With Love from the Highlands : A Highlander Love Story Duet, One

by Suzan Tisdale

  Josephine had lost the ability to speak. Graeme was saving her once again from her brother. She was quite thankful at the moment, that she wasn’t hiding in the garderobe like the last time she had seen him.

  He was just as kind as she remembered. Kneeling before her was a man full grown, not the young, slender lad she remembered. Nay, he was much taller now and his blonde hair was longer. Several days’ worth of whiskers lined his more-than-handsome face. ’Twas his eyes though, that brought back a flood of old memories: filled with so much compassion and kindness that she was left mute.

  “Lass?” Graeme asked, suddenly looking quite worried. “Are ye well? Can ye stand?”

  Josephine swallowed hard and gave a quick nod as her face grew warm with embarrassment. With a gentle hand on her elbow, Graeme helped her to her feet. “Ye need to pack yer things, lass. We will leave now.”

  Now? Panic began to settle in. She was not prepared to leave so quickly.

  “Traigh, Albert,” Graeme looked to his brothers. “Ye keep an eye on him,” he said with a motion toward Helmert. “I will be helpin’ Josephine gather her things.”

  Hope began to rise inside her. Today, she mused. In less than an hour she and Laurin would finally be free of this place, of her brother and his two vicious friends. Excitement fluttered from her stomach to her fingers as she proudly walked past her brother.

  Once outside, she recognized all but one of the men. Bruce and Albert had Helmert’s friends, Darvord and Clarence, pinned against a wagon, the tips of their swords only a hairsbreadth away from their necks. Josephine took a great measure of happiness from seeing the two fools look ready to piss themselves. There were other MacAulay men scattered about the yard with their weapons drawn as if they were prepared to do battle.

  Hurriedly, Graeme escorted her back to the keep. “Where be yer chamber?” Graeme asked as they stepped into the dimly lit entry.

  “Above stairs,” Josephine managed to stammer.

  Graeme placed one hand on the small of her back while she led the way through the corridor and up the stairs. Her bedchamber was the third door on the right. Graeme’s hand never left her back and Josephine found it most comforting. For the first time in a very long time, she felt protected.

  When they reached her room, panic swelled in her stomach. The door was splintered and broken, hanging precariously on its hinges. Quickly, Josephine raced inside to make certain they hadn’t found Laurin. Graeme was right behind her, though he waited in the doorway at a respectful distance.

  Josephine went straightaway to the trunk, pulled it away from the wall and knelt down. She pulled the tapestry aside and opened the door. “Laurin,” she whispered softly as she held out her hand. She was much relieved when Laurin reached out for her. “All is well now.”

  Reluctantly, Laurin took Josephine’s hand and crawled out of the secret hiding place. The blood on her lip was still damp and her left eye was red and almost swollen shut. Clarence had ripped open the bodice of her dress earlier; the bloody lip was a gift from Darvord. Josephine tried closing the dress as best she could to help cover Laurin’s exposed breasts.

  Laurin’s eyes grew wide and her mouth fell open when she saw Graeme standing in the doorway. “Who be he?” she asked.

  Josephine hurried to the bed, grabbed a shawl and wrapped it around her friend’s shoulders. “This is Graeme MacAulay. He is here to take us to his home.” ’Twas then that she noticed the other man from the courtyard. He was standing behind Graeme and off to one side. He had dark hair and even darker eyes. Not quite as tall as Graeme, but he had the same well-muscled form as her betrothed. A moment later, Albert stepped inside the room.

  “Us?” Graeme said as he stared at the two women.

  Josephine nodded and continued to smile at him. “Aye, us.”

  “But lass, who be she?” Graeme asked, looking confused.

  Josephine raised her chin ever so slightly. “This is my sister, Laurin.”

  Graeme’s eyebrow arched in befuddlement. “I was no’ aware ye had a sister.”

  “Laurin may not be my sister by blood, but she is my sister by my heart,” Josephine explained. “I will not leave her.”

  Frowning, he said softly, “We cannae take her with us. We have no right to.”

