by Jennae Vale
They all dug in, ravenous from their travels. They ate and drank, laughing and exchanging news with Aleck. As they were finishing their meal, one of Aleck’s men approached and whispered something into his ear.
“They’re here,” Aleck announced. “I will welcome them. Fearghus will show ye to a place where ye can wait for word from me.”
“Thank ye again for yer help. ’Tis much appreciated.”
Nick and his men followed the servant into a room further down the hall, which appeared to be where Aleck conducted castle business. There was a fire blazing in the hearth and enough seats for them all to sit and wait. They’d know soon enough what Malcolm was up to.
* * *
Kat and Malcolm were welcomed into Aleck Sinclair’s castle and shown to the great hall where they were greeted by the man himself.
“Welcome to Castle Sinclair. Come warm yerselves. I’ll have my servants bring ye some food. I’m sure ye must be hungry.”
“We are indeed,” Malcolm said.
Kat couldn’t be happier to be here. She could feel her fingers and toes coming back to life and her rumbling stomach would soon be filled. This was a treat for her. She’d been working on the archeological dig for this very castle for months. Now she could see with her own eyes what it looked like before it became a mass of crumbled and missing stone. It was a formidable fortress. She noted the curtain wall from the outside, the battlements, the inner and outer bailey and now the great hall of this massive structure. She wondered at its demise. What had caused it to become a pile of historic rubble? Her eyes were filled with wonder as her gaze flicked from one end of the hall to the other.
“Do ye like it, lass?” Aleck Sinclair asked.
“I’m sorry. I’m staring at everything. Please forgive me. I’ve never been in a castle so fine.” She fibbed a little on that one. Nick’s castle was equally as beautiful. This one fascinated her because she knew what was to become of it and had seen it with her own eyes. This glimpse back in history that she was being given was a gift she would never forget.
“I’m verra happy ye like it.” He had a mischievous glint in his eye that Kat couldn’t help but notice. “My friend, Nick Mackall’s castle is equally as fine I think.”
That caught both Malcolm and Kat’s attention. “You know Nick Mackall?” Malcolm questioned.
“Aye. I do. Ye’ve heard of him then?” Again that mischievous glint.
“Yes. We’ve recently been with he and his family.” Malcolm wasn’t picking up on the subtle hint Sinclair had directed at Kat.
She couldn’t help but think this was no coincidence. Was Aleck hinting that he knew what was going on? Was Nick here? Had he arrived before them? She prayed he had. He was her only hope of getting out of this mess and possibly back to her own time. Why was it that whenever she thought about leaving, she got an ache in her heart thinking of Nick. She had to go back, didn’t she? How could she stay here in this time? Wouldn’t it mess things up if she stayed? The people she left behind would miss her. Maybe not. She didn’t have any family to speak of. She was an orphan and had grown up in foster care, moving from home to home, never developing a relationship with any of the people she lived with. None of them would even notice she was missing. As for the people she worked with, they were all so focused on their work, they’d hardly notice either. She cast a quick glance in Aleck’s direction and he winked at her. She covered the smile on her lips with her hand and coughed.
“Please, come sit.” Aleck took Kat’s hand and placed it in the crook of his arm, leading her to a seat at the large table by the fire.
“Thank you. This feels good. I’ve been so cold.”
“You’re safe and warm now, lass.” He put extra emphasis on the word safe, but Malcolm didn’t seem to notice.
“What brings you out in weather like this?” Aleck directed his question to Malcolm.
“Trying to get Katriona back to Edinburgh. She’d like to reunite with her loved ones.”
“Yer not taking the most direct route to that fine city,” he observed.
“The weather has not been our friend. It has driven us off course.”
“Well, enjoy yer meal and feel free to roam the castle as ye like. I’ve some things to attend to. I’ll be back later to see how ye fare.”
“Thank you,” Kat said. “Your hospitality is most welcome.”
