RESCUED BY THE HIGHLANDER

by Preston, Rebecca

  “You’ve a lot on your mind. Just …” She hesitated. “It might be valuable to meet with this Galen face-to-face. See if you can figure out if he’s legitimate, or just some mercenary trying to get a payout. Then you’ll know what to do.”

  “Aye, I know,” he said impatiently.

  That was her cue to leave, she reckoned — she gathered her clothes and dressed quickly. He was still sitting on the bed with his head in his hands, clearly deep in thought. Well, let him think. She’d given him what information she could, advised him as much as she could without overstepping (well, almost without overstepping…) Now it was up to him to make the right call. She was tempted, a little, to go and visit the mercenaries herself… but she knew that would destroy the completely the fragile alliance she and Donal had made with one another if he ever found out that she’d done that. As far as she knew, she wasn’t really allowed to leave the castle at all.

  That wasn’t going to stop her, of course, but it was going to make her tread very carefully.

  As she left, he got to his feet and came to the door, taking her into his arms for a tender and very reassuring kiss — she’d been beginning to worry that their romantic entanglement may be more limited than she’d hoped. “I’ll see you later?”

  “Of course,” she smiled up at him, “where else am I going to be?”

  Well, visiting Maggie for a start, she thought, grinning a little slyly to herself as she skipped along the hallway. Yes, there were guards on the wall who would certainly report any unauthorized comings and goings to Donal. It was a good thing, then, that Anna had circled this castle a dozen times and located no less than eight points through which a surreptitious departure was possible. The guards were set in their ways and moved in predictable patterns — good patterns, she had to admit, but there were still gaps. And she knew where they were.

  But first — breakfast. After the exertion of the night before, Anna knew she could use a bowl or two of porridge before she started trying to resolve this medieval conflict. Whether Donal wanted her help or not, he had it. She just had to play it right — balance his ego with his determination to protect his people.

  If anyone could do it, she could.

  Chapter 52

  Breakfast was almost over when she got down to the main hall, but thankfully there was a little porridge still left. It was a little cold, but even that couldn’t dampen her spirits — she hummed happily to herself as she settled down at a nearly-empty table to eat. Emily moved past her, clearing the table, and raised an eyebrow.

  “You’re in a good mood.”

  “I slept really well,” she explained, after a moment’s hesitation. Should she tell her friend what had happened with Donal the night before? Part of her was desperate to gush about it, but the cautious side won out. Their relationship was so fraught, so fragile, and this romantic element was very new. Better not to let castle gossip get hold of it too early — though she knew for a fact that they wouldn’t be able to put it off for very long. Even Amelia’s dalliance with Malcolm had begun to get out — Anna had heard a couple of servants hotly discussing a recent revelation that Malcolm was sleeping with one of the servants, and it was only a matter of time until it was revealed that that servant was Amelia. Emily looked suspicious, but clearly, she was busy — she left Anna to her meal, though Anna suspected there may be some follow-up questions later.

  She slipped out of the front doors to the castle sometime later, her jacket pulled tight around her shoulders against the cold — but to her surprise, the sun was out again. Scottish weather — would she ever get used to it? Hadn’t it rained the night before? Yes — the stones were shining wet in the sun. Well, fine. Anna moved to the shadow of the inside of the wall, watched the guards, waited for the gap she’d observed in their patrols to come around, then slipped out through an unguarded and — she’d found out earlier — unlocked smaller gate beside the main gate. She moved quickly but calmly across the short land-bridge that connected the little island to the castle was on to the mainland, and within minutes was within the cover of the trees without having been spotted.

  Good, she thought. Step one: complete. Step two was to go and visit Maggie. She’d swiped a couple of pieces of fruit from the dining hall as a gift — Maggie had brought her a gift when she’d visited, and she figured it was only polite. Though Maggie had waved off any assumption that the rules of politeness favored by the Fae applied to her, Anna figured it was better safe than sorry. Besides, it never hurt to be polite. She liked Maggie.

