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“Does he love her?” Felix rounded on Kenney, annoyed that he had to resort to that wretch once more. “In yer opinion, would he hurt her?”
Kenney furrowed his brow. “I reckon he loves her, aye, and I’ve never kenned him to be a violent man. Then again, love makes people do desperate and foolish things. If his plan is to make her his, I imagine he’ll be takin’ her north to Reindell Castle.”
“Is that true?” Felix turned back to John. “Were they headin’ north?”
John nodded. “Aye, M’Laird.”
“Gather everyone ye can and have horses saddled.” Felix twisted his head to stare at the gates of Castle Moore. “We’re ridin’ north, and we’re nae goin’ to stop until we find my wife.”
A shout of assent made its way through the soldiers, before they all raced away to fulfil their Laird’s wishes. What Felix had not dared to add, however, was “dead or alive.” For if she was lost to him, he knew he would never return from the north.
CHAPTER31
Beneath the bright sunlight,kicking up clouds of dust, a small army charged along the never-ending road that led to the north of Scotland. A rider could spend days and days upon it before reaching the tip of the country, giving way to the stark and violent sea, though Felix prayed they would catch up with Victor and Edwina much sooner than that.
“What sort of horse was he ridin’?” Felix shouted to John, as they barreled along, trying their best to make up some lost time.
“A stallion, M’Laird. It willnae tire easily, but it was moving at a swift pace,” John shouted back. “I daenae think Victor will be able to continue without a pause, or without at least stoppin’ to change horses somewhere along the road.”
It was precisely what Felix had hoped his Man-at-Arms would say. Johnalwaysknew what to say, which made it all the more shameful that Felix had even contemplated his friend as a culprit. Of course, John had gone after the rider. Of course, he had inadvertently chased after Edwina.Thatwas the sort of man that he was.
“We should slow,” Felix announced, pulling gently on the reins. “If Victor is tryin’ to take Edwina to the north, he willane want anyone to see him, anyone who could be a witness. That means he’ll have to pace himself, and so will we if we’re to stand any chance of gainin’ on him.”
John gave the signal, and the rest of the vanguard slowed to a canter. If Victor had not been so far ahead, Felix would have pushed his horses as fast as they could go, not pausing for anything. Yet, he knew he could not be reckless with their lives, any more than he could be reckless with the riders who sat courageously upon them.
Settling into the rhythm of the canter, Felix could not rely on the distraction of the wind whipping his face and the rapid thuds of the horses’ hooves to keep his mind off Edwina.
Give me a sign that ye’re alive, Love. Daenae leave me now, after I’ve pledged myself to ye. Please, say ye’re alive,he begged, thinking of how happy they had been not even half a day ago.
He remembered how he had peeled away her clothes and marveled at her bare body, thinking it the most divine thing he had ever beheld. He would not allow himself to picture his beautiful, vibrant, passionate wife as a cold, lifeless thing. He could not. It was impossible for his mind to imagine, when she had been warm and loving in his arms all night.
She cannae be dead,he told himself. After joining their bodies and souls together, he felt like he would know if she was lost to him. Or, perhaps, it was merely wishful thinking.
“Are ye well, M’Laird?” John interrupted Felix’s thoughts.
“Nay, John, I cannae say that I am.”
John smiled sadly. “I might have been mistaken in what I saw. The horse was movin’ quickly, as I said—she’d have been jostled and bounced around so much that she likely couldnae move, even if she had wanted to.”
“Thank ye, John.” Felix swallowed thickly. “Thank ye for always kennin’ what to say when everythin’ seems hopeless.”
John dipped his chin to his chest. “I’m nae just sayin’ it, M’Laird. Her Ladyship is fierce and tough as old leather when she wants to be. To steal her away, Victor would have had to knock her out. I think that might be what I saw, but I can promise ye, while there’s breath in her lungs, she’ll keep fightin’ to get back to ye. Even if Victor reaches the north with her, all isnae lost.”
“Och, I’m aware of that,” Felix replied, fixing his furious gaze upon the horizon, as green fields and rolling moors flashed past in a blur. “If she’s in that bastard’s castle, ye had best believe that I will lay siege to it.”
Throughout his life, things had been taken from him that rightfully belonged to him, through no fault of his own. He would not allow Edwina to be added to that list, no matter what it cost him.
* * *
“And what’s yer plan for when we reach yer castle, Victor?” Edwina said curtly, pushing herself backward for the millionth time.
A short while ago, they had stopped again, deep in unfamiliar woodland. She had expected him to water and rest his horse, and perhaps share some of his food with her. Instead, he had freed her from the sack and the gag, lashing her bound hands to the saddle instead. It was a paltry gesture, considering what he had done, but she could not deny that it was nice to be able to talk and breathe again.
“I told ye already,” Victor muttered, glaring over his shoulder at her.
He had attempted to make her ride ahead of him, but after digging her elbows into his abdomen and groin a few times, he had moved her behind him. A wise choice, if he ever wished to sire children, though he would not be siring those children with her. Of that, she was certain.
“Nay, I heard all yer chatter about marryin’ me when my husband dies and all that nonsense, but what’s yer plan before that?” Edwina was genuinely curious to discover how deep Victor’s madness ran. “I have nay intention of bein’ near to ye, and I’ll fight tooth and nail if ye try to make me, so what’s yer intention? Are ye goin’ to lock me up? Are ye goin’ to torture me? Are ye goin’ to keep me bound and gagged until I’m so broken that I relent?”