When Aleck and the servants had left the hall, Kat filled her belly. All of her senses were being filled with warmth and good food. The sights, sounds, smells and feel of this place were just right in her mind. It was what she needed to help her to continue on with Malcolm and his crazy scheme. From the looks of it though, Aleck had some idea of what was going on and she felt secure that he wouldn’t allow any harm to come to her.
She was just sitting back and relaxing by the fire when Malcolm handed her her cloak. “Come on. Let’s see if we can find it while it’s still light outside.”
“But it’s so cold out there.” She hoped to delay him until it was too dark to search and then he’d be forced to wait until tomorrow. With any luck Nick would be here by then, if he wasn’t here already.
“You’ve had plenty of time to get warm. Come on. Now.” Malcolm dragged her up out of the chair and threw her cloak over her shoulders. As they exited the hall, they came upon three of Aleck’s men. “We’re going outside for a short walk.” He brushed passed them, again dragging Katriona in his wake.
Once outside they headed for the gate and Malcolm practically pushed Kat out in front of him. “Lead the way,” he ordered.
Kat deliberately dragged her feet, slowing to pretend interest in everything. “I’m just trying to get my bearings.”
Malcolm was obviously becoming impatient with her. “Hurry up. You should have an idea of at least the area where you found it.”
“I have to measure the distance from the corner of the curtain wall out.” She set herself at the base of the curtain wall and took large paces in a diagonal direction, counting out loud as she went. Malcolm followed on her heels. As they came to the spot where Kat was sure she’d found the emerald, she scanned the immediate area in search of anything green that might catch her eye. Not an easy task with the ground covered in snow. “This is the spot, but I don’t see anything. It may be covered by the snow.”
Malcolm immediately dropped to his knees, intent on finding it. “Help me. Between the two of us, we should be able to clear this small area of snow quickly.”
Kat didn’t want to kneel in the snow. She’d just gotten warmed up and now Malcolm had decided it would be a good idea to add wet to the cold. Of course, Malcolm wasn’t having any hesitation on Kat’s part. He grabbed her arm and yanked her down into the snow alongside him. “Dig,” he ordered.
Doing as she was told, Kat plunged her hands into the icy cold snow, hoping that the faster they got the snow cleared, the faster she’d be back inside the castle and warm once again. They continued like this until she thought the pain in her fingers couldn’t possibly get any worse and then she saw it. The green gem that had transported her to this time period sat in a small tuft of grass that had been covered by the snow. She reached out her hand to grab it, hoping that once it hit her palm the same magic that had brought her here would bring her home. Unfortunately, Malcolm spied it at the exact same moment and he was faster than her. He grabbed it away a split second before she could grasp it. He held it up towards the sky, which was still white with snow. The green of the gem sparkled nonetheless. It didn’t seem to need sunshine to accomplish this feat. It was a self-made sparkle, coming from deep within the gem itself.
“Magic,” Malcolm muttered as he fisted the gem and gazed up to find Nick and his men ready and waiting for him. They weren’t alone. Sinclair’s men were also present as was the laird himself.
“I believe that gem belongs to me,” Aleck stated.
“I’m afraid not. It’s coming with me, as is Katriona.” He grabbed her by the arm and pulled his sword. “Don’t try to stop
me, or our lovely lass here will meet an unfortunate end.” Malcolm pulled Kat closer to him and she shivered in fear. Nick’s face was her focus. If she kept her eyes on him, everything would be all right. He wouldn’t allow any harm to come to her. There were so many of them and only one Malcolm, but he had the advantage. He had the gem and he had her. He slowly began to back away from them, but the men fanned out and encircled him.
“Ye won’t be leaving here with the gem or the lass.” Nick had his hand on the hilt of his sword. “Ye’d be wise to give up now, while ye still can, Malcolm.”
“I’ll kill her. If you don’t believe me, just test me.” He dragged Kat back and the men parted to let him through.
Kat was on the verge of panic. She couldn’t see Nick now. She flicked her eyes back and forth, but he wasn’t there. Where was he? Where had he gone? She needed him.
