"Are you positive they do not have the boys?"
"Kevin, their hold is nothing like ours. They have no moat, their wall is made of wood and I firmly believe a strong wind would knock it down. I could not search every cottage, but I did look in the doors of the ones I thought were the most likely. It is a warm night and all the doors were open. When I arrived, they were celebrating something and there were torches everywhere. Many of the women and children were in the courtyard, the gates were wide open and people were coming and going just like always. I walked right in and right back out. No one tried to stop me." She was wondering why she hadn't mentioned the woman when Connor broke her concentration.
"I thought you said they almost caught you."
Rachel didn't even look at him. "Connor, do you wake up stupid or does it creep up on you later in the day?"
Kevin tried hard not to laugh, but Anna did, Catherin did and Justin was nearly doubled over. The only ones not laughing were Connor and Rachel, who both folded their arms defiantly. "Go on, Rachel," said Kevin.
"Well, they do not look like they are expecting us to attack or are preparing for war. I saw no extra guards at all. After I left, I watched them from the woods for a long time. If they noticed me, I wanted to see if they would increase the guard once they thought I was gone. They did not."
Justin asked, "Are you cold, Lass? You are wet from head to toe."
"Nay, father. I would have been back sooner if that dim-witted boy had not spotted one of my Ferguson plaids in the forest. I took two just in case I needed another. He seemed to think if he looked hard enough, he would find a naked lass somewhere. He sure wanted a good look and muttered the same out loud. I could not move from my hiding place until he gave up and it took a long time."
"Did you bring your plaids back?" Anna wanted to know.
"I brought everything back. I lost my arrows in the moat, but I can get them tomorrow." She glared at Connor, daring him to offer to get them for her.
Connor didn't say a word.