His Highland Pledge (The Clan Sinclair Book 4)

by Celeste Barclay

  “I warned ye in the alcove to never touch her again. Ye should have listened.” He pulled his sword free as Hay crumpled to the ground dead.

  A horrible, high pitched screech traveled across the bailey as Mary Kerr ran towards him with her arm raised and a nasty dagger clasped in her hand.

  “You’ve taken everything! Everything! I will kill you for this. Mark my—”

  She did not finish as Deirdre stepped from the shade and moved in front of her. Mary impaled herself as Deirdre thrust the dagger into her belly. As Deirdre felt the blade sink through the skin, she twisted and pulled up, ensuring as much damage as she could. She stepped back and saw Mary’s horrified expression as the other woman looked down at the dirk embedded in her abdomen.

  “You,” blood bubbled from her mouth. She tried to pry the blade free and howled in pain. The moment she succeeded, blood poured forth and the life appeared to evaporate from her. She collapsed in a heap and convulsed before going still.

  Magnus dropped his sword and dirk and sprinted to Deirdre. He pulled her into his arms and tucked her head under his chin. Lifting her off her feet, he walked them through the portcullis until they could no longer see the bailey.

  Placing her back on the ground, Magnus dropped to his knees in supplication as his arms wound around her hips and his head rested on her belly. Deirdre ran her hands through Magnus’s hair as she stared at a man who was a replica of him and then at Ceit Comyn.

  “Magnus, I’m well. Please get up. I canna hug ye like this.” When he did not respond, she tugged on his hair.

  Rather than stand, he pulled her down to his lap and encircled her in his arms. He buried his head into the crook of her neck, and Deirdre felt dampness trickle along her collarbone. Magnus did not speak instead rocking them slightly. Deirdre ran her hand over his back but felt the bandages. She pulled the collar of his leine away from his neck and gasped to see the bandages dotted with fresh blood in some places.

  “Magnus?”

  He still did not answer. Rather, his embrace tightened almost painfully.

  “Magnus? What is it? Ye’re scaring me.” At the tremble in her voice, Magnus gave in and lifted his head.

  His eyes were dry, but Deirdre was sure she detected moisture in the corners.

  “Are ye—did they—are ye still—were ye?” Magnus shuddered each incomplete phrase as his hand rested on her middle.

  “Elizabeth told ye aboot last time ma parents kenned we coupled.”

  Magnus nodded his head. Deirdre blew out a puff of air that made one of her curls bounce off her forehead.

  “I wish she hadnae done that. I wanted to spare ye that story but seeing Ceit means Beth must have been frightened enough to reveal it.” She bent her head and rubbed her nose to his. “Nay one gave me a tincture of any kind. I dinna ken if I’m carrying. I told Hay what happened the last time and warned him that my death would be vera inconvenient for him. He relented and agreed to wait to see if I was pregnant before he would touch me. I reminded him that if he rushed and there was a bairn, he would never ken if yer bairn would inherit all he had.”

  “He didna—” Once again, Magnus could not finish his thought.

  “Nay. He didnae poison me nor did he molest me.” Deirdre saw no need to tell Magnus of Hay fondling her. The man was already dead, and Magnus battled enough guilt. “Mo fhuamhaire, can we go home now?”

  Magnus pulled back and cupped her face in his hands. They melded together as their mouth opened to one another. Their tongues battled much as Magnus just had but with a much more satisfying purpose. Magnus swept his tongue throughout her warm cavern and slid it against hers. Deidre responded by sucking on his tongue until his cock ached for release.

  “Tonight,” Deirdre whispered as he feathered kisses along her cheek to her jaw and down to her shoulder. She tilted her head to grant him more access as her fingers scrunched the material of his leine into her palm.

