Forbidden Highlander

Chapter Fourteen

Fallon woke to a pain in his chest like nothing he had ever felt before, and it wasn’t from a wound. It was from betrayal. He couldn’t even rejoice in the fact he was once more home. Somehow he had managed to fall asleep without giving in to his need for the wine.

He sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed, his head in his hands. There was a throbbing in his skull that had nothing to do with wine, though he wished it were otherwise.

The darkness of the chamber told him it was nighttime, though he had no idea how long he had slept. His exhaustion and loss of blood had pulled him into a deep sleep, despite the fact that his mind couldn’t stop thinking of Larena and what she had kept from him.

He rubbed his chest, wondering why it ached so. The more he thought of Larena, the more the hurt spread.

It wasn’t that he didn’t understand why she hadn’t told him. What hurt was that she hadn’t trusted him enough to even tell him she had it. Did she think he would take it from her? She should have known him better than that.

We were only together a few hours.

Fallon sighed. It seemed as if he had known Larena for centuries, not hours. She had trusted him enough to show him she was a Warrior, but apparently she didn’t trust him enough to tell him about the Scroll.

That was how it was in his life. There was never enough for him.

He pushed to his feet. He was tired of feeling sorry for himself. His self-pity had sustained him for three hundred years. No more would he allow it to rule his life.

There was a soft knock on the door before it opened and Cara poked her head inside. She smiled when she saw him standing. “Lucan was getting worried about you,” she said as she pushed the door wider.

“How long have I slept?”

“Just a few hours. I set aside a trencher of food for you, even though Galen tried to take it.”

Fallon found himself grinning. “I suppose Galen is eating us out of the castle.”

“Just about,” Cara said with a chuckle. “His appetite is never ending. I make two extra loaves of bread a day just for him. By noon, they’re gone.”

Fallon eyed his sister-in-law. “How have things been?”

“They’ve been good. Lucan has missed you, more than he’s let on, but I can see it. He was lost for a couple of days with both you and Quinn gone, but he found his way.”

“With your help.”

Cara shrugged. “I do what I can, but Lucan is very stubborn. We’re all glad you’re back.”

“I didna accomplish anything. The king wasn’t there. He prefers to rule Scotland from his palace in London. What has our country come to?”

She walked to him and laid a hand on his arm. “The world is constantly changing, Fallon. You and your brothers haven’t seen it like I have. It will take you all a while to become accustomed to it.”

“I fear one day Scotland will lose herself to England completely.”

“Not as long as there are men like you and Lucan.”

Fallon wrapped his arms around Cara and gave her a hug. “Thank you for everything, but most especially thank you for loving my brother.”

She tilted her head up and kissed his cheek. “Loving Lucan is the easy part.” She pulled out of his arms and walked to the door. “Are you coming downstairs?”

“Aye.”

“She’s doing much better, by the way, though she hasn’t woken.”

Fallon nodded before Cara left the chamber. He had been curious about Larena’s recovery, but he hadn’t been able to ask. As usual, his sister-in-law was able to read him easily.

He wasn’t surprised to find a tunic and breeches laid out at the foot of the bed. Lucan knew him too well. Fallon changed out of his kilt before he headed below.

He stopped at the head of the stairs leading to the great hall and let his eyes take it all in. Lucan had built a bigger table. The other one was still in the hall with a blond Warrior using it. Hayden sat with both legs stretched out before him taking up the entire bench.

“Fallon,” Logan called as he walked out of the kitchen and took the bench opposite Hayden.

Fallon waved to the youngest Warrior of their group. Logan’s brown hair was damp, as though he had recently bathed.

“Finally,” Lucan said as he waved Fallon to him. “Cara managed to save you some food from Galen’s constantly empty stomach.”

Fallon walked down the steps to the men’s jesting with Galen. He stopped at the foot of the table where an empty chair stood. His chair. Another empty spot was on his left where Quinn should have been. He glanced to his right where Lucan sat.

Next to Lucan was Cara. On the other side of Cara was Galen Shaw. His dark blue eyes met Fallon’s as he nodded. Across from Galen was Ramsey MacDonald. Ramsey was a man of few words, but his keen insight was useful.

Ramsey gave Fallon a welcoming smile, his gray eyes crinkling at the corners. Beside Ramsey was Sonya, the red-haired Druid who had come to them just weeks ago. Fallon then nodded to Hayden and Logan at the opposite table before he took his seat.

“I see you’ve made a bigger table,” Fallon said to his brother. Much had been done while he was away, and he was anxious to see how far they had come on the castle.

Lucan laughed and glanced at Hayden and Logan. “There’s enough room for those two with us, but they prefer to eat alone.”

“I couldn’t let Hayden eat by himself,” Logan said. “Besides, I spent more time protecting my food from Galen than eating.”

The hall erupted with laughter. Fallon looked at Hayden. The big blond Warrior had a hatred for drough that went deep, so deep he had threatened to kill Cara despite Cara’s never undergoing the blood ritual that would make her a drough. Hayden and Cara stayed away from each other, but everyone knew the day would come when something was likely to happen.

Fallon waited until the chatter quieted down before he spoke. “I’m sure all of you know about Larena by now.”

“I told them,” Galen said.

Hayden leaned an elbow on the table. “Is she really a Warrior? Did you see her change?”

“I did,” Fallon answered. “She has a goddess inside her, not a god, which is why I think the goddess chose a woman instead of a man.”

“Do you know the name of the goddess?” Ramsey asked.

Fallon nodded. “Lelomai, goddess of defense.”

“Hmm,” Galen said. “What kind of powers does she have?”

Fallon thought back to the first time he saw her disappear. He had been dumbstruck that she had been able to do such a thing. It would definitely come in handy in a war. “She has the usual powers of sight and hearing, but she can make herself unseen.”

“Do you mean to say she can make herself invisible?” Lucan asked.

“I do. I doona know much about her goddess, but apparently there are some differences. It could be because Larena is female, or because she has a goddess inside her. When we turn, it is just our skin and eyes that change. With Larena, even her hair changes.”

“To what?” Logan asked.

“She shimmers.” It was the best Fallon could do to explain it. “You can see every color imaginable on her, but it’s muted.”

Cara smiled and placed her hand over Lucan’s on the table. “It sounds beautiful.”

“It is.” The words were out of Fallon’s mouth before he could stop them.

“So what happened in Edinburgh?” Ramsey wanted to know.

Fallon shrugged. “The king wasn’t in residence. He rules from London, so I wasn’t able to speak to him. However, Lorena’s cousin has the king’s ear and sent him a missive. I’m hoping to hear something soon. If not, I may have to take a trip to London.”

Hayden tapped his finger on the table to get Fallon’s attention. “And the Scroll? Did you learn if it was real or not?”

Though he and Lucan might not take the ring from Larena, Fallon wasn’t going to risk a chance that the others might discover her secret. Not yet anyway. “I learned nothing of importance.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Fallon saw Lucan’s brow furrow. He faced his brother and held his stare. “We’ll get Quinn out.”

“I have no doubt,” Lucan said.

But Fallon knew he did. It was written all over his face.