All the Wrong Reasons

Part 45

Chapter 45

Colin felt helpless as he gazed down at Cassie’s motionless body.  Ramsey may have been working to get her back to them, but Colin had no idea what the man was doing.  Not only that, but he still did not trust Cassie’s cousin.  The man had been too wrapped up into whatever this plan was.

“She will be fine,” Ramsey mumbled.  “She just needs time to wake.”

“What about William?” Colin asked grudgingly.  He did not trust the prince either.

Ramsey looked over at the man lying next to Cassie.  “He will have damage on his torso and back, but he should be back to normal in a couple weeks.”

“When will Cassie wake?”

Ramsey shrugged.  “It could be minutes, and it could be days.  It all matters on her.”

Colin let out a sigh and plopped to the ground beside his future wife.  Would she still want him when she realizes that it was his fault?  If he had been more alert, none of this would have happened.  Colin would not have been hit in the head, Cassie would not have been kidnapped, and neither of them would be here at the moment.

“You need to explain,” Colin demanded without looking up.

Her heard Ramsey sigh.  “I know; I just wish that my words would be enough for you to forgive me.”

“They will not,” he assured.  “If it had been only me hurt, I may have forgiven you, but you put Cassie in harm’s way.  That is unacceptable.”

“James was not meant to be here.  The man must have had scouts of some kind, because we did not know he was even near.”

“That is not enough,” Colin hissed.  “Tell me what you did, and tell me now.”

“I just wrote the letters,” he mumbled.  “I also switched the letters in the bag.  You were meant to go to the cabin and stay there until Uncle could get Cassie.”

“You knew about all of this?  The entire thing, about how we were not married, that Will was trying to help us, you knew all of it?”

“Yes, but no one was meant to be hurt.”

Anger hit him hard and fast.  Surging to his feet, he took a step towards the man.  “If you think no one would have been hurt, you are sorely mistaken.  How do you think we would feel if you kidnapped her?  How do you think she would react once she found out her father meant to keep us apart?”

Ramsey’s face turned ashen.  “I do not know.”

“Your excuses are lacking,” Colin hissed.  “You may not have meant for anyone to be hurt, but they were.  For that reason, I never want you to take step on my lands again.  Your uncle can leave with you for all I care.”

A hand clamped down on his shoulder.  “Calm down, Colin.  He is still her cousin.”

Colin yanked his shoulder from Peirce’s grasp.  “If he took family seriously, he would not have done what he did.”

“All the boy did was write a couple of letters.  He did not shot at her, nor did he burn the cabin.”

“He still caused her harm.”

“Because he thought he was doing the right thing, Colin.  Think about it from his position.  If you were him, would you have listened to a man like Ashmore.”

Colin thought it through.  Although he did not want to admit it, he knew that if he were a young man like Ramsey, he would have been swayed by Ashmore’s words.  The man was powerful, and knew how to get his way.  It was a deadly combination.  One that Colin would have to watch out for in the future, if the man was going to be his father in law.

“What did Ashmore want?” Colin asked calmly.

“He sent her here to get away from the rumors and James.  Uncle had a spy in James’s manor, and the man told him what James had planned for Cassie.  Hearing what he was going to do, Uncle sent her here under the pretense of marriage.  The man who married the two of you is a friend.  Cassie does not know the man, but her father does.”

Ramsey paused, causing Colin’s calm to chip away.  If the man did not begin talking soon, Colin was going to beat the answers out of him.

“Continue,” Peirce demanded, “before Colin does something you will not like.”

Ramsey nodded.  “After that, Uncle planned to come back a couple weeks later, grab Cassie, and leave.  He thought that the letters would scare her a bit, make her not become comfortable here.  It would make her leaving easier if she thought she was fleeing from danger again.”

“And the person who shot at her?” Colin asked.

“The shooter must have been working with James, because he was not with us.”

“And the Royal Family?”

Ramsey shook his head.  “They just complicated things.  We should have thought about it beforehand.  They love her like family, and they would want to see her.”

Colin glanced at him in disgust.  “They are more like a family to her than you are.  They would never have done anything like this.”

“I know,” Ramsey whispered while keeping his eyes to the ground.  Colin shook his head, wishing that things could be easy for once.  As soon as he got her back to the manor, Colin was locking her safely into a room.  She may not like the idea, but he would not allow her to be in harm’s way until this was finished.

“How do we get them home?” Peirce questioned.

Ramsey looked up at the two.  “We cannot put them on horseback; the ride will be too rough”

“What do you suppose we do, leave them here and flee back to the manor?”

“No,” Ramsey said with anger in his voice.  “We can either wait for morning, or we can make something to carry them on.”

Colin shook his head.  “We would need four people to carry them.”

“I can go back to the manor and get help,” Ramsey offered.

“You think I would be able to trust you to return?” Colin laughed.  “That will not happen.”

“I have an idea,” Peirce told the two of them.  “I will go back to the manor and get help.  The two of you can stay here.  You will need Ramsey if their condition worsens, and you trust me.”

Colin hesitated.  It was a sound plan, but he wanted Cassie back at the manor now.  He did not want to wait another day for them to return.  What choice did he have though?  Either he could attempt to take the two injured back, risking further damage, or he could let Peirce leave to get help.

“Go ahead,” Colin told his friend.  “Get help from people we can trust.  I do not care if you come back with the king himself, as long as you know you can trust whoever comes back.”

“I understand,” Peirce said while walking towards Fury.  “As long as you understand that you cannot kill the boy.”

Colin narrowed his eyes at Ramsey.  “I know, believe me, I know.”

Peirce shook his head with a laugh.  “I shall be back as soon as I can, with help.  Do not fall asleep Colin.”

“Not likely,” Colin mumbled, keeping his eyes on Ramsey. 

Ramsey kept eye contact with him for a minute before looking away.  As Peirce trotted away on the horse, Colin wondered how they would fare.  They had no shelter, food, or water.  That was not his biggest concern though; his biggest concern was how long it would take Peirce to find someone to trust.  If it had been Colin, he would have found a way to accomplish his goal alone.  He could not easily put his trust in a person as Peirce could.  Settling himself to the ground, he stared at Cassie’s face.  There were only two people he trusted, one had left by horse, and the other was lying on the cold ground.