“Don’t even think about it, Mackall!” Malcolm shouted and spun. Nick had made his way behind them and from the looks of it was planning to ambush Malcolm. He stopped dead in his tracks as Malcolm’s sword now lay against Kat’s throat. “I’ll need two horses. Now!”
Aleck nodded to two of his men who dismounted and handed the reins to Malcolm.
“Back away,” Malcolm ordered. Nick gazed at her with a softness to his eyes and a sorrowful expression, but he then stared daggers at Malcolm. Kat was shaking. Were they really going to let him leave with her? What choice did they have? It was obvious that Malcolm was a desperate man and as such would have no problem hurting her.
“Malcolm,” Nick’s calm but menacing voice was clear. “If you so much as harm a hair on her head, you’re a dead man.”
“If you stay away from us and allow me to get back to the sword, you won’t have a thing to worry about.” Malcolm shoved Kat towards the horses. “Get up there.” He held his sword to her back as she mounted and then he quickly did the same. He slapped the rump of her horse and sent it flying as he spurred his own horse to do the same.
Chapter 18
Stalking angrily back towards the castle, Nick cursed Malcolm Granger and vowed to make him pay for using Katriona as a shield. “Duncan get the horses saddled and ready to go.” Nick barked out orders to his men and then turned to Aleck. “Thank ye much fer yer help. Unfortunately, Malcolm got the better of us.”
“I’m coming with ye, Nick.” Aleck motioned to his men to get their horses. “We’ll meet here at the gate.”
“Aye.” Nick hurried towards the stables to retrieve Laoch. His brothers Duncan and Rory, met him as he approached.
“Dinnae fear, Nick, we’ll get her back,” Duncan assured him.
“Aye, we will.” Rory added.
Nick nodded his agreement with his brothers. “Granger will pay dearly for what he’s done. We know where they’re headed and if we trail them at a safe distance and bide our time, we’ll overtake them. We must proceed cautiously so no harm comes to Kat.” He sounded confident, but he was extremely worried. What if they didn’t get to Malcolm before he got the sword? The man was consumed by the need for power and the sword would give him all he wanted. “I don’t believe it’s his plan to harm her, but that could all change should he feel at all threatened by our approach.” If anything happened to Kat he’d never forgive himself.
* * *
Thoughts of escape were running around in Kat’s brain, but none of the ideas she’d had seemed as if they’d work. Malcolm was keeping close watch over her. He seemed to know she was waiting for an opportune moment to get away from him and because of it, he was ponying her alongside his steed, leaving her no control over her own horse.
“Once I have the sword in my possession, I should have no problem returning to my own time. You’re welcome to join me if you behave yourself.”
Malcolm’s smug demeanor was wearing on her, but Kat didn’t respond. She didn’t want to go anywhere with Malcolm, even back to her own time. Malcolm had put his sword away and Kat no longer feared he was planning to use it on her. She had no doubt Nick would be following them and was probably not too far behind. That thought gave her solace - he wouldn’t let any harm come to her.
The endless riding was starting to get to her. “Can we stop, please?” Kat begged.
“No. We haven’t put enough distance between us and Mackall. We won’t be stopping until way after dark, so there’s no point in complaining.” Malcolm’s menacing gaze met hers.
He was trying to shut her up, but it wasn’t going to work. “What makes you so sure he’s following us?”
“It’s obvious the man is in love with you. You do know that, don’t you?” He snickered and rolled his eyes heavenward.
Kat didn’t respond. She had no doubt he’d come for her, but was it because he loved her or was he simply being a chivalrous highlander who’d do the same for any woman in need? He may have feelings for her, but she doubted it was love. He had been kind, caring and very protective of her, but did that necessarily equal love? Kat knew how she felt about Nick and when she thought about him, she felt as light as air. She tuned Malcolm out and daydreamed about her tawny-eyed highlander and what it would be like to be loved by such a man.