  It had turned into a rather beautiful morning, and Anna could almost forget the rather dire situation they were in as she walked briskly around the lake on the way to Maggie’s cottage. It was nice to just look out over the lake — for such an ever-present geographical feature, she hadn’t spent much time actually looking at it. To think that she was likely to spend the rest of her life here was a strange, but not unpleasant, thought. The lake would be there for the rest of her life. She toyed with that thought like an unfamiliar flavor, finding it — in the end — quite pleasant. There was something soothing about huge bodies of water like that. And the knowledge that there was an enormous, benevolent monster somewhere in its depths didn’t hurt, either.

  Maggie was sitting on her porch when Anna reached her little cottage, and she raised one of her stubby arms in greeting. She was still wearing the same cardigan — Anna found herself wondering if the woman ever took it off.

  “I brought you some fruit, Maggie,” she said, pulling the pieces of fruit carefully out of her pocket. The little woman accepted them happily, then bustled over to open the door to the cottage. It was just the same as she remembered it from her first night — she hesitated in the doorway, though, surprised to notice one new addition to the cluttered decor. A young girl was sitting at the table, sipping at a cup of tea, her eyes lifted in surprise to Anna in the doorway. She couldn’t have been much older than fourteen, with huge blue eyes and bright red hair that was braided neatly, the tail of the braid falling down her back.

  Maggie made a sharp sound in her throat as Anna went to step into the cottage, and she blinked, confused.

  “Iron,” said the girl at the table, helpfully.

  Anna’s eyes widened. “I’m so sorry! I forgot.” She reached into her clothing and extracted the iron blade — Maggie eyed it with distaste, as though she’d pulled out a severed hand, and she retraced her steps to leave the blade in the grass by the path.

  “This is Kaitlyn,” Maggie explained, pouring Anna a cup of tea with one hand and chewing happily on one of the pieces of fruit with the other.

  Anna hoped she’d been forgiven for the faux pas with the iron blade. It seemed even friendly Fae were put off by iron — useful information, if she ever met the Sidhe again.

  “Brightest spark in the village.”

  “You’re too kind, Maggie,” Kaitlyn said modestly, but Anna could see the flicker of pride in her eyes as she turned them down to the table. She clearly held the old woman in high regard, this girl. “You’re Anna, aren’t you? The one the Sidhe brought to us. Maggie told me the story,” she added, her eyes glowing. “What were they like, the Sidhe? Were they beautiful? I’d love to meet them someday.”

  “They were — very strange,” Anna confessed, wishing she remembered more details of the elegant creatures she’d met so briefly. “Very tall, glowing, luminous things. They made me feel incredibly safe, though. Like they had the best intentions for me.”

  “They did, I’m certain!” Kaitlyn said, clapping her hands. “They brought you here to help us with these witch hunters, that’s what I think.”

  “Speaking of witch hunters,” Anna said, looking at Maggie. “That’s why I’m here. I wanted to check you’re safe, Maggie. It seems these so-called witch hunters have named you as a suspect.”

  “Too right,” Maggie cackled, the juice from the fruit rolling down her chin. “I’m the witchiest witch for miles around. Unless you count Nessie,” she added, grinning. “But we’
re sort of a matched set, she and I.”

  “It doesn’t matter whether the suspicions are justified or not,” Kaitlyn put in, looking anxious.

  She is a forthright young girl, Anna reflected, impressed. Certainly no shrinking violet.

  “I came to warn Maggie. I was spying on the leader and the priest — the leader, Galen, was telling the priest to just name as many witches as he could, regardless of actual evidence. He was saying they had to stir up as much trouble as possible. The priest argued with him, but not very much.”

  Anna’s eyes widened. “You heard that yourself?”

  “Aye,” Kaitlyn said.

  Anna’s mind was racing. This confirmed her suspicions — these weren’t true witch hunters, but mercenaries, determined to stir up trouble for their own profits. She had to get back to Donal, tell him as soon as possible that these were mercenaries and not men of the Church. It was still possible the priest was a real priest, she supposed — but she doubted it, if he was consorting with men like these ones.

