Untamed Highlander

TWENTY-FIVE

Isla spent the rest day in her tower too embarrassed by Hayden’s dismissal of her earlier and too astonished by his battle with Ian. Over her.

She didn’t want to speak to anyone, not after all that had happened. Marcail, Cara, Larena, and even Sonya had taken turns trying to coax her out of the tower. But Isla was content were she was.

She made herself eat the food left for her while she contemplated her options. It would be best if she left. She had known that from the very beginning.

It had been too tempting to be a part of the MacLeods, to be welcomed and offered friendship. She had made a terrible mistake, though.

Now that she had stayed and shielded the castle, she couldn’t just leave. Already the wyrran had come looking, whether for her or just to check on the MacLeods, she didn’t know. Not that it mattered. They had come, and it was only a matter of time before more were sent.

There were plenty of Warriors who could defend the castle. They would survive, and with Deirdre’s forces cut back, they could gain the upper hand for awhile.

But then Isla thought of the women, of Marcail’s child growing in her womb. How could she leave them now? They had become her friends, sisters even. To abandon them now would be heartless.

And when Deirdre gains strength and takes over your mind?

Isla knew that was a possibility. The longer it took Deirdre to find a Druid the better off Isla would be. And then there was the chance that the artifact — and the Druids — Logan and Galen had set off to find might know something that could help Isla dissolve her tie with Deirdre forever.

The sun had long set when Isla finally ventured from the tower. She paused at the landing that overlooked the great hall, thankful she didn’t spot Hayden. Only the MacLeods and their wives were in the hall. The men were seated in the chairs before the empty hearth, and their wives were in their laps.

Isla took a deep breath to steady herself and descended the stairs. As soon as they caught sight of her, their conversation ceased.

“We were getting worried,” Cara said. Her arm was around Lucan’s neck, her fingers running over his thick gold torc.

Isla stopped when she was in front of them. “I would speak with you all.”

Marcail bit her lip, her anxiety great. “You’re not leaving, are you?”

“Nay.” Not yet anyway.

“What is it?” Fallon asked. “If it’s what happened today, I will talk with Hayden.”

She shook her head. “Leave Hayden out of it.”

“I doona understand.” Lucan sat his goblet on the floor near the chair. “After what Hayden did this morning, then attacking Ian. I would think you would want something done.”

“Leave Hayden out of it,” she repeated. “What I have to discuss with you doesn’t involve him.”

“All right. What is it?” Quinn asked.

Isla drew in a deep breath. “I would have your word that someone, not one of the women, follow me always. Let it be someone you trust, someone who will do the right thing when the time comes.”

Larena’s head cocked to the side and she rose from Fallon’s lap. She walked behind his chair and rested her arm across the back. “And that right thing would be?”

“Killing me.”

The silence was deafening, but Isla expected it. The MacLeods and their women, everyone at the castle actually, saw everyone else as family. You didn’t ask family to kill you.

Fallon sat forward, his brow furrowed with a mixture of outrage and confusion. “I think you had better explain.”

“The wyrran have come. If they are dead—”

“Hayden left them alone,” Quinn said.

Isla nodded, trying to hide her surprise. She had wondered how Hayden reacted to being outside the shield. He hadn’t come to her, though she knew he wouldn’t. “They will report back to Deirdre that they found nothing.”

“You don’t think they’ll tell her the castle has disappeared?” Cara asked.

“They aren’t that intelligent. They will answer her question. Deirdre doesn’t know where I am, and the chances of me ending up here won’t be something she thinks about. Thus far. So, she won’t ask the wyrran.”

Quinn said, “Are you sure of that?”

“As sure as I can be,” Isla answered. “I spent five hundred years with her.”

Lucan’s mouth twisted. “I doona know. Deirdre can be secretive.”

“There’s no doubt she kept most things from me, but I know the wyrran. And I know that she’s sure I’ve run away. She’ll assume you would never trust me, so would either kill me or turn me away.”

“How long do we have before she figures out you’re here?” Fallon asked.

Isla shifted her feet and shrugged. “She’ll have her full power as soon as a Druid is brought to her for sacrifice. She’ll find me soon after.”

“She’s thinned the Druids significantly,” Marcail said. “There aren’t many left, and the ones that are keep hidden to avoid detection.”

“She no longer has my sister to aid her,” Isla said. “It could take months, but it could take as little as a few days. I would err on the side of caution.”

Quinn nodded in agreement. “So what do you propose?”

“I cannot leave now that my shield is in place. There are Warriors aplenty to stave off an attack, and the more Druids you have to protect, the more likely one will be taken. My shield will keep everyone safe that much longer.

“Not to mention I am curious to see if Galen and Logan find anything that could help me. The chances are slim, but if anything could, it would be artifacts that could harm Deirdre.”

Fallon glanced at Larena behind him before he asked, “And where does your death come in?”

