When he yanked the arrow from her arm, she let out a scream that resounded through the forest. She wanted to faint-prayed for it. Instead, her stomach heaved until she vomited.
He murmured things to her, wiped her mouth and the tears from her cheeks, then moved her away from her mess. Why did it have to be Red Alex that found her? Why did it have to be him? And yet when his voice stopped or he moved away she panicked, frightened and alone, until he returned and spoke softly to her. Rea.s.suring her.
He pressed a cup to her lips and she drank. She slipped in and out of blackness. They hadn"t returned to his camp and they seemed to be alone, except once when she became aware of her arm being dressed by another man. She stared at him for a long time. His hair was white blond, his eyes like dirty ice. He didn"t speak. She knew him... and she didn"t. He met her eyes once and nodded, then went back to his work. She woke again and it was dark. She was wrapped in a rug and Biddy was pressed against her belly, sleeping. A fire crackled nearby.
She tried to raise her wounded arm. It moved slightly, her fingers flexed against her belly. She let out the breath she"d been holding. She hadn"t realized until that moment that she"d expected them to take the arm off. Of course, it was still a possibility.
She rolled onto her back, relieved to find her good arm free. Biddy sat up, yawning loudly. Fayth reached beneath the rug and touched the wound. It was wrapped in linen and strapped to her side to hold it immobile. It still throbbed dully, but her head was clear. She stared up at the moon, nearly full, and tried to piece together what had happened.
"Hungry?"
The voice came from behind her. She twisted her neck to look back.
Red Alex sat against a tree, long legs bent, arms folded across his knees. How long had he been there, watching over her, caring for her?
"No." Her voice was thick from sleep.
"You really should eat. You look near starved. Doubtless that"s why you nearly died from an arm wound."
"I didn"t nearly die," she scoffed. "Where are we? Where are the others?"
"We"re in the woods, near to where I found you lying in a pool of blood. I couldn"t chance moving you far, and besides, with you being wounded it"s more likely my men will discover you"re a woman-something I dinna want, at least not until we get to Gealach. As for the others, Skelley and Eliot are nearby, keeping watch. The rest are packing the camp and preparing to return home in the morning."
"You shot me."
Alex shook his head. "Not me-one of my men. But he was only following orders."
"You ordered him to shoot me?"
"No, I ordered them not to allow you to escape." He shrugged. "Doubtless they thought an arrow in the arm or leg would slow you down."
Eliot. Fayth was sure he was the one that shot her. He"d been itching to maim her since he laid eyes on her.
Fayth fell silent, oddly annoyed Alex hadn"t been the one to shoot her. When did he plan to punish her for tricking him, beating him over the head, shooting him in the shoulder, and stealing his horse? It irritated her further that he also had been recently wounded by an arrow and was so obviously weathering it better than she was. Her eyes went to his shoulder but she could see nothing of discomfort, only the white linen of his bandages peeking out of the open falling collar of his shirt. He"d shed his mail and his leather jack hung open. The notorious red reiver was a ma.s.s of contradictions that left her head fuzzy and confused. He was hated and feared by so many, and yet in his little world, he was kind and fair and... well, she didn"t want to think of what else.
"I have to ask a question," Alex said, breaking into her thoughts. "It"s been troubling me since you ran into the woods."
She didn"t respond, looking away.
"Why did you run?"
"I"m a prisoner, being held against my will by the enemy. What would you have me do? Sit around patiently, waiting for you to have your revenge?"
"No... I understand why you ran. What I don"t understand is why you chose that moment to run. Everyone was awake and alert. I"d just told them to keep you under guard and so they were at their most vigilant. Rather than bide your time and lull us into believing you"re not a runner, you dart into the forest as soon as you leave my shieling... It"s as if you wanted to be recaptured!"
Fayth made an incredulous noise and struggled to sit up. "Wanted to be recaptured! I couldn"t bear enduring another moment in your vile camp."
He was beside her, helping her to sit. She tried to shove him away, but he ignored her feeble resistance. Her head swam when she was upright, her stomach queasy. She felt drained, weak, like a newborn kitten, incapable of the slightest defense.
"Besides, you were packing up the camp. I had a feeling that once we were moving you wouldn"t be letting me out of your sight."
He remained kneeling beside her. "Well, you"ve the right of it." He shook his head, smiling slightly. "Still, it was thoughtless, la.s.s. Reckless and incredibly-"
"Yes, I know! Stupid and foolish! I"m lucky I wasn"t killed!" She knew the speech. She"d heard it plenty of times, mostly recently from Ridley shrieking about her incredible stupidity. Red Alex was the last person she wanted to hear it from now. The idea of him chastising her left her hot with humiliation.
He looked taken aback. "Well... aye, though Eliot"s a fine shot and wouldn"t have killed you." His face tightened slightly, as if he didn"t quite believe his own words. "What I"m trying to say, if you"d let me finish, is that it was thoughtless, reckless-"
She scowled at him, waiting to see what new insult he meant to add.
"And incredibly courageous."
She blinked. The hot resentment that filled her dissolved into something else that fluttered deep in her chest and belly as he held her with his dark blue gaze.
He laughed, though not at her, but in amazement. "My G.o.d, la.s.s, I"ve never seen the like. You just ran, arrows flying around you. Even when you were hit, you kept going." He shook his head. "And you, naught but a wee la.s.s."
His praise made her uncharacteristically fl.u.s.tered. Her face burned and she averted her eyes, shrugging with one shoulder. "The moment presented itself, so I seized it. I knew I could outrun Armless Eliot and the other man. No one was attending me, except Laine, and I didn"t think he"d shoot me."
He regarded her for a long moment, increasing her discomfort. "Is that what you always do, Fayth Graham? Seize the moment?"
"If I think there"s a chance of success... then, yes."
He tilted his head slightly, snagging her gaze again. She forced herself not to look away, though she desperately wanted to. His gaze was warm, admiring even. For an odd moment he reminded her of her father. Hugh Graham had been tolerant, indulgent even, but rarely proud. Fayth"s dearest memories were those times his eyes shone with pride, that his voice was rich with it.
Fayth was on fire, even her scalp tingled with it. "Stop looking at me like that."
His gaze dropped to her arm. "How does it feel?"
Relieved at the change of subject, she looked down at her bandaged arm. "Fine, I suppose. You tended it?"
"Aye, Davie and I. I didn"t think you"d make it, to be honest. Couldn"t rouse you for a bit. But you"re a stubborn la.s.s. I suppose you just refused to die."
She frowned. "It"s only an arm wound. How could it be so bad?"
"There are places on the body-here," he indicated the inside of his biceps, "here," he pointed to the inside of his thigh, near his groin, "where a wound is fatal if not staunched. You had already bled so much..." He shook his head. "Well, I know men who"ve lost less blood and not lived... and here you are, speaking to me."
"There was another man..."
Alex nodded. "That was Davie. He"ll be back to check for corruption later. He"s staying behind to see to you."
"Staying behind?"
"Aye-the others are going on ahead, to Gealach. We"ll follow when you"re ready to be moved." He looked into the trees, as if his tower were in sight, his eyes strange, faraway. "Ridley and Carlisle might be headed there now, looking for you. I need all my men there."
"So it"s just you, me, and Davie?" she asked uneasily.
Alex grinned slightly. "And Skelley and Eliot. Probably Laine. Laine is sore upset that you escaped and almost died on his watch."
"It"s only an arm wound!"