Highland Legends 04 - Captive Highlander Read online

  “Where is he now?”

  She drew a deep breath. “He still lies in Katie’s chamber. I didna untie him. I just rushed to find you, Milord.”

  “Draco, gather some men and come with us,” Rannoch ordered.

  They all made their way to the tower. Draco leaned down and freed Gareth from his bonds. “Tied with his own plaid,” he commented.

  “No hint of who did this,” Rannoch said as he circled Katie’s cell and then the outer tower chamber. Finally, he stopped and gazed at Sorcha. “Her lover is dead, her father infirmed, and her brother otherwise occupied unless he left you some time through the night.”

  “Nay, Milord. Jamie and I kept busy. He probably sleeps now to recover his strength.”

  Draco snorted. “Lucky boy.”

  Sorcha felt Rannoch’s piercing, dark eyes boring into her. “Who do you suspect?”

  “I can only think of one who would dare to challenge you so.”

  “Keith Blackburn,” he said. “He has been in Katie’s pocket since the day I came to Duntaigh Castle.”

  “I believe so, Milord. Ever since Laird Brian came under my spell, Keith has acted on her behalf.” She dropped her gaze to the floor. “I can think of no other.”

  Rannoch sighed. “I suppose ‘tis not your fault Gareth failed us.” He turned to Draco. “Wake Gareth and see that he is secured below for his carelessness then get some men and search the keep. They have to be here. With her lover dead, Katie has nowhere to run. She and Keith are lurking about trying to find a way to displace me.” He smiled. “It is too late. In a few short days I will take her sister as my bride and create my heir, an heir that will insure my position at Duntaigh Castle.” He stroked Sorcha’s face with the back of his hand. “And once my child is born you will help me kill Jamie Blackburn.”

  A shiver passed through Sorcha’s body at the thought. She hoped Rannoch could not tell as he touched her. “Perchance he will fall ill with the same malady as his father,” she suggested.

  Rannoch laughed. “Aye, so, Sorcha. This is why I dinna ken if I can meet my bride’s request.”

  “What request, Milord?”

  “Brianna enjoyed our encounter so much she seeks to have me leave off taking you to my bed.”

  Sorcha allowed Rannoch to see her stiffen. “An outlandish request from the virgin bride,” she said. “Surely you dinna plan to honor it.”

  “I dinna ken, fair Sorcha. The innocent offers to do whatever I wish in the bedchamber.”

  “That is because she doesna ken what she offers.”

  “Aye, so, but she will learn the first time I take her.” As Draco and his men dragged Gareth out of the tower, Rannoch paced the chamber. He stopped in front of her. “I want you to create a potion for my wedding night, one that will make us both wild with uncontrolled desire. This will assure she will do anything to please me.”

  Sorcha ran a single finger down his chest. “Do you need me in the room the first night? I could help you with Brianna.”

  “We will talk of it later.”

  “Whatever you wish, Milord,” Sorcha replied. “I am ever at your service for anything you desire.” She bowed slightly. “Might I go and see to Laird Blackburn now? If I cut back on his medicine, we may be able to carry him to the great hall to watch the wedding.” She gave him a smile. “I’m sure you would enjoy having him in the audience. In his infirmed shell of a body he could think of what you would do to his lovely daughter on your wedding night.”

  A grin burst across Rannoch’s face. “Always you find a way to please me. Go, Draco and I will see to the search.”

  She nodded and left the tower.

  Rannoch strode across the floor of the great hall. A thorough search had turned up nothing. Draco sat by the fire watching him. “Milord, I am sure there are secret chambers and passages where they might hide, but I dinna ken where any of those are. What would you have me do now?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Nothing, Milord?”

  Rannoch grabbed his cloak. “I think I saw Brianna heading out to the courtyard. Let me see if my betrothed will enlighten me as to where to look.”

  Draco nodded and Rannoch left the great hall and made his way to the door that led to the courtyard. When he entered the walled space, Brianna looked up and blushed. He walked close and took her hand as she strolled across the windswept garden. “There is a chill today. Would you not be more comfortable inside?” He pulled her close. “What say you, Brianna? Will you come inside with me?”

