“It’s the least I could do,” she said. “After all, ye welcomed me here with open arms and even gave me yer clothes. Jest give Ian some room te breathe, as men dinna like lassies hangin’ on them.”
“I guess ye’re right. So where are ye goin’?” Kyla asked.
“I am sneakin’ out te make a guid meal fer yer brathair and surprise him by bringin’ it te him in bed.”
“Did he tell ye he loves ye, yet?”
“What makes ye ask thet?” Effie’s voice raised in surprise. Then she walked across the camp toward the center firepit that was used for cooking, and Kyla followed.
“Becooz I could see it in his eyes. It’s the same look he gets when he finds a new lassie thet he thinks is special, but it ne’er lasts.”
“So ye’re sayin’ thet Aidan has told lassies before thet he loves them?”
“He’s always sayin’ thet. Usually when he brings them te his bed, and then by the next mornin’, the lassie leaves and he fergets all aboot her.”
“Then it’s a guid thing he didna try thet on me,” she said, feeling her heart drop inside her chest. She’d thought Aidan had really cared for her, but now after hearing this, she knew it was nothing more to him than a reaction when he’d gotten a good bedding.
“Effie, I can see it in yer eyes,” said Kyla with a smile. “He said he loved ye, didna he?”
“Aye,” she admitted shyly, then felt filled with anger. “Thet bastard,” she spat. “He even told me he wanted me te stay here with the MacKeefes. I guess he’d say anythin’ te get me in his bed.”
“He asked ye te stay? I’ve ne’er heard him say thet te any lassie afore.” Kyla bent down and started collecting kindling for the fire. “It would be nice if ye stayed. Ye are like the sister I ne’er had. I like ye.” She stood up and put her arm around Effie’s shoulder, but Effie knew she couldn’t go on with this pretense any longer. Neither did she want to stay and hear Aidan’s lies if he really didn’t mean what he’d said.
She removed the girl’s arm from around her shoulder. “Kyla, I dinna think I’m goin’ te be stayin’. Matter o’ fact, I plan on leavin’ really soon.”
“What do ye mean? Does Aidan ken aboot this?”
Effie couldn’t have the girl telling Aidan she planned on leaving. She didn’t want to alert him to her plan. She had to say something to keep her quiet. “I mean, I really miss me sister and worry aboot her,” she said, which wasn’t a lie. “Aidan disna need te ken thet I’m no’ goin’ te stay. Especially since he willna care anyway, if he tells all the lassies he loves them.”
“I can understand thet.”
“So dinna say anythin’ te him jest yet. I mean . . . I’ll tell him later, all right?”
“If ye say so,” she said. “Still, I will miss ye.”
Effie almost cried out when she looked over Kyla’s shoulder and spied Tasgall peering out at her from behind a clump of trees. He was motioning with his hand for her to join him.
“So what shall we make te break the fast?” asked Kyla, her back toward the man, so she didn’t see him.
“Dinna fash yerself, I’ll make the food,” she said, getting to her feet. “Why dinna ye go and bathe in the loch now afore yer brathair awakes?”
“He’s usually awake by now,” she said, standing and straightening her skirts. “I’ll go wake him if thet lazy galoot is still sleepin’.”
“Nay, go get yer things and head out to the loch now.” Effie turned the girl and headed her in the opposite direction from where she’d seen Tasgall. “I’ll awaken Aidan.”
“Are ye sure?”
“Aye,” she said, picking up the bow and arrows that she’d left there yesterday. “I’m jest goin’ te go hunt fer a rabbit real quick, and then I’ll awake him as soon as I’m back. Jest let him sleep fer now.”
“Well, all right, but jest dinna shoot Aidan’s squirrel or he will have yer heid.”
“I’ll be careful,” she said, glad that Onyx had taken his pet wildcat with him on his journey, as that animal made her a little uncomfortable. She picked up the bow and arrows and hurried toward the woods.
“What took ye so long?” growled Tasgall once she’d joined him in the woods.
“What are ye doin’ here?” she snapped.
“Dinna be a fool. I brought the English soldiers like ye said.” With a wave of his hand, a half-dozen English soldiers appeared, bringing a horse and cart.
