Page 54

Gwyn knew her mind must be playing tricks on her.

It was only the flash of a mere moment she had been granted the opportunity to gaze upon the place where she had been sired.

Nevertheless, it was long enough to get a fair glimpse of the holdings she had deemed her home.

Even though it was far away, she could tell all was ominously quiet.

And normal. She even suspected she saw the customary sentries upon the wall and a few horses moving casually about in the upper bailey.

There appeared no outward signs of the attack as Ennis had proclaimed.

'I must be wrong.'

She had to be mistaken and perhaps the distance was just too great and her eyes were not completely right. Or conceivably the warriors had flooded the inside of the keep and were battling within the gathering hall. Or worse yet, they were up in the family quarters.

'Is this not possible?'

She only saw it for a fleeting moment.

As Gwyn focused on the powerful back of her uncle as he raced through another stand of trees before her, she questioned once again all that had transpired in these last minutes.

'If my sight had been true and if the keep had not been under attack, why would Ennis proclaim this to be so and why would Kamden and the other two so readily agree?

What reasoning would they possibly have to remove the three MacLaren children from the keep and the one place everyone deemed them to be safe? '

Painfully, the devastation of what she now strongly suspected rose within her breast as the bile scalded her throat. In the end she had to concede, she trusted her fleeting glance more than she did the words of Ennis.

'What do I truly know of this man?'

As she thought back to all she could remember, it was nothing but goodness she had witnessed. His love, his devotion and his loyalty to her parents was all she could remember.

'Then again, was it not he who her father had claimed discovered it was their healer Lachlan who had been responsible for all the tragedies? Was it also not true that he always had full access to the family and each of the babes?'

He would never have been suspected so he always roamed freely within the keep.

'And what if it were Lachlan who suspected Ennis and then he killed her instead when she confronted him with her suspicions? Could it have happened this way?'

In Gwyn's own mind, Lachlan had shown only signs of her dedication and appeared truly committed to the MacLaren. From the moment she had been told of this account, deep down she felt something wasn't quite right with it.

As the small party raced down another steep slope, Gwyn had to shake her head in her feeble attempt to clear her mind and reason clearly. This was all so confusing.

'What if I am wrong?'

She knew whatever conclusions she made would be devastating. If she chose to believe Ennis, she feared of where their journey would end. On the other hand, if she reasoned against him, it would be nearly impossible to gain their freedom from these strong and very capable four Highlanders.

Slowly, Gwyn moved her gaze to Durell and realized she would do everything in her power to protect him and at all costs.

But when she gazed to her sister who rode by her side, she also understood she had made a solemn promise to Donnan to protect his Enya and to keep her from harm.

Gwyn realized she owed Donnan everything, including her own life, if it really came down to it.

Gwyn also understood she owed the bairn that she carried the right to live and breathe at least for a day. She must find a way to deliver him safely into the arms of his father. Iver deserved nothing less for all he had done.

'Holy mother of God, how am I to keep everyone safe?'

With all these heavy burdens upon her mind, Gwyn knew she could not be careless with her assumptions.

As she moved her steed quickly over the uneven ground, she felt the steel of her blade against her thigh.

While this gave her a bit of comfort, she also knew Ennis and his three men were heavily armed and she was no match for their strength if it ever came down to that.

If Gwyn were to question or reveal what she now was beginning to understand as the true reality, their lives were sure to be cut short.

She could never risk that. She had to rely on her cunning and not allow him to know she suspected anything.

At least until she could come to a plan.

Not only did the distraught faces of her parents from more than a decade ago come flooding back into her mind, it was the promises she had given to protect everyone with her dying breath.

'But how? How am I to do that when I understand so little of their motive behind this abduction?'

That is what she strongly suspected it to be and the most likely of scenarios.

For long hours, they rode until the night descended upon them.

While Gwyn knew Enya was strong, she also understood she did not have the stamina the other riders showed.

Her sister did not have to pretend she was scared nor exhausted as both of these emotions played heavily upon her face.

It was then that Gwyn made her hushed plea as she drew her steed near to that of her uncle.

"Please, Ennis can we not stop for the night? I fear for Enya. She is not nearly as traveled as am I, nor Durell."

Ennis stared at Gwyn for long moments before he finally nodded his head in concession.

She understood in that instant that if he had his way, they would have continued to travel throughout the night without ever stopping.

This would take them further away from the land of the MacLaren and the thought of that frightened her immeasurably.

When they moved into the next cropping of trees, Ennis steered his beast far from the path and found a very small clearing. He stopped his steed and dismounted quickly as he spoke in a hushed whisper.

"We will stay here for a few hours of rest."

Gwyn felt a sense of relief. That was until, from behind her she heard a whinny from her sister's horse and a cry of dismay.

"Enya?"

Gwyn turned quickly in her saddle as she watched in fear as her sister's body fell from her horse to land heavily upon the ground.

"Oh, bloody hell! My foot slipped from the stirrup!"

That may have been the worst of it, but the mare she rode spooked and began prancing in agitation. Her sister now lay sprawled upon the ground beneath the nervous beast.

"Whoa!Whoa, girl!"

Gwyn had shouted her words, hoping they would calm the beast. She could not dismount fast enough and the horse's rear hoof landed squarely upon Enya's lower leg. Her scream could be heard loudly into the night and assailed the tranquility that had been previously surrounding the area.

"Oh, oh! It hurts! Gwyn, it hurts so much!"

Even though Gwyn was now obviously with child, she had reacted with more haste then anyone and had found herself alone and pulling her sister quickly away from the agitated beast. When she dragged Enya alongside the nearest tree and several paces away, she noted oddly how everyone else had remained seated upon their beasts.

With of course, the exception of Durell.

'I believe gallantry here with these clansmen, is dead.'

She could not think upon that now as she leaned her sister's body onto the solid trunk and moved quickly to ascertain her injury.

Although there were no sounds other than a contained whimpering coming from Enya, her eyes were brimming with her tears.

Gwyn could tell by the piercing of her lips and the deep furrows upon her brow that she was in an extreme amount of pain.

She also understood she was doing everything in her power to remain quiet and calm.

"I apologize if I hurt you."

Even though she knew it to be painful, Gwyn moved her hands over her sister's lower leg and ankle feeling firmly of the bones. Soon, she was satisfied of their stability. Next, she moved her foot gently back and forth and up and down even though it clearly pained her sister.

"Ennis, do you agree?"

"Yes, my lady, I do. Enya, it seems while your leg had been severely bruised, it does not appear as if any of the bones have been broken. And we can be quite grateful for that."

While Gwyn was thankful that was the case, it was apparent her sister was still in an immense amount of pain and could not place any weight upon it. Her injury alone was going to be a great challenge.

Based on the reactions of the MacLaren warriors or lack thereof, Gwyn now understood. She had but few options available in her quest to save not only Durell but Enya from the unknown and certainly perilous fates that seemed to be theirs.