  She placed a timid hand on his chest. “Milord, I… I fear another…. My weakness for you may make me….”

  He smiled at her and placed a chaste kiss on her cheek. “I am pleased that you think of our times together, but this is not why I came for you today,” he said. “Let us find a quiet place to talk. I agree the temptation of the flesh must wait. I too found it difficult to stop when last we met.” He brushed an errant curl from her face. “Soon you will be mine. Today I need your help with something.”

  “Anything, Rowan,” she said, a look of relief coloring her pale face.

  “Good. Come with me. There is a spot here that offers some protection from the wind and allows us to enjoy the fresh air.” He led her to a secluded corner where the high stone walls blocked most of the ever-moving air. “’Tis definitely autumn in the Highlands,” he commented as they found a seat side by side on a wooden bench.”

  “Aye, so,” she agreed. “How may I be of service?”

  He thought of the desire he saw in her face as he pleasured her the night before and sighed. This young woman would know him in ways she never dreamed existed. He found himself heady at the prospect of deflowering her and conjured an image of her begging for more under the fever of Sorcha’s magic.

  “Rowan.” Her voice interrupted his musings.

  He leaned down and gave her a quick kiss. “I am sorry, love, my mind flew to our pleasure last night.” She gasped. “Dinna worry. I am here on another mission.” He hugged her. “Brianna, Katie fled last night. I kept her in Sorcha’s tower waiting for her to come to her senses. Somehow, she wandered off and now I fear for her safety. Do you ken where she might have gone?”

  “Have you searched the castle?”

  “Draco conducted a thorough search. We canna find her. Is there some secret place she might go?”

  “Could she have left the keep?”

  “Where could she go? Ian and his kin are dead. She has nowhere to run.”

  “True. Then she must be hiding. There are many places to hide in Duntaigh Castle. Some say there are passages and hidden rooms. I havena seen them.”

  He circled his arms around her and drew her close. “I must find her. Please, Brianna, help me find your sister. I need to protect your clan.”

  “Oh, Rowan, I would help you if I could, but I dinna ken where those chambers lie. I am not sure they exist.”

  He tightened his grip on her and fought the urge to shake her. Brianna must not see his dark side, at least not yet. He must hide it a bit longer. For now, she must trust him with her life and with her beautiful body untouched by any but him. “Who might help in my quest?” he asked.

  She shook her head. “Only the laird has the privilege of this knowledge, although he may have imparted it of Keith or Katie as he fell ill. These chambers were to be used to hide our clan in the event of an attack that breached the walls. After Katie captured Ian Innes, I suspected she and Keith had knowledge of a secret way in and out of the castle. How else could she have escaped with Ian?”

  “What of Jamie or Tessa?”

  Brianna touched his cheek. “If I wasna told, they wouldna have told them. I am second oldest after Katie.”

  “Aye, but Jamie will be laird one day.”

  “He is still a boy. He would not be told until he is older.”

  “True,” Rannoch agreed. Sorcha would find out exactly what Jamie knew.

  Chapter 27

  Katie slept entwined her lover’s arms. All too soon, I
an woke her and urged her back into her clothes.

  “Must we go?” Katie asked.

  He kissed her. “’Tis time.”

  “Aye, so,” she agreed. “I am ashamed I put our mission aside to revel in your touch.”

  “A renewal we both needed.”

  “Our union gave me joy and hope for the future. You brought me more fully into womanhood,” she admitted. “I am whole now and better able to fight for my family and our lands.”

  “As it should be, sweet Katie.” Ian smiled.

  Darkness surrounded them as they left the cave. She could barely see the narrow, winding trail that wound its way ever upward through a thick stand of towering trees. Katie drank in the fresh smell of pine as the path took them into the woods above the falls. They rode in silence through miles of shadowy forest. The sound of the cascading water grew faint as they pressed on. Despite their serious mission, she found herself reliving every moment of their time together in the cave. Each scorching touch flew through her mind. More than ever, she knew she belonged with Ian. Eventually they came into a clearing. Far off in the Eastern sky she saw the first faint rays of the sun cresting the horizon.