Her heart beat rapidly, and she was no longer sure she really wanted to do this. Even if Aidan had lured her to his bed with the words he probably used on whores, she still didn’t want to see him ending up dead. If they went for the stone right now, she knew he’d fight to the death to try to protect it.
“How did ye get te the castle and back so fast?” she asked the man.
“I didna have to. The soldiers came lookin’ fer us, sent by Lord Ralston. It seems he is in a hurry to get the stone, and will be sending a missive for King Edward to join him right there at Liddel Castle soon. Lord Ralston wants te present the stone to King Edward personally, as a surprise.”
“Surprise indeed,” she sniffed. “He wants to be the one to take all the credit for its return and probably thinks it’ll earn him a seat at court or a new title when this is all o’er.”
“Whate’er his reason, I dinna care.”
“What’s yer reason, Tasgall fer helping do this?” She eyed him curiously. “What did Lord Ralston promise ye when this is all o’er?”
“What makes ye think he offered me anythin’?” he asked, raising his chin when he spoke.
“I find it odd thet besides me and me sister who were the only true MacDuffs, they spared yer life when they attacked and killed the rest o’ the gypsies.”
“Thet’s becooz I had information about the stone,” he told her. “Now, enough o’ this clishmaclaver, we have a job te do. Is it safe te get the stone, or no’? We saw the rest o’ the MacKeefes still at the fair, and we hid when three men left this camp yesterday, so there canna be many left. How many are there?”
“Plenty,” she lied, wanting them gone. “At least a dozen or so men, so ye’d better turn around and leave if ye dinna want te be slaughtered. Highlanders are barbaric and will take all yer lives.”
“That many?” Tasgall peered over her shoulder toward the camp. “Then how come I dinna see a single soul?”
She was relieved Tasgall hadn’t mentioned seeing Kyla in front of all the soldiers.
“They’re – all inside. Sleeping.”
“Ye’re lyin’,” Tasgall growled. Then he looked over his shoulder to the rest of the guards. “She’s obviously changed her mind about helping us, so we’ll jest have to do it ourselves.”
“Aye,” said the soldier named Dempster from atop his horse. “We’ll get the stone and kill anyone who gets in our way.” He motioned with his hand for the others to follow and the entourage started to move toward the camp.
“Nay!” She said, wanting to stop them, because if she didn’t, she knew both Aidan and his sister would be slaughtered. “Stop!” she called out, but they didn’t listen. Then she raised her bow, nocked an arrow, and let it fly. She’d only meant to get their attention, but the arrow embedded itself in Dempster’s shoulder. He winced in pain and turned around in fury.
“You bitch!” he called out, breaking off the arrow and throwing the stub to the ground. “Kill her,” he said, but Tasgall pulled the bow from her hand and pushed her to the ground.
“Wait!” he said. “We may need her if we get in a bind on the way back with the stone. We’ll need another Scot along besides meself if we’re goin’ te pull this off. Unless ye want te chance it. But a bunch o’ English with a wagon travelling in the Highlands without a Scot te back up their story is goin’ te raise some suspicion.”
“I’m going back,” said Dempster, “as I’ll be no use to you now, and my wound will only cause more suspicion if we come across any Scots.” He ripped off part of his tunic and held it up to his wound to stop the
flow of blood. “Get the stone and bring it directly to Lord Ralston. Don’t waste any time. Once you make it through the Highlands, kill her as we’ll have no use for her.”
“What aboot me sister?” she cried out. “Is Coira still alive?”
“She is,” sneered Dempster. “But as soon as I tell Lord Ralston you shot me with an arrow, he’ll kill her for sure. If not, I’ll do the job myself to make you pay for this.”
“Nay, dinna touch Coira.”
“Tie her up,” said Dempster, throwing a skein of rope to Tasgall.
Effie knew if she was going to save Aidan and Kyla’s lives she needed to do something fast, and it wasn’t looking good.
“I’ll help ye get the stone,” she said quickly. “Let me tie up the Highlander so he disna give ye trouble.”