  “Tonight,” he breathed. “I am home.” He covered her mouth with his once more.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  They arrived back at the royal court after two hard days of travel. They rode at a slower pace even though they were all eager to put distance between them and Crichton. Deirdre had not understood why Ceit traveled with the men until the first evening, and Magnus removed his leine. Ceit unwrapped his bandages and insisted that he allow the cool night air onto his broken skin. Deirdre felt a rage unlike any she had known before surge from her toes to her scalp. She had to walk away from the fire and took a moment to collect herself. Magnus followed her, and they stood in silence staring at one another before they reached for each other. They found solace in each other’s arms, both pouring out their guilt and remorse silently. They held each other until they knew Ceit and Tavish would begin to wonder. They returned to camp holding hands. Little was said for the rest of the night beside a small argument between Ceit and Tavish about the placement of their bedrolls. Magnus and Deirdre were too occupied with each other to pay attention.

  Their arrival was heralded, and Deirdre saw her parents in the bailey as they crossed under the portcullis. She was riding in front of Magnus, and his arms cinched tighter as he felt her go rigid.

  “Ye dinna owe them aught anymore. If ye dinna want to speak to them, ye dinna have to. I willna allow them to badger ye any longer. Ye arenae theirs to control. Ye are mine to protect.”

  Deirdre nodded and patted the forearm that held her in place.

  "Daughter," Lady Fraser's expression was anything but welcoming. She looked past Deirdre to Magnus. Scorn and distaste oozed from her gaze. She appeared as if she looked down her nose at Magnus while she looked up to see them.

  "Mother."

  "Dee, what're you doing back here? With him? Again?" Laird Fraser's halting speech belied his anxiety. He looked up to Magnus and shot him a look of warning.

  "Enough, Father. I amnae here to be a part of yer political machinations."

  Magnus pulled Sealgair to a halt and assisted Deirdre to the ground. He pressed her behind him and placed his hands on the hilts of his dirks. The message louder than if he had screamed his warning. He glared at the older couple, dating them to challenge him.

  Lady Fraser huffed and turned towards the castle’s entrance.

  "We cannot stay out here all day. People will talk."

  Deirdre rolled her eyes before pressing her hands to Magnus's hips, nudging him forward. He looked back at her and shook his head. He crossed his arms and stood like an immovable oak tree.

  "Let's get it over with, aye?"

  Deirdre feared for a moment that Magnus would be awkward, but he relented when he saw wariness enter her eyes.

  "Vera well." He took her hand and walked with her to the Great Hall. Tavish and Ceit followed close behind.

  They passed through the doorway when a squeal of excitement greeted them. Elizabeth launched herself at Deirdre and they embraced.

  "I've been so afraid for you. I could not stop your parents even if I had tried. I'm so sorry."

  "Wheest, Beth," it felt good to use the pet name again after so much time holding herself in reserve. "I ken it must have been ye who told Magnus what happened all those years ago and that ye were desperate to protect me now. Thank ye for the clean clothes. I kenned ye thought of that."

  "What is this talk of protection and what incident all those years ago," the queen had silently entered the gathering hall, and all conversation halted at her question.

  While Beth's excitement raised a few brows within the crowded chamber, the queen's question brought all eyes to the disheveled travelers and Deirdre's family.

  "Lady Deirdre, perhaps you care to answer my question?"

  I dinna care to at all but I dinna have much choice, now do I?

  Deirdre inhaled, but before she could reply, her mother spoke up.

  "Your Majesty, the ladies refer to Deirdre's previous indiscretion and the righteous wrath it brought upon her."

  Elizabeth looked at her aunt before scanni
ng the room for her own parents. She spied them as they gave her a look of warning. She chose to ignore them.

  "That is not the entire truth. It barely touches the truth."

  There were numerous gasps, and whispers buzzed about like a shaken hive of angry Hornets.

  "Pray tell, Lady Elizabeth. That is quite an accusation."

  "Your Majesty, it is not an accusation when it is the truth. By now, everyone has heard the tale of Magnus's and Deirdre's handfast those many years ago. What most do not know is that her parents lied, telling her that Magnus was unfaithful before she even left. When they brought her here, Lady Fraser forced Deirdre to take a tincture to end a pregnancy my aunt feared would be the result of Deidre’s night with Magnus. You may recall how poorly Dee was shortly after she arrived but before anyone could meet her. Her mother poisoned her, and Dee nearly bled to death over a babe that never existed."

