by Olivia Kerr
“Just like that,” he replied. “We will escape and be free. Then, my father can disown me if he wants. He can run off and marry some other woman and create a new heir. None of it will matter to me, as long as Isla is safe.”
“Where is this boat coming from?” Lewis asked, ever a stickler for the details.
“The old priest will leave it for me,” Cameron said. “He understands that God does not make mistakes when it comes to our hearts.”
“I see,” Lewis said. “Well, this is quite the plan.”
“But you will help?” Cameron reconfirmed.
“Yes, I will help,” Lewis said. “Do you have a new plan of attack?”
“I do,” Cameron said. “I’ve written it down, and I can bring it to you. I didn’t want to show you until...you agreed.”
Lewis smirked. “What would you have done if I did not agree?”
“I’d probably just circulate it around my battalion,” Cameron said. “And see if they could follow subtle directions. But I would have made sure they were safe. You are my dearest friend, Lewis, and the one I consider my brother.”
“That is very kind of you,” Lewis said. “I consider you a brother as well, my friend. And so, Isla, I suppose you will be my sister one day, if Cameron is my brother.”
She gave him a tiny smile. “Thank you, Lewis. I suppose you have not changed much from childhood. You still have a kind soul.”
“Of course. I hope that war would not rob me of that.”
“And still able to sneak around, like when we were children.”
“Ah yes, I suppose this plan will require a fair bit of sneaking,” he said. “Will you two at least say goodbye before you go?”
“If we can,” Cameron promised. “You are the only one that we want to say goodbye to.”
“Well then,” Lewis replied, “I think we have a plan.”
Isla looked between the two of them.
“Thank you for doing this,” she said. “I will feel incredibly guilty if either of you are not happy with the outcome.”
“But that won’t be the case,” Cameron said. “I know that trying is worse than complying, in this case. And I know Lewis will do anything I say.”
Lewis laughed at that. “That may be true, but you could be a little less obvious about it.”
“Alright, Lewis will do most of the things that I speak of,” Cameron said, with a grin.
“Get your notes,” Lewis said. “We should begin. There is not a lot of time.”
“No,” Cameron said and Isla cleared her throat.
“Is there anything that I can do?” she asked.
“Can you keep David and my father distracted?” Cameron said. “I’m sorry, I know that does not seem as important at the moment, but it is the most important thing. They cannot catch on to what we are doing.”
“I can do that,” Isla replied. “They will both be lost in my visions and prophecies.”
“What do you see?” Cameron asked, turning to her. “Do you foresee...success?”
“I don’t know,” she said. “I wish I could tell you. But the future is not yet clear.”
“Let’s make it clear,” Lewis said. Cameron and Isla exited the tent and he turned to her.
“You do not have to marry me,” she said, softly. “I know we were discussing it as the only way out...but I am grateful just for your help to escape this situation. I—”
“I am aware that I do not have to,” he said. “But I want to.”
She smiled.
“No one has ever said that to me and meant it,” she said. “But I can see into your very soul, Cameron, and it is pure and honest.”
“Of course,” he said. “Last night, I dreamed of the church again. I wish I could see your dreams, to know if we were dreaming of the same church. However, I don’t see how we could not be. We are aligned in everything else.”
“Not quite everything else,” she said, as she indicated the cross on his chest.
He touched it and then glanced at her.
“In the things that matter,” he said. “The rest are just different words we choose to use.”
She smiled even more widely at that.
“Thank you,” she said.
“Perhaps thank me after the battle when we are both alive and headed for the boat.”
“I shall wait until we are on the boat then.”
“Even better,” he said. He desperately wanted to kiss her again, but he knew that it wasn’t proper.
“Soon,” he said, after a long pause. “Soon.”
15
“Isla,” David said, on the morning of the battle.
Isla froze as she saw him coming towards her. On a normal day, it would be no issue, since the pair worked so closely together. However, today she was concerned that he knew exactly what was happening.
“Yes, my laird?”
“You are not dressed for battle,” he said to her, as he looked her up and down. “You will not please the gods.”
“I am sorry,” she said. “I was having a quiet morning of prayer and thought that I would get dressed once I was done.”
“The men should not see you like this,” he replied. “You are a terrifying goddess and you should be seen as one.”
“Terrifying?” she asked, with a raised eyebrow. “I do not think that I am terrifying. I think that I am—”
“No,” he responded. “You are terrifying, and you will strike fear into the hearts of anyone who sees you.”
She swallowed hard and then decided that she wasn’t going to argue with him. She was going to be obedient today because she didn't want him to be suspicious in any way.
“Do you think that we will win?” David asked her, which caught her off guard.
“It does not matter what I think,” she replied. “What matters is—”
“What the gods decide?” he asked, and his eyes bore holes into her. “Yes. But I think that you know in your heart already what will happen.”
