Morna's Legacy: Box Set #1

by Bethany Claire

  “Then how did she die?” ’Twas small relief to know that Arran hadna lost a child, but I knew that if he’d believed a child was coming, he would be pained to learn that one was not.

  “I doona know for sure, lass, but I know that it was no fault of me own. I shouldna have married her, and I’ll regret any pain I caused her always, but I willna be so foolish twice.”

  I reached out and patted his hand, only allowing it to linger for a moment. If this had been all, I would have followed him into marriage this very night, but that was no the case. Part of me was unwilling to forgive him. “I’m so sorry, Arran.”

  “Sorry for what, lass?”

  “I’m sorry that me leaving caused ye to marry her. I’m sorry that she died. And I am sorry, but I canna marry ye now.”

  Again, he seemed no concerned with me denial of him. “Ach, lass, I know that ye doona wish to hurt Baodan, but he is a strong lad. He will find the lass that is meant for him. But ye, Blaire, ye are meant for me alone.”

  I stood, moving away from him, tears threatening once more. “Aye, once that was true, Arran. But Baodan is a better man than ye, and he was there for me when I needed him, when ye refused to come although I lay dying.”

  “Dying? I know naught what ye speak of, lass.”

  He was lying, I was sure of it, but the pained expression on his face dinna seem feigned. “How can ye say that ye doona know, Arran? I sent ye a letter when I believed I had only days to live, and Bri spoke to the messenger that delivered it straight into yer hands.”

  He moved too quickly for me to evade him and grabbed both me hands into his own as he pleaded before me. “Believe me, lass, this messenger dinna tell Bri the truth. Had I known that ye might die, no matter the cause, there is naught in this world that would keep me from ye. Tell me that ye believe me, Blaire. Ye possess every bit of me heart and soul. Had ye died, I would have as well. I will not wait to have ye as my wife a moment more.”

  He kissed me then, and I returned it before moving me lips to his ear so that I could whisper to him. “Aye, I believe ye. It hurt me more than I care to tell ye when I thought that ye knew and dinna wish to come.”

  “Ach, lass.”

  He breathed heavily into me ear, his breath shaky. I could feel how much he longed for me. He gently pushed himself against me, and I gasped at the solid sensation against me dress. He dinna move against me further, instead pulling away to kiss me gently on the lips as he stared into me eyes, everything I’d ever wanted to hear from him evident in them.

  “It pains me to know that ye could think it of me, but I know that I havena treated ye as I should. If ye will have me, lass, I shall spend the rest of me life making it up to ye.”

  “Aye, Arran, I’ll marry ye.” I kissed him briefly, moaning as Arran’s hand on my lower back pulled me into him.

  Suddenly, a voice to me left caused us both to grow still. “Will ye, lass? I doona believe that me wedding day will turn out as I’d hoped.”

  I turned to see Baodan standing not far from us. While his face gave none of his emotions away, his eyes, deep brown and beautiful, were sad. Me heart filled with guilt as it broke for him.

  Chapter 39

  Arran left us, understanding that I needed a moment alone with Baodan to explain the best I could. I couldna tell if he was angry. Baodan was a man whose face was impenetrable, and I could sense that even if he was angry, it would take much to get him to express it.

  “Baodan, I believe I need to speak with ye a moment.” Me words sounded foolish and obvious, but I knew not what to say, me face still flushed red with embarrassment and shame.

  He surprised me by reaching for me hand and moved so that we walked through the small garden.

  “Aye, that ye do, lass, but I doona think that ye have as much to explain as ye think ye do.”

  “What do ye mean?” I allowed him to lead me as we slowly made our way out of the garden, meandering through the castle grounds in the moonlight.

  “He is the one, is he no, lass? The one who lay claim over yer heart even when he was no longer there? I knew there was someone, lass, but I dinna know it was me cousin.”

  “Aye, and I’m so verra sorry, Baodan. I wouldna have agreed to marry ye if I believed there was any way for Arran and me to be together. But now that there is, I canna marry ye. It wouldna be fair to ye for me to do so.”

