Page 74 of The Bells of Triumph
“What do ye suggest?”
“We stick to the original plan; we find a way to protect our people. If Connor is right and both Finn and Iona are against us, then we will need a plan in place now more than ever. If he is wrong, and I hope to God he is, then we must focus on readying ourselves for Campbell.”
With a shared nod of agreement between them, Seamus moved to welcome their guests. For the next several hours, he and Flora acted as the perfect Laird and Lady. They let each man there talk and share his concerns for the clan with the rest of the room. Flora offered food and drinks over and over again until each plate was cleared twice over. They took note of the ideas the men brought about how to keep their clan safe. But in the back of their minds, she knew that all they could think about was if Connor or Brid had managed to find anything.
“We had hoped to be able to come to some sort of solution by the end of today's meeting,” Seamus said, addressing the room, “but it seems as though we have run out of time. Ye are all, of course, welcome to stay for the evening meal. Each of ye will have a room made up for ye, should ye choose to stay. We will reconvene in the morning and hopefully walk away tomorrow with a plan in place. For tonight, we will continue on with our patrols as we have been. Thank ye.”
Slowly, but surely, each of the men filtered out of the Council Room. Some had their heads bent together, still deep in conversation, not wanting to let it go until there was an answer. Others, the more quiet of the bunch, kept to themselves and left quickly, ready for a hot meal and a fresh bed.
Though her stomach rumbled, Flora could only think about where Connor and Brid were. She wanted answers as to what could possibly be keeping Finn and Iona away. She knew it was wise to consider that Finn had betrayed them, but she simply couldn't allow herself to believe it. The boy she had grown upwith, the one who had spent countless hours training beside, would have never turned on his clan. He might have hated the Murrays for allowing Campbell in the first place, but she knew that he hated Campbell more. There had to be another answer, another reason why he hadn't shown.
“Dinnae fash, my love,” Seamus soothed, reading her mind. “Connor and Brid will be back any moment.”
“Is this a good moment?” Connor asked, stepping into the room at just the right time.
Brid followed closely behind, significantly less angry than before but still just as worried.
“Now is the perfect moment. Tell us,” Flora greeted. “What did ye find?”
“There were servants waiting for us almost as soon as we got there. The men reported that Iona traveled back to Glenkirk with Finn and the others. Someone overheard her claiming to need some herbs or some such thing that she left behind.”
“Which is ridiculous. There is nothing there that I dinnae have here,” Brid chimed in. “She was lying, though I dinnae ken how Finn did nae see through her lie.”
“Anyway,” Connor interrupted with a gentle touch on her arm to soothe her frayed nerves. “Iona left Glenkirk Castle yesterday at some point during the night. She stole a horse and told nay one where she was going. Luckily, Finn was still awake. He left to find her almost as soon as she had left.”
“But…” Seamus continued for Connor, asking in a single word what they were not saying.
“But nay one has seen or heard from either Iona or Finn since they left yesterday. Finn gave the men clear instructions nae to tell ye so ye would nae worry.”
“Why did Iona leave in the first place? Did she say?” Flora jumped in.
“Nay,” Connor shook his head. “Apparently, she disappeared into the castle as soon as they arrived, did nae come down for the evening meal, and only reappeared when she made her way to the stables. One of the servants spotted her leaving and alerted the rebels, who then told Finn.”
Flora and Seamus exchanged worried glances.
“We should send out a search party to find them. There is nae telling what could be happening or where they could be. What if someone is hurt? What if Connor is right, and we have been betrayed?”
Resting a hand on Seamus' shoulder, Flora looked up at him with pleading eyes.
“Please, Seamus. We must trust Finn. If his men said that he went after her, then I trust him to bring her back. We must show him some faith, some credibility for the changes he has made.”
Seamus sighed but nodded, relenting to Flora's wish.
“We will wait. But nae forever.”
They had ridden for hours.Finn was only surprised that Iona had lasted so long in her saddle. After he had agreed to take her back to MacKenzie Castle, they had watered the horses and started their journey. She hadn't said much of anything, but then again, neither had he. For all the miles they had covered, she never complained or asked to stop. She was just as content to keep going, or perhaps it was her stubbornness that kept her from saying anything. Eventually, her discomfort became impossible to ignore.
“We should let the horses rest,” Finn told her, slowing his horse down. “There is a glen over there that will give us a good enough place to hide.”
She merely nodded.
He hated the tension between them but didn't know how to get rid of it. He was wholly unwilling to bend his stance, that she needed to return to Seamus and sort this out with him. She was just as convinced that what she was doing was right. Of course, he had agreed to her plan, but something about it all still felt wrong. He couldn't abandon her in the woods, though, so he stuck to her side.
At some level, he understood why Iona was so desperate to return to her father and a future trapped in a loveless marriage. She wanted to protect Seamus and Flora. She felt like she owed them that. He felt the same way. He was driven by the same need to repay their generosity and kindness. If he was honest with himself, it was that reason, more than any chivalrous motivator, that was pushing him forward, keeping him by Iona's side. Of course, he wanted her to be safe, but he dreaded having to face Seamus again, admitting to yet another failure. At least this way, he could tell Seamus that Iona made it back to her father's house safely, that this was what she wanted.
“Is this a good spot?” she asked, trying to hide her wince.
“Aye.” He led his horse over to a tree and leapt down with ease before tying the horse up and then turning to Iona. “Let me help ye down.”