“What will happen?” she asked, in confusion.
Neither of them said anything for a long moment. Isla was terrified that he seemed to know her secret, but then he simply smiled.
“Perhaps the gods have not spoken to you yet,” he replied.
“Perhaps not,” Isla said, with an unconformable chuckle. David liked to play games with her mind at the worst of times. She thought he was trying to teach her wise things when she was younger, but she saw now that he was not trying to teach anything. He wanted to trap her into saying the wrong thing, so he could correct her.
“Go,” he said. “Before the hour gets too late.”
“Of course,” Isla replied, and scampered off towards her tent. She was grateful that he did not offer to come with her and dress her as well. She did not want his hands anywhere near her.
She also did not want him in her tent. She had already packed up, for the fateful moment after the battle when they would leave. She did not want him to see that her things were neatly folded and she was ready to run with Cameron to the beach.
Her war outfit contained many pieces of jewelry that David said was sacred. He had told her that the gods would be able to find her more easily when they looked down from the heavens and that is why she had to dress in such a fashion. Today, she wasn’t sure what she wanted. She didn’t mind a bit of extra luck, but she did not want mortals to find them.
Once she was dressed, Isla emerged from the tent. Her silver hair blew in the breeze, and her eyes felt cold and hard. It was as if putting on this outfit strengthened her into something she normally wasn’t.
The men were donning their armor as well, and the entire camp was filled with the sound of clanking and grunting. Her own horse was tied to a tree nearby and he was looking around nervously, as if he knew what was coming. She supposed he did, because of how many times they had risked their lives riding into war.
Cameron was to her left, and although he was talking to Lewis, his eyes were on her. Isla waited until the moment was right, and then approach
ed him softly. She kept her distance from him, as if standing too close would reveal all their plans to the world.
“The British troops are already on the move,” he said. “We must leave within the hour.”
“Are you ready?” she asked.
“As ready as I'll ever be,” he said and she caught a look in his eyes that she had not seen before.
“What is it?” she asked softly. He took a deep breath.
“It’s just…I had a dream last night.”
“A vision?” she asked.
“A dream,” he replied. “At least, I think it was a dream. I dreamed that I was walking towards the altar that we both see in our dreams...but when I got to the altar, you were alone. It was as if you did not see me at all. And you were crying.”
“I was crying?” Isla felt dread creep into her heart. “Why was I crying?”
“Because you were alone, I suppose. Even though I was right there. What do you think such a dream means?”
Isla shook her head and tried to keep a smile on her face.
“Nothing,” she said. “It does not mean anything.”
“Are you sure?” he asked and she nodded.
“I have had enough visions and listened to enough of David’s to know that there is no issue with this one,” she replied. “Please do not worry anymore.”
“Of course,” he said and then looked her up and down.
“You look beautiful,” he said, softly.
“I feel not myself,” she said.
They could not speak any more than that, as the army was clearly beginning to assemble around them. Isla stepped away from him and went to her horse. She did not want to get in the way of the preparations, especially since she had no way to help. All she could do was watch as the men passed her by, and bow her head in thanks when they wished her well. Some of them looked at her with lust, and others looked upon her with admiration. She stayed close to her horse no matter what their intent, and when it was time to mount up, she did so without any assistance.
Isla decided that her place was at the front of the line, with Cameron and Lewis. She knew that within the hour, they’d be able to see the British troops on the horizon.
“Is everything ready?” Lewis said to Cameron, as she rode up between them.
“As ready as it can be,” Cameron said, as he glanced at Isla.
“David is aware of the old plan,” she said, softly. “Nothing has changed.”
“Excellent,” Lewis said. “Then I see nothing that will stand in our way.”
Isla did not speak, but she was thinking of what Cameron told her, about his dream. She did not have visions as often as David, but she did not need to be David to understand what the dream meant.
She did not normally pray, because she did not think that the gods would listen to her. She had committed so many sins and she had disobeyed them so many times. However, if they ever were going to listen to her, she hoped that they would listen to her now.
She didn’t realize that she was praying to a single god until she had done the prayer. Dear God, please protect Cameron. Please protect Lewis. Please let me see the end of this battle.
She did not pray for David’s safety. She did not pray for Jacob’s safety. She felt guilty about that, but she knew that she had to choose what was most important to her. The gods would not answer all of her prayers. She did not deserve to have all of her prayers answered.
She continued to ride with her eyes focused ahead. No one said very much, and she was grateful for the silence. However, the silence was soon broken when they saw the British troops on the horizon.
David and Jacob caught up with the younger three and flanked them.
“Get your men into position,” Jacob said to the two younger commanders. “Isla, this is your moment.”
“Of course,” she said, and glanced at Cameron.
“Do not be distracted,” David growled at her. “You have other things to focus on today. Are the gods speaking to you?”
