MacFarlane's Ridge (21 page)

“Oh,” she answered, flustered, nearly forgetting the ruse. “You are quite welcome. It was my pleasure.”

He winked at her and disappeared off to Ian’s part of the house. She hung her shawl on its peg by the door, and scurried to Mollie’s room without looking at Wayne. She slipped into bed silently.

“Miss Clark?” whispered Mollie sleepily.

“Mollie, do you think you could bring yourself to call me Cameron, or Cam? I mean, ‘Miss Clark’ is a bit formal.”

“Aye. But I dinna know what to call you anymore. What are we to do about yon Master Sinclair?”

“He is not my husband,” Cam repeated in lowered tones. “What do I have to do to prove it? I don’t understand why everyone believes him and not me.”

Mollie sat up in bed. “I dinna believe him anymore.”

“Thank you.” Cam hugged the other woman. “What changed your mind?”

“Ye forget, I’ve seen your naked arse too, and even under all the dirt, I know I didna’ see a great brown spot.”

Cam giggled into the covers, and relaxed. Now that Mollie was on her side, things didn’t seem to be so bad after all.

When Cam woke up it was still dark, but Mollie was already awake and moving around the house. Cam could hear voices in the front room. There was a small, warm body beside her. Hamish had climbed in at some time in the night. His fingers were in his mouth, and he sucked on them softly, his chubby cheeks pulsing. Cam pulled the blanket up over him, and wandered over to the washstand. Mollie had filled it already, and Cam scrubbed her face heartily. Before they left this morning, she was going to go downstairs to the hot spring for a bath. Wayne Sinclair would just have to wait.

Ian and Mollie were chatting politely with Wayne when Cam went down the hall to go outside. The privy wasn’t far from the barn, and on her way back, Cam saw that one of the horses was gone. She hoped Rob would be back soon, or she was going to have some real problems.

“Darling, did you sleep well?” Wayne asked pleasantly.

“Fine, thanks,” she said abruptly. “Ian, do you know where Rob has gone off to?”

“Aye,” said Ian, wolfing down the last of his meal. “He said he had some land to look at, and that it couldna’ wait. He asked me to bid ye farewell for him.”

“What? He was supposed to ride with us this morning!” exclaimed Cam.

Ian shrugged. “Well, he canna do it because he isna’ here. I could ride with ye a while if ye like.”

“That won’t be necessary,” put in Wayne from behind her.

“Tis no trouble at all,” Ian grinned. “The weather’s fine this morning, and I need to get out and about. I need to be looking’ at that acreage with Robbie. Tis no trouble.”

“Acreage?” asked Cam.

“Aye. Once he sells
The Lady Meg
, he’ll settle here and do a wee bit of tobacco farming like I do. That’s why he’s building that cabin further up yon hill.”

“Excuse me,” interrupted Wayne. “I’m sure this is all fascinating, but we really do need to get moving, my dear.”

Cam watched him warily. He was practically twitching, he was so anxious to get on the road. And now she didn’t know what Rob was up to –
he isn’t really out looking at land this morning, is he? Not when Wayne Sinclair is practically slobbering on himself at the idea of getting me alone?
Cam had stolen a dagger from Ian’s room, which she had tucked into the top of her wool stocking. If Wayne laid a hand on her, at least she’d have a way to defend herself.

“I’m taking my bath first,” she announced.

Mollie scurried ahead of her. “Here, let me help ye with the ladder. Ye know it’s a wee bit rickety.”

On the contrary, Cam knew it was perfectly sound. “Thank you, Mollie. Ian and Rob really need to fix it, don’t they?”

“Aye.” Once they were in the cellar, Mollie pulled the trapdoor shut over their heads. “We havena’ much time, or he’ll suspect something is amiss. Ian is to travel with ye today, but Rob will meet ye on the trail. When he does, just play along wi’ whatever game he’s cooked up for ye.” She looked Cam in the eye, and began to climb back up the ladder. “Thank ye for tryin’ to protect me from Master Sinclair.”

Cam smiled wanly. “It was the least I could do, Mollie.”