  “Aye, I know that ye canna, lass. I wouldna wish for ye to.”

  I stopped me feet so that he would have to stop walking as well and turned so that I faced him, reaching out to grab his other hand as well. “Truly? Ye are no angry with me?”

  He smiled, squeezing me hands gently. “Nay, lass. I am sad that I shall no share in the pleasure of yer company. I think that we could have been bonny friends, aye? But I canna be angry with ye for doing as yer heart bids. Ye are lucky, lass. Ye have been given the chance to be with the one ye thought that ye’d lost. If I was given the same opportunity, there is naught even the fiery pits of hell that could stop me. I am happy for ye, Blaire.”

  I hadna expected such a reaction, but after listening to him, I wasna surprised. He was the best of men. If I had more brains than heart, I would have married him rather than Arran. I stretched, having to stand on the farthest tip of my toes to reach him as I kissed him on the lips before pulling him into a hug. He squeezed me tight, and me feet came off the ground. Together we stayed there for only a moment.

  Once he sat me back on the ground, I stepped away from him to walk back to the castle, but I turned to bid him one last farewell. “Goodbye, Baodan. Ye are a good man. There is someone else out there who ye will find that ye have enough of yer heart left to give to, and she in turn will heal what ye lost. There is no man more deserving of it than ye.”

  He shook his head shyly. “Nay, lass, I doona know about that. If such a time comes, I shall welcome it, but I willna expect it as I journey forward.”

  I turned away, silently throwing a prayer up to the heavens that love would find him, as I went in search for Bri, Mary, and Adelle. They wouldna be pleased with me if I kept all that had happened from them for long.

  * * *

  The castle had turned to pure commotion by the time I arrived back there after speaking with Baodan. Eoin, Mary, Bri, and Adelle were thrilled to see Arran and were all ready to resurrect Edana only to bury her again after they learned the lies she’d told him. Baodan’s family was so angry with Arran and meself, I was certain a fight was about to erupt. Thankfully, Baodan showed up shortly after I arrived and calmed them down, taking them away so that they could make their preparations to return home.

  All of the chaos ensued around me, but there was only one person’s reaction I was concerned with as I made me way inside the castle. I spotted me father instantly, leaning casually against a doorway looking on at the screaming spectacle with ornery amusement.

  He smiled as he spotted me, quickly pulling me into a side corridor before I could be swept away by the flurry of activity in the main hall. “So I hear that ye’ve changed yer mind on another wedding, have ye, lass? Please tell me that this one to Arran shall be yer last and that ye will truly marry him.”

  I laughed into his chest as I hugged him. “Aye, Father. If I doona, I shall let ye send me away to a convent.”

  “Doona tempt me, love. Now, let us leave this place. The two of ye can be married at the top of the river near here. It runs into a deep valley and is the prettiest place in all of Scotland. ’Tis where yer mother and I were married. If we leave now, ye can make it by morning.”

  We sat out in the middle of the night. My father and I on our own horses and Arran and Adelle atop another. She was not an excellent rider, but she was no novice either. When Arran had told her she could ride with him if she wished, she’d jumped at the chance. I had a feeling it had more to do with her enjoying being in such close quarters with Arran’s solid body than her no wanting to ride her own horse, but it dinna bother me a bit. I could no blame her. Besides, it was I who would sh
are his bed from this night onward.

  * * *

  By the time we arrived, the sun was just beginning to rise, casting beautiful shades of pink and yellow across the shimmering water that gently trickled down the valley, slicing beautiful curves into the green landscape.

  The ceremony was short and simple, rather unlike the pathways it took to get us here. Adelle cried loudly throughout, garnering multiple looks of horror from me father. But at the ceremony’s completion as we sealed our vows with a kiss, I dinna miss the small trickle that fell from Father’s eyes as well.

