It was dangerous in normal times for Bonnie to sneak out of the castle without a guard, but never mind doing it when there was an alert around them and their valley. She pretended to be walking to the other side of the main hall and whilst the guards who had been tailing her were engrossed in conversation, she slipped out a side door and into a small, quiet hallway.
She kept her head down and ripped the flower from her hair, throwing it down on the ground. If anyone saw her, they would know instantly who she was, but she was determined not to draw any further attention to herself. As she walked quickly toward the end of the corridor, she could see the light up ahead. A doorway was at the end and it led to the outside. Even though it was at the back of the castle, she would be able to slip free and hopefully, work her way around the side without being seen, run quickly over the drawbridge whilst no guards were watching and find her way down to the loch.
It was midday and most of the guards were in the main hall eating, only two were high up on the viewing point that ran around the edge of the top of the castle, and they were marching back and forth, looking out across the mountains and then in the other direction. She waited and looked up, watching them closely, waiting until the time was right…
Her heart was pounding, she was only going to meet her mother, but she didn’t want anyone to stop her, she needed to know what was going on.
When she realized that both of the guards were looking away from the drawbridge, she gathered her dress over her arm and made a run for it. Her chest burned as she fled across the bridge and ran as fast and as quietly as she could, taking care not to kick up any gravel or disturb the ground as she went.
As she ran across the wooden bridge, the end was before her and she crossed the mound and began to travel down the other side. When she reached the end, she waited, hiding to catch her breath, and then she quickly looked behind her to check that she wasn’t being followed before she started to run again, out toward the woods and the edge of the loch.
She always loved being out in nature, and this day was no exception, even with all of the terrible rumors that were circulating the castle. As she felt the soft grass beneath her feet, she couldn’t help but smile. She had wished, so dearly, to have been out there under the stars the previous evening, this was almost as if she was being rewarded and given another chance. And it was more than making up for it.
The mist was still rolling down the mountains and it coated the loch in the most eerie of ways. When she turned and looked behind her, she could only see the very top of the castle and she sighed with relief as she realized that there was definitely no way anyone would be able to see her now. She slowed her pace and enjoyed the walk, all the while listening for the sound of her mother coming behind her.
She stopped when she reached the edge of the loch and waited. The silence around her, for once, seemed deafening and she felt herself becoming nervous. She couldn’t see the castle and she realized how alone she was. What had she been thinking, running down there all alone? Surely her and her mother could have spoken back at the castle.
She was about to get up and begin walking back when she heard the distant thud of hooves, and out of the mist, she saw her mother’s horse coming toward her.
“Mother?” she called as she squinted through the fog.
Her mother sat astride her steed and she waved as she galloped toward her and came to a halt just meters from the water’s edge.
“Bonnie,” she panted as she slung her leg over the edge of the horse and slipped down onto the soft ground.
She could sense the urgency in her mother’s voice and she instantly felt herself tense up. What was happening?
“My darling daughter,” she gasped as she took hold of her by the shoulders. “Your father,” she said with worry, “I think he’s gone mad!”
“Mad?” Bonnie asked as she looked into her mother’s eyes and searched desperately for an answer.
“He is in denial, he says we don’t need the help of Lord Drummond and that if there is indeed any threat, we shall face it alone. He has dismissed all of the support from our neighbors and he will not discuss the possibility of an attack! I fear for us all…”
Bonnie thought a moment whilst she tried to take all of it in. She knew her father well, and if she was sure of anything, it was that he would never react this way to that kind of threat.
“Are you sure mother?” she asked gently.
“Did you not see how everyone was this morning? He’s assured them everything is going to be fine! How can we lie in times such as these?!”
“Well…” Bonnie began, “maybe father is right. Maybe he knows we will be fine.”
“Wolves that roam the Highlands?” her mother scoffed. “It’s the thing of nightmares and he thinks we don’t need help. How could this even be?”
Bonnie understood what her mother was saying, but she also had faith in her father and his judgment. She shrugged her shoulders and looked to the ground.
“I don’t know mama,” she said sadly, “but maybe we just need to have a little faith.”
Her mother reached out, pulled Bonnie to her chest and hugged her tightly.
“I wish I had your optimism,” she sighed. “But maybe you are right…”
She trailed off and Bonnie could sense her grip tightening. She held on to Bonnie’s arms and shoulders with such severity that she squealed with pain.
“Mother,” she hissed, “please.”
But as she looked up and followed her mother’s gaze, she realized why she was clinging to her. Up on the mountainside, coming down through the mist, was an army of men… followed by a pack of giant wolves.