Untamed Highlander

THIRTY-FOUR

Deirdre grinned as she looked at herself in the mirror. Almost whole again. And her magic was back. She closed her eyes and thought of Isla. The traitorous bitch was in league with the MacLeods, and it was time Isla remembered who ruled her.

To Deirdre’s surprise there was a barrier around MacLeod Castle. It was strong, too. There was only one who might have that kind of magic — Isla.

That only fueled Deirdre’s ire. It took her more time than she’d like to admit to build her magic enough to penetrate the shield.

And that’s when she found Isla.

Deirdre laughed and rubbed her hands together in anticipation. It was going to be too easy.

“I’m coming for you, Isla.”

There was blood everywhere. It coated the walls, the blankets, and the bed. Isla looked down at her hands to find it on her as well.

She gagged and tried to jump from the bed. Her feet tangled in the covers and she landed hard, her head hitting the floor with a thud and pain exploding in her body.

Isla propped herself up on her hands and kicked with her feet until her legs were free. She was naked, her body streaked with thick, red blood.

Though her mind told her not to, she looked to the bed. There was Hayden, strong, commanding Hayden, now lying dead in a pool of his own blood.

His midnight eyes were turned to her. There was no life left in them, but she still saw the accusation, the betrayal in their depths.

Tears blurred her vision before trailing down her cheek. How could this have happened? How could Deirdre have taken over and she not known it?

“Nay,” Isla said. “Nay!”

The castle was eerily quiet. Too quiet. Were the others dead as well? Was she to blame?

Isla stumbled to the bed, her feet numb with shock. She reached out a trembling hand and stroked a lock of Hayden’s fair hair from his forehead.

Her heart stopped as she realized she had seen his face before. The same blood, the same black stare. It had been so long ago, but it was the first time she had ever came to herself after Deirdre had sent her on a mission.

“Dear Lord,” Isla murmured. “I’m the one that killed Hayden’s family. I’m the drough he’s been searching for.”

Unable to look at the man who had stolen her heart, the man she had betrayed, Isla turned and raced to the door. She started down the winding steps and tripped. A scream tore from her throat as she pitched forward and began to fall …

Isla gasped and sat up in the bed. Her heart hammered and sweat coated her body. She glanced at her hands, but there was no blood.

She was afraid of what she might find, but she had to know if she had killed Hayden. She turned her head to find him on his side facing her. His face was relaxed, his lips slightly parted as he slumbered.

Isla lightly caressed his hollowed cheek. She needed to tell him what she had done to his family. Everything they had bridged would be ripped apart, but he had a right to know. He’d spent years searching for the drough who had destroyed his family.

He had given her hope and a reason to continue on, and now she would repay that with a truth that would tear him apart. A lone tear trailed down her face. She hurriedly wiped it away.

She couldn’t carry around this truth with her, as tempting as it was to do. Especially when she knew it had been Deirdre who had given her that awful dream. It was what Deirdre planned for her, but Isla wouldn’t be a willing accomplice.

The MacLeods and other Warriors were strong. She knew Hayden would protect the Druids with his life, and she would help as much as she could.

Isla would do as Hayden suggested and fight Deirdre’s command. She would make certain she was far enough away from MacLeod Castle not to harm anyone.

Though her heart tore in two, she rose silently from the bed and began to dress. She tried not to think of the joy and wonder she had found in Hayden’s arms, of the love and hope he had unlocked inside her.

Love. Her stomach fell to her feet and her breath locked in her lungs. By the saints, she loved him. The knowledge made her heart swell. She had probably loved him from the moment she opened her eyes in the great hall and found him staring at her.

Why after all these centuries had she finally found happiness but was about to lose it all? If she thought there was time, she would wake him and have him carry out his vow. But she knew he would fight her and that would give Deirdre more time than Isla could allow.

Isla didn’t want to wake the MacLeods either. It was better if she departed and did so immediately. Too much was at stake. These people had become her friends, her family. And Hayden … she never wanted to hurt him again. She’d done enough of that already.

She wished there was another way out of her tower. She didn’t want to encounter anyone, but she didn’t have a choice. After checking the space between the blanket and the window, Isla saw it was dark outside. Just what she needed.

With one last longing look at Hayden, she turned and went to the door. It opened without a sound. She closed it softly behind her and started down the stairs.

Every step that took her farther from Hayden was like a dagger to her heart. She couldn’t stop the tears from flowing, and didn’t even try. Her hatred for Deirdre began to burn brightly, causing her magic to swim around her.

Deirdre had now taken everything from Isla. If it was the last thing Isla did, she would make Deirdre regret ever bringing her to Cairn Toul.

Isla walked to the great hall without seeing anyone. She paused on the landing and looked around to make sure no one was about. If she had to, she would use her magic to make her escape. Too many lives depended upon her leaving the castle.

It was as if the castle held its breath with her as she reached the last step and hurried across the hall and out the castle door.

She pressed her back against the door once it closed behind her and searched the battlements. Even with her shield in place Hayden had kept Warriors on guard.

The gate was closed, and even though she could get through the small door in the massive gate, it might bring too much attention to her. Instead, Isla turned left to the postern door in the castle wall that was hidden between the blacksmith’s shop and the chapel.

The shadows were her constant companions as she made her way toward the door. The latch was stuck from years of not being used, but eventually Isla got it unlocked. The door creaked loudly, the sound like a blast in the silence of the night.

