Page 49 of Saved By the Cruel Highlander
“I should have stopped him,” he continued. “I couldnae. I didnae ken about it until it was done. He captured a snake. Can ye believe that? A snake!Hewas the snake. He trapped it, transported it, then used it to scare me faither’s horse and throw me faither clean off it. An ugly way to die and an ugly way to kill. There was nay honor in it, but then there was never any honor in him. I ken that now. I didnae ken it until it was too late.
“And me maither? He killed her with his bare hands. Another dishonorable death. He strangled her and made it look like she’d killed herself. He killed both of them and he… enjoyed it. He felt nay regret for what he had done. Me own braither! I dinnae understand how he could do such a thing. He loved them—I ken he loved them. He loved them, and he still did it. He killed them.”
Holly still held his hand. She was in shock, speechless. She had told him about her parents and the shocking way they had been killed, and she had wanted to know his pain, and now she did. They had both faced loss, but her father’s death, while horrible, had been noble. Her mother’s, too.
“I’m sorry ye had to go through that,” she said.
She placed her hand on the back of his head and ran her fingers through his hair. She moved her hand around and touched his scar.
He flinched.
“Is that how ye got this?” she asked timidly.
It was too much for him. It had taken everything in him to talk about his parents, and he couldn’t take it anymore. It was the first time he had spoken about his past with anyone, and it sapped his energy while stoking his anger.
He quickly turned his head to look away from her. “Dinnae touch me!”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Holly knew he was hurting. She could feel his pain—it radiated from him and through her. She looked at the back of his head as he turned away from her, and she didn’t want him to feel that way anymore. She couldn’t do anything about it. It was the pain he had felt since his parents had passed, and he would always live with it, just as she lived with her pain.
She let go of his hand, picked up one of the cups, and filled it with ale. She passed it to him as he kept looking away, then poured a small amount into her cup and drank it.
Nay wonder he is so angry all the time. The people have nay right to call him beastly. The man lost his family, and he can be as angry as he likes.
Holly was angry all the time, but she hid it. The Laird had suffered worse than she had. How would she feel if she had a sibling who’d killed her parents? She would become beastly, she was sure of it.
Does that mean his braither is still alive somewhere? He told me his braither gave him the scar, but he told me nothin’ else.
Holly picked up one of the plates, added some meat, cheese, and oatcakes to it, and passed it to him.
“Eat somethin’,” she ordered.
Elias let out a short laugh through his nose, and it made her happy. He was not completely desolate.
“What’s so funny?” she asked.
He turned to face the loch again and took a bite of meat.
“Nothin’,” he replied. “Only that ye must be learnin’ from Cassandra. There arenae many who give me orders.”
“Well, now there are two.” Holly folded her arms over her chest and smiled.
She looked out at the clear loch and imagined swimming in there with the Laird. It had been cold when she had scooped some water to drink, but perhaps the cold would wash away their pain for a while.
“I’ve learned a lot from her since I arrived at the castle,” Holly admitted. “Nae just how to give ye orders, but also lots about botany. Nae as much recently since Cole arrived.”
“Aye, he can be a handful, but ye care for him well,” Elias said. “I dinnae think we’ll ever find his parents.”
“Nay,” Holly agreed.
They hadn’t spoken about it yet, but she knew they would have to make a decision about the boy soon. She wished they could keep him, and she could look after him, but it was not fair to ask that of Elias.
“Poor lad,” Elias said. “I cannae imagine what he’s goin’ through right now.”
“I ken,” Holly murmured. “It’s a good thing that he ran into us in the woods and nae someone else. It’s a good thing that he ran into anyone afore he died. Can ye imagine that? A bairn alone in the woods, just sittin’ there? He wouldnae have moved if it werenae for Ollie. He’s nae quite a beast, is he?”
“I dinnae ken,” Elias said with a smile. “I saw him the other day tearin’ into a mouse. I guess it depends on the size of yer opponent whether ye are a beast or nae.”
