Page 43 of Claimed By the Heartless Highlander
For a long moment, all Duncan could do was breathe, held in place by a paralyzing combination of fear, rage, and self-loathing. “They took her…”
“Braither… ye dinnae ken…”
“Who else would steal Lily, or feel the need to knock out a guard in the process, to take her without my knowledge?” Duncan whirled around and slammed a fist into the wall. The pain of the blow was nothing compared to the ache in his heart.
“Duncan…” Jack started to reach out for him, then stopped. “What will ye do?”
“Gather the warriors and prepare to go to battle. We’re marchin’ on Clan Fraser.”
“Are ye sure?”
Duncan felt his jaw clench. “I swore an oath to Daisy, and I’ll nae fail her, nay matter what it takes to protect Lily.”
Nay matter what… I’ll bring Lily home.
CHAPTER17
At first,Ailis enjoyed the ride. The air was cool and comfortable, and the sun was shining. The motion of the carriage wasn’t quite as smooth as the gait of a horse, but that was no hardship.
Being surrounded by fresh air and the woods, meadows, and moors of the open Highlands helped soothe some of the hurt and anger that had been her constant companions over the past few days.
Her heart ached to be leaving little Lily behind, and Jack, and even Duncan. Still, even a few short hours away from them did much to calm her and give her a clearer perspective.
She still felt that she had a right to know why Duncan behaved the way he did. She also still believed that, if she was to be his wife, or even his betrothed, she deserved to have some knowledge about his past and his family. She couldn’t be a good wife from the outside, after all.
Even so, she knew he’d made an effort to encourage her bond with Lily, despite how vehemently he’d warned her to stay away when he was in a temper. And as for the rest of it…
He’d admitted that the fire spoken of in the stories about “the Ghostly Laird” had happened. It must have been terribly traumatic for him, and there was no telling who he might have lost in that fire. Perhaps it had even been Lily’s mother. The passage of time could heal grief to some degree, but she knew from personal experience that some losses could scar the soul.
It was also clear he’d lived a fairly isolated life for some years. Since the fire, she would guess. He and Jack had both mentioned that their life of isolation and limited association with others had left them somewhat lacking in proper behavior. Now that some of the hurt and frustration had cleared from her mind, she could admit she might have been too hasty, demanding answers so soon after entering their lives.
She didn’t know what wounds her questions had prodded open. And while it might be argued that she couldn’t be expected to know, it could also be argued that she was still a relative stranger in Duncan’s life. She hadn’t even known him a fortnight, and what was that in comparison to years upon years of letting old injuries fester and rot around his heart?
That thought made her feel a little ashamed of how harsh she’d been toward him over the past week. She’d been upset, but looking back on her actions with a clearer perspective, she could see she’d responded almost childishly.
She was tempted to tell the driver to turn around and return to Castle Muir, but she refrained. Regardless of whether she’d been too hasty or too harsh with Duncan, the separation was still a good choice.
Duncan needed to figure out what sort of wife he wanted, and how much he was willing to let her in, or even if he was willing to trust her at all. She also needed to sort out her own thoughts. It was clear to her that neither of them had been prepared for the situation they’d gotten themselves into.
A particularly sharp bump in the road startled her out of her thoughts. She blinked and looked around.
The sun was higher in the sky than she’d expected it to be and at the wrong angle. Jack had gone over the route the carriage would be taking to reach the border between Muir lands and MacDean lands. He’d pointed out the directions and told her how long it would take to make the journey to the border, where Maisie and Keith had agreed to have someone meet her.
Unless she was severely mistaken, they’d gone off course. Even more notable, they should have been on MacDean lands by now, perhaps even in areas that Ailis recognized from going berry-picking, herb gathering, or even just picnicking with her friends.
She leaned forward. “Pardon me?”
“Aye, Me Lady?”
Ailis frowned again. The voice wasn’t one she recognized, and Jack had sworn she’d be in the care of one of the guards she’d befriended while watching over Lily. He’d said it was Duncan’s orders.
Still, she made an effort to remain friendly and show none of her uneasiness. “Och, beg yer pardon, but I think ye took a wrong turn. We should have met the folk from Castle MacDean by now.”
“Nae, lass. I ken ye’re eager to reach the end of the journey, but I ken where I’m goin’, and we’re nae quite there yet.”
“But Jack Wallace, the Laird’s braither, said we’d be travelin’ south. It seems ye’re goin’ west?”
“’Tis just a little detour, lass. We’ll be at the castle soon. Most likely, we’ll meet the Laird’s men closer to home, aye.”