“How many are there?” growled another guard.
“Jest the one,” she said, not wanting to tell them about Kyla, and hoping the girl didn’t come back from bathing any time soon. If the guards found her, especially naked, they’d defile her, and Effie couldn’t have that. She looked over to Tasgall, hoping he wasn’t going to say anything, and thankfully, he didn’t. “The Highlander trusts me, so I’ll sneak in and tie him up and then give ye the signal,” she added.
“I don’t believe her,” said one of the guards. “She just told us there was a dozen, now she changes her story. This is a trap.”
“It’s no’,” she said. “Ye need te believe me.”
“Why should we?” asked the guard. “You haven’t proved yourself to us.”
“Then let me do this te prove te ye thet me sister’s life means more te me then this stone. Besides, ye dinna ken where the stone is, and I willna tell ye unless ye let me help.”
She knew if she was able to tie up Aidan, it might just save his life. If not, he’d fight to the death, and she’d never forgive herself for losing the only man who ever cared for her in her life.
“All right, just let her do it, but keep an eye on her,” Dempster agreed, gritting his teeth in pain. “I’m heading back to the castle, because if I don’t do something about this wound soon, I’ll be dead.”
“We’ll collect the stone and bring it back,” said a guard. “Go on, we’ll catch up to you.”
“All right, then,” said Tasgall, pushing the rope into Effie’s hands. “Go tie up the Highlander, though it’s beyond me how ye think ye’re goin’ te do it.”
AIDAN
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Aidan was having that dream again. He was reclining on the pallet, and saw Effie coming into the room. The sun shone around her like a halo, and though her smile was bright, he noticed this time that something troubled her.
He tried to talk, to ask her what was the matter, but couldn’t seem to find the words. Reaching out to take her in his arms, he found once again he couldn’t move. Then she turned back toward the door and her tail swished him in the face. When he looked up, the English were storming into his cottage.
His eyes popped open, and he jerked backward when he saw Effie leaning over him for real. The weight on his chest told him his squirrel was sleeping on him again. Reid scooted off when he tried to sit up, and the squirrel ran up the leg of the table. Aidan realized he truly couldn’t move, and looked down to see his hands tied together with rope and his feet tied as well. He was naked, having made love to Effie during the night.
“What are ye doin’ to me, angel?” he asked in surprise.
“I’m . . . tying you up,” she said, looking away from him quickly, but not before he saw a tear in her eye.
“I dinna understand.”
“I didna think ye would.”
“Och, lassie,” he said with a chuckle and lay his head back down on the stone. “Ye want te make love te me tied up, dinna ye? I tried this once with a hoor and it was verra excitin’.”
“Nay, Aidan. Thet’s no’ it, and I’m sorry but I haveta gag ye too, so ye dinna call out fer Kyla.” She stuffed a rag in his mouth and tied it around the back of his head.
He tried to tell her that his angel was being a little devil and it excited him, but the words didn’t come out since his mouth was gagged. He figured he’d let her do what she wanted with him, as he was always up for something new when it came to games involving coupling.
“I’m sorry, Aidan, and I only wish this coulda been different. But I’m sure ye will jest find another lassie te say ye love on the morrow. Me sister needs me and I have no choice.”
“Yer sither?” he said through the gag, wondering what she meant, since she’d told him her sister was dead. He felt a knot in his stomach and a sickening sense suddenly overtaking him that she’d been lying. Aye, he had the awful feeling something was horribly wrong, and that this was not a love game after all.
The door to the room burst open, and like in his dream, the English soldiers marched in.
“Where is it?” Aidan recognized the Scottish man leading the soldiers into the room. He was the man that Effie said was a gypsy in her clan. The one they’d left back in Glasgow. He pushed his way forward, knocking over a chair in the process. “Where is the Stone o’ Destiny?”
Stone of Destiny? This couldn’t be happening. Aidan shook his head, willing this vision to leave, hoping it was still part of his dream. Effie couldn’t really be a traitor, could she? And after he’d brought her straight to the stone. He prayed he was mistaken, but when he looked back toward her and saw the tears streaming down her face, he knew that he’d misjudged her.
