Ada & The Earl (The Woodhouse Series #1)

Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6

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*Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland*

This is what relief felt like, seeing a weathered signpost telling us twelve more miles till we reached civilization.

Dunfermline.

It was better than nothing and Louis had promised to get me home to Cornwall from here and himself to Nottingham.

We had been out on foot for just over a day and the night was beginning to creep up over the horizon when we arrived. We had remained cordial and maintained a healthy conversation for each other's sanity but there were plenty of times where I wanted to wring his neck.

One thing I could appreciate was his knowledge of botany was more advanced than mine. He successfully managed to forage everything from herbs, flowers and mushrooms for us to keep our strengths up in the Scottish wilderness.

There was nothing I wanted more than a hot meal though.

I heard the clopping of hooves and I stopped Louis, focusing on the sound.

It was coming from a road ahead of us.

Louis heard it too and turned as he noticed a figure bobbing along a dirt road, travelling perpendicular to us.

A pony trap and rider.

"Hello!" Louis called suddenly, cupping his hands over his mouth to echo his voice but no response. One look at me was enough - we ran for the dirt road, waving our hands and calling for the man's attention.

"Hello! Wait!"

The man turned, noticing us and he stopped the horse as we approached the dirt road. "Say, what're two young birds like you doing here?"

"It's a long story..." I said, taking deep breaths to regain a normal breathing pattern.

"You..have no idea...how...happy...we are...to see you..." Louis said, bent over, hands on his knees as he too tried to regain his breathing. "We...need a ride. To Dunfermline."

"That can be arranged. Hop on..." The rider gestured his whip to the trap behind and Louis and I scrambled on board. "Hold tight!" He called as the pony trap began to move over the rocky dirt road.

We sat with our legs dangling from the back of the trap, crashing into each other over the uneven terrain, probably badly bruised by the time we got to the town. 

After what seemed like ages but was nothing, the rider called out. "Welcome to Dunfermline!"

It was the large cathedral that caught my eye, standing high and mighty above all of the city. The buildings were stone, to keep the heat in against the harsh Scottish weather and the streets were tidy but bustling with people. A farmer's market greeted us as the pony trap came to a stop.

"Thank you very much for the ride..." I said, making sure the man knew how much we appreciated his good-naturedness. "We have nothing to give you..."

"Oh, no worries. Once you get yourselves sorted out, you know where to find me..." He tipped his hat, clicked his tongue and continued down the road.

Louis looked around observing the scene. "We made it..."

I raised my eyebrows. "You had no faith?"

"Well...I did but seeing as how things have been going, I might have lost it a little at some point...temporarily..." He replied, facing me and I crossed my arms. "I promised you that once we go to Dunfermline, I would help you get to Cornwall so..."