The Eternal Highlander Read Free

Nan’s silent urgings to take her share. Once she and Nan had their food, they moved away from the fire and told the men that the food was ready. The way the men devoured the food made Bridget heartily glad of Nan’s foresight.
    It did not surprise Bridget when she and Nan had to clean up after the meal, but she felt as annoyed as Nan looked. Bridget had no objection to hard work, but, Nan was right. These men had been paid to care for her, not the other way around. By the time the moon was high in the sky, Bridget was feeling too irritated to sleep.
    “I am going into the wood, Nan,” she told her companion.
    “I dinnae think that would be wise, or safe,” Nan said, frowning toward the thick, shadowed forest.
    “Weel, I cannae relieve myself here. Nor do I wish to have a wash where these men could see me.”
    “Ah, nay, that wouldnae be wise. Such things could rouse their base, monly lusts.”
    Bridget had to bite back a giggle. She doubted exposing any part of her too-slim body would rouse any man into a dangerous state of lust. While she had told Nan the truth about her need to slip into the shelter of the wood, she had not told the whole truth. For just a few moments she wanted to be alone. After three days of close confinement with Nan and the men, Bridget desperately needed some time to stand alone, to breathe the night air, and hear the sounds of the night and her own heart.
    “I best go with ye,” Nan said.
    “Nay, I will be fine. I willnae wander too deep into the wood, just far enough to be private.”
    After staring at Bridget for a moment, Nan nodded. “I will give ye some time alone, then, but nay too long.”
    “Thank ye, Nan.”
    Bridget quickly gathered a full skin of water, clean clothes, and a cloth for washing. She hurried into the trees even as Nan sharply informed the men that she did not need one of them trailing after her. When Bridget reached a place where the trees thinned out a little to allow the light of the moon to shine through, she set down her things and shed her clothes. After a quick visit to the bushes, she stood beneath the moon and washed away the dust of a day’s travel. She undid her hair and used the last of the water to rinse away the dust that clung to it.
    Once dry, she quickly donned her clean shift, suddenly a little too aware of her nudity. Bridget stared up at the bright moon as she used the shift she had changed out of to rub her hair dry. She had always loved the night, especially when the moon shone full. She loved the smell of the night air, the feel of it, and the sounds that whispered on the air, even the ones that were occasionally loud and sharp enough to shatter that soft peace. Spreading her arms wide, she sang an old song in a quiet voice and danced in the moonlight, giggling now and again at her own foolishness. The freedom of dancing nearly naked in the moonlight, of being a part of the night, would be brief, but she would savor it to its fullness while she could. It was a pleasure she tried to steal for herself as often as possible.
    Suddenly she stopped and crouched slightly. It felt as if every hair on her body stood on end. Bridget quickly dressed, straining to listen for some noise, some hint of what had so abruptly stolen her peace. She used her cloak to wrap her possessions up into a rough sack and tied it around her waist. After tying her hair back, she drew her dagger from the sheath at her waist and cautiously started back toward the camp.
    After only a few feet she stopped and shivered. There was the scent of blood in the air. Bridget took a deep, slow breath to both calm herself and confirm her suspicion. Silently, she made her way through the trees, halting just inside the shadows edging the camp.
    They were all dead. The bodies of her guards were sprawled upon the ground, their killers busily stripping them of clothes and weapons. Bridget could not see Nan, however. Even as she continued to search for some sign of Nan, alive or dead,