Page 87 of The Highlander's Auctioned Virgin
CHAPTER 23
The hall smelledof fruits and meat.
The hair on the back of Ciaran’s neck had stood on end since he got into the village and hadn’t gone down since then. He still believed there was trouble afoot, but for some reason, he couldn’t exactly pinpoint where it was coming from.
Elinor sat beside him, her eyes fixed on the crowd in the middle of the hall.
This felt surreal to him, her seeing where he came from, the people he intended to lead. These folks did not care that he was the Hound. That or they couldn’t be bothered to stay for a second more under his brother’s thumb. Whichever it was, it was daunting to know that everyone in the hall—right down to the youngest child scurrying around, their hands sticky with honey—looked up to him.
The weight of such a responsibility made him shudder for the briefest of moments.
“If yer braither isnae dead,” Elinor started, her voice clear as she turned to him, “then I assume ye both had some kind of falling out?”
Ciaran let out a slow breath and rubbed his face. He was sure she could see the uncertainty on his face.
“We are getting married in a few days,” she reminded him in a firm voice.
The music from the bagpipes in the far corner filled the air, adding more life to the atmosphere.
Ciaran leaned back in his chair. “All me life, I have been under me braither’s thumb.”
Elinor arched a questioning eyebrow.
“Logan raised me because I was only a bairn when our parents died. I admired him a lot. Ye have nay idea. I loved what he stood for. How people all around respected and worshipped him. He was greatly admired, and a part of me was glad that I was related to him, ye ken.”
He swallowed and took a deep breath.
“Because I admired him so much, I never wanted to disappoint him. So I did everything he asked of me. If he wanted me to send a message, I would do it. He wanted me to track a man and investigate something? I wouldnae hesitate. I loved him too much to do that.”
Elinor nodded. “In me experience, love and adoration like this are often one-sided. I am guessing he didnae return the affection ye had for him?”
“Aye. He didnae see me as his little braither,” Ciaran said, the bagpipes in the background accentuating the hurt in his voice. “Just as someone who could do his bidding. Someone who was always at his beck and call. And Iwas.I did everything he wanted because I didnae want to disappoint him. When I was little, he once told me that he didnae want to ever hear me voice unless it was absolutely necessary.”
Elinor’s heart hurt for him. She gave him a sympathetic look. “Is that why ye rarely speak?”
Ciaran narrowed his eyes at her. “What do ye mean? I speak.”
“Nae as much as ye should,” she countered. “And now I understand why. Was that what happened? Did ye suddenly realize that ye were slaving for Logan and getting nothing from him in return?”
“His approval was enough for me. He didnae speak harsh words to me whenever I did anything well. That was enough. At least itfeltenough. Because of Logan, I learned to track a target andkill it. I learned how to sniff out a man who doesnae want to be found. I could find anyone, nay matter how far or near they were.”
“Hence the name.”
“Aye. Nae me first choice, but it stuck.”
Elinor shifted in her seat. “Did he give ye that name?”
“More or less. It was what he called me. Never me real name,” Ciaran replied, swallowing past the lump in his throat. “Ye see, I believed me braither was doing the right thing. I believed anyone Logan wanted dead truly deserved to die because they were wrong. So I followed his orders blindly. I killed them and put them out of his way. I only realized the wrongness of it when one day he asked me to kill a laird.”
“He asked ye to kill a laird?” Elinor squeaked.
“Aye. Ye must ken, though. I killed terrible lairds before. It wasnae the first time. And of course, I was prepared to do what he wanted because he was me braither at the end of the day. I thought this laird must have done something terrible. But then I found out that Logan wanted him dead because he was sleeping with the laird’s wife.”
Elinor’s eyes widened.
“Logan wanted to have her all to himself, so he asked me to kill her husband. He was David without the repentance.”
“Did ye find out before or after killing the laird?”