  “We should tell Donal,” Anna said, looking at Kaitlyn. “Will you come with me, back to the castle? Or do you need to get home?”

  “My mother’s given up on getting me home at a sensible hour,” Kaitlyn said brightly, and Anna couldn’t help but join Maggie in laughter. “Aye, I’ll come with you, if it’ll help get rid of these dreadful men once and for all. They’re stirring up such trouble in the village, I don’t mind telling you. Trying to turn families against their own kin, working in the castle! And it’s working, I’m afraid to say.”

  Anna nodded, frowning — she remembered a few of the servants talking about receiving word from their families that they ought to leave the castle at once. Thankfully, their loyalties to the clan and the cause ran deeper than that.

  “Will you come with us too, Maggie? I’m worried you’re not safe here,” Anna said, gesturing around at the cottage. The place wasn’t well-defended… with sixty armed men, this Galen would easily be able to take Maggie prisoner. But Maggie was shaking her head, her eyes twinkling.

  “I’m safe as can be here in my house, my dear, but thank you for your concern for an old lady.”

  Somehow, Anna didn’t doubt that Maggie could hold her own against even a full army of armed men. Especially here, on her home turf. Still, she lingered worriedly in the doorway before they left, Kaitlyn at her side.

  “If I can do anything for you, Maggie — if you need shelter —"

  “Go, go, get back to Donal and tell him what’s what,” Maggie said, flapping her hands at them with cheerful impatience. “I’ve a few duties to attend to.”

  Anna was going to ask what duties she meant — then decided, wisely, against it. Who knew what kind of things an old Fae got up to in her cottage, when there were witch-hunters about? She retrieved her knife from the grass, shooting a guilty look up at the cottage as she did so, but Maggie had already closed the door. So, Anna and Kaitlyn set out along the shore of the lake, heading back for the castle. The weather was still fine, and Anna was interested in the stories Kaitlyn had to tell of the men who had been staying in their village for several days now. The more she heard, the more she suspected that these were nothing but mercenaries — lead by the surly Galen and his rather stupid second-in-command, a man Kaitlyn called Cam. The priest, though — the priest sounded like a different kettle of fish entirely. From what Kaitlyn told her, he was making earnest attempts to preach to the villagers, holding little services in the town square and even bringing food to the elderly and infirm.

  “If he’s faking it, he’s doing a very good job,” Kaitlyn mused.

  Anna had shared her suspicions that the priest was just a mercenary who was dressing the part.

  “He knows Latin and everything.”

  Anna put the priest on her mental ‘to be confirmed’ pile. They’d reached the castle by this point — Kaitlyn was already taller than Anna and had a longer stride, but they’d both made good time around the lake. As they approached the gate, there were confused shouts from the guards. A couple of them came down to meet Anna and Kaitlyn, the gates themselves opening a few feet to allow them passage through. As the guards approached, she realized one of them was Brendan.

  “Well, I’ve a few questions,” he said thoughtfully, looking at her hard.

  She wondered if he knew about her and Donal — if the Laird had mentioned the passionate evening they’d spent together. Was it awkward? It was a little awkward, she decided, wincing. But Brendan didn’t seem interested in that.

  “Most of them have to do with how you snuck out without a single one of my men spotting you.”

  “Pure skill,” Anna said with false modesty, tipping Kaitlyn a wink — the girl giggled, then muffled the sound when the guard standing by Brendan gave her a dirty look.

  “And why have you brought poor old Rhona’s errant daughter with you?”

  “Mum knows I’m out,” Kaitlyn said fiercely. “I’m fourteen, not six. And I’m here with important information for Laird Donal.”

  Anna resisted the urge to giggle — the strident young girl had picked up a little bit of military speak on the walk back, it seemed. Brendan looked amused, too.

  “Alright, in you go. You’re responsible for this little hell-raiser,” he added to Anna with one raised eyebrow. “Donal was in the main hall, last I checked, talking with his tanist. I’ll come with you.”

