Evan straightened slowly. “Aye,” he said, voice flat. “They were. They’ve been tracking us all day.”
Ruby turned on him. “Youknew?”
Evan didn’t answer.
Duncan’s eyes hardened. “Ye’ve brought danger to my caravan, my people.”
“Aye,” Evan agreed. “Which is why I’m leaving.”
Ruby’s heart lurched.“What?”
Evan sheathed his knives, his movements quick and practiced. “If I go, they’ll follow me. They want me. They’ll not bother ye if I’m not here.”
“No,” Ruby shook her head, feeling something cold and furious rising inside her. “You can’t just leave!”
Evan didn’t look at her. “It’s the only way to draw them off.” He turned to look at Duncan. “Will ye see Ruby safely to Edinburgh?”
The merchant’s expression softened. “Aye. She saved my daughter’s life. I’d die myself before letting her come to harm.”
Evan gave a stiff nod. “Then that’s settled.”
“No, it isn’t!” Ruby snapped. She stepped toward Evan, grabbing his sleeve. “You made me a promise! And I’m not letting you just run off into the night!”
His jaw flexed. “This is the only way to keep ye and these folk alive.”
“And what about you?” she demanded. “Who keepsyoualive?”
For a moment—just a moment—she saw something raw in his eyes. Fear. Then he shut it down, trapping it all behind that mask.
“I can take care of myself.”
He stepped back, and the distance between them felt like a chasm opening.
Isla put her hand on Ruby’s shoulder. “Ruby... let him go. He’s right.”
But Ruby’s stomach twisted, her chest squeezing with something sharp and aching. She watched as Evan crouched beside his pack, silently gathering supplies. He moved like a man on his way to the gallows—resigned, determined. He wouldn’t even look at her.
When he finally stood, pack slung over one shoulder, he glanced at Duncan. “Keep her safe.”
“I promise,” the merchant replied.
Ruby could barely breathe as Evan walked away. He paused at the edge of the firelight and glanced back, meeting her eyes. For a second, she thought he might say something, but he only gave a brief nod then turned and disappeared into the night.
Ruby stared after him, expecting him to reappear any moment. He didn’t.
“Ruby,” Isla said. “Come back to the fire. Let me check ye for injuries.”
Ruby shook her off. No. This was wrong. She couldn’t let Evan walk away from her. She just couldn’t.
She swallowed the tremor in her throat and turned to face Isla, Duncan, the guards. “Thank you,” she said quietly. “For everything. Good luck on your road. I hope I’ll see you again one day. Goodbye.”
Isla’s eyes narrowed. “Ruby, what are ye—”
Ruby didn’t let her finish. She grabbed her pack, then spun on her heel and ran. Branches whipped past as she tore through the trees, breath burning in her lungs. He couldn’t be that far ahead. She caught the faintest glimpse of movement up ahead—a tall figure slipping between the trees like a shadow.
“Evan!” she called breathlessly.
He stopped. Ruby skidded to a halt behind him, heart pounding, chest aching.
