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They went north, as far as Amy could tell. She memorized signs of where they were going, to find her way back. But after a while, everything looked the same in the white mist. She’d need to return to the castle and then to her time. Beg her way in, bribe her way in, or fight her way in.
Although the last option would be insane.
But without Craig, she didn’t have any reason to stay. She had to get home where she could help people rather than cause them pain.
The snow intensified, and the northern wind bit at her nose and lips. She had her cloak on, thank God, but the rest of her clothes were completely wrong for long, snowy expeditions in the mountains. The skirts of her dress tangled around her legs and restricted her movements. The leather soles of her shoes were flat and slippery, and she fell many times.
She didn’t know how much time had passed when Hamish stopped and studied their surroundings.
They were high up a mountain. The snow was thick, and it was much colder than below. A few pine trees grew here, but mostly, a snowy vastness surrounded them.
“I am going to leave ye here,” Hamish said. “’Tis up to ye now what ye will do. I dinna think Craig followed us.”
“Of course he didn’t,” Amy said, her throat clenching with bitterness.
He shrugged one shoulder. “The siege might last a long while. Dinna ken how the MacDougalls will do. But I must hide from them now, so I canna take ye with me. They are a powerful clan and will find me if they wish to.”
She gasped. “Can’t take me with you? You bastard. You tried to kill Craig and did kill an innocent man.” She clenched and unclenched her fists helplessly. “I should kill you.”
He cocked one brow. “We both ken ye’re nae capable of murder.” He sighed. “I will never forget ye. There’s no one I’ve met like ye, lass. I hope ye find what ye’re looking for. I hope ye find happiness, wherever ye end up.”
He waited for her to say something, but numbness enveloped her whole body. She hoped it was the cold and not that the helpless rage, guilt, and heartbreak that shattered her.
“Go to hell. I honestly hope I never meet you again,” she said somberly.
Hamish bowed his head, something that might have been remorse flashing in his dark eyes.
“Just go back quickly that way. The blizzard has already reached its worst and is calming down now. If ye hurry, ye will find the castle.”
He nodded to her, turned around and left. Amy stood watching him for a minute until he disappeared behind a slope of the mountain.
An overwhelming loneliness sank into her, the slow snowfall raging in her ears, deadly cold seeping into her bones.
She needed to move, or she’d freeze to death here.
She turned and went back south, towards the castle, following their tracks in the snow. Her feet were cold, and she’d stopped feeling her toes soon. Maybe because of that, or maybe because she went down the slope, she fell even more often.
She was wet, her skirts and cloak heavy from the snow that melted and saturated her clothing. At some point, her mind became cloudy, the white numbness around her creeping into her heart and her mind.
Maybe that was why she didn’t notice that she was walking way too close to the edge.
She stepped onto a flat stone. Her foot slipped. She fell and slid, then rolled, bumping her sides against rocks, trying to cover her head.
Until she finally stopped.
Amy lay motionless on her side, scanning her body. Good news was, she wasn’t numb anymore. Bad news was, everything hurt. She moved her legs and her arms. Nothing felt broken. She sat up, wincing. Her head thumped from a pulsing pain. She felt her scalp—no blood.
Good. It looked like she could count her blessings.
She looked around.
And swallowed hard.
Just a foot away, the rocky platform she lay on ended in a ragged edge.
And below was a white nothingness.
It was hard to see through the snow, but she was probably at the top of a cliff. The wind was stronger here, throwing snow into her face in hard gusts.