Mollie grinned, and scampered back upstairs. Cam undressed, hacked off a chunk of bayberry soap, and slipped into the warm spring. It was the first bath she’d had since she had washed off in an icy puddle in the other cave, on the way back from Liberty.
This is much better. I wouldn’t mind having one of these in my own house
, she thought. She wondered how the old house on Meador Street was doing. It was mid-January now, and she had been gone for nearly two months. She hoped Troy had survived.
Troy – Wayne hurt him because of me…

Cam was torn. A part of her was desperately homesick, and wanted to go back to Haver Springs and the present, if for no other reason than to find out if Troy was alive, and to let Hal and Alice know she was okay. After all, she couldn’t stay here in the past, that would be foolish. Maybe the attraction to Robert wasn’t love at all, but just sheer necessity. He had rescued her on a couple of occasions now, maybe she was just feeling grateful and mistaking it for love. Of course, the fact that he was quite handsome complicated things a bit. Last night, out in the moonlight, she had wanted him so much she ached. When he had kissed her… at the memory, Cam shivered in the warm spring pool.
This is ridiculous. This has to be just a passing thing. I can’t stay here with him in 1776, no more than he could come back to the year 2001 with me. Maybe he was right, and it would be better for me to just go back home…

Cam changed back into her long skirt and Ian’s shirt. She was now clean, and felt better. She rubbed her hair dry with a rough cloth Mollie had left her, and clambered upstairs. Hamish was still sleeping peacefully in Mollie’s bed, but the rest of the house was silent. A wave of dread washed over her. Mollie and Ian were nowhere in sight, and Wayne Sinclair was conspicuously absent.

She cautiously moved down the hall to the door, listening. She had just eased the door opened when Wayne grabbed her, spinning her around. He shoved her roughly against the side of the house.

“Guess what, darling? Change of plans,” he breathed.

Cam tried to squirm free, but he had her pinned. “What did you do? Where are Mollie and Ian?” she gasped.

He grinned at her, and winked his brown eye. “Ian is not going to be a problem anymore. He was a whole lot easier to get rid of than his big brother would’ve been.”

“Oh, my God, Wayne! You killed Ian?” Cam was horrified.

Wayne thought for a moment. “You know, I’m honestly not sure if he’s dead or not. I don’t really care, to tell you the truth. Now, our wee Mollie, she’s a feisty piece of work, but I expect it will be a while before she wakes up.”

He still had her pressed face first to the wall, and his body was up against hers. He held her left hand with his, but his right was tracing a delicate circle on her cheek. “I’ll have to be careful with Mollie, because she’s going back through the Faeries’ Gate with me. You, on the other hand…” he purred, “you’ll just have to stay here. That means I can do anything I like before I leave.”

“Wayne,” said Cam, trying to keep the fear out of her voice. “You don’t really want to do this.”

“Oh, as a matter of fact, I do.” He whirled her around to face him, smiled, and then suddenly drew back and punched her in the face. Stunned, she collapsed in a heap next to the woodpile. Wayne grabbed her by the hair and pulled her to her feet. “Now, that was just to show you who is in charge here. Any questions?”

She shook her head mutely. She could feel her cheek and eye beginning to swell, and there was blood in her mouth. Her head was spinning. This was not going anything like she had planned. She gasped as Wayne jerked her head back. “You have inconvenienced me more than you can imagine. I’ve had to spend almost two whole months hunting for you and that damn journal. I have nearly drowned, practically starved in the woods, and been forced to sleep on the cold hard ground like some kind of homeless rube. All of this has been because of you, Cam, so keep in mind that you owe me. On the other hand,” he mused, “you have led me directly to Mollie Duncan. If I can get her back through the Faeries’ Gate alive, well, then it will be one hell of an attraction, won’t it? I have no idea where it is at this point, but I can pinpoint the general direction, and that is really all we need, isn’t it? It’ll be like Williamsburg, only better, because the people here are real, not actors. People will pay a fortune to spend a week in the Colonial frontier, and watch history unfold right before their eyes. Maybe even participate, and change it.”

Cam only half heard what he was saying. She had tucked the dagger from Ian’s room back into her stocking after her bath. If she could get to it, she might have a chance at getting away from Wayne. His face was practically touching hers now.

