Carrie nodded, wiping her nose. “Aye,” she said. “The Old High Church. They took some of the wounded, too, I heard. Perhaps ye’ll find something more of yer brother there.”
James looked at the sword in his hand. “I-I have found this,” he said. “Y-You cannot know what this means to me. That you took it and did not let the scavengers get to it… I can never thank you enough.”
Carrie forced a tremulous smile. “I’m glad ye found it, m’laird.”
James was feeling weary, emotional. “A-As am I,” he said. “I-It means everything to me and to my mother. But there is something else I seek, something I am sure you have not seen, but I’ll ask anyway. A ring with a lion’s head – have you seen it?”
Carrie shook her head. “Nay,” she said. “If I had, I would tell ye.”
“I-It is very valuable.”
“I dinna collect these things for profit. I did it because it was the right thing tae do.”
He lifted his eyebrows wearily. “F-Forgive me if I’ve offended you,” he said. “A-As I said, I was certain you had not seen it, but I had to ask.”
With that, he turned away, clutching his brother’s sword in his left hand and moving like a man who was overwhelmed with life. His brother’s saber had been found, but that was not where he would stop. Finding the weapon renewed his determination.
Inverness was his next destination.
Part Five
GAIRA
She saw him in the snowy livery yard, baggage in hand. He also had a saber with him, something she didn’t remember seeing on him when he arrived.
He was leaving.
Gaira stood at the kitchen door as it opened out into the muddy kitchen yard, seeing a portion of the livery from where she stood. She had come to the tavern at her usual time that morning, but James had still been asleep until Carrie went to go wake him a little while ago. Gaira had been busy in the kitchen, but her mind had been on Carrie and James. Truthfully, only on James.
Then, she saw him make his way to the livery.
Give Worcester that gift. Help him find some peace.
Those words had been ringing around in her head all night. She had no idea what happened to the tall, pale man who had come to her home to speak to her of the handsome young earl, but he’d departed and now Worcester was leaving as well. If he left, she might never see him again.
He would never know what she knew.
She knew, deep in her heart, that she couldn’t let him leave.
Taking a deep breath, she pulled off her apron and left it behind as she ran across the kitchen yard. Since her home wasn’t far, it took her little time to cross the muddy road and into the walled yard. The door to the home was unlocked even though her mother wasn’t at home, so Gaira hastened to her bedchamber to retrieve the haversack from its secret place.
Even as she held it, her hands were trembling. The contents of the haversack had been her guilty pleasure, and even a large part of her world, for the last several months. Ever since she’d stolen it from Carrie and kept it hidden so she could bask in those letters over and over again. Letters from a sensitive and tormented young man to his equally sensitive and tormented brother.
So much about Johnathan had been different.
So much about James had been deep.
They simply couldn’t find a way to connect.
But James had come for his brother and it wasn’t fair for her to keep the letters any longer. She never really thought this moment would come, and she was going to have to explain to him why she had kept them this long, but she would have to face him with what she’d done. Knowing James as she did through his beautiful letters, she felt as if she knew him well. It was strange knowing a man well she’d never actually met.
Until now.
Those letters didn’t belong to her, after all.
They belonged to a beleaguered young earl.
Clutching the haversack to her chest, she wrapped herself back up in her simple shawl, one that wasn’t nearly enough against the icy temperatures, and ran back across the road and into the livery.
As she entered the yard, she saw James standing just outside of the stable as the groom prepared his mount. It was a long-legged bay thoroughbred, a beautiful and expensive animal. The groom led the animal over to the trough to water the steed while he finished with the tack, leaving James standing by himself.
Gaira’s stomach was twisting with nerves as she came up behind him, studying his broad back and wide shoulders. It was the James from the letters, a sweet and angsty young man who was better in the flesh than she could have ever imagined.
“M’laird?” she said, a little breathlessly.
He turned to her and Gaira took a good, long look at his face in the sunlight. Blond, well-built, and excruciatingly handsome, he was quite the perfect young lord.
His sky-blue eyes fixed expectantly on her.
“W-What is it?” he asked.
Her heart began to flutter. “I… I heard ye speaking tae yer companion last night,” she said, stepping into the livery. It was quieter in there, out of the elements. “Ye came seeking yer brother.”
James’ focus had followed her as she’d walked around him and entered the stable. But with the mention of last night’s legendary conversation, he grunted and rolled his eyes.
“I-It seems that everyone in this wretched place knows about that now,” he said. “D-Don’t worry, I’m leaving. It seems that Inverness may hold more answers for me.”
Gaira could see how weary he was.
But she was about to change that.
“Perhaps ye’ll find yer brother’s body there,” she said. “But I have his heart here.”
With that, she unwounded her shawl to reveal the haversack clutched to her chest. James wasn’t certain what he was looking at, at first, but when she held it up to him and he recognized it, all of the color drained from his face. His mouth popped open and something of a groan escaped.
“M-My God,” he said hoarsely. “I-It’s his haversack. This is my brother’s haversack.”
Gaira nodded, carefully depositing it into his trembling hands. “It is,” she said. “Last night, when I heard ye speak about yer brother, I was certain that this belonged tae ye. Ye see, I’ve had it for a long while and I… well, I have much tae say about it before ye go. Would ye give me a moment of yer time, m’laird?”
James was unbuttoning the haversack with shaking hands. In fact, he could hardly get it open, but he wasn’t so singularly focused that he didn’t hear Gaira’s soft plea. He nodded so vigorously that his hair wagged about.
“O-Of course,” he said, reaching out to grasp her by the arm. “C-Come and tell me everything you know. What is your name again?”
“Gaira, m’laird,” she said. “Gaira Dunmore.”
“G-Gaira,” he repeated, clutching the haversack as he led her away from the livery entry and into a quiet area near the stalls. “I-I remember you. I helped you and Carrie escape the battle in the common room yesterday.”
Gaira nodded. “Ye did,” she said. “I’m sorry I dinna thank ye for it yet. There’s not been the opportunity.”
“I-I know,” James said. Then, he dropped to one knee and set the haversack down on a pile of clean hay so he could poke around in it. “C-Christ, I can hardly believe you found this. Did you know my brother, then? How did you come by it?”