Page 25 of Proven By The Highlander (Highlander Forever #15)
CHAPTER 25
T hey made camp sometime before sunset, after Caelan had spent what she privately felt was an inordinate amount of time fussing about the exact location of the fire, ensuring that the light wouldn’t be visible from too far away. Then he headed down to the shore of the lake with a long, thin blade he’d drawn from his pack, leaving Leanne to set the fire. Grateful for what she remembered from camping trips with her father, she got the little blaze going, and by the time he returned from the water’s edge with a couple of freshly cleaned fish, the fire was crackling away merrily. And not a moment too soon, either… her stomach was growling and the night had set in well and truly. She kept catching Caelan’s eyes on her as they set about cooking the fish on the open fire, his practiced movements reminding her of just how long he’d spent doing this.
“What are you looking at?” she asked him finally, the tenth time she looked up to find his gray eyes resting on her.
He looked away, grinning abashedly.
“What?”
“It’s just — it’s nice to have someone else here, that’s all,” he said with a shrug of his shoulders. “I’ve been alone too long, I think.”
She only smiled at that, resisting the urge to push that subject any further, as much as she wanted to ask if he was still feeling as vengeful about the Monster as he had been before they’d spent the day together. There would be time for that later. Right now, it was enough to just sit here together, waiting for their freshly caught dinner to cook with the stars shining brightly above them. She’d been worried that the place they’d chosen to make camp was too open, that they’d be caught in inclement weather, but he’d shaken his head, explaining that he knew the weather patterns well enough to know they were in for a clear, dry night.
They ate their fill of fish and then some, Leanne surprised by how filling the meal was, how much better it tasted than fish and chips back home. For all the difficulties of this strange new world, there were certainly a few perks that helped to balance it all out… like the man sitting by her side with his arm around her shoulder, for example. And for a while, both of them forgot about the stakes of their search as they melted into each other’s embrace.
Exactly as Caelan had predicted, there wasn’t so much as a drop of rain overnight, and when the dawn sunlight crept across the Loch, she stirred from a surprisingly restful sleep. Caelan was already sitting up, rubbing his forehead blearily and stretching his neck from side to side, and he flashed her a rueful smile as she yawned widely.
“Sleeping rough takes some getting used to, I’m afraid,” he said apologetically.
But she shook her head. “I slept fine. Great, even.” She couldn’t help but flush a little as a grin spread across her face. “Maybe it has something to do with what we did before we went to sleep.”
“Leanne!” He affected a scandalized expression.
She giggled, not used to this whimsical, playful side of him. The two of them packed up the camp together and set off not long afterwards, and though Leanne was still worried about exactly how high their chances were of finding Bram alive and well, she still felt a bright, cheery optimism bubbling in her chest.
They’d reached a stretch of the shore of the Loch that Caelan explained he’d searched very thoroughly in the weeks following Bram’s disappearance, and she could understand why — it was a long, straight stretch of beach with a considerable amount of debris washed up on it. Caelan confirmed her suspicion as they walked down onto the sand, explaining that the currents of the Loch brought a lot of debris this way. He’d searched it for days on end, combing through every patch of sand, studying every half-rotten stick… and while he’d found a small treasure trove of random lost items, including a purse full of coins, there had been no trace of Bram or of any of his belongings.
So they kept moving, sweeping only a cursory eye over the sand. More and more, Caelan seemed inclined to walk hand in hand with her, and she began to grow used to the feeling of having him there by her side. The sun was high in the sky when they reached the end of the beach, where the sand began to give way to rocks, and she shaded her eyes with her hand as she looked ahead.
“Things start to get somewhat treacherous along here,” Caelan told her, nodding toward the view ahead of them. Sure enough, the road began to climb, the flat terrain giving way to hills. The Loch, of course, remained flat — but its banks rose and rose, and further along she could see that the water was met by towering cliffs rather than the sandy beach behind them. She frowned, folding her arms as she considered the prospect of searching here.
