True to the Highlander(60)
In dismay, she stared at the spot where the ferry should be. She’d missed them. Grief and a piercing fear tore her heart in two. He’d deceived her, led her to believe they’d talk again before he left. Fury welled, choking out rational thought like a pernicious weed.
At that moment, when she thought all was lost, Alethia noticed the boats—fishing boats from the mainland, six in a row, pulled onto the shore and turned upside down. She’d borrow one, get to the mainland, take her mare and follow their trail. Then she’d force Malcolm to see reason, and he’d have to take her with him.
She took a step toward the boats, and someone grasped her arm.
“Dinna even think it, lass.”
Startled, she jerked as she turned to see who held her. “Liam.”
The compassion radiating from him was her unraveling. A horrible keening sound escaped through her lips. Liam drew her under his arm, just as the dam gave way to the flood of tears.
“Dinna worry, True. Malcolm will return to us unharmed.”
“No, Liam.” She turned anguished eyes to his. “No. He won’t.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
Alethia knew by the set of Liam’s jaw she’d have no chance of leaving the island. Keeping a firm grip on her upper arm, he led her back to the keep. “Liam, Malcolm told you why I was sent here, didn’t he?”
“He did.” He gave her a grim look. “Robley and Galen will protect Malcolm, and I will see to it you remain safe.”
“How can I convince you to take me to him?”
“You canna. I would do exactly as Malcolm has done. A battleground is no place for a lass, and your presence would only make him more vulnerable.” His tone softened. “I know what you are going through. Rest easy. The men with Malcolm are all seasoned warriors, and they have fought together many times. Robley and Galen will guard him well.”
“How long will they be gone?”
“A month, mayhap longer. Malcolm will want to set things aright at Meikle Geddes before returning.”
They’d reached the keep, and utter defeat swamped her. Her plans thwarted, she wanted nothing more than to get back into bed and pull the covers over her head. Maybe she’d stay there until Malcolm returned.
If he returned.
Without a backward glance, she left Liam in the great hall and dragged herself up the stairs and back to Elaine’s chamber. She crept back to the bed they shared, slipped out of her gown and slipped between the sheets.
“Are you ill?” Elaine whispered.
“No.”
“You were a long time in the garderobe.” Alethia felt the mattress shift as Elaine raised herself to study her in the half-light of dawn. “What is it, True?”
“Malcolm is gone. He and the men left before dawn.” Alethia turned her back to Elaine and curled up into a fetal position, pulling the covers over her head.
The feeling of dread and premonition hadn’t left her since she’d awakened. Defenseless against such an onslaught, sleep seemed her only escape. It had been her refuge against the agony of losing her parents so many years ago. She’d slept months of her life away until the pain of loss became a dull, bearable ache.
Fear, and the wrenching pain the thought of losing Malcolm caused, stirred up the hurt she’d suffered when her parents died. The faces of her uncles, cousins and aunts passed through her mind, and finally, her grandmother’s image. They were lost to her. Somehow, deep in her heart, she knew the rest of her days would be spent in fifteenth-century Scotland. So much loss. Alethia closed her eyes and willed herself away.
She would have been better off keeping her heart to herself. It was time she started thinking about her future and finding a way to make her own way. She had skills, and she had no doubts she could be a productive, contributing member of this community. She had her music, rudimentary healing skills and twenty-first-century knowledge. Yep. She could carve out a life for herself, but not today.
“My dear, ’tis time you left this chamber.” Lydia reached out to give Alethia a shake. “Are you ill, child?”
She tried to turn away from the voice disturbing her, but it wouldn’t let her be. She tried to cover her head with the blankets, only to have Lydia tug them out of her hands and away from her face. “Leave me alone,” she muttered.
“Nay. ’Tis not fitting. You dishonor Malcolm.”
Alethia scowled.
“Aye, ’tis a dishonor to the MacKintosh clan to show such a lack of confidence in our ability to protect our own. You have been in this bed for two days,” Lydia scolded. “Hunter is beside himself with worry. Enough. Get up.”
She sat up.