Page 16 of McKenna’s Honor (The Clan MacDougall #4)

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W ee William and his men had been waiting for the perfect time to enter Castle Stirling. It hadn’t been easy for any of them to stand by and do nothing. There wasn’t a man among them who did not wish to take a battering ram to the front door, rush in like a swarm of bees, find Robert Stewart and demand that he listen.

But Wee William knew acting in such a manner would not help their cause.

Instead of invading the castle, Wee William and his men camped on the outskirts of Stirling. It wasn’t as if they were trying to remain hidden. Nay, once word had spread that Angus and Duncan were being brought to Stirling, the town’s population seemed to triple in a matter of a few short days.

As was typical with the hangings of important persons, people had come from miles around. Usually the town or city would take on a fair-like atmosphere, filling near to bursting with jugglers, troubadours, musicians and acrobats along with those wishing to observe the hangings with their own eyes. Wee William assumed many of the people milling about the town wanted to say they were there the day they hanged the traitors Angus McKenna and Duncan McEwan.

This was not a story he looked forward to someday telling his grandchildren.

What would become of their clan, should Angus and Duncan hang? He could not afford to think on that prospect now. He had to concentrate on doing whatever he could to ensure the hangings did not take place.

Even if that meant sneaking into the castle and finding Robert Stewart.

And if that didn’t work, he was not above breaking the two men out before they hanged and getting them out of the country. He chuckled softly at that thought and wondered what his dear wife would say to living in France.

“Wee William! Wee William!” Black Richard came tearing through the clearing on horseback. From the expression on his face and the sound of his voice, Wee William felt certain he was not going to like the news Black Richard was bringing.

Wee William stood up from the fallen tree he’d been using as a seat and hurried to Black Richard. “What is it?” he demanded as Black Richard slid from his horse, out of breath and covered in sweat. Or rain. It was difficult to ascertain at the moment for it hadn’t stopped raining in days.

“’Tis Angus and Duncan!” Black Richard said as he stopped to catch his breath. “They’ve been taken!”

Wee William’s brow wrinkled with confusion. “What do ye mean taken ?”

Black Richard bent and rested his palms on his knees. Between gulps, he answered. “Someone took them yesterday. A band of brigands, the guards say. At least one hundred men they say. Overpowered the guards and left them naked along the road. They took the wagon and no one knows where they be.”

Wee William chewed on that information for a time. Why not kill the guards? Why would they leave them naked beside the road? Who would have taken Angus and Duncan and for what purpose? Did they mean to ensure they died?

A hundred questions banged about in his mind as he paced the forest floor. If the people who took Angus and Duncan were not friends or allies, then their lives were in grave danger. Perhaps whoever took them were the real traitors and worried over being found out. Killing Angus and Duncan would ensure their secret was safe and they could continue on with their treacherous deeds. That thought made his stomach tighten with dread and anger.

If, however, the individuals responsible for taking them were in fact friends, it still did not bode well for the two men. An escape such as this would make them appear all the more the traitors they were accused of being.

A number of unpleasant scenarios played out in his mind. All of them ended with the deaths of his chief and the man he considered the closest thing to a brother that he had.

Black Richard had managed to get his breathing under control and stood patiently waiting for instructions from Wee William. Several of the other men had heard the news and they stood near Black Richard and watched as their leader paced and shook his head. They were just as bewildered and baffled as Wee William, but stood quietly, allowing him to process the information.

Finally, the giant stopped pacing and turned to look at his men.

“We need to find Angus and Duncan. We know no’ who took them, but friend or foe, we need to find them before Phillip Lindsay’s men do.”

Black Richard nodded in agreement. But a question lingered. “What do we do when we find them, Wee William?”

Wee William shook his head and headed toward the horses. He pulled his saddle from the ground and tossed it on the bay gelding’s back.

“I have no’ an idea, Black Richard. ”

If foes had taken the two men, then Wee William could argue that fact in front of Robert Stewart, if he ever found the fool. That fact could only work in his chief’s favor.

However, if friends had taken Angus and Duncan, he knew an altogether different scenario would play out. Aye, he would at the very least be able to breathe more easily knowing they still lived.

At the moment, Wee William was not certain who he hoped had taken Angus and Duncan. No matter who had taken them, the outcome would undoubtedly be the same. Angus and Duncan would hang at dawn.