He should have listened to his friends from the very beginning, and never have trusted her. Now he knew what his dream meant. She wasn’t his dream angel after all. The tail she had in his dream should have made it obvious, but he was so infatuated with her that he didn’t want to believe it. She was a traitor, his enemy. Someone who’d only used him to get to the stone. Aye, his dream was turning into a nightmare of the worst kind.
“Naaaaaay!” came Aidan’s muffled cry as he struggled to sit up. He rolled over on the pallet, reaching his tied hands for his sword that was lying on the chair. Effie rushed over and picked it up before he could get it. She turned it around with the heavy hilt of the sword facing him, and for a split second he thought she was handing it to him or going to help. But then his angel did something he never expected. She raised the hilt of the sword up high and brought it crashing down against his skull.
The last thing he heard was Reid scolding her from somewhere in the room, and then he saw stars as his eyes closed and his world blackened in front of him.
Effie’s heart broke at what she’d just done to Aidan, and she threw down his sword and fell to her knees crying.
“Where’s the stone?” asked Tasgall again, shaking her by the shoulders.
“It’s under his heid!” she cried out. “He uses it as a pillow.”
Tasgall and one of the guards rolled Aidan’s body off the pallet, and he landed right in front of her. She reached down and slowly touched him on the head, noticing the big bump and blood that accompanied the gash she’d given him.
She tore off a piece of her skirt and wrapped it around his head. She wanted to take the gag from his mouth and also untie him, but she couldn’t. If he awoke in the middle of this, he’d try to fight the English and she couldn’t let him do that.
“Here it is,” said Tasgall, moving the pallet and spying the Stone of Destiny. He ran his hand over the stone. “It’s beautiful!”
“It’s a damned rock,” said the guard, reaching down and trying to move it. “It’s heavy, too. It’ll take at least three of us to move this, now someone give me some help.”
They dragged it across the room, pushing things aside, making a mess and breaking things in the process. Reid scurried over to her and settled on her lap and she ran a hand over the animal’s fur.
“I didna mean te hurt him,” she whispered to the squirrel. “I was only tryin’ te save his life.”
“All right, load it into the cart,” said one of the guards from behind her.
She reached over to Aidan’s clothes and laid them over him to cover his naked body. It pained her to know she would never feel his arms around her or his body pressed up against hers ever again. She wanted nothing more than to cuddle up with him and make love all night long or to dance with him or just sit there and talk, but that was all over now. The worse part was, that she didn’t know if it really meant anything to him after all.
“Get his weapons,” she heard one of the guards call out. She quickly palmed his dirk and hid it beneath the pallet just under his leg. She couldn’t leave him defenseless.
Two guards rushed over and grabbed his weapons, and another pilfered things in the cottage and stuck them into his pouch. Then yet another guard walked over and dragged her to her feet.
“Come on,” said the guard, “we may need you.”
“What should we do with the Highlander?” asked the man who was stealing whatever he could get his hands on.
“Just kill him,” snapped the guard holding her arms and dragging her to the door.
She broke free from him and rushed back to Aidan and threw herself down to cover his body.
“Ye’ll have te kill me first,” she said, refusing to move out of the way. She wanted to leave some sort of sign for Aidan. To let him know she didn’t really want to betray him, but had no choice. She saw her brooch under the edge of the pallet where she’d put it earlier, and picked it up and hid it in his bound hands so the guards wouldn’t see it and take that too. Hopefully, this would give Aidan some sort of message.
“Let’s go,” shouted Tasgall from the door. “The longer we wait the more chance the clan will return and catch us. The stone is in the wagon, now bring the lassie and hurry up aboot it already.”
“Come on,” said the guard who was going to kill Aidan, and he put away his sword. “He’s not going to come after us without any weapons or clothes.” He reached down and tore the clothes away from atop Aidan’s body, and dragged Effie out the door. Laughing, he threw Aidan’s clothes onto the back of the cart with the stone. Then they pushed her onto the front of the wagon, and Tasgall slapped the reins against the horse and sped away, following the guards.
Box Set - Knights of Passion (7 Novels) Page 56