  "Sire," Laird Fraser interjected as he directed his plea to the monarch who sat mute through this all. "That is a gross exaggeration of the events. Lady Maeve did not poison our daughter. It was an unfortunate and unpredictable side effect."

  The king ignored the Fraser and signaled for Elizabeth to continue, but she shook her head. She looked to Deirdre who stepped forward. Magnus stood cupping her shoulders, a pillar of support that kept her upright and from fleeing.

  "Your Majesties, once I was recovered, ma parents engineered ma placement into the queen's household. Ye may recall I was always the first volunteer to travel with the queen. I have since learned this was done so Magnus could not find me. He was never informed that I became a lady-in-waiting." She paused to collect herself. "Ma husband has seven years of unopened, returned missives he sent me and that I was denied access to."

  "She could not be allowed to conspire against her own best interests. The lad took advantage of her and manipulated her into allowing him to bed her. Someone had to guide her and rein in her impetuousness."

  "The only manipulators were ye," Deirdre said quietly before looking over at her parents. "Ye swore that he forsook me. Ye said his infidelity was his repudiation of me. He has never once been unfaithful. Nae once in half a score of years. Aye," she swept her glance around the room, "ma husband made his first vow of fidelity to me ten summers ago when he asked me to consider him. When I accepted, he pledged to be with nae one else. He held to that promise until we handfasted and consummated our union. He made the same pledge again as he spoke his vows. He kept his oath. He cared for me more from a distance than ye ever did and ye were with me. Ye even had ma sisters lie and pin me to the chair as ye tried to kill any life that grew within. Count yerself lucky that there hadnae been a bairn or I would have named ye murderers years ago."

  Deirdre could not go on. Her anger and bitterness consumed her. She spun around and gripped Magnus as her fury caused her to tremble. He enveloped her in his embrace, sheltering her from the memories and horrors of the past.

  "Laird and Lady Fraser wanted whatever stewardship it was they would receive if Deirdre married Hay. They kenned of the mon's mistreatment and threats to her, but they refused to reconsider a marriage. They pushed her towards a man who openly threatened to kill her and tried to force her on more than one occasion. What’s more, they locked her in a chamber more than once, most recently in a storage one, and took her against her will this last time with a sack over her head."

  The king’s cold eyes bore into the Frasers as he looked between husband and wife.

  “Did this all occur as has been told here? And before you answer, consider that you have already lost your position here at court, would you also like to lose your position within your clan? I can arrange both.”

  “Your Grace, the events occurred as stated but not as they were described.”

  “And what exactly does that mean? Did Lady Deirdre receive a tincture that nearly killed her after she refused it? Did you refuse to allow her contact with her husband within the year and day of their handfast? Did you intercept his missives and send them back? Did you lie to her and swear her husband was unfaithful and repudiated her? Did you confine her to her chambers? Did you forcefully remove her from this court with a hood to keep her from knowing her captors or location? Did you turn her over to a man who molested and threatened her?” The king’s voice rose with each question and was a bellow by the time he finished his interrogation.

  Laird and Lady Fraser could only stand in place. Laird Fraser resigned to his downfall, while Lady Fraser remained proud and defiant.

  “And what was wrong with my godson that he was not fit to wed your daughter?”

  “Your godson?” Lady Fraser spluttered.

  “Och aye, did ye nae ken? All the Sinclair bairns are ma godchildren, or did ye forget I’m one of those bluidy savages, barbaric heathens, what else did ye call us Maeve? Ye forget yerself, lass. Ye’re Highlanders, too.”

  The king stressed the burr he hid at court. His scorn dripped from his voice as he looked with contempt at Lady Fraser.

  “Did you believe the Sinclairs were not good enough for you? Was Magnus not considered an advantageous enough match? Would he have been if you knew his connections to me were closer than yours?”

  Laird and Lady Fraser had the good graces to remain silent, but one person no longer cared to do the same.