“I’ve missed you, Cam. And like I said, you’ve put me a great deal out of my way. But I’m going to give you a chance to make it up to me,” he said softly. “Come inside, Cam. It’s time to redeem yourself.”

He flung the door open, and as he stepped back to shove her inside, she struck. The dagger sunk into his inner thigh nearly to the hilt, and his face contorted in agony and shock. Cam shoved him as hard as she could, and was turning to run when she saw the boy. Hamish was standing in the door to Mollie’s room, sucking his fingers. He pointed to Wayne.

“Doo.”

“Yes, Hamish. Come on, sweetie.” She scooped him into her arms and ran. He smelled wet. By the time she reached the door, Wayne was half-sitting, and had positioned himself to stop her. If she went through the door, she would have to climb over him.

“You’re not leaving here, Cam. Put the boy down,” he panted.

“No. Get away from there, Wayne.”

He smiled, and placed his hands on the hilt, still protruding from his leg. “Let me tell you something, Cam. I am really pissed now. You have no idea.” With a grimace, he pulled the dagger out. He waved it at her, and a light spatter of blood flew in her direction. “All right, then. Put the boy down and come here. I might kill you but I won’t hurt him.”

“No,” Cam shook her head. Any minute now he was going to stand up and then she would be in real trouble. She was trapped in the house, and her options were limited because of Hamish. She looked around the cabin for anything she could use as a weapon. Her eyes settled on the mantel. Hugh Duncan’s Culloden sword! She ran over and grabbed it. She had forgotten how heavy it was. Cam didn’t know if she could use it, but it was better than nothing.

Returning to the hall, she said, “All right, Wayne. Let us out or I swear I will kill you with this thing.”

Wayne looked surprised for a moment, and then laughed. He was still holding his leg. Cam noticed a good amount of blood on his pants. The possibility that she had hit an artery was too much to hope for. “Cam, I’m sorry, but you don’t have the guts or the physical strength to lop off my head. Especially not when you’re holding that baby.”

Cam looked at Hamish, who was chewing his wrist and watching Wayne thoughtfully. “Doopy,” he said, pointing.

“Aye,” she agreed. She and Wayne stared at each other, each waiting for someone to make the first move. After what seemed like an eternity, she noticed his eyes beginning to look a bit glassy. The blood was now seeping through his fingers. He leaned his head against the door.

“Well, Cam,” he said weakly. “This could be your one chance. If I pass out, which I think I am about to, you can get out of here. Just one word of advice.”

“Which is?”

He closed his eyes. “Either kill me, or get as far away as you can. Because when I recover from this, I will come find you,” he sighed.

For a moment Cam was sure he was dead. He continued breathing, however, and she waited a few moments before venturing toward the door. She was going to have to step right over him. Terrified that this was a trap and he was going to grab her ankle, she ran as fast as she could and leaped awkwardly over him. Wayne Sinclair did not move.

She put Hamish in the front of the wagon and tucked the Culloden sword under the seat. Mollie was in the back, unconscious but alive, with a large bruised knot on her forehead. Wayne had tossed a blanket over her, and Cam left it there to keep Mollie warm. There was no sign of Ian. Cam hesitated for a moment, wondering if she had time to go look for him. A small twitch of Wayne’s hand made up her mind for her, and she climbed into the wagon. She had no idea how to drive it.

All those years of watching “Little House on the Prairie” should have taught me something,
she thought maniacally.
She picked up the reins, jiggled them, and said, “Giddy-up!” Miraculously, Betsy began to amble down the trail, pulling the wagon behind her. Cam headed for Tom Kerr’s place. She could leave Hamish and Mollie in care of Tom and Sally, and then go looking for Rob. Hopefully Wayne hadn’t killed Ian, but at this point it was too dangerous to stay around and find out. Maybe Tom would know what to do.

Rob had waited for hours and Charlie was woofing anxiously. They should have been here by now. He knew he never should have left Ian in charge of things. Ian tried hard, but things just always seemed to go wrong for him. Rob climbed onto his horse, and headed back northwest. If he met them on the trail, fine. If not… he just hoped Cameron wasn’t hurt. Granted, he still planned to send her back through the Faeries’ Gate, but first he had to get her away from Wayne Sinclair. At least if she went back home, she’d be alive.