Page 40 of Highland Lords of War & Thunder: The Prequel

Of the three of them, he was the only one who had remained in Morra Mist. Wherever his wandering had taken him, he could not have been farther from the meeting place than either Legion or Torden had been when the summons reached them.

Torden shook his head. “A woman.”

Legion glanced at him. “Possibly two.”

“Knowing Creagan, probably two.”

Legion could not help but smile. “He'll claim they wouldn't let him leave.”

“And expect us to believe him,” Torden said, fighting his own smile.

They waited a while longer.

Still no Creagan.

The humor gradually faded.

Whatever woman—or women—Creagan had found along the way, he knew the summons had come. And Creagan might enjoy life's pleasures more than either of them, but he knew when something mattered.

Torden finally looked at Legion. “We find him.”

“Aye. We find him as usual.”

They found Creagan in Dunsire.

Legion should have known.

The tavern was crowded, every table occupied and the benches packed with men and women sharing ale and conversation. A fire burned in the broad hearth despite the mild early-fall evening, and candles set in iron holders along the walls added their flickering light to the room. Serving lasses wove skillfully between tables carrying tankards and bowls while voices rose and fell around them, occasionally drowned out by a burst of laughter.

Near the hearth, four men crowded around a table throwing dice, their cheers and curses drawing spectators, while in one corner a fiddler played a lively tune that few seemed to be listening to, but several patrons tapped their feet to anyway.

Legion and Torden paused inside the door, searching through the crowded room.

Torden spotted him first.

“There.”

Legion followed his gaze.

Creagan sat at a table near the rear of the room with a pretty, dark-haired woman pressed close against his side. She was whispering something in his ear, her hand resting comfortably on his thigh.

Creagan laughed at whatever she'd said.

Torden looked at Legion. “One.”

Legion laughed. “Give him time.”

They made their way through the crowded room.

Creagan’s grin widened when he saw them approach. “Well, look what finally arrived.”

Torden stopped beside the table. “Finally?”

“I've been waiting for you.”

“With great hardship, I see,” Legion said.

Creagan glanced at the woman beside him. “I make the best of difficult circumstances.”