Courage of a Highlander Read online

  Irene, he thought. Where are ye? What are ye up to?

  The sooner they reached Dun Arnwick and he could speak to his family, the better. Maybe they could make sense of all this. The thought of his home sent a pang through him. It was a strange mixture of homesickness and wariness. Homesickness because he’d missed them all, wariness because when he got there he knew he’d have to tell them. Tell them he was leaving. Tell them he couldn’t fulfill their expectations of him.

  He sighed and scrubbed a hand through his hair. Ah, Lord. What a mess. He could well imagine their reaction when he told them. His mother would be heartbroken. His father would be furious. His sister would be disappointed. But what else could he do? He had a duty to his king, his country. He knew of no other way to still that restlessness inside him.

  He paused suddenly as he realized something. The restlessness was gone. For the first time since he could remember, that ache that kept him forever moving, forever searching for something was gone and he felt...content.

  He glanced over at Kara. And wondered.

  The fire was getting low so he dropped a few more logs into the flames and then sat back, leaning his head against the cave wall, staff clutched across his knees, staring out into the darkness.

  But exhaustion soon took him and pulled him under.

  ***

  Kara woke with a start. She sat up, looking around. Something had woken her but she wasn’t sure what. The fire had burned low and cast eerie shadows on the walls of the cave. Aiden sat by the entrance, head back, snoring softly. Kara rubbed her eyes, trying to brush away the last vestiges of sleep. She’d been dreaming about something. Something that had been calling to her...

  Something wasn’t right. She sensed it in the air around her and in the ground beneath her feet. The air felt charged, like it did just before a thunderstorm. Slowly, she stood and, careful not to wake Aiden, made her way to the mouth of the cave. A fat round moon hung in the sky above, dusting the landscape with silver. In its light Kara saw the landscape spreading out from their hiding place: the valley, the trees, the stream sparkling silver in the moonlight.

  Her eyes strayed to the top of the valley. There she saw the stones of Cullmaggin silhouetted against the stars. From here they looked like a set of jagged fangs sticking up into the night.

  Just as when she’d first laid eyes on it, Kara felt drawn to it. The fire in her belly was back suddenly, pulling her, urging her on... She hadn’t realized she’d left the cave until her feet settled onto the soft, muddy ground of the stream bank. She looked around, confused. How had she gotten down here? The cave was behind her and she could still make out the faint light from the fire burning within. She ought to return. It was crazy being out here alone in the dark. What did she think she was doing?

  But she didn’t turn around. Instead she began walking along the riverbank as it meandered closer to the valley’s edge. Above her the broken stones of Cullmaggin grew closer, towering into the sky like eerie sentinels. Watching her. Calling her onward.

  Before she knew it Kara had splashed through the stream and begun climbing up through the vegetation on the far side of the valley. Brambles snagged her clothing, branches pulled at her hair and scraped her face but Kara barely noticed them. The pull was getting stronger, more insistent. She must answer.

  Come, the wind seemed to whisper. Come to us.

  Finally she stepped out onto the windblown upland and found Cullmaggin rising before her. The stones were enormous. Easily twice Kara’s height, they stood in a rough circle maybe fifty feet across. Weathered and pitted by time and the elements, they nevertheless radiated a kind of immovable strength, as though they had stood sentinel over this valley since ages long past and would continue to stand sentinel long after all memory of them had passed from the land.

  Come to us.

  Kara stepped forward, approaching one of the stones, but halted on the threshold without crossing into the ring. A faint voice inside was screaming at her, telling her this was stupid, warning her back. But that voice was drowned out by the overwhelming urge to step inside.

  Kara reached out a trembling hand and laid her palm flat against the stone. It felt warm to her touch and her skin tingled where it brushed the rough granite.

  Come to us.

  Kara looked up and saw that the moonlight falling through the scattered clouds illuminated the center of the circle. Slowly, hesitantly, Kara crossed the threshold and entered the stones of Cullmaggin.