She halted, her eyes glancing around her to see if anyone had heard. No one shouted for her to stop. She opened the door just wide enough that she could slip through, and then hastily shut it.

Hayden would find it unlocked. He would know that’s how she left, but by then she would be long gone and too far away for him to find her.

Isla lifted her skirts in her hand so she could lengthen her strides as she ran. When she was far enough away from the castle, she turned and let her gaze search the towers, battlements, and the other places the Warriors liked to hide.

She saw slight movement on top of the main castle. Without a second’s hesitation, Isla raised her hand and chanted the spell that would make the Warrior forget he saw her — at least for a while.

Isla was sure there was another Warrior, but time wasn’t on her side. She raced to the village and then skidded to a halt in the center.

She looked toward the forests, then to the mountains in the distance. She didn’t know when Hayden would awaken, but she did know the Warriors moved too fast for her to gain any distance on them. Then there was Broc.

There had to be some place she could go that they wouldn’t think to look.

Isla turned and looked at the sea. The perfect solution. She thought of the beach near the castle, but the last thing she wanted was to be near the castle again and chance being seen.

Then she recalled Cara telling her about another beach the villagers used to use when they fished. Isla once more lifted her skirts and ran as fast as her legs would carry her.

Thick, angry clouds blocked the moon, creating an ominous feeling over the land. There was no scent of rain in the air, only black magic.

Deirdre.

“You always did like to show off,” Isla murmured as she ran.

She reached the edge of the cliff and found the path that led to the beach. It wasn’t as steep as the one at the castle, but it was treacherous just the same.

Isla navigated the path easily enough and started for the water. Her skirts would hamper her as she swam. She began to undress when she saw the small boat.

Could she be so lucky?

Isla rushed to it. It was turned over and completely out of the water. It took all of her strength, and considerable amount of time, just to flip it right side up. She wiped the sweat from her face with her sleeve and gave a mighty push.

It seemed to take an eternity before the rowboat began to move, and when it did, it was in small increments. But Isla eventually got it in the water.

She found two oars and threw them in the boat as she held on to the side. The water churned around her, soaking her skirts and weighing her down.

Isla didn’t fight the water. She opened her magic and felt it grow, felt it seep through her skin. She would need her magic, all of it. After two tries, she finally made it inside the boat.

She cast a glance at the sky. If anyone looked up they would think a storm was about to break, and there was. Just not the kind everyone expected.

After taking up the oars she began to row. It didn’t take long for Isla’s arms to begin to tire, but she kept rowing as fast as she could. She couldn’t get away from the coast, and the castle, fast enough.

That’s when she remembered her shield. It was extended as far as her power would take it. There was no way to make it larger and expand to where she wanted to be. She would keep it in place until she passed the barrier. Her only hope was that Deirdre wouldn’t send her wyrran to attack the castle once the shield came down.

The waves began to grow bigger, pushing her back toward the beach, but Isla kept rowing. She gritted her teeth and used her feet to give her added leverage as she moved the oars.

Isla knew the moment she passed through her shield. The barrier charged around her for a moment before disappearing altogether. She blinked through a new wave of tears and a heart that continued to break for Hayden. She rowed herself farther and farther from the castle, farther and farther away from the only man she had ever loved.

Pain exploded in her head, more ferocious than anything she had felt before.

“You fool,” Deirdre’s voice screamed in her head. “How dare you betray me? You will know the full extent of my wrath. Once I’m done with you, you’ll beg me for death, but first, you will kill everyone at that castle.”

Isla wanted to grab her head, to curl up in a ball as the throbbing continued. But she thought of Hayden, of what Deirdre had made her do to his family, and Isla kept rowing.

“Nay!” Isla screamed into the churning waves. “Get out of my head, Deirdre. I won’t kill anyone else for you.”

“Oh, you will,” Deirdre said with a laugh. “You will kill them all!”

In the next instant lightning split the sky. Isla cringed, for she knew the lightning came from Deirdre. Isla could feel Deirdre’s black magic spread over the water.

Isla wouldn’t give up fighting, though. She would do it for Hayden, for the friendship she’d been offered by those at the castle. It was the least she could do for them. Deirdre would eventually win, but Isla wanted to give everyone enough time to prepare.

The lightning grew closer and closer, its booms louder and louder. Isla had seen Deirdre use her magic this way only once, and the outcome had been disturbing and brutal. Isla knew she would fare no better.

The first strike of the lightning made Isla drop the oars as her body froze amid the torment and blistering heat that scalded her skin. She screamed and crumpled over while Deirdre commanded her to return to the castle and kill.

Deirdre’s magic wasn’t as strong as before, but even in Deirdre’s weakened state Isla had a difficult time keeping her from taking her mind. It was only the thought of Hayden that made Isla reach for the oars once more.

Hayden knew something was wrong as soon as he opened his eyes. He reached a hand over to Isla’s side of the bed and found it cool to the touch. She had been gone for some time.

He threw back the covers and jumped from the bed. As he reached for his clothes, something strong and magical passed through him.

Isla’s magic.

Her shield was gone. Which meant … she was gone.

Something inside Hayden snapped. Broke. The strange and new and glorious emotions he had let into himself just the day before crushed and left him … shattered.

He threw back his head and let out a roar that seemed to go on forever. Time stood still as his mind and heart raged. His god broke free, but Hayden didn’t stop him. Hayden would never stop him now, not with Isla gone.