Twin Curse(32)

"You have to keep her alive," Urster reminded him. "Without her, you're as good as dead."

As if Lyall needed reminding. The old woman rotting in his father's  dungeons was reminder enough. Once you were bonded, there were no other  options.

He didn't want to think about that. "Tell me about the measures you've  taken to secure the village," he asked instead. Talking about the  security measures would keep Urster busy and hopefully make him forget  about Brianna.         

     



 

Unlike Lyall, who could never forget her.

*****

No one attempted to stop Brianna as she wound her way through the tents  and back to the village wall, but she felt many eyes boring into her  back. She shrugged, trying to remove the pressure, but it remained. She  had no doubt they all knew who she was.

Was she going to be able to hide the truth from Mianna? Her sister was  perceptive and the bond they shared as twins only accentuated that.  Keeping her feelings about Lyall a secret, wasn't going to be easy.

Nor would keeping Lylis a secret from Lyall.

She had been tempted to return to Isla de Magi when she had found out  she was with child, sure Lyall would be just as thrilled as she was. But  she couldn't leave Mianna. Even though the trolls had stayed away since  that fateful day, the reprieve was only temporary. One day they would  return, and though Mianna had shown courage and bravery in the fight,  she didn't have the skills or tactics to defend the village. If Brianna  left, she would be dooming them all.

And possibly the rest of the mainland. Because if they weren't there to stop the trolls, who would?

She'd had no choice but to stay then, and she had no choice now. If only Lyall could see that.

If only her heart could.

She let herself into the quiet house. Strange that most of the lights were off. Surely Mianna hadn't gone to bed?

"Bri, is that you?" Mianna spoke in a whisper.

"Yes, of course it's me. Who else would it be? And why are you whispering?"

Brianna lit one of the lamps and stared around at the crowded room. Her  sister, Terion and half a dozen warriors stared back at her, their faces  all a picture of relief. "What's going on?" Brianna demanded.

"We were making plans to come and rescue you!" Mianna said indignantly. "Before that monster did anything to you."

"He's not a monster." The words were out of Brianna's mouth before she could stop them.

Everyone in the room stared at her.

"He's a human being, just like the rest of us," she said, a little less forcefully.

"Human beings can commit atrocities as well," Terion said quietly. "Just  because he doesn't look like a troll, doesn't mean he is any less  dangerous. I saw the way he looked at you."

Brianna's face heated. How could anyone miss the desire in Lyall's eyes?

And it looked so different to all of them. They didn't know of their  past. To everyone else, it looked bad. And if they thought Lyall would  hurt Brianna, then blood would be shed, one way or another. She had to  deal with that before it was too late.

But how could she explain it without giving away her previous relationship with Lyall?

"He wants to get his hands on a set of twins," she said roughly. "Just  like anyone who comes here. But we're already married, so he's too  late." Her heart wanted to deny the words, but she ignored it.

"Not if he kills me," Terion said softly. "That's what he was planning on doing, right before you arrived, I'm sure of it."

Brianna knew the truth, that Lyall had simply been trying to find out  whether Terion was a mage or not. Another thing she couldn't explain. "I  won't let that happen," she said softly.

Her twin's face was white. "But how can we stop him? He's a mage, Brianna. A mage! How can we fight that?"

If she hadn't made that deal with Lyall, she could tell Mianna that  inside the village walls, Lyall was just a man like everyone else. But  if she did, he would tell her sister that they had been involved.

How could Mianna understand that she had loved a mage? She didn't see  Lyall as Brianna had, as a man first, then a mage second. All she would  see is the man who invaded her village and threatened her children.

And if she did see past that, then she would feel guilty for keeping  Brianna from the man she loved. What was the point in putting that on  her sister, when there was no way around it?

Instead she said, "He isn't here for us. He just wants our cooperation.  He's looking for some rogue mages, and for some reason, he thinks they  might be here. Once he realises they aren't, he'll leave, just as he has  left all the other villages."

"Mages? Here?" Mianna was surprised enough to laugh out loud. "It  shouldn't take him long enough to realise that he's on the wrong trail.  There are no mages here."

If only she knew.

*****

Despite his tiredness, Lyall was awake early the next morning. He wanted  to rush into the village just to see Brianna, but he made himself wait.  He checked the troops and horses and inspected Urster's barrier from  the outside.         

     



 

Urster was right, the barrier wouldn't close over the cliffs. In the  daylight however, Lyall saw something that his commander had missed  under the cover of darkness. "There's a pass over the mountains."

Following his pointing arm, Urster's eyes narrowed. "So there is.  Couldn't see that last night," he admitted. "It's narrow and high, I'm  not sure anyone could pass through it."

"If they can, then we just might find an empty village this morning,"  Lyall said grimly. The mountains had been an impenetrable barrier all  the way along, it hadn't occurred to him that there might be a break  here. An assumption he should not have made, and one that might cost him  not only his advantages over these mages, but Brianna as well.

"I'm sorry, sir," Urster admitted readily.

"It wasn't your fault. I was careless." Lyall refused to let someone  else take the blame. "Ready a dozen men, we need to find and secure that  pass, if it's not already too late."

As he strode up to the gates, he was sure it was. If they had another  way out, there was no reason for anyone in the village to stay. But  everything was business as normal as he walked into the gates. A man  walked by with a hoe slung over his shoulder, and two women walked to  the well with empty buckets, chatting calmly.

They threw uneasy looks at Lyall and the soldiers behind him as he  walked in, but no more than he was used to. He began to breathe a little  easier. Perhaps the pass was less navigable than it looked?

He ordered the men to look for the pass, while he headed straight to  Brianna's house. He knocked on the door, but an answer was a long time  coming. Had the few villagers remained to buy the twins more time to  leave?

The door jerked open and Brianna glared at him. He was stupidly happy to see her, despite her expression. "Good morning."

"It was," she rejoined quickly.

He heard a gasp of indrawn breath behind her, enough to indicate that  they weren't alone. He wondered, idly, what the other person would do if  he stepped up and kissed Brianna. Probably hit him over the head with a  frying pan.

"Can I come in?" No, that was too civil, asking politely. The villagers  were going to think him soft if he started being polite, and when they  thought him soft, they were more likely to fight back and cause  problems.

But he wasn't speaking to the villagers, this was Brianna.

She opened the door and stepped aside silently.

From somewhere deeper in the house, he heard childish laughter and  smelled pancakes cooking. Whoever had made the gasping sound was gone,  and they were alone for a minute. Lyall stared down at Brianna hungrily,  and her eyes widened. She took a step backwards.

"Mama?" a high pitched voice called from the other room. Brianna's eyes flicked backwards.

Lyall's eyes narrowed. "Who's that?" he asked sharply.

Brianna licked her lips. "One of the twins. Mianna's twins," she added.  "They call us both Mama when they want something, and Mianna has her  hands full with cooking breakfast."

Lyall searched her face. "Mianna's twins? Are you sure they aren't  yours?" he guessed. Ours his heart substituted. Brianna looked at him  squarely and said flatly, "I didn't have twins. We only did it once  Lyall, you don't get pregnant from that."

Her words made sense. Mianna, having a husband, was more likely to be  the one to have children. His heart had just been captured by the  possibility that he might be a father.

He would be, he told himself. Once this was sorted out, he could woo  Brianna back. He'd convince her to come home somehow, and they would  have their own child. Children, he amended. No need to stop at one.

"By all means, don't keep the child waiting." He waved to the kitchen.

Brianna hesitated, and it took only a few moments to realise that she  didn't want to invite him into her home. She'd been determined to keep  him away from her family from the beginning, and now he knew why. That  didn't make it any easier.