  Ian indicated a road leading across the top of the mountain. “This way,” he said. Their horses walked side by side on the wider trail through the tall pines. “We will reach Dunbocan Castle soon,” Ian told her. “Are you ready to meet my sister and your soon-to-be kinsmen?”

  “I dinna ken,” she answered honestly. “They have every reason to hate me for the pain I have caused you and the Innes Clan.”

  “They will love you as I do.”

  In spite of Ian’s reassurance, she doubted the remaining Innes warriors would welcome her into their midst. Moreover, what of Lady Asilinn Innes MacLean, Ian’s sister, the purported enchantress of the MacLean and Innes clans? Not to mention Asilinn’s husband, the Dragon of Dunbocan. How could any of them accept her?

  “Katie? Are you still with me?” Ian queried through the breaking dawn.

  “Aye, ‘tis just that I still have doubts how welcome I will be in their midst. Who will be there?”

  “Most of the family stayed on for a visit after the gathering of clans. I left early because of the skirmishes breaking out between our clan and the Blackburns. At the time, I didna ken your father was not at the root of it.”

  “Skye will be there?”

  “Aye, she came with Gabriel. It is the first time she has left the twins since their birth. She may give you a hard time. Skye is very protective of me.” Ian laughed. “The twins have not succeeded in changing her temperament. She is her usual spirited self.”

  “She is Laird Jared MacLean’s sister, is she not?”

  “Aye.”

  “Your father mentioned her. What special interest does she have in who you marry?”

  “I asked for her hand a few years back, but she had the good sense to turn me down.”

  Katie’s pulse quickened. “You love her?”

  “Aye, but not in the way you think.” He exhaled sharply. “Skye and I became fast friends in the year Jared stole Asilinn from my father and forced her to marry him. We are kindred spirits, both prone to mischief and mayhem. Over the years that bond strengthened.”

  “So she was your first choice as a wife.”

  “I offered her marriage because of a little adventure she got into. She couldna remember how, but it was clear she had been with a man and thought she might have conceived his child. I suggested we marry so that she would not have the shame of bearing a bastard.”

  “And she wouldna accept your proposal?”

  “She had a sense it wouldna be fair to either of us. We were friends that were never destined to be lovers. ‘Twas all for the best. Her husband showed up and she finally remembered her marriage. It would have been a bit interesting if she had married me.”

  “Remembered her marriage? How does one forget a husband?” Katie asked.

  “Perchance I will tell you the tale later.”

  “The whole bunch sound a bit daft.”

  “Who? Asilinn the Enchantress, Jared the Dragon, and Skye the Forgetful?”

  “These are your names for them?”

  “You will love them all and they you,” Ian told her. “After all, you are a bit daft yourself. You captured me, held me captive in a dungeon, and then allowed me all kinds of liberties with your beautiful body. You will fit right in.”

  “I dinna find that comforting.”

  He laughed. “You will.”

  “And what of Liam MacLean and his murderous bride?”

  “So you also heard the rumors about Devon Dunsmore Forbes and her first husband. That is the darkest tale of all, but one with an equally happy ending. Liam saved her and she saved him right back, yet another family love story… just as ours will be.”

  They finally broke from the thick woodland trail into the open. The sun’s rays flooded across the high ridge. Ian led her closer to the precipice. Katie looked down and gasped. Dunbocan Castle seemed to float above a crystal lake like a ghost fortress. An early morning fog bank hung over the loch making the whole place ethereal. The blue-gray stone rose out of an island in the mist. Tall towers hovered over and reflected off the still waters. It was as if the lake were a looking glass.

  “This is Dunbocan Castle?”

  “Aye, a fitting place for a dragon and an enchantress, don’t you think.”

  This time Katie laughed. “I do. I canna wait to meet them all.”

  Ian leaned across and kissed her tenderly. “They will love you and you will love them. I promise.” He grinned. “Ready? Let us go and join those who gather to save your father and his lands.”

