Page 16 of Highland Spy

Chapter 6

They traveled in the rain most of the day, and this didn’t make Bridget happy in the least. They’d stopped once to eat, but Caleb rushed them, seeming to be in a hurry as always. Bridget looked over at her father. He’d been quiet all day, more so than usual. He also had a faraway look in his eyes that told her his symptoms were coming back. If he started talking gibberish or acting odd, she wasn’t sure how she would explain it. Keeping a close eye on him was vital. Lately, he’d been wandering off, and not remembering where he went. She was lucky not to lose him.

They’d veered off the well-traveled road since Caleb told her that he had a quicker way of getting to the castle. She’d agreed to it, wanting more than anything to get inside the fortress and out of the elements. But now, she wasn’t happy with her decision. The trip at this pace, and in the rain, was taking a toll on her father. She would have to find a healer to look at him soon.

“Are we almost there?” she called out through the rain, feeling soaked to the skin. It was summer, but traveling in wet clothes made her feel cold.

“Och, nay,” called out Logan from the back of the traveling party. “We’ve still got another few hours or so to go yet to make it to Hermitage Castle.”

“What?” she gasped, thinking she’d heard wrong. “Caleb,” she called out, since he was at the front of the line. “Caleb, we need to stop.”

When he kept riding and didn’t even slow down, she decided she needed to take drastic measures. “Da, stay here by Logan,” she told her father. “I’m goin’ to ride up ahead and talk to Caleb.”

With a kick of her heels, she directed her horse over the rocky terrain, until she caught up to him. “Caleb, slow down,” she urged him. “I need to talk to ye.”

He glanced over his shoulder and finally slowed his horse, allowing her to catch up to him.

“What is it?” He talked to her but continued to look straight ahead.

“We need to find shelter, and to get out of the rain.” Water ran from her hair and down her face.

“Nay,” he grunted. “The whole reason we’re takin’ my shortcut is to get to Hermitage Castle by nightfall.”

“Logan said it’ll be a few more hours of travelin’ yet to get there.”

“That’s right. But if we pick up the pace we might be able to cut a half-hour off our time.”

“Nay!” she shouted. “Enough. And we should have stuck to the main road.”

“Ye agreed to the shortcut,” he reminded her, over his shoulder. “So what are ye complainin’ about?”

“True, but when I agreed to it, I had no idea ye were goin’ to take us over rocky terrain and open fields in the middle of a storm. It’s hard travelin’ and we need to rest.”

“Why? Are ye tired?” he asked. “Because I could keep goin’ until we get there.”

“We’re all tired. And cold and wet, and hungry,” she told him. “Isna there an inn we can stay at for the night?”

“If we would have stuck to the main road, there were several. But no’ on this route, there is no’. We’ll be lucky to see another person, let alone a tavern or inn until we get to Hermitage Castle now.”

“We canna go on,” she said, feeling doomed. “My faither is old and needs to rest. Surely, there is somewhere we can find shelter for the night?”

“Well, there’s an old abandoned priory up ahead,” he told her. “But that’s about it.”

“Fine. We’ll stop there for the night then.”

“Nay. I dinna think ye’ll want to stay there. No one does. I suggest we keep on ridin’.”

“I willna. I’m stoppin’ for the night, and I’ll hear no more about it,” she snapped. “If ye want to keep ridin’ then go. But my faither and I need to find shelter and to rest.” With that, she turned her horse around and headed back to her father.

“Caleb,” called out Logan a minute later. He rode to catch up to Caleb, his wolf leading the way. “Bridget says we’re stoppin’ for the night? What’s this all about?”

“I dinna ken,” Caleb answered, slowing down to talk to his friend. “I guess she and her faither need to rest for some reason. She insists we stop, even though I told her the old monastery ruins were the only shelter along this route.”

“Egads, Caleb. Ye canna mean to say ye’re takin’ them to spend the night at Dutmore Priory? Even the ravens and rats avoid it like a plague. It’s no’ a place to spend the night, let alone take a lassie.”

“I ken that. But she said she’s stoppin’ for the night with or without us.”

“Did ye tell her the stories of what went on at Dutmore?”