had he been unconscious? He glanced around, trying to find Louie, and located her to his left. The somewhat sympathetic man who’d been walking with them held her in front of him with one meaty paw clamped around her shoulder.
Her eyes widened, and she locked gazes with him. Fear came off her in waves, and with the light, at least there was color in her cheeks now. And to think, it only took him falling off a mountain to revive her. It really was a miracle they were alive, and now it looked as though they needed another miracle to stay that way. Something told him this barbarian leader was not as restrained as his men.
Two men came forward, hooked Bannon under the arms, and hauled him to his feet. His vision wavered, threatening to black out again, but he fought it. Something told him if he lost consciousness, he’d never wake again, either from the concussion or from having his throat slit. He wasn’t sure which. Only his pride kept him from begging mercy.
Once he was on his feet, he took a deep shuddering breath and shrugged out of the men’s hold only to have the tip of a sword pressed to his chest again. His legs threatened to buckle, but his will was stronger than his muscles… just barely. Bannon stepped back, and gravel crunched beneath his feet. They were still on the mountain, though on a more level spot. The rocks around them were bigger, and the torches gave the gray slate a warm glow. It was like being alone in a vacuum. The storm had made everything quiet, and he could only see his immediate area. They were on a relatively flat spot in the mountains that spread out, wider than the rest. Gray rock, pebbles, and mud was all he could see. Utter blackness surrounded him outside the perimeter of the torches.
One of the men who’d manhandled him to his feet shoved his shoulder forward. “Move, outsider. Where are t’ rest of ye warriors? Are ye here tae spy?” The tip of the sword stabbed him, drawing blood through the thin lawn shirt.
“We don’t have any warriors, you heathens!” Louie shouted.
Great. Let’s antagonize the hostile men with big shiny weapons.
Bannon ignored Timothy’s sarcasm and glared at Louie, hoping for once she’d shut up.
The man with the sword looked over Bannon at their leader. “The lieutenant commander said tae look oot fer spies.”
Lieutenant commander? Galaxy help them, this was bad. Did these men work with the IN? Bannon lifted his chin and met the swordsman’s gaze. “I’m Ban—”
The sword pommel shot upward, hitting him under the chin.
He saw stars, his knees gave out, and he went down hard, his hands slipping in the contents his stomach had cast up. Eww….
Louie gasped. “You bastard.”
There were signs of a struggle, then the sound of skin hitting skin.
Bannon glanced over at Louie and found her limp in the man’s arms. Rage coursed through him, and he clenched his fist. His aches and pains gave way to a rush of adrenaline, at least momentarily. Bannon bounded up and charged forward but was intercepted before he got to Louie. Struggling momentarily with the men who grabbed him, he shouted, “Leave her alone! The rest of our men will come for us, and if you harm her, they will kill you.”
Louie looked at him with wide eyes.
Bannon stared hard and finally stopped struggling against his captors. They were holding him as though he were no more than a gnat. He met Louie’s gaze, willing her not to contradict him. Something told him that if these men thought they were alone, their lives would be forfeit, and from the way they leered at Louie, they’d suffer greatly before then. He turned his face back up to the ugly bastard in charge. “We’ll cooperate, just don’t hurt her.”
“Ye’re damned right ye’ll cooperate. Why are ye here? Are ye tryin’ tae stop the base from being built? How many survived ye ship crash?”
Oh bother. This was bad. Bannon didn’t know much about the IN situation here on Skye, but he knew the diplomatic mission was to try and stop their presence. It would seem they were too late. He should have paid a lot more attention to dinner conversation with his family.
“Nae? Ye arenae saying, outsider?” the leader asked with a snarl. “Verra well, we’ll take ye back tae the base, and the lieutenant commander can ask ye hisself.”