Honor Restored by MacEwen Fiona

Author:MacEwen, Fiona [MacEwen, Fiona]
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub
Published: 2020-02-03T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 5

A Perilous Journey

That Christmas day was a perilous one for Una, snow had come to the glen and she was cold and hungry as she pressed on through the forest. She knew little of the lay of the land except that she must keep walking towards the far-off mountains, through which lay her father’s castle and the hope she longed for. Now that she was alone, danger seemed to lurk around every corner and on several occasions, she heard far off noises of men and animals.

But Una stuck to the paths and survived on a diet of berries and drank water from the lochs and streams which she passed on the days that followed. Until she arrived in sight of the Mull of Kildoon. Here, the trees grew thick, and the path became narrower. But eventually, as she crossed through the treacherous wilderness, she began to recognize the landscape and the lay of the land. She had walked here as a child and joined her father on hunting parties to this, the farthest reaches of his realm.

Tired and weary, she felt a renewed vigor at being close to home. She was no longer a prisoner but instead a free woman and as she approached the Gordon castle, she knew she had made the right decision. But hunger and fatigue soon overcame her and despite her caution she found herself in desperate need of food. There were peasants living out in the forest, men and women who would surely still be loyal to her father. If enough of them could be persuaded to join her, then perhaps there was a chance that the castle could be retaken and the honor of the Gordon clan restored.

As she came around a corner, three days after her escape from Gilloch Castle and the McNeils, she came across a man gathering firewood. She paused, hiding behind a tree as he went about his business.

He was humming snatches of a tune, as he dug about in the snow for sticks. It was one she recognized, a tune her mother would hum to her when she was a child, a song about a bonnie lad who finds his love across the loch. The man could only be a Gordon and clearing her throat she stepped out into the clearing.

The peasant was so startled that he dropped his firewood in shock, taking two steps back and falling over, scrabbling in the snow with a look of disbelief on his face.

“Tis’ all right, ye are a Gordon, are ye nae? My name is Una, Una Gordon, daughter of yer late Laird,” Una said, holding out her hands in peace.

The peasant was even more taken aback by these words but as he peered through the gloom of the forest clearing, his face turned to a smile.

“Aye … well now, if it nae wee Una. We speak of ye often, lass. What a terrible tragedy befell yer dear father and when ye were taken there was such sorrow in the glen.

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