  There was no way on God’s earth that Josephine was going to leave this place without Laurin. They had been friends since the day Laurin arrived at the keep more than seven years ago. Together, they had survived the hell Helmert had put them through. Josephine would not abandon her. Not now, not ever.

  Josephine lifted her chin and stared directly into Graeme’s eyes. “I will not leave without her.”

  Graeme did feel some measure of pity for Josephine. He did not know all that had transpired in her life over the years, but if the events of the past few moments were any indication, her life had been quite difficult. The poor young woman was determined to take her friend with her. He could not rightly blame her. From the looks of the pitiful girl standing next to his betrothed, she hadn’t had an easy way of it either. Still, what legal grounds did he have to take the poor girl with him?

  “I do no’ have any legal right to yer friend,” he began.

  “My sister,” Josephine corrected. “You may not have a legal right, but do you not possess a moral one?”

  The as yet unidentified man pushed his way through the small space between Graeme and Albert. In perfect French he suggested that they take Laurin along to act as Josephine’s lady’s maid.

  Graeme’s gaze briefly shifted to Josephine and Laurin. They were clinging to one another, looking afraid yet determined.

  “I beg yer pardon, lass. This is me verra good friend, Remi LaFavre. He is from Garçon’. That be in France, ye ken?”

  Was he merely being kind and trying to patiently explain things or was he being a condescending ass? For now, she would have to give him the benefit of the doubt.

  “Remi suggests that we ask to take Laurin as yer lady’s maid,” he explained. “Would ye like that, lass?”

  Josephine cast a glance at Albert. From the moment he had stepped foot inside Josephine’s bedchamber, he hadn’t taken his eyes off Laurin. Before she could get a word out, Graeme stepped forward. “Would ye like that, lass?” he asked yet again.

  All she could think to do at the moment was give a nod of affirmation.

  He looked rather pleased with himself. “Good!” he said as he clapped his hands together. “Ye need to pack yer things. I fear ye cannae take much, fer I was no’ prepared to be takin’ ye with me today. We will send fer the rest later.”

  Albert stepped forward then. “Graeme may no’ have been prepared, but we were. We brought extra horses, one fer ye to ride and two to carry yer things.”

  Graeme had an odd expression on his face, one that Josephine could not quite decipher.

  “Thank ye kindly, Albert,” she said. “If ye’ll please leave us to change our clothes and pack?”

  Graeme pursed his lips but acquiesced. “Aye, but please, do no’ tarry. We do no’ have much time to spare, ye ken?”

  Once the men were out of the room, Josephine and Laurin went to the trunk at the foot of her bed.

  “Do ye truly think Helmert will let me go?” Laurin asked, her voice a mixture of excitement and fear as they pulled all manner of garments from the trunk.

  “Do not worry, Laurin. I promised you years ago that I would not leave this place without you,” she pulled a clean gown, chemise, and woolens from the trunk and handed them to her friend. “Hurry now, we do not have much time.”

  Laurin stepped out of what was left of her dress and chemise and kicked them aside with her foot. As she dressed, she could not help but ask for reassurance from her best and only friend. “But, Joie! Ye cannae stay behind just fer me. Ye have a chance at a good life now.”

  Josephine found the burgundy gown she’d been looking for and hurried to dress. Her mind was in a hundred different places at once. “I said not to worry, Laurin. We will l
eave this place today. Both of us, together, just as we’ve always planned. Even if that means I have to kill my brother with my own hands.”

  Laurin wasn’t about to question her friend’s loyalty or promise. They’d lain awake many a night discussing the various ways in which Helmert and his friends might meet their untimely ends. After pulling on her woolens, she shoved her feet into boots and stood, scanning the bedchamber. “Though we had many wonderful times in this bedchamber, I do no’ think I’ll miss it.”

  Josephine had to agree. “Neither will I,” she said as she pulled the clean dress over her head.

  “Do ye think he be the one?” Laurin asked as she went to kneel beside the bed.

  Josephine need not ask to what she was referring. The Gladius. “I am not yet certain, Laurin,” she admitted. “Only time will tell.” And until she was completely certain, she would have to keep the Gladius hidden, just as her mother had, and her mother before her.

