Kings of Carrick

128 THE KINGS OF CARRICK.
happened than that they should return when the night was
at its darkest, and endeavour to complete the work of the
day. The demolished gate, crashed into splinters by the
battering ram, was removed out of the way ; and a temporary
barricade was erected to prevent surprise. The dead were
reverently laid out in one of the rooms of the house ; the
wounded were cared for ; and all the garrison who could be
spared from duty lay down to rest. They had had a hard
day's work ; and the excitement wearing off, lassitude and
reaction took its place. They had recounted their feats as
they partook of the evening meal ; but even remembrance
and reminiscence were not sufficient to stand up against
exhausted nature.
Mure and Thomas Kennedy of Bargany sat together by
the roaring fire which flashed in the spacious fire-place of the
dining-room. The former was too old a warrior to have
much reaction; and Bargany's share in the contest, though
sharp, had been short. They talked the earlier part of the
night away, Bargany detailing the story of his life on the
Borders, Mure recounting the events which had happened in
Carrick since Bargany and his associate, Mure of Cloncaird,
had sought safety in the south.
" You are not afraid to return, Bargany ?" observed Mure
after they had brought the story of their on-goings up to
date.
" Afraid ?. Why should I be afraid ?"
" You do not know, then ?"
" Oh, yes, I know well enough," replied Bargany, " that I
have been put to the horn and denounced as a rebel, and that
everybody who harbours me is guilty of contempt of the laws
of the land and liable to be called to account for it. But
these things don't last long, and the cold of winter has killed
the finding of the Privy Council. Besides, I haven't come
home to foment strife, but to retire to Bargany and live as
quietly and as peaceably as they will allow me. That, at