Morgann nodded. “She told me she was goin’ to pray that all goes well fer me.”
“Aye. She is thoughtful.”
“All the more reason I hate myself fer my part in this.”
“We will discuss it in the mornin’,” Mac said. “Get some sleep.
Morgann closed his eyes to the dark, cold house but at least he was warmer.
He fell asleep and dreamed of running.
The next morning, he opened his eyes to the tip of a blade at his throat and two pairs of green eyes staring down at him.
“Mornin’, Captain,” he said nervously. He looked at the kitten tucked into the captain’s neck to calm himself.
“Wake up. Ye willna sleep all day.”
“Cap,” said Mac with a plate of food in his lap. “He says he betrayed ye.”
“And her,” the captain added. Mac agreed.
“Captain, I wanted to stop them from killin’ her,” Morgann finally told him, but it was too late.
“I think he should die fer his crime.”
Mac shrugged. “Mayhap, but he is a soldier in the House of Stewart. We will have to give account before a dozen councils if we kill him.”
The captain looked at Morgann as if he wanted to kill him with his bare hands.
Morgann rose from the floor.
“Where is the food? I will prepare ye somethin’, Captain.”
“And mayhap poison me?”
Morgann shook his head. He wanted to get away from the captain before he drove the man to run him through. He could see it in his eyes. Murder, violence, unforgiveness.
“Where are the others?” Morgann heard him ask Mac.
Morgann lowered his head. He felt like the lowest worm. What would Will and Padrig say when they heard what he had done? Who would believe that Morgann cared for them all, even more than he cared for John? They had taken him in like a brother. He had fought by their sides more than once. There had been times when, before bed, he thought he would give his life for theirs.
His secret had weighed on him heavily, making him somber and serious.
He was sorry. He was sorry and he wanted to tell her.
He heard the captain and Mac moving behind him. When he turned, he saw them cloaked and hooded and leaving the cottage.
Morgann followed them. When he stepped outside, he saw Will and Padrig riding up the hill. His heart sank. He wasn’t always sure about Will, but Padrig was loyal to the captain.
The hulking Highlander was going to kill him. Morgann began to panic. He didn’t want to be here to hear his sentence, deserved or not. He wanted to run. He could run for a horse, get the—
The captain turned his head and looked directly at him as if he could hear his thoughts. The warning glint in his eyes convinced Morgann not to make the captain chase him.
He remained still and waited for his punishment.
They brought the horses to the small shelter behind the cottage. When they returned, Will greeted Morgann with a playful slap and tossed a travel bag to him. “Take that to Sister Silene later, will ye? ’Tis her clothes.”
Padrig came to stand beside his brother. “How did ye get here so fast?”