the warm spring day, attesting to the fact that it was going to be a bad storm. He wished they’d hurry up. Being on the top of a mountain in the middle of a thunderstorm was not high up on his to-do list.
Below, a couple of men began to light tall torches. They spread out around the site, sticking torches in the ground at varying distances.
“We need those all around the castle,” Angus said in awe. “Maybe then our cattle wouldnae have gotten stolen.”
“If our cattle hadn’t been raided, we wouldnae have found this.”
“Ye still think the MacLeans did it?” Angus handed the spyglass back to him. “The cattle, I mean.”
“I dinna ken.” The MacLeans were their nearest neighbors, and though the two clans had never been overly friendly, they hadn’t had problems with them in decades. But when one of the villagers mentioned seeing men herding cattle toward MacLean land the night before last, when their cattle was stolen… well, Ciaran had to check it out. Too bad the villager couldn’t identify the men or the cattle. That would have made things much easier. They needed to brand their cattle like the Campbells did theirs.
Ciaran took the glass and looked to the southwest, past the construction. The tops of Dris Abbey’s—the MacLean keep—northeast and northwest towers were barely visible. The Uaine Forest, which was just northeast of Dris Abbey, had been Ciaran’s destination when they’d spotted this odd construction. The forest was far enough away from the abbey that it was great for spying. If their cattle were there, they’d be on the land in front of the castle, where the MacLeans kept their livestock.
Angus spat off the cliff, then hissed. “I ne’er trusted the bastards. I told ye they were up tae nae guid when they wouldnae join us, the Campbells, and the Kincaids for nightly patrols. Do ye think they are in league with our enemy?”
Beside Angus, Greer nodded his agreement.
Ciaran watched as more men came out and began dragging something across the cement. “It is possible the MacLeans dinna ken this is happening on their land.” But not likely.
Angus snorted. “Would ye ken if this was on ye land?”
“This is on the border of my land and I dinna ken until this morning.” Only the Blae Mountain separated MacKay land from MacLean land.
“The MacLeans have a lot tae answer for.”
“We cannae accuse them without proof. Do ye want tae start a—”
“Bloody hell and damnation!” a voice hissed from above them.
Startled at the sudden intrusion, Ciaran rolled over as he pulled his dagger from his waistband.
Beside him Angus rolled several feet away and to his feet. His sword cleared the sheath as Patrick held up his hands.
“Slow down there, Angus.” Patrick stood over them, staring out at the construction. With the fierce look on his face and the wind whipping through his long blond hair, he brought to mind a warrior of old. He arched a brow at Ciaran. “You should not be here without someone watching your back. You didn’t even know when we arrived.” The censure was clear in his rough voice. With that, he looked back at the construction and lowered himself to the ground beside Ciaran.
Ciaran handed him the spyglass, then frowned at Ram, who stood back from the ledge with Robbie and Douglas Campbell. Robbie was Patrick’s new squire. Douglas was one of Patrick’s warriors. He was a grizzly older man, with a generous heart. He and his wife had ten children, all of them adopted.
The two Campbells took up places beside Patrick, staring out at the buildings, and Ram smiled. He was amused that Ciaran had gotten into trouble. Truth be told, Ciaran was embarrassed at being taken by surprise. It was a juvenile mistake. He’d assumed he’d hear someone coming up behind him. “What the hell took ye so long?”
“I’ve only been gone six hours. It wasnae my fault. I had tae go find Patrick. He was in the village, and Marcus insisted on going with me tae find him.” Ram shrugged. “So it took longer.”
Ciaran nodded in understanding. Marcus did not get around well with his leg injury. It had not been an emergency, and Ciaran would not have told Marcus he couldn’t go either.
Ciaran put his dagger in its sheath at his hip and rolled back onto his stomach.
“Och, but they have done a lot since I left. How is this possible?” Staring out at the construction, Ram got to his knees on Ciaran’s other side.
“What is it?”