Page 82 of Highlander's Wild Lass
He nodded. “Are ye alright?”
Celestia shook her head as a new wave of tears fell.
“I will tell Chester and Hugo if you’d like,” he said, sitting beside her on the bed.
“I’ll do it, I should do it,” she told him. “But will ye come with me when I do?”
“Aye, lass, of course.”
* * *
Telling Chester and Hugo about their father was unbearable. He and Celestia had waited until daybreak, not that getting this news at any hour makes it better.
Hugo had attached himself to Celestia much like Auralia had. Chester, on the other hand, stuffed his face into his pillow, sobs wracking his body. Anthony kept blinking back tears; Chester was handling Brannan’s death just like Anthony had his mother’s. He hid in his bed, trying to cry as silently as he could.
Anthony stepped over to Chester’s bed and sat down beside him. He laid a hand on his back and almost at once, Chester leaped from his bed and wrapped his arms around Anthony. He held him tight, running a hand up and down the boy’s back. “It’s alright, lad,” he told him.
That had been days ago, and the funeral was today. Celestia stood in the castle kirkyard, she and her siblings holding onto each other. Anthony only glanced at them once while he, Sebastian, and six of his men lowered the coffin to the ground.
The priest said some words that he did not remember, he just stared at Brannan’s coffin as the men began filling in the hole with dirt. He said a prayer under his breath and then promised Brannan with every inch of his body and every day of his life, he would protect his children.
The feast that followed was livelier than Anthony expected. Most of the village had come to celebrate Brannan McLean’s life, and he saw that with each well-wisher telling stories of their father’s life a small bit of sadness left their faces.
Sebastian came up to him then, clapping a heavy hand on his shoulder. “Can ye believe there’s been a festival, a wedding, and a funeral...all in the same month?”
Anthony shook his head, biting back a grin. “Ye ken, if ye were nae my greatest friend, I’d lay into ye for that.”
“I like to bring levity to serious moments, what can I say,” he said with a shrug. He then nodded his head in the direction of Celestia and the family. “How are they doin’?”
“As well as they can be, I suppose.”
“There’s far more people here than I expected,” Sebastian said. “The man was well-loved.”
“I think so too,” Anthony replied. “I ken it’s makin’ things slightly easier for Celestia and them.”
Sebastian nudged Anthony. “Who is that?” He pointed discreetly to the man towering over Celestia.
“What a bastard,” Anthony said, placing his cup of mead down. “I cannae believe he showed his face here.” He noticed Sebastian’s confusion. “That’s the man who attacked Celestia when she was in Inverness.”
Anthony came up behind Celestia, snaking an arm around her waist; Sebastian assumed his position to Anthony’s right.
“What are ye doin’ here?” Celestia asked, her voice deadly quiet and laced with derision.
“Oh, Mistress Celestia,” Koll replied, his mouth in an oily smile. “To pay my respects to McLean’s esteemed family.”
“Ye will do no such thing,” Celestia said, voice low for only them to hear. “Ye will leave at once, and we will nae see each other again.”
Koll’s laughter sputtered out of him. “Yer so brave withhimstandin’ beside ye.” He leaned in closer, dropping his voice. “Yer Da is dead, and there’s nae reason to keep a dead man’s business open.”
“Get out of here,” she said. Celestia’s body became still against Anthony, and he started forward, Sebastian grabbing hold of Koll’s arm.
“That’s enough from ye,” Sebastian said.
Together they fought against Koll as he struggled to free himself until they were outside the castle walls. The man was so large that he only stumbled back when Anthony and Sebastian released him.
“How dare ye—”
“If yeeverlay a hand on my wife again, Ryder,” Anthony seethed, “I will kill ye.”
