Kate Robbins - The Highland Chiefs Series by Bound to the Highlander Page A

now.
    James calculated the man behind him was taller than he; the arm reaching around him, holding a blade to his throat, reached down instead of up. James’s wrists were twisted and secured behind his back and a sack was placed over his head. The man shoved him back onto the road. Another pair of hands removed James’s weapons: his short dagger tucked into his belt, a longer dagger strapped to his calf, and his b road sword sheathed at his hip.
    His blood rose to the surface fuelling his outrage, but if he were to find an advantage he must keep his wits. Many footsteps shuffled around him. Some grunting indicated Calum’s struggle.
    Christ, don’t fight b ack, Brother .
    He replayed his abductor’s voice in his head. Not one he recognized, but the man could have masked it. At least his throat hadn’t been slit outright. Highwaymen then. They could be bargained with. A simple ransom request would do it, yet the men did nothing to rid him of his purse.
    Instead, he was bound and gagged and thrown into a cart which was towed along the rugged, bumpy road. He couldn’t be certain, but they seemed to have turned around and so in that case would be travelling back toward Chattan Castle. He made an attempt to loosen his bindings with no success. These men knew what they were about. During the attack, no one except his abductor spoke. There was no hesitation—this was no random act.
    Soon afterward, the horse and cart came to a halt. The canvases were thrown off and they were hauled out, dragged a few feet, and thrust forward.
    The sacks covering their heads were removed just before a wooden frame of a door slammed shut, clanging chains arranged, and a padlock clicked into place. James squinted to identify his captors but to no avail. He focused on his surroundings and the predicament they found themselves in. They were in a makeshift wooden prison. The posts were about twelve feet high and lashed together with rope and the door well secured. The cage was well built.
    James moved to Calum to remove his ropes and gag. They turned back to back and fingered the ropes at their wrists. Though tied tight, they took little time to release. James shoved the ropes aside and pulled off his gag.
    “They must have confidence in this structure,” he whispered. “They had to know we’d help each other with our bindings. Although, even if we could get out of here, I have no idea where we are. Except —”
    He surveyed every inch of their outdoor cell. It was solid with four corner posts, which were about two feet in diameter, and appeared secured und erground making them immovable.
    “Calum, there’s hope. Look at the crofter’s dwelling they entered.” He watched Calum’s face in the moonlight as he squinted until realization dawned. “It’s where we left Fergus. We’re still on our own land.”
    He watched some men come back out, but he couldn’t make out if Fergus was among them. Where were they headed? What the hell was going on?
    He deduced there were more than four men inside based on the number who came out over the next few hours to relieve themselves.
    As he and Calum sat as prisoners, it gave him a chance to rationalize their predicament. He was still on his own damned land and the cottage he was imprisoned near was the same one he’d given to Fergus Mackay and his men as a safe haven the previous winter. Fergus’s involvement made him seethe. His guts burned. What the hell did the man think he was doing?
    “James, why did Fergus abduct us?” Calum asked. “After risking our neck for him, this is his repayment?”
    “I’m as baffled as you are,” James said.
    He recalled how they’d met. Both had been tracking the beasts responsible for the MacKenzie attack. James and Calum learned that the MacKay and his clan were framed that day. With a bounty on their heads and the king away from Linlithgow for the winter months, Fergus was safer out of sight until James could address his Majesty in person. Only then could