Just as Molly predicted to Murtagh, Jamie did not take the news of her departure well. He did not acknowledge it, ignoring Molly all together. She wished her friend was a bit more accepting of her leaving as Murtagh had been. Though, admittedly Molly could sense a little bit of bitterness from her former rescuer. Murtagh had become a little more distant from her. Maybe it was his way of ripping the band-aid off.
Molly found it funny, how at the beginning of all this, she could not wait to go back home. But, now, Molly felt a little sad. She was going to miss them all, Castle Leoch and the routine she built for herself during her short stay. The closer they came to Inverness, the stronger that feeling of sadness became. She did not want to leave, but Molly felt she had to. While she did try to tell herself, she had no choice. The little voice in the back of Molly's mind was telling her that she was making a hasty decision, and all she was doing was running, like she did with everything.
The group had left for Inverness at sunrise on a none stop trip. Dougal was determined to get there before the sun started to set, and the way things were looking, they were well on their way. The sun now hung high in the sky, and everyone was noticeably quiet. Rupert and Angus were nursing their hangovers with a little hair of the dog. Murtagh had a remarkable way of minding his own business, but Jamie was harnessing resentment towards Molly and was doing his best to hold his tongue, which was starting to prove to be more difficult. The male would look over at the woman, furrow his brows and look away, fidget in his seat like he wanted to say something, but he never did.
Eventually, Dougal suggested everyone stop to give their horses a rest and water. They all traveled together for safety purposes, down to the watering hole. One-by-one, everyone started to depart back to the path until only Molly and Jamie were left. Molly had hoped that by being alone, they would be able to talk about her decision to leave, but the conversation didn't go at all like how she pictured in her mind.
Jamie had disappeared into a group of trees to go to the bathroom. When he returned, he made his way back to his horse. Molly's eyes peered over at the male, following him as Jamie knelt next to the water. She continued to watch as he took small sips from the stream, testing its drinkability before filling his canteen until finally.
"What?" Jamie suddenly asked. He pulled himself to his feet without giving Molly a single glance.
"Jamie, you can't continue to ignore me." Molly started. Slowly, she closed the distance between them. They needed to have this conversation whether he liked it or not.
She didn't get much of a response. Jamie put his back towards her and started to fiddle with his saddle. She knew he wasn't going to understand, but she sure was going to try to make him. Taking a breath, she walked to the other side forcing him to look at her.
"You're going to be upset with yourself when I'm not here, and you realize how stupid you have been acting."
That managed to grab Jamie's attention, by the way, he paused what he was doing to look up at her. "I doubt that." Jamie coldly replied. "If ye don't want to be here, who are we to stop you?"
Molly could feel his stare still on her as she darted her head in the opposite direction. Her green eyes studied the ground for a moment while she figured out the best way to explain this all to him. There was no way Molly could tell him the truth without coming off as mentally ill.
"Jamie, it's not that I don't want to stay. I just can't."
"Why?" He snapped back.
Why? It was such a simple question, and yet one Molly found herself stumbling to answer. She tried to be as gentle as she could, but sometimes the truth hurts. Molly watched Jamie for a moment before finally working up the courage to speak."I need to go home. I have family in Boston waiting for me. They don't know if I'm alive or dead."
"Aye, but what about us?" Jamie questioned. "Aren't we, yer family too? All we have done for you, everything ye have been through, only to throw it away."
Jamie certainly didn't want to make this easy on her, did he? For Molly, it truly felt as if anything she was going to say was bound to set the man off. Taking a deep breath, "Jamie, it's not like that! Of course, you're my family. It's just it's not the same thing."
Looking up from the ground, he offered a blank stare. "Don't worry, Molly. I understand just fine. I only hope Murtagh does as well." He quickly added.
The way he mentioned Murtagh's name like that stopped Molly before she could think of something to say back. She knew Jamie thought there was something wrong with them, and that's why she was leaving. The way he was speaking and acting made that clear. But, Murtagh? The way his name was so casually mentioned, like a final nail in the coffin, made her wonder if Murtagh was more heartbroken than he was leading her to believe. Quickly, Molly turned to Jamie to speak but found herself cut off before getting a word out.
"We're Highlanders, Molly. We don't abandon our own." Jamie added. Grabbing the reins to his horse, he began to walk away.
"Jamie!" Molly called out in hopes he would stop. It was no use, Jamie kept walking up the hill.