  Laurin carefully removed the Gladius from under the mattress and laid it on the bed. ’Twas wrapped in several old linen cloths.

  Laurin looked down at the bundle on the bed. “How will we get the Gladius out of here?” she asked.

  “I doubt they thought to bring a wagon,” she said. “And I have no trunk it will fit in. And I’m certain Helmert will want to inspect anything we try to remove from the keep.”

  A bright smile lit Laurin’s face. “Well, almost anythin’,” she said with a mischievous smile.

  It took only a moment for Josephine to catch on. “Sister of my heart,” Josephine said with a smile, “I am so happy you are my friend and not mine enemy.”

  Graeme and Albert paced in the hallway. They kept far enough away that they could not inadvertently see the women, but close enough that they could hear them should they need assistance.

  “I hope they do not take as long as most women,” Remi said as he leaned against the wall.

  “Ye’ll soon learn they be no’ like most women,” Albert told him bluntly. Neither Graeme nor Remi asked for clarification.

  “They have chosen a beautiful woman for your bride, Graeme,” Remi said as he crossed one ankle over the other. “And her friend? She is beautiful as well, non? Even with the blackened eye.”

  Albert stopped pacing and glared down at Remi. “Do no’ be gettin’ any fanciful notions, French.”

  Remi feigned a look of insult. “Moi?”

  Albert ignored him to resume his pacing.

  They were not forced to wait long. Soon, Josephine was standing in the doorway. “We are ready, m’laird,” she told him.

  Graeme headed into the room. Remi was about to step inside when Albert pulled him back. “Ye can wait here, French.”

  Remi smiled and stepped aside with a wide flourish of his hands.

  On the bed were five bundles and a tapestry that had been carefully rolled up and leather straps tied tightly around each end. “Be this all, lass?” he asked Josephine as he picked up two of the packs and tossed one over each shoulder. Though he had said to pack lightly, he hadn’t thought she would take it quite so literally. Albert grabbed the other pack and stood beside Laurin.

  “You said to pack lightly,” Josephine gently reminded him as she grabbed the tapestry and held it tightly to her chest.

  Graeme smiled down at her. “Aye, I did. I fear I be used to the manner in which me mum packs lightly. It usually involves two wagons and a pack of horses.”

  Josephine smiled up at him but said nothing.

  He found her smile mesmerizing, for it reached to her eyes, making them sparkle. She was a very beautiful woman. Still, beauty would only last a while. What truly mattered to him was her intellect, or the lack thereof.

  “Verra well then,” he said with a nod. “Let us away this place at once.”

  Traigh and the others were waiting in the courtyard with the horses. As predicted, Helmert was there, looking very much like a young man trying to look the part of laird and chief. He also looked mad enough to bite nails. Standing directly behind him were Darvord and Clarence, the only two men who were either dumb enough or mentally disturbed enough to call him friend. Josephine took note of Darvord’s black eye and Clarence’s fat lip. She believed they deserved far worse. If all went as planned, she’d be leaving this place in short order and she would never have to see them or Helmert ever again.

  Graeme and Albert escorted Josephine and Laurin down the steps and to the horses. “Let us do the talkin’, lass,” Graeme whispered as he nudged her toward her horse. Traigh stood beside her, holding the reins, while they waited for Graeme and Remi to toss the bundles onto the extra mounts.

  Albert led Laurin to his own horse and helped her up. Even from where Josephine stood, she could see Laurin tremble with worry.

  When Helmert saw Laurin being set upon the mount, his snobbish sneer evaporated almost instantly. “What are ye doin’ with her?” he demanded, stepping forward.

  Albert turned to face him. Josephine bit her lip to keep from laughing aloud at the two of them. Helmert, with his slender physique and fanciful yet dirty clothes, stood in stark comparison to the Highlander. Albert, a good head taller and built like a Roman statue with all his hard muscles, raised a brow and stared Helmert down. “She be goin’ with us.”

  Helmert didn’t flinch. “I did no’ agree to that,” he said, his haughty sneer returning. “Take her down.”