  The temperature plummeted but she didn’t slow as she walked to stand in the exact center, in the circle of moonlight. Around her a cacophony of whispering voices spoke up.

  Ye have come!

  Ye are ours! Ours!

  Ye canna escape us now. Ye canna escape yer destiny. Ye are one of us!

  Embrace it! Embrace who ye are!

  An icy wind blew through the stones, running freezing fingers along Kara’s skin. She wrapped her arms around herself, her teeth suddenly chattering.

  “Who are you?” she shouted. “What do you want with me?”

  There was laughter. Harsh, cruel, laughter.

  Do ye not know?

  The voices echoed all around her, blending until she could no longer make out words. The cold intensified, seeming to seep into her very soul.

  “Leave me alone!” she yelled.

  Cold. So cold. Can’t stay awake. Kara crashed to her knees and then onto her side. Darkness rushed up to claim her.

  ***

  Aiden snapped awake, a sick sense of dread knotting his stomach. Reflexively he reached for his sword only to realize it was no longer there so grabbed the staff instead, looking around for the enemy. There was none. The cavern was empty.

  A shot of pure panic went through him as he realized the spot where Kara had been sleeping was bare. He jumped to his feet and ran to the cave entrance.

  “Kara!” he bellowed into the night. “Kara!”

  There was no answer.

  Returning to the cave, he grabbed a smoldering brand from the fire, blew it into life, and, holding it aloft, ran out of the cave and then crouched in the mud, eyes scanning the ground. There. A set of footprints led away from the cave. Holding the torch in one hand and his staff in the other, Aiden followed the trail down to the river bank where it turned left, following the contours of the watercourse.

  Aiden moved as quickly as possible in the dark, stopping every now and then to check he hadn’t lost the trail. Panic churned in his gut. What was she doing? Why, by all that’s holy, had she gone out into the woods alone at night?

  He cursed himself for a fool. He’d been meant to stand watch, to keep her safe, and instead he’d fallen asleep and let her slip past him. Ye are a damned fool, he growled at himself. Even the newest, greenest warrior knew never to fall asleep on guard duty.

  Biting back his worry, he forced himself to concentrate on the trail. He followed it through the stream and then picked it up again on the other side. It seemed to be climbing the valley side. Heading towards...

  He glanced up. Cullmaggin rose on the horizon, a darker shadow against the blackness of the night sky. The hairs on the back of Aiden’s neck rose. Cullmaggin. What on God’s clean earth would possess her to approach that haunted place? There were stories of Cullmaggin and its like. Stories told to Highland children since time immemorial. Stories of how such places belonged to the Fae and they did not suffer mortals to pass.

  Aiden sucked in a deep breath and steeled his courage. If Kara was up there then that’s where he must go. He began to climb.

  It was hard going, the trail little more than an animal track, and in places it was so steep that he had to use his hands and feet together. He was scratched and battered by the time he reached the top.

  He paused for a second, his heart quailing at the sight of the dark monoliths rising from the ground ahead of him, then gritted his teeth and ploughed into the circle.

  The darkness inside the circle was almost absolute and for the briefest of moments
he thought he saw shadowy figures moving around the edges but when he blinked they were gone. The clouds suddenly parted and moonlight broke through, illuminating the center of the circle. It revealed a figure lying on the ground, curled on its side.

  “Kara!” Aiden’s heart thudded in his chest.

  He scrambled to Kara’s side and scooped her into his arms. She didn’t stir. She was still breathing but her eyes were closed and her skin as cold as ice.

  “Kara!” he said. “Wake up, lass!”

  She didn’t respond. He lifted her and turned to the shadows at the edge of the clearing.

  “If ye have done aught to harm her,” he growled. “Ye will answer to me!”

  He thought he heard soft laughter but it could easily have been the sound of the breeze. Clasping Kara to his chest, he carried her from the circle and back down into the valley.

  By the time he reached their cave he was sick with worry. Kara hadn’t stirred the whole time, even when Aiden slipped and stumbled on the difficult trail, jolting her unconscious form. He had to warm her up. She was freezing.