  As they rode closer to the castle, Katie could see the whole place waking up. In the distance peasants moved in and out of the massive drawbridge, carting their wares to the market set up just inside the walls. Sheep bleated as their owners herded them along. They passed a cart and Katie got a whiff of new mown hay. Word spread quickly when Ian and Katie approached. Their horses’ hooves clattered on the heavy, wooden drawbridge that led into the castle grounds. The guards waved at Ian as they entered the massive stone-walled fortress.

  When Ian and Katie reached the market, a crowd gathered around them calling out greetings. Some wore dirty, dusty clothes while those of higher station looked neat and clean. No matter their lot in life, Katie drew their interest. The attention unnerved her, but she gave no hint to the gathering throng. Instead she pulled herself up straighter and nodded demurely to the people they passed.

  Ian pushed his way into the throng and halted holding up his hand. “Greetings,” he said. “This is my betrothed Lady Katie Blackburn, daughter of Laird Brian Blackburn, master of Duntaigh Castle. Please welcome her into our midst.”

  Dutifully the peasants offered good wishes, slowly dispersing as Ian led Katie past them. A raised portcullis hung over the second gate to the innermost part of the castle. Troops filled the whole inner courtyard. Fierce-looking, Scottish warriors watched them enter their midst. They smiled and called out greetings. Katie saw the plaids of many clans: Innes, MacLean, Stuart, and Ravenwood among them.

  “Defenders of the Highlands, I give you my betrothed Lady Katie Blackburn, daughter of Laird Brian Blackburn, master of Duntaigh Castle.”

  “About time you took a wife,” a tall, red-haired warrior commented. “No surprise she is such a beauty.” A roar of laughter rumbled up from the gathering. “Lady Katie Blackburn, welcome to Dunbocan. I am Ross MacLean and I am pledged to give my full service to free your family from the hold of Rowan Rannoch.” He grinned and gestured to the gathered warriors. “All of us are. We respect your father and wish to help him regain his rightful place.” The others cried out their support.

  “Thank you,” Katie managed, fighting back tears of gratitude.

  “And should you find that Ian isna to your liking, I would be glad to take his place as your betrothed,” Ross added, ducking quickly to avoid Ian.

  “Beha
ve,” Ian reprimanded. “No man will take her from me.”

  Katie grinned. “Ross, I appreciate your offer,” she said, “but I do find I am pleased with my betrothed.”

  They all laughed as Ian took her to the huge, oak door of the manse and stopped. Katie gazed at the entrance. The Dragon of Dunbocan must take his name seriously. An intricately carved dragon covered most of the face of the door. A large, round, wrought iron ring hung from its mouth. Ian smiled when he saw where her eyes wandered.

  “Impressive, is it not?” He dismounted and came over beside her horse. “Allow me,” he said, helping her down by letting her slide hard against him. With this move, it seemed he asserted his ownership of her body. She felt no affront at his gesture. It warmed her heart to belong to him.

  They entered a cavernous chamber. Along one wall, shelves held row after row of swords, spears, maces, shields, and armor. A large, stone fireplace blazed at one end of the chamber taking the chill off the air. Ten or twelve men gathered at a large table near the hearth drinking ale. They greeted Ian then stood and bowed to Katie. “A fine choice for a bride,” one said.

  “Thank you, Milord,” Katie said.

  Ian grabbed Katie’s hand and led her up a winding staircase to the main reception hall. As they walked in, a young servant girl ran to offer Katie a plate of bread in salt.

  “Welcome to Dunbocan Castle, Lady Blackburn,” the girl said, holding forth the traditional offering to newcomers.

  Katie picked up a piece of the coarse, stone-ground bread and dipped it in the salt, tasting the morsel. “Thank you,” she murmured.

  Another servant arrived with mead as Ian guided Katie into the main reception hall. Taking up the goblet, Katie drank a hefty draught of the heady, honey-sweetened wine and felt it burn down through her. Maybe the fiery liquid would give her strength for what lay ahead.

  The chamber they were in rose two stories high, maybe three. It appeared to be as grand as her father’s castle. A balcony ran around the room allowing observation from the upper level. Tapestries featuring scenes of battles and lairds hunting decorated the walls. High above the balcony hung a series of portraits.