Shadow Highlander

THIRTEEN

Reaghan’s entire body ached as she crumbled to the ground after the many hours they had traveled. Galen and Logan hadn’t been jesting when they said the pace would be quick. She was amazed at the distance they had covered since leaving the loch, taking only short breaks. Their noon meal had been eaten so quickly Reaghan hadn’t tasted it.

But that’s what happened when you ran from evil.

She looked over her shoulder, and in the distance she could make out the mountains which surrounded the loch. Her home was slowly fading into the distance. Sadness filled her. When she had been leaving, it was fear that propelled her forward.

Now, as she looked back, she thought of the years she had spent in the safety of the beautiful loch. She hoped one day she could return, but if she couldn’t, she would keep her memories close.

Their respite was nearly finished. She could see Galen and Logan as they spoke quietly to one another, their heads close together. They kept away from the group unless they were walking. It was as if the Warriors knew how ill at ease they made the Druids.

It angered Reaghan that so many still doubted Logan and Galen’s motives. The Warriors had saved them, but if it wasn’t for the fear of losing their lives, Reaghan was sure many of the Druids would have ignored the men’s urging to leave.

Reaghan thought of the man who had seen her at the loch, the man who had made her skin crawl. Galen had said he was from Deirdre. She didn’t doubt Galen. There had been evil in the man’s eyes.

Her thoughts then turned to Galen. She had been surprised to see he was a Warrior, but thinking back to what he had said, she should have known. There had always been something that set Galen apart from other men. Now she knew it was because of the god inside him.

Galen had said he would answer her questions, but Reaghan didn’t want to wait any longer. As if he felt her gaze on him, he turned his head and looked at her.

Even from a distance, the connection that held them, wrapped them in its grip, tugged at her. She wanted to go to Galen, to have his arms envelop her and hold her tight against his hard body. She wanted to hear him say everything was going to be all right.

Even when she knew it probably wouldn’t be.

All she had to do was observe how Galen and Logan studied the terrain, and how they kept the Druids in a tight group, to know they expected another attack.

Reaghan shivered as she recalled how easily Galen had killed the wyrran. Despite her fear, or maybe because of it, she hadn’t been able to take her eyes off him as he had battled the wyrran in the village.

He had been magnificent, utterly lethal with his claws and body. She had glimpsed the fangs in his mouth when he had roared, and she had been spellbound. Everything about Galen in his Warrior form intrigued her, entranced her.

With him, she knew she was secure. When he had snatched Braden from the wyrran, Reaghan had known Galen would’ve done anything to keep the boy away from the creatures.

How could anyone ever think Galen or Logan was evil? They had proven themselves without a doubt. The others, however, wouldn’t be so easy to convince.

“Time to go,” Logan called as he took the lead.

Reaghan bit back her groan as she rose to her feet. The rolling landscape was beautiful to behold, but becoming more and more difficult for them to cross because of their fatigue.

The sun was steadily sinking in the sky. It wouldn’t be long before they stopped for the night, but it wouldn’t come quickly enough for her. Reaghan looked forward to a decent meal and somewhere she could sleep.

A smile pulled at her lips when she saw Logan lift a weary Braden in his arms. Logan said something to Fiona, and then he lifted Braden over his head and settled the lad atop his shoulders.

“You seem surprised.”

Reaghan jumped and turned her head to find Galen behind her. “I’m surprised Fiona allowed Logan to take Braden.”

“Who better to protect the lad than a Warrior?” he asked, his cobalt gaze holding hers.

“Exactly. None of us could have carried Braden for long. I’m glad Logan has him.”

“How are you holding up?”

She shrugged and fell into step as they continued. Their pace had slowed but still it was quicker than she would have liked. She couldn’t feel her feet anymore, and her legs felt as heavy as tree trunks. “I’m doing better than most. It’s the older ones I worry about.”

“Odara,” Galen murmured.

Reaghan nodded. “None of us are used to this.”

“I wish we could slow the pace, but I fear we willna reach MacLeod Castle before the wyrran attack again.”

“Are all the men at MacLeod Castle Warriors?”

“All but one,” he answered. “His name is Malcolm Monroe. He helped one of us, and in return, Deirdre sent Warriors to kill him. Broc found them and rescued Malcolm, but the damage had already been done.”

Intrigued, she asked, “What happened?”

“Sonya used her healing magic, but she couldn’t mend his arm. He lost the use of his right arm. Malcolm was to be laird of his clan.”

“So he stays at the castle?”

“Aye. Fallon, our leader, made him welcome.”

She lifted her skirts as they started up another hill. “Why would Malcolm help you if he knew the danger?”

“His cousin Larena. She’s the only female Warrior we know of, and she’s helping us. Deirdre tried to take her, but Larena is Fallon’s, and he wasn’t about to give up the woman he loves.”

Reaghan smiled and took a deep breath. “I cannot wait to meet Fallon and especially Larena. A female Warrior. Amazing.”

“Aye. We all thought the same thing.” Galen chuckled. “Woman or not, Larena can hold her own in battle.”

“The stories of the ancient Celts and Romans are ones we hear continuously. The idea that the mies would align with the droughs is almost impossible to believe.”

“Yet they did it for Britain. For all of us.”