“Not yet,” Isla squeaked. She felt as if she had committed the worst crime in the world, but simply rode ahead with the two commanders. She told herself that none of this mattered. She and Cameron would soon be on the beach, headed towards freedom. She just had to convince David she was obedient for a few moments longer.
She wondered what would happen when she was free from him and the syrup. Would she need it? Would she crave it?
He had told her that she would likely perish without it, but she did not think that was true. She was certain that she would just continue to live, without the dreams that it caused. The idea of sleeping peacefully at night was something she could not quite grasp.
And if she did die without it, Isla was sure that she would die happy, in Cameron’s arms.
She was so lost in these thoughts that she did not notice when the horse charged forward. She barely heard the battle cries and she did not hear when the cavalry moved for one end of the army to join the other.
What she did hear was David’s anguished yell, and saw his glance at the British troops.
She only needed to look for one moment to understand exactly what was going on. The British commander nodded and three of his flanked officers went to David’s aid, as the older clansman nearly fell from his horse. Despite the fact that he was gripping onto his reins with an increasingly weak grip, Isla could see him point forward and yell.
It was then that she realized that they had been lied to. David had wanted them to take a particular position because the British troops had expected it.
She did not know whether he had been bribed before or after they came to the Scots laird, but it didn’t matter. The British troops had expected their terrible formation and they were prepared to attack them with an opposing force. If Lewis and Cameron had not changed position at the last moment, they would be dead by now. The archers had been prepared to shoot at the original position that the commanders should have been in.
Isla had never been so angry. She had never been so furious with David, or with anyone for that matter. She had been betrayed and she owed him nothing now.
She briefly considered charging at him herself and taking his life. After all, he had been prepared to lose thousands of lives, so why should she not take his?
Isla had never taken a life before, but she did not think that mattered. It would be what the gods wanted her to do.
She was prepared to spur her horse on when she heard a terrifying cry across the field. She looked up and to her horror, saw Cameron fall from his horse.
She could not see what caused his fall, but she could see that his body was limp on the ground.
In a moment, it felt like all life was taken from her own body. This cannot be real. This cannot be the moment I lose everything, just before I gain it.
16
Isla abandoned her plan to attack David and spurred her horse forward to Cameron’s side. She desperately wanted to make sure that he was alright, but the British troops apparently had other ideas. One of them got in her way, and Isla drew her sword right away. She may not have the strength of a man, but she knew how to use it if it was needed.
“What a beautiful goddess,” he taunted her. “Beautiful goddess, all in silver.”
“Stay away,” she said. “For you do not know what wrath the gods will bring down upon you.”
He chuckled at that. His sword was pointed at her, but they had not touched quite yet. “What does it matter? Because I am already going to the afterlife. My place is promised.”
“Your place may be guaranteed,” she said, “but it does not have to be where the gods are. An afterlife exists below us, and it will be happy to host you if you so much as draw blood from my cheek.”
“I would risk that, to touch the rest of you,” he said and licked his lips.
Isla felt like she might vomit on the spot. There was nothing she wanted more than to run her sword through him, but he was too far away. The disadvantage to wielding a sword without the advantage of strengt
h was that she would not be able to win if he charged at her and hit her sword. She would have to use an entirely different tactic.
“Is that what you want?” she asked. “Will that make you spare me?”
“Indeed,” he said. “Why, are you offering? Here and now?”
She met his eyes and let her voice drop.
“Come closer,” she said, “for I was sent to this planet to obey men. My body is a gift to the winning side.”
That was all he needed. He spurred his horse forward and she was sure that he had all sorts of things in mind. However, his closeness was what she required in order to quickly drive her sword forward, and without hesitation.
It struck him right in the belly and his eyes widened. He looked betrayed rather than surprised, and then he fell from his horse.
In another moment, she might have been bothered by the fact that she had killed a man. Now, she moved to get around his body and then slid off her horse and ran towards Cameron.
She wasn’t sure where Lewis was, but she hoped that he would find a moment to come over. She could not move Cameron by herself, especially if life was not gone from him yet.
She rolled him over and was terrified to find his face covered in blood. She was not sure whether the blood was his or that he had attacked someone else at close range before he had fallen.
She looked to his torso and saw a gaping wound that was still leaking blood. It was low enough that it made her concerned about the blood on his face being his. Was there a second wound? Was his nose broken, or was it his skull?
She knew that she had to stop the blood coming from his stomach, and she immediately tore a strip off her dress and pressed it on the wound.
“Cameron,” she begged, hoping that he would awaken and tell her all was well. “Cameron!”
His face was pale under the blood and he looked like he wasn’t breathing. She placed her hand on his chest, and then he took a shallow breath.
“Oh , thank you,” she said, unsure which god she was thanking.
She knew that she had to get him off the field and towards a tent that had been set up at the edge of the hill. If she could get him to safety, she could pack his wound.
