inn,” Ian echoed.

“Aye, and now that you are once again with the living let me go and get the innkeeper to send up some food and drink. While we eat, you can tell me about your little adventure with Katie Blackburn.”

Ian nodded. His head throbbed with every movement. He heard the door close as Jared left the room. What accident of fate spared Ian when so many of his kinsmen had perished? He drew a deep breath and felt every one of his bruised ribs protest.

The bed Ian lay in had fresh white sheeting that smelled of lavender. A fire spit and crackled in one corner of the chamber. Nearby a table and two chairs invited a weary traveler to find respite near the hearth. Draped over one chair were a fresh shirt and a length of the Innes plaid. Lifting his covering, he looked beneath it. His naked body bore no blood or grime from the battlefield. It took awhile before he could gather enough strength to sit up. Slowly he struggled to his feet and managed to don the clothes laid out for him. Once dressed, he propped up in the bed as images of the carnage ran through his brain.

A noise at the door drew his attention. “May we come in,” Jared called.

“Aye, I’m decent.”

Jared walked into the room with one of the tavern maids. The aroma of lamb stew hit Ian’s nostrils bringing back a sweeter memory. Katie served him this the night he first laid eyes on her.

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