  Arran pulled me in close, running his fingers deep into me hair as he placed a trail of tiny kisses leading up to me ear. “I dinna think I would ever be able to call ye wife, but in me heart I always thought of ye as such.”

  I pulled his mouth away from me ear and brought his lips toward mine once more. Quickly saying our farewells, we left Father and Adelle to make their way back to MacChristy Castle alone. Mounting Arran’s horse together, we set off down the valley, no knowing what direction we sought, and no caring as long as we were headed there together.

  …And alone.

  Chapter 40

  Tormod waited until the group had split in two and each had departed, Arran and Blaire off toward the north and Laird MacChristy and some lass he knew not back toward MacChristy Castle. Only then did he crawl from his hiding space and walk far off to the west where he’d tied his horse.

  Immediately after Edana’s death, Tormod had gone into the village to spend time in the ale house in hopes that he would be able to spread suspicion of how Edana had met her death among the townspeople. His efforts had been fruitless.

  All that he spoke to had lived under the miserable leadership of Ramsay Kinnaird and as a result were not as sympathetic as he’d hoped toward Edana and her untimely fate. They were also suspicious of him. Bastard or no, they still knew that Ramsay’s blood pumped through him and were unlikely to trust him unless given real reason.

  The people saw Arran and all of the Conalls as saviors who had finally delivered them from the all-powerful hold of his uncle. It had only taken him upsetting a small handful of villagers before he’d been run out of the ale house. They would not allow him to speak ill of their new laird or suggest that he’d done something so heinous.

  He hadn’t, of course, but the truth of Edana’s death could never be known if he was to one day soon take over as laird. Tormod had left the ale house angry and defeated. He spent the next few days sulking until he saw Arran ride from their territory in the direction of Conall Castle.

  It didn’t take him long to guess where or to whom Arran was riding. Tormod knew he was travelling to see his whore, anxious to fall into her arms now that he was rid of his wife. Not that he could blame him. He’d seen every inch of the lass the night he’d watched them make love in the barn, and there was no denying what a great beauty the lass was.

  He knew not how Arran’s new marriage to Blaire could contribute to his downfall, but he was sure that once he told his sister, she could figure out a way to turn it to their favor. He rode quickly, anxious to arrive home so that a plan could be made and a trap set before Arran and his new bride returned to their stolen castle.

  * * *

  “Ye are certain they are married? He dinna just go to take her to his bed?”

  Tormod ground his teeth in frustration at his sister. She was smarter than he was he knew, but he was no fool. She often spoke to him as if he were a small child, not the man who would soon serve as her laird. “Aye, I wouldna have ridden so fast to ye if I wasna absolutely certain. I saw it with me own two eyes.”

  “Aye, good. Ye shall use his whore to turn the people against him.”

  “How? The people doona wish to hear talk against him, especially if it should come from either of us.”

  “Aye, ’twas foolish of ye to try and sway anyone yerself to begin with. All we need is to pay someone else to do our bidding as we did before. The people are too loyal to Arran and the Conalls, but they havena had as much interaction with the MacChristys. It will be easier for them to believe ill of Blaire if the news comes from someone that lives among them and they accept as part of the village. We are outsiders ye and I. Go and gather the midwife who confirmed Edana’s lie to Arran. If she isna willing to help us, take her children.”

  * * *

  Tormod reared back to kick in the door to Gara’s home with as much force as he could muster. The small wooden shack was dark, and he hoped to scare them out of their beds. Surely when the lass saw him with his lit torch, ready to set her home ablaze, she would come with him willingly, and he would not be forced to take her beastly children.

  He moved throughout the small space holding his torch in front of him, slowly realizing it was empty. Not only were Gara and her children not there, it was evident by the lack of personal belongings that they never planned to return.

  Perhaps the lass had more brains than he’d realized. She’d not taken his threats idly. Still, he knew that his sister would not be pleased to know that they no longer had Gara under their control. But tonight was not the night for her to upset him. He was itching for violence. One day his sister would push him too far.

