Page 60 of Captured By the Highland Devil
Stifling the surge of emotion flaring in his chest, he went to the table and plucked up the letter from the table. The red seal at the bottom had him holding in a groan. Sitting, he leaned forward and steepled his hands before his face.
“All right,” Galan said. “Somethin’ else must be botherin’ ye. I daenae have the strength to drag it out of ye, so are ye going to tell me on yer own volition?”
Rubbing his tired eyes, Ruben sat back and tonelessly uttered. “Paige told Norah about the men who almost abducted her. As ye can imagine, she dinnae take it well and cried herself into a paroxysm. We had to give her valerian root to make her sleep.”
Grimacing, Galan asked. “How bad is it?”
“I willnae ken until she wakes,” Ruben said. “But I am afraid for her. Such a thing could set her back into the almost insensate state she had been in since she was found alive.”
“Or,” Galan said, “It could wake up what was asleep inside her and get her to finally tell us what had happened in those months she’d been taken. She could finally end the mystery of who took her so ye can catch the bastard.”
“I can only hope,” Ruben said, his eyes flickering to the window and tracking the slow arc of the moon.
The delayed effect of his strenuous swim began to draw down on him and Ruben stood. “I’m going to me chambers,” he told Galan. “Only come callin’ me if there’re invaders barrelin’ down on the village or well, if somethin’ is on fire.”
“Aye, sir,” Galan nodded.
Before he headed to his rooms, Ruben went to see Norah and found her still sleeping. In the moonlight, she looked so young and fragile. The dark smudges under her eyes showed her exhaustion and her sunken cheeks showed her illness.
“Me laird,” a healer came closer. She looked in Norah’s direction and smiled faintly. “She’ll wake by the mornin’. Right now, her body is overwhelmed with the sudden nervous crisis she’d had earlier. I daenae think ye sister has been sleepin’ well for the last few months either.”
Ruben ground his teeth in futile aggravation. He had not seen that either. Something so simple as sleep deprivation was easy to spot. If he had not recognized that, what more had he overlooked?
“Ye cannae blame yerself for nae seein’ it, me laird,” the healer told him. “Ye have had yer attention occupied for months on end. Years, in fact.”
“I am still her brother,” he said while his hand clenched at his sides. “I should have seen it.”
“Either way,” the healer’s tone carried the emotion that she would rather not debate with him. “Mayhap this is the openin’ yer sister needs to start the healin’ process, in her mind as well as her body.
“Ye should go and get some rest as well, me laird. There is nothin’ ye can for her now. I give ye me word, as soon as she wakes, ye will be the first person I’ll call.”
Regretfully, Ruben had to agree and with a goodnight to the healer, headed to his rooms. Heading to the washroom, he splashed his face with icy cold water and then turned an eye to the door leading to Paige’s room.
Should I go and speak with her…or nae?
“She’s probably asleep,” he muttered to himself while reaching for a cloth to dry his face. “I’ll speak to her tomorrow.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Paige tossed all night long.
Even with the bed being one of the most comfortable she had ever touched and the window open to allow a breeze in to cool the room—she was uneasy.
Her mind would not settle despite how weary she was both physically and emotionally. She wished she could go back in time and stop herself from approaching Norah and telling her about her almost abduction.
Her mind kept replaying the events of the previous day. Her helpful impulse, her protective moment—and the way Norah had splintered apart. More than twice she had woken up in the dead of night, frantic to reach out and help, but Norah was not there.
“I cannae help her now,” she rubbed at sleepy eyes. “I hope the healers will let me come by on the morrow. I have a lot to apologize for, to her and Ruben.”
By the third time she woke from a fright, she sat up in bed and hugged her knees to her chest. Watching for daylight was a slow and steady trickle of time that made her drowsy. Eventually, she sunk back to sleep and did not wake again until almost noon.
After a bath and a meal, she asked Maisie. “Do ye ken where is his lairdship is at the moment?”
“If he stays true to pattern, I think he will be in the trainin’ grounds, while most of the men are out in the wilderness trainin’ .”
“Thank ye.” Paige left for the training field and found Ruben there, training by himself.
This time, she approached with caution and called out for Ruben, announcing her arrival. After a moment, he sheathed the sword then came forward.
