Page 96 of Wedded to the Twisted Highlander
His breath came in ragged gasps as he pushed onward, the chill of the air biting at his skin. The landscape around him transformed, the vibrant greens of the glen fading into a palette of grays and browns, mirroring his inner turmoil.
Just as despair threatened to overwhelm him, he crested a hill, and his eyes widened at the sight before him. He pulled on the reins, bringing his horse to a halt.
Clawing her way up the next hill was Olivia. She was dirty and sore, but from where Thomas stood, she didn’t appear harmed.
“Olivia?” he called, uncertain what he was seeing.
For a brief moment, he wondered if his eyes were playing a cruel trick on him. Had he lost his wits while hunting the moors for Astrid? It wouldn’t have been the first time someone had ventured into the mist, never to return. Yet, the sight of Olivia gave him hope.
“Thomas!” she cried. There was no mistaking the terror in her voice.
Thomas slipped down from his saddle and rushed to her side. She collapsed in his arms. His mind snapped into focus as he scanned her for any signs of injury.
Other than the fresh scraps she must have gotten while trying to flee Laird Chalium, she was fine.
“How did ye get away? Did he let ye go? Speak, lass. A life depends on it,” Thomas urged, giving Olivia a light shake to keep her from collapsing.
“Astrid,” she whispered.
The name stuck like a nail to the wood. Thomas’s chest tightened. Surely Astrid wasn’t as far away as he thought, not if Olivia was there.
“How long ago? Where did ye come from? Please tell me ye left me a trail,” he pressed as Olivia lifted a weary hand and reached for the canteen at his side. Without hesitation, he handed it to her and let her drink her fill. The color slowly returned to her face as he eased her to her feet. “Talk to me.”
“He bound me to a tree,” Olivia whimpered. “She made me leave.”
“Aye, ye did the right thing. But now I need ye to concentrate. Ye’re the smartest woman I ken—think for a minute. Give me more details. How many paces since ye left her? From which direction did ye come?”
Olivia rubbed her temples as her face contorted with pain. “I cannae remember. I dinnae ken, I’m sorry. I ken I kept the sun to me back, and there was the bog. She’s on the island in the bog. He’s got her there, tied up for the beasts to come.”
“I need ye to be brave for me, can ye do that? I willnae leave Astrid here. Ye need to take the horse and leave me.”
“The bog is a maze, Braither. Ye’ll never make it out alive. Nay one does,” Olivia said as more tears pooled in her eyes.
Thomas flashed her a woeful smile and pressed his forehead to hers. “I will return wit’ Astrid,” he whispered. “Now, get on the horse and ride back to the castle. Keep the sun to yer back, and ye’ll get there in nay time.”
“I dinnae want to leave ye,” Olivia whimpered as he lifted her into the saddle and handed her the reins.
“And I willnae leave Astrid,” he insisted as he drew his sword out of the bag he had tied to the saddle. “Now, go.”
Thomas slapped the horse’s hind and watched as his sister took off across the glen. His heart felt a bit lighter knowing that she was safe, but what was he walking into with Astrid?
He dared not let his thoughts go in that direction, not when she could still be alive.
Thomas glared at the mist that pooled at the edge of the bog. An icy chill raced along his spine. He swallowed the fear as he tested the weight of his sword before strapping it to his back.
Scanning the area, he paid attention to the freshly broken twigs Olivia had snapped without thinking. It was like looking at glaring lights that would surely lead him to Astrid.
Mustering all his courage, Thomas entered the bog. The sounds of the critters fell silent the second he stepped through the shrubs. It was an eerie silence that seeped into his bones and heightened his dread.
He continued onward, refusing to let his fear get the better of him. Until he saw Astrid for himself, he refused to believe that she was gone.
“Ye’re goin’ to pay for that,” Chalium’s voice echoed through the marshland, sending the critters racing for the safety of the open skies.
Thomas whipped his head around, taking note of the direction the birds flew. A wicked grin spread across his lips as he raised his broadsword.
“Every blow ye deliver will be a slash from Thomas’s blade. Ye think that this feud will end if ye kill me? Ye’re about to kill Lady McFair and start a war ye’ll never win. Me husband will see that yer very name is struck from the history books.”
Thomas’s heart leaped in his throat the second he heard Astrid’s voice. The fact that she was alive and spouting threats made his heart swell. She was every bit the warrior he was, and the fact that she understood her place was by his side filled him with courage and strength.
