“Come on, we can do this,” she mumbled to herself, but the pep talk wasn’t working. There was too much destruction around her. Half of the west side of the keep had holes blown through it. All Lavina had to do was turn to see the south wall of the council blow to ruins.
She dropped to her knees in defeat. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she took in the desolation around her. Maisie and Amber worked on clearing the rocks as more people meandered through the hole in the council chamber wall to help.
“Well, I dinnae ken if ye want to hear this or nae, but the eastern boundary wall has been demolished. Bastards have been usin’those very stones to bust through our home, can ye believe that?” Stephen said as he climbed through what once was the window.
Dawn teased the horizon, but Lavina wasn’t sure she was ready to see what reality had in store for them. In this place in between, she had hope that Theo was still alive. But if dawn came, and he was found…
Lavina turned her head and pushed back all thoughts of Theo’s destruction. She couldn’t believe it. She wouldn’t. He was out there, somewhere, and if she had to trudge through the mire to find him, she would.
“Lavina?”
The small voice startled Lavina. She whipped around to find Amber rushing over the rocks. Lavina’s thoughts immediately shifted. She dropped and opened her arms, eager for Amber’s embrace.
“Oh my, I thought ye had made it to the hills,” Lavina gasped as she looked up at Stephen for an explanation. Stephen raked his fingers through his hair as he shook his head.
“We tried. But she took off. I couldnae leave her, so I gave chase. We made it out the kitchen right as the walls caved in,” Stephen said as Lavina looked Amber over for any major injuries.
“What do ye say, ye stay with me from now on?” Lavina asked as Maisie climbed over the remains of the window with a pail of water.
Amber bobbed her head and went right for the rubble, eager to help clear it. Lavina’s heart ached to see Amber having to help or be here. But there was no place safe. If this was the end for clan McGowan, she wanted to hold on to the best memories she could.
“Please, we have children in here,” another man pleaded as she removed a rock to reveal a small arm flailing about.
“Aye, and we’ve only got a handful of people on this side workin’. We’ll get ye out as soon as we can,” she promised, fighting to keep her voice steady.
The last thing she wanted was for her people to think she couldn’t handle a crisis.
Rock by rock, Lavina, Maisie, Stephen, and Amber cleared the passage. It was tedious and stressful, trying to pick and choose which stones to remove. But when the children started flooding from the hole they had made, Lavina’s heart soared with hope.
“That’s right, right this way,” she directed as a handful of children circled her, begging for food and water.
“What’s this?” Marcus asked as he popped his head through the hole in the window. His eyes widened as he carefully climbedthrough. The shock was palpable. “Oh, me word. This is… a miracle. Truly.”
“They’ve just come from the tunnels,” Lavina said as Marcus bobbed his head.
“Aye, we lost them durin’ the chaos and was hopin’ they’d turn up here. Thank God they did,” Marcus answered as he rushed back to the window to alert others to come for the children.
“We’ve found Aaron and have him set up near the garden area,” Stephen said.
“Line the children up and let me take a quick look. Those who arenae hurt can head to the courtyard,” Marcus said as another cannonball fell close, shaking the ground.
“And what of Micah’s men? They’re still out there,” Maisie whimpered, hugging Amber to her. “He willnae let anyone leave here. He’ll slaughter every last one of us.”
“Well, now there’s a pleasant thought,” Stephen drawled, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Have the earth swallow us whole, or face steel. Ye ken, I think I’ll take me chances with the steel. I’ve gotten rather good at how I handle mine.”
“Then lead the children out to the stables and get a wagon hitched. Get these people out of here,” Marcus huffed, examining each of the children before sending them off.
It was a blessing that they only had a few bumps and bruises.
“Shh, do ye hear that? I think the fire has stopped,” Maisie whispered, shooting her sister a warning look.
Lavina bobbed her head. She didn’t need to be told what came next; she knew her uncle all too well.
Tears welled up in her eyes as she tried not to think of Theo slain in some ditch, never to be seen again. She couldn’t bear the idea; it sickened her and sapped every ounce of strength she had.
“Are ye all right?” Marcus asked, placing a hand on her shoulder.
She didn’t know exactly how to answer that question.