“I don’t want to continue as I am. If Deirdre gains her power before Galen returns, or if the artifact cannot help me, I would rather die than be put in a position where Deirdre controls me to get to any of you.”

“Nay,” Marcail said. “You are strong, Isla. You’ve fought her and the evil. You can continue to fight her.”

Isla remembered when she had looked at the world as Marcail did. That was long ago now, long ago and lost forever. “I fought her for Lavena and Grania. Lavena is gone, and Grania tried to kill me when I attempted to take her from the mountain. The dagger she had … I tried…”

“It was an accident,” Quinn said. “No one blames you.”

She swallowed and pressed on. “I survived and plotted and watched the years pass by for them. Deirdre has no hold over me now. Is it too much to ask that my wishes be granted?”

“It isn’t,” Lucan said and stroked Cara’s cheek before she moved to stand beside him. “We just want to find another way.”

“There isn’t one. I would have found it in five centuries.”

Fallon rose to his feet and put his hands on his hips. “I would rather you ask us to deliver Deirdre’s head to you, but I give you my word I will do as you ask, just as I have before.”

“As will I,” Lucan said and straightened to stand beside his brother.

Quinn set Marcail from his lap. He stood and let out a ragged breath. “You have my vow as well.”

“You’ve the promise of us three,” Fallon said. “We will see to it that the others know.”

She bowed her head in gratitude. “Deirdre has been right to fear you three. You will be her downfall.”

Larena walked around the chair to Fallon’s side. “Do you have a preference to who guards you?”

“Whoever you see fit.”

“We saw Hayden as that man,” Quinn said.

Isla looked to the floor. If she was to stay, she would have to become used to seeing Hayden daily. And that was going to be more difficult than battling Deirdre. “You didn’t make a wise choice.”

“I disagree,” Fallon said. “I was there when he found you on Cairn Toul.”

“He wanted someone to protect. That isn’t me.”

Lucan huffed. “And this morning? What do you call that? Every one of us saw him strike Ian. Because he thought you were in danger.”

“You would have to speak to Hayden on that. I have no idea why he did what he did. I’m … he doesn’t like to be around me.” By the saints, it was almost impossible to say. Each time became harder and harder. “Respect Hayden’s and my wishes on this as well.”

Fallon watched Isla walk out of the castle. He waited until the door closed behind her before he said, “Hayden may not like to be around her, but he needs her.”

“You saw that as well?” Lucan asked. “It’s obvious to any who look.”

Quinn shook his head. “I saw them kiss on the beach. It wasn’t a simple kiss either, but one of…”

“Passion and longing,” Cara finished for him. “Why are they denying it?”

Larena laid her head on Fallon’s shoulder. “He’s denying it. She’s just trying to hold herself together in the face of what he’s done.”

“He would have killed Ian for her.” Fallon kissed Larena’s forehead. “I’ve fought beside Hayden. I’ve seen how deadly he can be, but today? That was something different.”

“Like it was his woman’s life at stake,” Quinn said. “I would kill for Marcail, especially if I thought she was in peril.”

Lucan met Fallon’s gaze. “We all would for our women.”

Fallon glanced at the door again. He wished there was a way to help Hayden and Isla. “Who do we assign to watch her?”

“Guard her,” Larena corrected. “We’re guarding a dear friend, Fallon.”

He smiled into her smoky blue eyes. “Who do we ask to guard her, love?”

“Ian,” Marcail suddenly said.

Fallon jerked his gaze to his sister-in-law. “Have you lost your mind, Marcail? After he and Hayden nearly killed each other?”

Cara laughed then. “Ah, but Fallon, that’s the point.”

Fallon looked from Lucan to Quinn as the realization came to him. “Ian it is then. This should prove interesting to say the least.”

“Very interesting,” Quinn said.

*

Isla kept to the shadows of the bailey. Warriors guarded the castle at all times. That hadn’t changed even with her shield in place.

She hadn’t wanted to spend the night in the tower with her memories of Hayden. It had been hard enough the few hours she had stayed during the day.

But on the off chance Hayden did come to her again, she couldn’t be there. She wouldn’t be able to turn him away, and for her sanity she had to do just that. She longed to feel his touch and taste his kisses. He was her greatest weakness, a weakness she could ill afford.

She also couldn’t handle another night in his tender arms and then feel his distance and contempt in the light of day. It was destroying her as nothing else had. Hayden had more power over her than Deirdre had ever thought to have.

It terrified Isla, but it also made her realize just how her feelings for Hayden had grown. It was a dangerous game they played. Hayden had said it the first time, but only Isla knew just how true those words were.

She made it to the village without being detected. She walked from cottage to cottage, using the shadows, until she found one set away from the others. It was just what she was looking for.

It was where she would stay for the night. Alone with her memories. And her dreams.