Thinking about Nick took her mind off of her predicament and made the time pass more easily. After a few more hours of riding, it appeared that Malcolm was ready to stop. Darkness would be falling soon and as they came to a halt in a wooded area that opened out on a clearing, Malcolm tensed in his saddle, causing Kat to follow his gaze where she saw a group of mounted men heading their way. She was one hundred percent sure it wasn’t Nick. They were coming from the wrong direction and as they got closer, her heart nearly jumped into her throat. It was Bearach Calhoun and his men. They’d seen her and Malcolm and were now headed straight for them.
“I think I’m going to be sick,” Kat announced as she clutched her belly.
“It seems your husband has found you.” Malcolm chuckled as he waited for Calhoun to come to a stop in front of them.
“Sir, I see ye’ve found me wife. I thank ye. Yer a man of yer word.” Calhoun signaled to his men to grab Kat’s horse and Malcolm made no move to stop them.
“You aren’t going to let them take me, are you?” Kat asked in disbelief.
“You’re really of no further use to me. As a matter of fact, it might get Mackall off of my tail long enough for me to get my sword back and then head home.”
“If Nick Mackall’s after ye, it’d be best ye return with me to me castle. We can defend against him there.”
Malcolm appeared to be weighing his options. “I think I’ll take you up on that offer. I really can’t travel much farther tonight, but I’ll leave before sunrise tomorrow. I don’t wish to wear out my welcome.”
“Good. Let’s get back there then. We’ll need time to prepare for Mackall’s arrival. He won’t get away with stealing my woman, and after we’ve finished with them,” Bearach directed his next comment to Kat, “I’ll see to it that ye pay dearly for what ye’ve done.”
Kat’s heart sank. She was doomed and even if Nick did come for her, would he be too late or would he end up dead because he’d dared to help her?
* * *
Nick and Aleck had stopped within earshot of Malcolm and Calhoun. Their men waited for them further back on the road, so as not to be seen.
“Calhoun!” Nick spat the name from his mouth as if it had a horrible taste. “We’ve got to get her back before he harms her again.”
“Again? What do you mean?” Aleck appeared confused.
“He’s her husband,” Nick answered.
“Her husband?” Aleck’s face went from confused to shocked.
“Aye. She was forced to marry the man and suffered greatly by his hand.” He continued on, giving Aleck the condensed version of her story. “She’s been running from him ever since. I’m afraid of what he’ll do if he has even a moment alone with her.”
“I see. Well we cannae allow that to happen then. We must overtake them before they are able to enter the castle walls.”
>
The two men listened closely for a few moments longer and then headed back to their men.
“Duncan, Rory, follow them as closely as ye can without being noticed. If Calhoun lays a hand on Kat, signal me so I can intervene. In the meantime, we’ll ride further back and when the time is right we’ll strike, but it will have to be soon.”
“Aye, Nick. We’ll take care of it.”
Nick was about ready to jump out of his skin, but he knew that it might be more harmful than good for him to act rashly in this situation. He needed to maintain a cool head if he were to be effective. He could see Aleck eyeing him with concern. “Don’t worry. I’ll nae do something we’ll regret,” he assured him, but added, “Calhoun will rue the day he forced Kat to be his wife.”
“I’ll be happy to help ye with that. What of that Malcolm fella?”
“Granger is after the Twin Sword. He wants the power he can achieve by owning it, but the sorcerer who created it also wants it and Malcolm thinks he can outsmart him and win in the end.”
“He may nae even get there.”
“It would be good if he didnae. I dinnae care to think what havoc he’d bring down upon all our heads if the sorcerer were able to finally wield the sword.”
“How is it that you ken this man Granger?”
“We met in a time and place you would be unfamiliar with. He was even then thinking of nothing but the Twin Sword. Now that it’s within his grasp, he will be even more dangerous than I ever imagined he could be.” Aleck was eyeing him questioningly. Perhaps he’d said too much.
At the sounds of a horse galloping toward them, their heads shot up.
“Nick, something’s happening up ahead at the river.” Duncan’s horse came to a halt by Nick and Aleck. “Calhoun’s men were trying to cross when their horses all, every last one, spooked and began bucking and rearing. Some of the men were thrown into the fast moving water and others landed on dry ground. If there ever was a time to attack, now would be that time.”