“Ah,” she said with a grin. “The tales say the gods, though bound, passed through the bloodline.”

Galen let out a long breath. “They did. To the strongest warrior of each generation.”

“Which you were. Some say the men who hope to become Warriors find Deirdre.”

“Maybe. I didna.”

His voice was low, rage laced in every syllable. “I’m sorry, Galen. I didn’t mean to imply you had gone to Deirdre.”

“I know,” he said before she could trip over more of her words.

Reaghan looked at the ground and bit her lip. She hadn’t meant to make him angry. Whatever had happened to turn him into a Warrior wasn’t pleasant. And if he hadn’t gone to Deirdre, then how had he become a Warrior?

She was thankful he stayed beside her. He didn’t speak again, but at least he hadn’t moved away. On they walked, the clouds building above them and the loch fading behind them. Galen made sure no one followed, but always he was at her side.

It comforted Reaghan in ways she couldn’t begin to explain. She felt as if she belonged with Galen, as if she had been waiting her entire life for him.

*

As soon as Galen spotted the grove of trees nestled in the valley, he knew it was the perfect place to stop for the night. The hills would hide their fire, and the night would consume the smoke.

Galen hesitated to build a fire, but the Druids needed to eat to sustain their strength. Just a little over half a day’s travel and they were so exhausted they could barely stand.

Logan had stayed to guard the camp while Galen tracked and killed a deer. Each Druid carried a satchel of food, but Galen feared it wouldn’t be enough to get them to the castle. Which meant they would have to stop more often to hunt.

The women quickly skinned the animal and began to cook it. The delicious aroma of meat roasting over the fire made Galen’s mouth water. He hadn’t taken food from the Druids during the noon meal, but he would take it now. He and Logan’s strength would not be compromised by missing a few meals, but they couldn’t miss many.

As soon as the meat was declared cooked, Galen and Logan distributed the portions.

Logan turned his back to the Druids and the fire and faced his companion. “We’re no’ going to make it, Galen.”

“We have to. Any one of them could hold the artifact. We cannot allow any of them to be taken.”

“We need more Warriors.”

“Which we doona have,” Galen stated. He clenched his jaw, determined to see every Druid arrive at MacLeod Castle. “We can do this.”

Logan turned his head, his hazel eyes meeting Galen’s. “It’s no’ you I doubt.”

Before Galen could ask what he meant, Logan faded into the shadows. Galen knew he wouldn’t go far. Logan would scout the area and make sure they wouldn’t be surprised by visitors.

Galen’s gaze was constantly drawn to Reaghan. In spite of her own fatigue, she moved from Druid to Druid offering water and making sure they had all they needed. She spent extra time with Braden, making the lad smile as he ate.

Soon he would have to give Reaghan the answers she sought and speak of things he would rather forget. He could lie to her, but the attraction between them was too great to even consider lying.

He would give her the truth, regardless of how much it pained him. He had gotten angry earlier, but the thought of any man going to Deirdre willingly made his stomach sour.

Galen sat and leaned against a tree while they finished eating. To his surprise, Reaghan sat beside him. She offered him a smile then turned her gaze to the fire.

He took two bites of his dinner before he got up the courage to begin. He kept his voice low so others wouldn’t hear. “I was out hunting when the wyrran came. They surrounded me before I could blink. And then I saw the Warrior. His skin was the darkest shade of purple, and he struck me unconscious with one blow to my head.”

“You don’t have to tell me,” she said.

“Aye, Reaghan, I do.” Galen swallowed his food. “I awoke in Deirdre’s mountain, locked in a prison. I could hear others. Their screams of agony, their cries of misery. I knew I would die there.”

“Except you didn’t, did you?”

“I did, in a way. The Galen I was before died. Once Deirdre unbound my god, I became who you see now. I knew there was nothing Deirdre could do that would make me align with her. Others cautioned me that she had used their families against them. She asked countless times about my family, insulting my mother so she could get a response.”

Reaghan took a bite of her meal and asked, “Did you? Respond as she wanted?”

“Nay. I told her my family meant nothing to me, and I proved it by ignoring everything she said and threatened to do to them. All the while I prayed they were safe. I was in Cairn Toul for twenty years. She never broke me, though she tried many times.”

“How did you get out?”

Galen finished his portion of food and leaned his head against the tree. “Others had escaped. I knew there was a way. I just had to find it. When she summoned me to her chambers to entice me to her bed, I knew my chance had come. She thought I was content, so she didn’t use another Warrior to escort me. Instead, she used her servants. It was nothing to get past them and away to freedom.”

Reagan’s eyes were huge with wonder. “Didn’t she chase you?”

“Deirdre doesn’t leave her mountain. She sent others, but I managed to get away.”

“And your family?”

“I let them think me dead.” He swallowed past the painful lump those words evoked. “I looked in on them when I was free. It was a chance I shouldn’t have taken. Deirdre could have gone there first and killed them just to spite me. Fortunately, she didna.”

“Did you talk to them? Your family, I mean?”

Galen shook his head. “I didna dare. They would have had questions, questions I couldna answer.”

“I’m so sorry, Galen. I had no idea.”

He shrugged. “It was a long time ago.”

Long ago, but it still haunted his memories.