  “Maeve, dinna leave aught out.” Hamish stepped forward. He tilted his head to the side and raised both eyebrows in invitation for her to speak for herself. She turned her nose up at him.

  “Vera well. Dinna say I didna give ye yer chance to say yer piece.” He looked at the king and queen. “Mayhap ye remember the first time I visited the court after becoming a laird. I was introduced to a young Lady Maeve Ross who was a lady-in-waiting to the king’s mother. She ignored me the first eve even though we partnered together for several sets during the dancing. She took an interest, however, when she learned I was a Sutherland. She had a page carry a message to me saying that ma brother-by-marriage, Liam Sinclair, had arrived and was looking for me. When I went to the appointed meeting place, Liam wasna there, but she was. Conveniently, a friend of hers walked in to find us alone in a chamber together. Nevermind we were at opposite ends of the room and hadnae said a word to one another. She tried to trap me into marriage, but Fraser wanted her for his own clan’s alliance, and he seemed to hold a tendre for her,” Hamish sounded puzzled by his last comment, “so Donald took her off ma hands.” He finished with a nod in Laird Fraser's direction and a grateful smile.

  Magnus was sure Lady Fraser bared her teeth at his uncle.

  “Lady Fraser, you have a held a grudge for a score and half summers? But how does that affect Magnus? He was not even born yet.”

  “Her hatred of me and her perception of a slight extended to all Sutherlands, and since ma sister, Kyla, was married to the Sinclair, it extended to them too.”

  The king sat back in his chair and looked to his wife who had fallen silent as the great tale of woe unraveled before them. She looked out at the crowd that was now blatantly staring and listening as each salacious detail was exposed. She looked back at her husband and nodded.

  “Very well,” the king smiled to his wife and then turned his attention back to the assembled mass, “as things stand now, Fraser, you will return any of the bride price paid to you by the Sinclairs. I shall return half of the price paid to the court. Donald and Maeve, you will retire to your land and make an appearance only when summoned. Deirdre and Magnus, you have our sincerest apologies for the blind role the queen and I played in keeping you both apart. We did not realize the significance of Deirdre’s requests when she asked all those years ago to return to you. We cannot give you back the years you lost, but we offer you our blessing along with God’s grace that you may find happiness in your marriage just as your parents did, Magnus. You have our best wishes.”

  Deirdre looked up from Magnus’s chest.

  “It’s over? Really?” she whispered.

  “Aye. Let us retire, and we can leave before first light
.”

  Magnus led Deirdre from the chamber followed by Elizabeth, Hamish, Tavish, and Ceit. When they arrived at Deirdre’s chamber, she paused before the door.

  “I dinna want to go back in there,” she shared with Magnus.

  Elizabeth stepped forward.

  “Dee, I’ll arrange for everything to be packed and readied for your departure tomorrow. Don’t think twice about it. It will be taken care of.”

  Deirdre pulled her cousin in for a hug.

  “Thank ye, Beth. Ye are the only one who made this place bearable.”

  “You’re more like a sister than a cousin. It pleased me to have you here too.”

  “What will you do now that you spoke out against your family?”

  “I do not know, to be honest, but it did not seem to displease the queen, so I should retain my position. As long as I have that, there is little they can do after the scene your parents made. Their disgrace may be my protection.”

  They hugged again before Elizabeth slipped into Deirdre’s old chamber to begin the process of removing her cousin’s belongings.

  Deirdre and Magnus turned to walk to his chamber but found Tavish and Ceit in another heated argument.

  “Tav, we are going to ma chamber. Our chamber. We ride out at first light. Be ready.”

  Tavish turned to listen to his brother, but when he looked back to Ceit when Magnus finished speaking, he saw the train of her kirtle swish around a corner. He scowled and shook his head.

  “I amnae leaving yet. Da sent me to resolve another matter, and it isnae taken care of.”

  “Ye didna tell me aught of this.” Magnus crossed his arms and gave his brother a hard look. “What matter is that?”