Page 160 of The Dawn

“He tried, but... he, he didn’t. But ow...” I pushed my sleeve up, there was a bruise on my lower arm. I pulled my skirt up, there was a big gnarly bruise on my shin, and an even bigger one on my thigh.

He said, “Ye hae bruises on yer face as well.”

He reached out and said, “There is one here on yer brow and another here on yer jaw.”

I frowned, “I didn’t realize, I was just trying to stay alive.”

He nodded. Then he drank from his cupped hands again. “Dost ye think a fish might jump in my mouth if I will it?”

“Like a bear?” I shook my head. “I doubt it, we’ll need to fish for our supper I think and?—”

There was a shout and horses coming through the woods.

Magnus scrambled to his feet, grabbed my arm, and dragged me up. We raced into the woods, disappearing into the deep wooded growth, heading in the opposite direction.

We were slower on foot, but we snuck, until finally we came to a spot on the river that was shallow and fordable. We hid behind a tree while we took off our boots, then peeled off our socks. We held them in our hands. Magnus looked out, up and down the river, listening. Then he nodded.

I raced into the river and waded across. Magnus followed, then passed me, leading me into the woods. We headed up a hillside.

We ran until we couldn’t run any more.

He pulled up under a stand of trees and hanging his head, breathing heavily, he tried to get on top of his breathing. “Och nae, they are makin’ it hard tae escape.”

We were on a rise. I could see the river sparkling not far below us. But through the trees we could see some of the valley. I asked, “Can you see the house?”

He pointed, “Tis there, by that river bend, dost ye see the gray of the roof?”

I nodded. “We ran a long way.”

“Aye.”

Then beyond the house we witnessed the swirling of a storm and above it big banking black clouds, rising into the sky.

I asked, “Coming or going?”

He watched for a moment, hands on his hips, trying to calm his breathing. “I think goin’.”

“Damn, he had a live vessel in there, I can’t believe I didn’t grab it. That should have been thefirstthing I did.”

He chuckled. “Och nae, ye are a terrible arse, listen tae ye — ye wish we had risked more afore we escaped? Ye wish ye had looted him on the way out? We barely survived, mo reul-iuil! It could hae been the end of us, and look at what we hae!” He pulled the gun from the back of his belt with a grin. “Ye did good.”

“I did do good, didn’t I?”

“Absolutely, ye had a knife on ye, but ye were disarmed. Ye went with him upstairs, took a pretty profound beatin’, and then ye dinna run away like I hae told ye tae do around a million times, instead ye thought tae grab the gun.... Tis a terrible arsery thing tae do.”

I leaned back on my arms, but then said, “Ow,” and rubbed my wrists. “He twisted them.” I frowned.

“Och nae, I am sorry he hurt ye, mo reul-iuil. But think how sweet our revenge will be.” He took my arm and kissed me on the inside of my wrists on the pulse points.

“That feels much better.”

“I ken, my kisses are magical.” He chuckled.

I pretended to pout and put my arm up against his lips again. He kissed there. Then I said, “Highlander, I love you, I wish I could live on your kisses, but I am so hungry.”

He checked the gun for bullets and said, “Tis why I am about tae find us some food.”

“It’s like the olden days.”

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