Page 19 of The Iron Highlander
“Shut up, Hudson, yer pished to shite.” Reuben stared at him, “I need a favor.”
“Aye?”
Reuben shook his head and dismissed the man. He would do it himself. His family kept records of all of the battles they had been in and why they had been in the battle, who they had lost to, and what had happened during the battle. He knew he haddone no such thing to the McGowans, but it would not hurt for him to find out what had really happened to them, and asking a drunk man for such a sensitive job would just be asking for trouble.
“Never mind Hudson,” Reuben replied. “I’ll do it myself.”
Chapter 10
Kate walkedout of the room feeling the tears well up in her eyes. She found it hard to breathe, and somehow, she felt heartbroken. She knew what she had said, and she had meant it, and yet, seeing the way he reacted had simply broken her. She had not considered the chances that what she had said were untrue, or how they would hurt the people she said it to. Reuben did not deserve that, and yet she had hurt him in such a manner.
Before she had gone off to find Reuben, she had tried finding her sisters first. Kate returned to their bedroom after they had heard what she said to him, looking to see if they were there. Not finding them there, she had decided to go apologize to Reuben before she would try finding them again. But meeting the Laird had not gone as planned, and now Kate felt shattered. She had upset her host, and her own sisters were displeased with how she had behaved.
She returned to their bedroom and got into bed, hiding away her face as she sobbed. Her heart was heavy, and she realized just how hurt Reuben had been. His reaction to her flinching whenhe had approached had broken his heart. Kate had only ducked reflexively, as it was usually the same thing that led to a fight when she was with Max.
The door behind her creaked open, and she watched as her sisters walked in. Each of them had a look on their faces that absolutely melted Kate’s heart, making her feel worse than before. Freya looked disappointed, and Willow looked angry. Lily had been crying, and she sniffled as she saw Kate crying as well.
“Where’ve ye been?” Freya asked, folding her hands.
“I…was looking for ye, and then I stopped by to see Reuben.” Kate replied.
Willow walked up to her, narrowing her eyes as she sat on the bed next to her sister. “Ye knew that this people are the ones who killed our parents, and yet ye brought us here. Why would ye do that?”
Kate shook her head, “There was no other place to go. Anywhere else, and we would be dragged out by Max’s men, and taken back. But here, in this estate, if he came, that would be a lot harder to do.”
“Ye decided to protect us in the home of the same people who killed our parents? Ye see how crazy that sounds, Kate?” Willow added, her voice getting more agitated.
“Willow, please calm down, I understand ye’re upset, I understand ye all are. But please, it was the best I could do at the time, and it is why I keep telling ye to stay on yer own, and not to get attached to the people here. But listen, I have no proof that this is true. I heard the tales from the McGowan estate as a child, and I didnae ken how to confirm for myself.”
Willow sat up, staring at Kate. Lily cocked her head to the side, wiping her eyes on her sleeves, “So, ye falsely accused Reuben?”
Kate ran a hand through her hair, sitting up in bed. “I daenae ken, Lily, I spoke to him, and he said he never did anything like that, and now that I think about it, Uncle Max was the one who put the idea in my head. I have nae way of proving what I was told.”
“Well, did ye apologize?” Freya asked.
“I’m sorry, girls, I’m sorry. I’ve been stressed and scared, and I just want to keep you girls safe. I have been doing this for so long, and so ye must understand that bringing ye here was not something I easily did.”
“Not to us,” Freya added, looking out the door at where Reuben would most likely be.
“He would not listen to me,” Kate replied.
“Why didn’t ye tell us?” Lily asked, touching her oldest sister. Kate grabbed her arm and pulled her in close for a hug.
“Lily, Willow, I was going to tell ye. But how could I break the news to the people I was supposed to take care of? I felt like it was best to spare ye the details of their death. I didnae have any details, because I was scared and wanted to do the same for me. I wanted to spare myself the horror of what had happened to them.”
Willow and Freya joined her in bed, sitting close together. For all of her toughness, Willow broke down and began to sob. Kate rubbed her hair and pulled her in closer, whispering apologies into her ears while humming a song which they were all familiar with.
“Ye were going to tell me,” said Freya.
“Aye, I was. Ye were old enough, and I thought ye would be able to handle it. But I couldnae put it to words. I didnae know how to, and I’m sorry I didn’t say it sooner, I really am.”
Freya nodded at Kate before she walked towards the window and took a seat, staring out to the stary night sky. Kate watched her for a moment, realizing how much Freya had grown. She was not a child anymore, and had become a woman, capable of handling herself.
Kate had known for a while, but seeing how she had handled herself tonight, holding herself better than even Kate herself had. Freya had grown, and Kate would rely on her. She would rely on all of them, they were her family, and she would do everything to make sure that they were comfortable, and theytrusted her. She would do what was best for them, and make sure that they knew why she did it.
“No more secrets, Kate,” said Lily, staring up at Kate. “Ye swear it.”
Kate paused for a moment, turning to Willow and then to Freya before nodding, “Aye, nae secrets anymore.”
