When Connor walked into the great hall, Kevin was pacing and Justin was sitting at the table with his head in his hands. Catherin and Anna were standing on the balcony watching. They were not crying or yelling, but they were clearly worried. When Kevin and Anna's sons asked to go outside, Anna let them.
As soon as they were gone, Kevin stopped pacing. "Connor, tonight you will go out again. You must see if they are prepared to attack, and then look for Rachel and bring her back. Do you know the way she might have taken?"
"I do, I have followed her."
"Good. Are you sure you know all her hiding places?"
Connor nodded. He was relieved; he could find her, he was sure of it and now he would be allowed to try.
*
He did not find her. Connor was nearly out of his mind and had not come back until it was nearly too late to go inside the wall. Everything at the Ferguson hold looked normal just as Rachel reported three nights earlier. He didn't see any Fergusons in the woods and he didn't think they would attack any time soon. Inside the great hall, he gave Kevin his report.
Kevin asked him if he wanted to go to sleep on his own or wanted to be knocked out. Either way, he was going to rest. Connor chose the first option, went to his cottage and collapsed into bed.
*
At sunrise, the horse nudged Rachel awake. She splashed creek water on her face, drank and wondered if they had been going in circles. Was it the same creek as before? She noticed she wasn't nearly as sore, except for her head, but even that didn't hurt as much. Her mind was once again clear and her eyes saw things much better. She found a rock to stand on and when the horse got close enough, she grabbed his mane and swung onto his back. As if he knew she was injured, Threcher kept his pace at a slow walk.
Again, she thought about Connor. She imagined herself in the door of his cottage, smiling when he came back from the hunt safe and sound. She considered how it would be when they sat near the hearth on a cold day with their arms around each other. Yes, they would talk. She would tell him all the latest gossip and he would tell her things he had seen in the woods, or conversations with members of the other clans.
But most of all, she wanted him to love her and never let her go. The realization surprised her, but it was a horrible world outside their clan without him.