  Graeme came to stand next to his brother. “The lass will be goin’ as Josephine’s lady’s maid.”

  Helmert slowly turned away from Albert to glare at Graeme. “If me sister wants a lady’s maid, she can take Mrs. Thomas.”

  Josephine held her breath. Mrs. Thomas was as old as dirt and could barely see, let alone hear.

  Neither Graeme nor Albert would back down. “Josephine wants Laurin as her lady’s maid,” Graeme said.

  “I do no’ care what Josephine wants. None of ye has any right or claim to Laurin,” Helmert said as he cast a glance toward her. “She stays.”

  “She goes,” Graeme said, as he crossed his arms over his chest and stared down at his future brother-in-law.

  “I do no’ believe ye heard me correctly, MacAulay. I said ye’ve no right or claim to her. She stays.”

  They were at an impasse and neither of them were going to give in.

  “I claim her,” Albert said. “I will marry the lass.”

  Josephine and Laurin gasped in wide-eyed astonishment. Josephine reached out and grabbed Laurin’s hand to keep her from either falling off her mount, or jumping down in order to run away.

  Helmert threw his head back and laughed. Darvord and Clarence joined in.

  From her vantage point, Josephine could see the murderous glare in Albert’s eyes. She could also see that he was quite serious.

  After several long moments of guttural laughter, Helmert looked up at Albert. “Ye cannae be serious? Ye want to marry Laurin? She has no dowry or name to offer ye.”

  “She does no’ need a dowry or a name,” Albert told him firmly. “I have a bride price.” He reached into his sporran and removed a leather bag filled with coins and tossed it to Helmert. “One hundred and eight merks,” he said before turning away to head toward the horses.

  Not one MacAulay brother or man moved, for they were frozen in place by what they’d just seen. Tightfisted Albert, the man who rarely parted with his money, had just paid an unbelievable amount of coin for Laurin’s freedom. ’Twas a shocking moment no one would soon forget.

  Helmert was also surprised, but for different reasons. He tested the weight of the pouch and looked up at Albert. “Be ye certain ye want her?”

  Albert answered with a stone-cold glare.

  “She be no’ pure, ye ken?” Helmert said. “She’s been used more times than a —”

  Albert did not give him time to finish the taunt. He drew back and slammed a large fist into Helmert MacAdam’s nose. Helmert fell back and landed with a thud. Rivulets of blood ran from his nose and trailed down his cheek. Neither of h
is friends bothered to step forward to offer any assistance.

  Albert stood over him. “I be no’ as kind as me brother. I do no’ give any man the opportunity to insult me betrothed.”

  With that, Traigh practically threw Josephine onto her mount. A few rapid heartbeats later, they were all mounted and heading for the gate, with Graeme leading the way. Thankfully, the gate was open and they all but flew through it, kicking up large bits of earth and mud in the process.

  Neither Josephine nor Laurin bothered to look back.

  4

  They rode in silence, racing across the countryside as if they were trying to outrun the devil himself. While Josephine had some experience riding, she’d never undergone anything like this. Poor Laurin was holding onto the edge of Albert’s saddle whilst he had both big arms wrapped protectively around her. Josephine wasn’t sure what terrified her friend most: flying across the countryside like madmen or being so close to Albert.

  It went on like that for hours. Over hills, through glens, valleys and across streams. The only time they slowed their pace was when they rode through the dense thicket of trees on the outer edges of MacAdams lands. But once they were through the forest, they were riding at breakneck speed again.

  Night started to fall and a cold ache began to settle into Josephine’s bones. Finally, she mustered the courage to speak. “I fear I have never ridden at night,” she called out to Traigh, who was riding beside her. “Why are we not stopping?”

  “After Albert broke Helmert’s nose? I be certain he did no’ take that as a warm welcome-to-the-family. Who kens how many men he has chasin’ after us.”

  “Bah!” Josephine said. “We have very few men left and none who would rally to arms to come after us for retribution. Knowing my brother, he has drunk himself into a stupor and passed out.”

  Traigh studied her closely for a moment before responding. “That may well be, lass, but I will no’ feel secure until we are safely on our own land.”