  Once in the cave he laid her near the fire then quickly built it up. In moments it was burning merrily again, casting heat and light into the small space. Aiden was glad of it. The warm light chased away the night and the memory of cold shadows and dark laughter.

  He knelt beside Kara, grabbed one of her arms, and began rubbing it vigorously. It was a method they used in the king’s guard when men were suffering from hypothermia. He needed to get Kara’s circulation going. When he’d done one arm he moved onto the other and then her legs.

  Part of him realized it was hardly decent for him to be rubbing a woman’s legs like this—even if she was wearing a strange pair of flannel trews—but right now her wellbeing was more important than her modesty.

  Kara stirred and mumbled something that he couldn’t quite make out. Her color was better, the blue tinge gone from her lips, but her skin was still far too cold for Aiden’s liking. He hesitated, deciding what to do. Then he lay down behind Kara, fitting his body along hers and wrapped his arm around her, holding her close, hoping that his body heat would warm her.

  Kara sighed and pushed herself into him so that her back sat snugly against his chest. It felt good to have her pressed against him. It felt right.

  His thoughts were becoming sluggish. It had been a challenging day and an even more challenging night and the warmth from the fire was making him drowsy. In only moments his eyes started to droop and, with his body curled protectively around Kara’s, he fell asleep.

  ***

  Kara woke slowly. She felt warm and comfortable and her limbs held that heaviness that comes after a good night’s sleep. There was a pleasant, warm pressure against her back and for some unaccountable reason, it made her feel very safe.

  She opened her eyes. Beyond the cave’s entrance sunlight glimmered through the trees and she realized the weight pressing against her back was Aiden’s body curled protectively around her. His arm lay under his head as a rudimentary pillow and he was sound asleep.

  Kara swallowed thickly. How had they ended up like this? She remembered a vague recollection of walking into the night. Of climbing a steep slope. Of stone teeth rising from the ground and a voice. A voice saying, ye are ours. Had that been a dream? Even as she tried to make sense of it the images began to fade as dreams will until Kara was left with only the barest impression of unease, as though she was missing something important.

  Aiden shifted and Kara twisted to look at him. His dark hair was spread out around his head like a shadowy halo and his expression was peaceful in sleep. His shirt was twisted, pulled taught across his body, revealing the contours of muscle that lay beneath. Stubble dusted his chin.

  Kara’s stomach lurched Holy crap, but he was gorgeous. She reached out, gently running her fingertip along his cheek. He shifted slightly but didn’t wake. What would it be like to wake up like this everyday? she wondered. To have Aiden by her side? The thought sent a delicious warmth uncoiling inside her.

  She pushed the thought away ruthlessly and withdrew her hand. She shouldn’t think such things. She would soon be going home and leaving Aiden Harris and sixteenth century Skye behind forever.

  Careful not to wake him, she wriggled out from his grasp and climbed to her feet. She ached all over and little scratches marked her arms. How had that happened? She couldn’t remember falling yesterday. No matter. She was determined to let Aiden sleep whilst she made herself useful so she quickly padded to the cave entrance and made her way out into the early morning sunlight.

  The morning was crisp and clear, cold enough that Kara could see her breath in the air before her. There had been rain sometime in the night and now the leaves dripped with diamond droplets..

  Kara pulled her coat closer about herself and scanned the area, searching for what she was after. She glanced up and saw the jagged stones of Cullmaggin rearing up on the hillside above her. Even in the morning light they seemed dark and full of shadow, as though they resisted the sunlight that tried to illuminate them.

  Ye are ours. Ye must embrace who ye are.

  A voice suddenly whispered in her head. Kara staggered, almost falling, and steadied herself on a tree trunk.

  Hearing things now, Kara? she asked herself. You really are going crazy.

  She pushed all thoughts of Cullmaggin from her mind and concentrated on her task. A little way from the riverbank she found what she was looking for. Stooping, she filled her pockets and then made her way back to the cave where Aiden was still sleeping.

