Page 49 of The Plight of a Scottish Lass
“Not friends. My guess is they are coming from Ulva, but I know not where they are headed.”
“Get the bairns inside, then we’ll go around front and determine their purpose,” Maitland said. “Do you have a back door through your curtain wall?”
“Aye,” he said, pointing.
“How many guards are here to protect the castle?”
“Nearly a score. I don’t have a full line of soldiers yet. We’re still building.”
“It is Garvie,” Magni announced, his arms flying over his head in frustration. “Those are his ships. His flag. Please don’t let him take us back!”
Lia said, “Fear not, brother. I am confident our new friends will protect us.”
Thane was often taken aback by the maturity of the lass’s thoughts and vocabulary. He had grown men in his guard who didn’t speak that clearly.
Magni looked from Thane to Maitland and asked, “Is she right, Chief? Will you protect us? Please?” The fear in the poor lad’s voice had caught all of them.
Alaric said, “They’ll not touch either of you, Magni.”
“Nay, they will not,” Thane echoed.
Magni’s response was to turn around and hug Thane. “We will stay with you forever.”
“Does he attack often, Magni?” Alaric asked.
“He has no friends, so he only leaves to attack someone who doesn’t do what he orders or to meet someone to sell the bairns to. They usually come from Europe. I know not where that is.” Magni looked from chieftain to chieftain.
Thane sighed. “I need to know what he’s about. You all go inside, and I’ll creep around to listen. See what they have planned.”
Eli said, “We’ll go with you.”
“Brian, take the bairns into the keep.”
Magni shouted, “I’ll go with you! I can hear him from far away. But please take my sister where she’ll be safe.”
“Fine, but hush for now, Magni.” Lia gave the boy a stern look, as if she were the parent.
The group separated, Brian and Maitland going inside with two guards, Lia, and Mora, while the other two guards remained with Thane. Once the departing group was within the curtain wall, Thane turned to lead his group to a different path, but he picked up another noise.
They all heard the same sound, and Eli fired two arrows in rapid succession, a big buck falling not far from them.
“Nice shot, Eli,” Alaric said with a grin. “Good eating this eve.”
Thane couldn’t believe his eyes. He’d barely heard the buck, but Eli had arranged herself and fired before the buck knew they were there. Hell, but he had to learn how to use a bow. His mouth watered at the thought of smoking all that meat. They’d eat well for a moon or more.
Alaric and Artan moved to retrieve the deer, getting it almost to the curtain wall when another sound interrupted them.
Six men came out of the woods, four on horseback. One said, “Get the lass.”
Alaric nearly spewed, his fury visible on his face instantaneously. “Like hell. Try to get near her, you bastards.”
Eli fired three arrows so fast that Thane could barely follow them in the air, but two found their targets, dropping two men off their mounts, the third arrow just missing.
Alaric hadn’t unsheathed his sword but reached for his bow instead, firing along with Eli. Another arrow came from the curtain wall, and Thane looked up, surprised to see Mora up ontop, firing. She hit a man’s leg—he yelped, so Thane went after him to finish him off.
The attack only lasted minutes because several of the marauders ran in the opposite direction, not wanting to battle against the archers. Two were dead, and one wounded, but he’d been carried away by another of his peers.
Once they were gone, Alaric asked, “Who were they? And what lass were they after? I can’t believe they wanted Eli. I thought we’d taken care of all those fools on Ramsay land.”