Molly eventually followed, but not right away. Convincing herself to leave was proven to be more difficult than she could ever imagine now after talking with Jamie, she found herself riddled in guilt. Molly never imagined this would be what it felt like when deciding to leave. She could feel her eyes swell up with tears threatening to roll down her cheeks, letting the emotions work through her before proceeding up the hill.
Once Molly collected herself, she made her way to the others. But as fate would have it, while they were ready to continue on their journey, they found themselves facing another delay.
"I need to shit," Angus announced abruptly to the small group.
Frustration could be seen and felt amongst everyone. Dougal rubbed his beard, watching their short little friend jump from his horse. The delay they had already was long enough, and this only took them off schedule even more.
"One of you needs to stay with him. Figure out." Dougal ordered. The War Chieftain shuck his head before moving ahead on his horse. Whoever stayed behind was going to have to catch up as quickly as they could.
Molly was noticeably preoccupied with her thoughts. Not until she looked up to find Rupert, Jamie, and Murtagh all staring at her did she realize what was going on. Her look of confusion quickly turned to horror. "Oh, come on, no!" Molly's head darted in the direction in which Angus went. When she turned back around to see the others, they were already walking away. They had to have been punishing her. She just knew it. "Fuck." She groaned. Left with no choice, Molly jumped from her horse and posted herself against one of the nearby trees while she acted as a lookout.
No more than five minutes had to have passed, but it felt like an hour. Molly wrapped her arm loosely around the trunk of the tree she was leaning against, gently swinging herself around mindlessly. How long does it take for someone to take a crap? She glanced into the bushes, seeing no movement from him yet.
For a moment, Molly pulled herself away from the tree line to peer out into the empty grassland. It still amazed her how quiet and vast the highlands were. It was eerily peaceful. After another minute, Molly strolled back into the trees thinking she had given Angus enough time.
"Angus?" She called. "Hurry up!" Molly continued, listening carefully to his response. She didn't receive one right away, but after a moment, heard his muffled reply.
"Shhh. Ye can't rush it." Angus called back. He had said something after that, but Molly couldn't make out the aggravated mumbling.
The only thing she could do was roll her eyes and go back to guarding their horses, which seemed like a poor decision. If someone happened to find them and steal their things, what exactly did these men think she would be able to do to stop them?
Molly's arm folded across her chest as she slowly walked back to her spot. She didn't expect Angus to take much longer, but the short time alone was enough time to think. The problem Molly had was, she always did what she believed to be right, or more accurately, what other people thought she should do. Maybe that's why Molly was struggling so much with leaving all this behind. She needed to ask herself, what did Molly want? Molly's eyes drifted to the ground while kicking little rocks around with her shoes until one little one caught her eye. A gentle smile slipped across her lips as she bent down to get a better look. Placing the stone in her palm, she couldn't help but notice how much the shape looked like a heart. It was rather amusing for her. Closing her fist, Molly shoved the heart-shaped stone into her pocket. Her eyes looked up, staring off into the horizon.
The blue sky stretched forever, and the only sounds were the slight breeze and the birds flying above. The calmness of it all had an added effect on the American. Molly stood there, staring off into the distance. She found herself wondering, what was she running to? She knew what she was running from, but what waited for her on the other side.
There came a moment of clarity while thinking about the life she had been living before finding herself in this miraculous place. Her whole life, Molly felt like she was on the outside looking in. She didn't know who she was or what she wanted. More often than not, Molly let people walk all over her. She watched her dreams slip away in fear of failure.
Who was she? Did she even make a sound? The questions sang in her mind like church bells. Then, when she found herself doubting what she wanted to return to, her thoughts would become laced with images of her parents and her grandma. Molly knew they missed her just as much as she missed them. But, when she felt content with her decision, she would immediately find herself thinking of Jamie, Mrs. Fitz, and of course, Murtagh. The very thought of the scruffy male caused her to smile ear to ear. The quiet man, who risked so much for her, some strange women he never met. From the very beginning, Murtagh made Molly feel wanted. The man left an impact on her and the idea of not seeing him again. It was a hard one to stomach. Maybe even harder than not seeing her parents again.
Molly stuck her hand back into her skirt pockets, her fingers tracing around the stone she had found only moments prior. Perhaps, it was time she started doing what was best for her. Suddenly, without warning, horses could be heard coming in the distance. The disruption was enough to pull her from her thoughts. Thinking it was Dougal and others coming back for them, Molly stepped further out from the protection of trees. It was a move she instantly regretted.