  She deposited her finds next to the fire then built it up until it was burning nicely. Then, using the same flat stone that Aiden had used yesterday, she laid her finds out on it and popped them into the fire.

  She crossed her legs and propped her chin on her hand, watching Aiden and wondering exactly what had passed between them last night for her to wake with him the way she did. She wished she could remember. Fractured images and faint impressions were all she recalled. Kara shook her head.

  Aiden shifted, reached out, found Kara gone, and suddenly bolted upright, looking around. Then his eyes settled on her and he relaxed.

  “Morning,” Kara said with a smile.

  Aiden blew out a breath. “There ye are. For a moment I thought—”

  “Thought what?” Kara asked, raising an eyebrow. “That I’d run out on you?”

  “Nay, lass. I thought...I thought. It doesnae matter.” He eyed her cautiously. “Are ye well, lass?”

  “Never better,” Kara shrugged. “I slept like a baby. Now, how about some breakfast? Roasted chestnuts—every girl scouts favorite!”

  ***

  Aiden tucked into his breakfast. The roasted chestnuts were good, he had to admit. Where Kara had found them he had no idea as he’d not spotted any chestnut trees as they were traveling yesterday. He watched Kara from across the fire. He’d gently asked her questions about last night but she didn’t seem to remember any of it and Aiden didn’t push the matter.

  Perhaps she was merely sleepwalking, he told himself. She wouldnae be the first lass to do that.

  He didn’t believe it. Something told him the Fae were involved and that thought made him profoundly uneasy. What did they want with Kara? The woman herself seemed none the worse for her late-night jaunt. In fact, she seemed in high spirits and the sight of her smile and the healthy flush to her cheeks warmed Aiden’s insides.

  When they’d eaten their fill Aiden made his way down to the riverbank where he gave himself a quick wash in the icy water. It was a cold morning with a hint of winter in the air and Aiden hoped they’d make it back to Dun Arnwick before the first snows of the season that looked like they might arrive today.

  They quickly packed up and left the cave. As they made their way along the trail at the valley bottom, Aiden deliberately didn’t look up at Cullmaggin rearing above them, watching malevolently as they left its demesne.

  They walked for several hours and Aiden soon foun
d his worries evaporating in Kara’s company. She asked a thousand questions—about the flora and fauna they spotted, about the settlements on Skye and the history of the Harris Clan. She was interested in everything and Aiden answered as best he could, amused by her child-like delight in learning about the migratory patterns of puffins or the way crofts were constructed from local stone and thatch.

  “And everything on Skye belongs to the Harris clan?” Kara asked.

  “Not everything. There are also the MacConnells and the MacKays although they both owe allegiance to the Harris Clan. In times of strife my father can call on their warriors for aid and similarly, if they have difficulties, they would come to my father for help. On Skye my father’s word is law, above all save that of the king.”

  “So you’re all one big happy family?” she said with a smile.

  Aiden snorted. “Hardly. Although Skye has been peaceful since before I was born, the same canna be said for the Highlands. Highland politics can be...delicate and there’s been many a clan war fought, particularly on the mainland. With clan ties the way they are with all the inter-marriages and alliances, a feud between two lairds can soon escalate into something more. The Murrays and the MacFarlanes for example, both friends to our clan, were at each other’s throats for many years although now they are close allies.”

  “Sounds complicated,” Kara said, picking a piece of grass from the side of the path and idly shredding it. She spent a moment in thought. “So a laird is like a chief and you’re the chief’s son. Does that mean you’ll inherit eventually?”

  The question was asked innocently enough but Aiden almost missed his step. He glanced at her to see her watching him expectantly. He scrabbled to find an answer. “Not necessarily,” he said after a long pause. “The eldest son usually takes over the lairdship after his father but it isnae always so.” He glanced out at the landscape around them. At the rolling moorland and mountains in the distance. Almost under his breath he added, “Not if his path lies elsewhere.”

  Kara seemed to sense his disquiet and didn’t pursue the matter. She shrugged. “Families, eh? Seems no matter what era you live in, as much as you love them they can drive you crazy.”