  Sure enough, when the three of them arrived, Donal and Malcolm were sitting at a table in the empty Hall, deep in conversation, the remains of a meal spread between them. The Laird looked up, a rather pleased expression crossing his face when he saw Anna — which he quickly stilled, putting on a more professional glower. Still, she felt warmth in her chest to know that he was happy to see her.

  “Some visitors for you,” Brendan announced. “Our honored guest has been out and about this morning.”

  Anna winced — she’d been hoping her disappearance from the castle wouldn’t be brought to Donal’s attention. He didn’t seem cross, though — just nonplussed.

  “Snuck past Brendan’s guards? How’d you manage that?” Malcolm asked, incredulous.

  “We’ll be having a talk later about improvements to the castle’s defences,” Brendan said, a little stiffly.

  Anna could sense the energy between them — knew she should try to diffuse it a little, for fear of getting distracted by a new rehashing of this old enmity.

  “I’m happy to teach my tricks to any man willing to listen to a woman,” she said sweetly — both Brendan and Malcolm turned away, fighting laughter. They were both well aware of the rather tempestuous conflict she’d been in with Donal, it seemed, and could tell how loaded that comment had been. The Laird looked thoughtful for a moment — then chose to ignore the subject. Still, she knew her barb had landed.

  She could only hope he’d listen to her now.

  Chapter 53

  “What’s all this, then?” Donal asked, looking from Anna to Kaitlyn, who was standing politely waiting for her turn to speak at Anna’s side. “Aren’t you Rhona’s girl?”

  “My name’s Kaitlyn,” the girl said patiently.

  Anna could sense her frustration. She knew a little of what it was like to stand in the shadow of a parent, and she smiled to herself at the girl’s careful politeness. She’d make a good soldier, she thought to herself.

  “Kaitlyn’s been in the village, spying on Galen’s troops,” Anna explained, hoping Donal wouldn’t feel that she’d gone above and beyond his authority to bring Kaitlyn here. “I went to visit Maggie to make sure she was safe from the witch hunters, and Kaitlyn had had the same idea.”

  “And Maggie’s well?” Donal broke in, clear concern in his eyes. He’d clearly known the old woman a long time — his care and concern for her were evident in his face.

  “Safe and sound,” Kaitlyn confirmed, grinning. “It’d take a lot more than a few scrappy soldiers to scare Maggie.”

  “Aye, that’s certain,” Donal agreed, smiling. “Come �
� sit down with us. Would you like something to drink?”

  It felt strange, sitting at the long table with Donal and Malcolm. Like an actual war meeting, or something like it… Anna just hoped she could play it right, manage to advise Donal without getting his guard up. His ego was still so fragile, and though she could tell he was coming around slowly to the idea of her being a warrior, she didn’t want to rush him too much in case he reacted harshly. Somehow, she didn’t think he’d lock her in her room again… but there were other things he could do. Things that would endanger the castle. This was a crucial time — mercenaries like these men could be very dangerous.

  “So, what news do you have for us?” Donal enquired kindly of Kaitlyn. He was gentle with her — not condescending, but he managed to soften his edges, make himself just a little less intimidating in deference to her youth.

  The girl spoke bravely, describing everything she’d told Anna on the walk over here. That the men had been slouching around the village, intimidating and bullying all the villagers. That Galen seemed determined to level as many witchcraft accusations as he could at as many people as possible in the interests of stirring up trouble. That money seemed to be their main motivation — with the exception of the priest, Father Caleb, who was at least trying to behave like a proper man of God.

  “This is valuable insight,” Donal said gently to Kaitlyn. “I thank you for your bravery. But I think you’d best run home now, before the hunters discover that you’ve brought information to us. It could endanger your family.”

  Kaitlyn nodded seriously — but before she could get to her feet, a guard burst through the door, his eyes wide.

  “Sir — apologies, sir, but there’s an army coming across the Loch from the village!”

  Donal rose to his feet, an expression of shock on his face. “An army? How many?”

  “At least fifty men, maybe more — they’re in the villagers’ fishing boats, from what we can make out.”