  * * *

  “What do ye mean, she is no there? God, how could ye be so daft, Tormod? To let her go after what she knows? I told ye that we should have disposed of her after she served her purpose the first time.”

  Tormod threw his fist hard against the doorway, his frustration at his sister reaching a point where he was afraid he could no longer control his anger at her. “Are ye no the one who suggested that we go to the lass and enlist her service now? I am tired of ye speaking to me as ye do! Ye doona know to whom ye speak. Soon, I will be laird of this territory. If ye doona wish to stay in the ruins in which we live now, you willna speak to me so ever again.”

  He blanched when she slapped him hard across the face, and his fists began to tremble as the world around him went away. All he could see was her screaming. He knew not what she said, only making out an occasional word as rage filled him. There had been too many years of her belittling him, of her ordering him about and behaving as if he was useless without her.

  Fia might have been quicker to think of ideas, but Tormod always followed them through. Now he knew what he needed to do to bring down Arran. All he had to do was find another castle servant to whom he could coerce to do his bidding. He had no further need for his sister.

  “Doona ye threaten me. Ye’re a bastard. Ye were born a bastard, and a bastard ye shall stay. Any triumph that ye have ever seen has been owed to me. Ye are as useless as our horrid father and as daft as our mother.”

  As quickly as his rage had risen, an eerie sense of calm replaced it. Suddenly, it was all clear to him. Fia was no more than an obstacle, one that he could no longer allow to stand in his way.

  “Goodbye, sister.” He reached forward, grabbing her by the neck as he rammed the side of her head hard against the doorway. She was knocked unconscious at once, but he continued to ram her, over and over, until the gash at the side of her head opened wide, draining her quickly of blood.

  He smiled as she died, stepping over her lifeless body as he went on his way to the castle. It would be easy to find someone willing to do as he bid, and if they would not, they would meet the same fate as Edana and his sister.

  Chapter 41

  Arran and I rode casually, no making haste to anywhere as we made our way deep into the valley following the river. We were both as happy as we’d ever been but equally as exhausted. Arran especially had gone days without sleep, and I could hear his soft snoring against me ear as I rode in front of him on the horse.

  I laughed softly, just loud enough to wake him up and send him jerking upright in the saddle.

  “I think ’tis time for us to take a rest, aye? If ye start to topple off the horse, I willna be able to keep ye from falling.” I leaned back and turned me head to kiss him as he pulled up on the reins to slow the horse’s pace.<
br />
  Dismounting, he tied the horse to a tree. Hand-in-hand we made our way to the river. After searching for a few moments, we found the softest patch of earth and lay next to each other to rest our eyes for awhile.

  I curled into the nook of his arm, imagining that while we intended to sleep Arran would first suggest that we partake of another enjoyable activity. But no sooner had I settled meself comfortably next to him than he was snoring loudly.

  I reached up, lightly kissing his brow before I rested me head against him to try and sleep awhile meself, but I dinna drift long before I drew restless and stood to stretch. I would let him sleep as long as he needed. It was a beautiful summer day, and I’d taken a fancy to stick me feet into the running stream so that I could feel the water swish between me toes. Me last experience with water briefly crossed me mind, but I dinna fear the river with Arran by me side.

  The water was cold but it felt nice in contrast to the warm sun that beat down on me face. I leaned back, extending me neck to spread the warmth over me. I knew not how long I lay there, but I heard Arran approaching before I felt his hands on me shoulders.

  “Ach, lass, ye look beautiful with yer bare feet splashing in the water and yer bare neck red from the sun. If I wasna a gentleman, I would take ye right here.”

  “Gentleman? Ha! Where might me husband be? I know not of this gentleman that ye speak of.” I kept me back to him, smiling as he sat behind me and spread his legs, scooting close so that his front pressed flush against me back. His arms wrapped around me waist as he laced his fingers together leaning in to lightly blow warm air into me ear and down me back.

  I laughed at the sensation, squirming as he held me tight, tickling me with his warm breath.