He’d still not returned as evening came, casting long shadows over the moor, and the caravan finally stopped for the night. Cooking fires were lit and the wagons arranged in a loose circle for protection.
Ruby looked around. “Where is he?” she muttered to herself.
The guards were busy checking positions and their gear. Isla was tending to the horse. The only sound was the crackle of the fire and the distant calls of birds. Ruby slumped down next to the fire, leaning back against a wagon wheel. It had been a long, exhausting day, and her eyelids felt heavy.
She hadn’t realized she’d begun to doze until the first sounds snapped her into sudden wakefulness—a sharp, metallic clatter of steel against steel and shouts of alarm.
Her eyes flew open, and she scrambled up on unsteady legs, fumbling for the knife Evan had given her. Dark had fallen, and she could hear the guards rushing about, barking orders, and the muffled cries of horses startled by the commotion.
What was going on?
A sudden shadow loomed. Strong arms caught her and yanked her backward. She yelped and struggled until Evan’s voice hissed sharply in her ear. “Keep quiet. Move!”
He yanked her hand, dragging her into the dark undergrowth beyond the reach of the firelight.
“What’s happening?” she demanded.
“What’s it sound like?” he snapped. “We are under attack.”
“What? Then we have to go and help!”
“No. Ye’ll be caught, and so will I. Keep yer head down and out of sight.”
Ruby shook her head. She couldn’t just hide while her friends were in danger. “We have to help them, Evan. The guards, Isla...they need us—”
“No,” Evan cut in. “We move, we survive. Nothing else matters.”
Ruby glared at him. “Is that really what you think? Well, fine.Youstay here if you want.I’mgoing to help them.”
He grabbed her arm. “I swore to see ye safely to Edinburgh. We owe nothing to Duncan and his people. They can fend for themselves.”
“They took us in! They gave us shelter!”
“Because ye paid them to! Dinna mistake that for kindness, woman. If we hadnae paid, they would have left us by the side of the road to rot!”
Ruby snapped her mouth shut. Was that how he saw the world? That everyone was out for themselves and nobody could be trusted? Well, it wasn’t the world Ruby chose to see.
Before he could stop her, she jerked her arm from his grasp and darted from their hiding place. She heard his hiss of frustration behind her but didn’t stop. She tightened her grip on her knife and kept moving.
She could see the firelight through the straggly brush and hear the clash of weapons getting closer.
What are you doing?A voice screamed in the back of her head.Run! You’re no hero!
Evan’s hand suddenly clamped around her wrist, and he swung her around to face him. “I willnae let ye go blundering in there and get yerself killed!”
“Then come with me!”
He ground his teeth, and in the darkness she could see his eyes flashing with anger. “Ye are a bloody stubborn woman, ye know that?” Then he shook his head in resignation. “Fine. But stay close to me and run when I say run.”
Ruby nodded. They moved carefully, darting between bushes and low shrubs, until they were close enough to see Isla and a few of the guards struggling with a wagon that had tipped in the chaos. All sense of caution evaporated, and Ruby burst out of cover and began running towards her friend. Evan hissed a curse and followed.
They’d only gone several paces when a group of armed men emerged from the darkness and ran towards them. Evan growled low in his throat and drew twin fighting knives.
“Get behind me,” he told her.
The group spread out in a semicircle around her and Evan. Ruby’s heart leapt into her throat as she counted six men. They were far better dressed and equipped than the bandits who’d accosted them a few days ago. From the way they moved and carried their weapons, she guessed they were trained warriors. Her pulse was suddenly hammering.
“Ah, Campbell!” called their leader, a tall man with a sleek blond plait hanging down his back. “There ye are! Ye’ve led us a merry chase. The fun is over now, though. Come along quietly, and no one else needs to get hurt.”