“There are rocks at the bottom of the cliffs, of course,” Caelan explained, nodding toward the cliffs. “And there are places along the cliff where you can climb down safely to the water’s edge — a lot of fishermen like to fish from the rocks, though the footing can get unreliable when the weather’s bad.”
“We should look at the rocks, then,” she said, studying the view ahead of her.
Caelan nodded, then gestured to his rucksack. “I suggest we move a little further up then find a place to make camp,” he said, nodding toward the rising road before them. “I’d rather not be carrying all our things if we’re to be balanced on rocks.”
It was mid-afternoon by the time they’d found a decent spot for their camp, atop the cliffs with a beautiful view of the Loch below. Caelan had made sure they were a good distance from the road, and they even tested their invisibility by searching for the camp while standing on the bend in the road — sure enough, the camp was well hidden from any passerby who might search for them. She wasn’t wild about the secrecy if she was honest. More than a few times, they’d been about to kiss when the distant sound of hoofbeats or footsteps had drawn Caelan’s attention sharply away from her and sent them hurtling off somewhere to hide.
With their camp set up, they were free to begin searching the rocks. They picked their way back down the slope to where the level beach gave way to the rocks, intending to walk along in front of the cliffs on the rocks in the water. From there, they’d be able to get a thorough look at the rocks where anything might have washed up, whether that was a body or the body’s lost belongings. It didn’t look promising, she had to observe as they began their cautious, wobbly walk along the slick wet rocks. The water lapped constantly at the rocks here, and she could see why Caelan had decided against spending too much time searching…
Still, the more time they spent here, the more time would pass before they inevitably circled the Loch completely and Caelan would return to hunting the Monster. So she was more than happy to balance carefully on the rocks, ducking to look at the occasional pieces of detritus that Caelan was finding wedged between the rocks. Most of the time it was sticks, though they did find a worn old boot that gave her a moment’s thrill before Caelan checked the size and shook his head. Of course he’d know his twin brother’s shoe size, she thought with a twinge of sadness.
The sun was low in the sky as they found themselves a few hundred yards from their starting point. They’d been planning on climbing back up the cliffs to where they’d made their camp, as Caelan remembered a crack in the cliffside that enabled the climb, but he seemed to be having difficulty finding it, and Leanne was looking wistfully back along the rocky path they’d followed here, wondering whether it might not make more sense to simply walk back. Caelan scowled, pointing at a point a few hundred yards further than they’d reached.
“See that dead tree?” he called back to her, looking disgruntled. “That’s where the climbing place is. It was further along than I thought.”
“Let’s go back, then,” she said cheerfully. At least she wouldn’t have to embarrass herself with the revelation of how poor her upper body strength was… Caelan had promised to help her, but she had a feeling there was only so much even his strong arms could do. But something caught her eyes in the soft twilight, and she froze in place, reaching out one hand to stop Caelan, too. Clearly sensing something in her body language, he froze in place, and she heard his breath stop in his throat as he focused on what she’d seen.
She’d hoped she’d imagined it, but Caelan’s low muttered curse confirmed her worst fears. There, heading slowly along the road that led up into the cliffs above them, were a handful of men on horseback… and though there was quite some distance between them, she had a feeling she could recognize Clan tartan from here. The search party was here… and judging by the slow, intent way they were moving, they weren’t simply passing through the area.
“Blast,” she heard Caelan mutter beside her. Then he pulled her toward the base of the cliff, grimacing as he looked up toward the edge of the cliff above them. It didn’t look good. Even her unpracticed eye could see how easy it would be for someone standing at the top of the cliff to look down and spot them.
“Can we make it?” she whispered, jerking her head toward the direction they’d come. The rocks were slippery and treacherous, so they’d have to move slowly, but it was possible they could get out that way… but Caelan was shaking his head, his jaw tight.
“We’ve minutes, maybe, before they start looking over the cliff,” he whispered. Then he closed his eyes for a long moment. “This isn’t going to be pleasant.”
“What do you mean?”
Caelan looked at her, fear and regret battling for dominance in his eyes. “I’m sorry, Leanne. But we have to get into the water.”