There were far more men than the three she anticipated seeing. Molly couldn't make out who they were at first, but the longer she stared and the closer they traveled to her. Molly was able to make out the sea of red. The battalion wasn't large, but there were enough English soldiers to be overwhelming. It was becoming to feel like everywhere she looked, there were English intruders, their presence in Scotland was similar to that of a cockroach infestation. Once again, Molly found herself in yet another compromising position. A wave of panic washed over Molly, and she quickly realized that she and Angus needed to get their asses out of there.
"Angus!" She called out in a harsh whisper. The young woman had run back into the shelter of trees and down the hill near her friend's location. That's where she spotted him still trying to force a bowel movement.
"Angus, people are coming." She tried explaining again, but he only waved her off.
"There are English Soldiers. Finish your shit later!" Now she got the male's attention. Molly caught a glance of Angus, scrambling to get back to his feet. She took that as a sign to grab their horses. Molly took off into a sprint, thinking they could get out of there. However, as she took that final step into the clearing. Molly met the bright-eyed faces of soldiers surrounding the area.
She could only stand there. They all had seen her fleeing from the trees. It wasn't an accurate count, be Molly counted fifteen. She was screwed. Molly didn't dare look over her shoulder. She just hoped Angus was smart enough to stay in hiding. Her eyes shifted toward their horses. A couple of the soldiers were going through their things. Luckily there wasn't anything there to cause much alarm. The others had pulled their weapons on her, and she knew better than to move or speak until spoken to.
Then as if the situation couldn't have been any worst for her. One of the men rummaging through her things held her journal in his hand. Though, they never got the chance to look inside because when they turned around. The book slipped from their fingers, hitting the ground.
"What a remarkable coincidence." Randall cooed upon seeing the American.
Molly wondered what it would be like to see the man again. But now that she had, the fear she felt was almost too much to handle. Her hands gripped the fabric of her skirt in an attempt to hide how badly they were shaking. Molly didn't reply, but she didn't think she could find the strength to speak even if she wanted to.
The Captain's movements were slow and study as he approached Molly. But his raised brows and curled grin looked amused. "Here we are again, Miss St. Claire." Randall smiled. "Seems to be my lucky day." He added as he closed the distance between them. The man was small in build, and his stature average, but his cold stare and calculating personality made him seem larger than life. His hazel-eyes traced her body, head to toe. "You've changed since our last meeting." Giving her a final look over. "Not for the better, I see."
Molly went to open her mouth to speak, and the words she was trying to form wouldn't come out. She sounded like a stammering mess. "What.." She paused, nervously clearing her throat. "What can I help you with?" She managed to squeak out.
Randall tilted his head slightly. "You are trembling." He noted. Rubbing his chin, he began to smirk to himself. "How is it. That you always manage to end up alone? It's almost comical." It was as if he enjoyed the torment he was putting on her.
"Unlike you, Captain Randall. I'm not nearly as lucky." Molly tried to joke, but he could see right through it.
He continued to watch Molly with his crooked grin and didn't say anything. Randall only studied her until "There is something you can do for me." Finally answering her question.
In a nervous reaction, Molly heard herself asking. "And what is that?" She regretted it the moment the question passed her lips.
Randall placed a hand on each of her shoulders and leaned in before softly whispering into her ear. "I'm looking for something, and I think you know where it is."
His hot breath against her skin caused chills to run down her spine. When Randall began to pull away, their eyes met. It was then that Molly realized that when he said something, he met someone. It didn't take long for her to understand he was referring to Jamie. As long as there was breath in her body, she would never forget the horrific experience Randall inflicted on him.
Her eyes drifted down towards his hands, holding her shoulders. Slowly, she looked up at him. Molly looked him dead in the eyes, and she lied. "No, I don't." She whispered back.
Randall loosened the hold he had on her, which turned out to be a mistake.
She didn't know what came over her, but her flight or fight response started to kick in. Molly looked up and took a slow step backward.
"Be reasonable," Randall told her calmly. "Where do you think you will be able to go?" The Captain asked with shrugged shoulders.
Molly's gaze went from the soldiers with pointed guns, to Randall, then back to the guns. Randall, thinking the American was going to toss her plans of running, motioned for his men to lower their weapons. However, Molly had other plans. Seeing the opening, she pushed past Randall in an attempt to flee the situation, but it was a false effort. She ran into a barricade of men.
Believe it or not, Randall truly believed the women would have been smart enough to make the right decision. But of course, he had been wrong before. "I want to bring her in for questioning." He commanded. Randall moved past the soldiers in charge of locking Molly up. All he could do was shake his head in disappointment.
Molly understood the consequences of her actions. She knew she wouldn't have made it through those men. But what it came down too, was her loyalty.