Mackenzie's Fate

by Bonnie Burrows

  The wolf moved closer, its eyes never leaving hers.

  “You bit me, you nasty beastie, why?”

  It didn’t answer, it just moved closer. She knelt down on one knee, not wanting to run for fear that she would startle it.

  “Okay, so ye can’t talk I guess but why are ye following me? Are ye a spirit?”

  The wolf moved closer to her, she could feel its hot breath on her cheeks. Its nostrils flared as it smelled her hair, her neck, her face.

  Gingerly, she moved her hand up to its ears and scratched, the change was instant. The wolf sat on its haunches and started panting. A playful grin spread across its face.

  “Ye are the strangest thing I’ve ever seen, ye know that?”

  It yipped at her.

  “Can ye understand me?”

  “What the hell, woman?” Kirkpatrick screamed, the wolf immediately growled and snapped at her, its teeth cutting a fine line down the side of her face. Mackenzie screamed and jumped backwards.

  Kirkpatrick drew his sword and roared at the wolf. The wolf gave Mackenzie a look before running off into the woods. Kirkpatrick stormed to Mackenzie and roughly hauled her to her feet.

  “Ye daft girl, how are ye even alive, as stupid as ye are,” he yelled at her. His putrid breath washed across her face. He grabbed her hand and pulled it down to inspect her cheek.

  “Yer not even hurt, stupid, but lucky. Lets go before it comes back for more.” He dragged her out of the copse back to the carriage. Mackenzie didn’t resist. She just looked down the whole time. Her hand was clenched tightly in a fist to conceal the blood on her palm.

  He bit me again, but the wound’s gone. What is going on?!

  In the carriage, Mackenzie watched the terrain roll by. The rugged, hilly ground with its sturdy trees and mountains in the distance gave way to the more even plains of the south. Kirkpatrick drank heavily from a bottle while they rode, he said nothing to her, but she could tell he was furious. When he finally dozed off, she used the underside of her dress to clean her hand.

  As night fell, she could hear the bustle of people, see the glow of lanterns and torches; it was a city. She moved to the side and stuck her head out the door. The stale air smelled of too many animals, and too many people.

  The dun - it seemed wrong to call it that for its size made her da’s look like a cottage - was in the center with a massive fortress of stone and bedrock. It seemed to rise out of the very ground. She craned her neck to see to the top of it. Men in uniform circled the massive parapets.

  She felt a hand on her calf that slid up her leg further than anyone had touched her before. She yelped, and almost fell out of the carriage except his grip pulled her back in. Her heart thumped in her ears, it was all she could hear as he pulled her in. She sat down in the corner, her face flush from the embarrassment of almost falling, and from having someone touch her… and something else.

  She could hear everything around her, the small boy asking his ma for help, the driver mumbling about travelling at night… the wolf howling in the distance. Kirkpatrick’s grin split his face as he changed seats to sit next to her. He put one hand on her knee and the other behind her. Something about the way he looked at her made her nervous, and at the same time, her body delighted in the attention.

  She looked up to him and her lips parted to say something when he forced his mouth onto hers. She squirmed; her instinct was to freeze as her heart stopped. His tongue slipped into her mouth, his hands roamed her legs, she shifted to push her knees together and he stopped. She closed her eyes when he pulled away, fully expecting him to slap her.

  “I thought saving your village and sparing yer people might buy me some good will. I see that’s not the case. Well, no matter wife. You can be a part of your life, or you can lay there and be miserable, it's up to you.”

  CHAPTER FIVE

  He left her alone for days after arriving at the castle. It was huge, and it took her two days just to find the way to the dining room without being shown the way. When she asked a servant where the lord was, they would reply, “Serving his people,” and it frustrated her. She didn’t know anyone, or how to get anywhere, and it made her feel even more alone.

  On the third night, Mackenzie found her way to the parapets. The door was open, no guards were present, the walkway stood deserted. It was quite a bit higher up than she was used to, at least a hundred span or more. The city, and it was a city, crowded right up to the walls. Even at night, she could hear the bustle of the people, the sound of the animals, the laughter from the inns.

  She missed home.

  This night had a partial moon, she could see the stars in the sky. A few clouds wafted over, occasionally breaking the view, but for the most part it was a clear night. The howl of a distant wolf rolled over the town, quieting it like an ocean wave. After a few seconds, the murmur started up again, Mackenzie smiled. Whatever was up with that wolf, she felt a connection to him.

  Twice he bit her; twice he ran off. She ran her hand over her cheek, no scar or anything to mark that he nipped her. She looked down to her hand; it was the same. She hadn’t dreamt it, the wolf bit her, she was sure. Kirkpatrick must have seen the second one, but he said nothing since he unceremoniously abandoned her at the castle.

  “Miss, you can’t be up here,” a guard said startling her from her thoughts.

  The speech in the south was so...formal, she thought.

  “Aye, I figured so, I’ll be done in a moment,” she replied.

  “No m’lady, now, if you please.” His voice took on a hard quality.

  She felt more and more like a prisoner each day. No one would talk to her, or tell her anything. She supposedly married their leader but she felt more like a prize than a bride. Her heart longed to be back in Cesan’s firm grip, with the smell of his sweat and the taste of his lips. She wouldn’t even mind being a farmer’s wife now. She shrugged and got to her feet, the guard roughly grabbed her shoulders and half walked, half dragged her to the door.

  “Don’t come up here again or I’ll have you punished,” he said, anger showing on his face.

  “I know not why it's such a big deal, it’s just a parapet,” she said.

  He look confused then shoved her through the door. She hit the wall with a thump and didn’t move. The wooden door latched behind her. She resisted the urge to cry but she failed. Sliding to the floor in a heap, she let out a sob. More followed, her body racked with tears as she cried alone in the top stairwell.

  ***

  The next morning, Kirkpatrick joined her for breakfast. His outlandish dress shocked Mackenzie; he wore a white robe over a shirt and some sort of breaches she’d never seen before. He seemed altogether overdressed and she felt suddenly very out of place in her simple blue dress and soft slippers.

  He said nothing to her while he ate. Food splattered all over him, he barely stopped to breath when he drank. Mackenzie poked at her unfamiliar meal, some sort of meat and eggs that was burnt and spiced with a repugnant leaf of some kind. Her stomach growled, so she ate.

  “I see the food of the south isn’t quite appetizing to you,” he said after watching her poke at her plate.

  “It’s just nae what I’m used to,” she said as she forced herself to take a bite of the meat. It wasn’t as bad as she feared, and she was very hungry.

  “We must do something about the way you speak, it doesn’t sound civilized,” he said with a chuckle.

  Her face burned with embarrassment and the memory of his swift slap made her hold her tongue.

  “Excellent, I’ll have you behaving properly yet. Perhaps tonight you can warm my bed,” he said as he rose. “Finish your breakfast then stay in your room. We have guests today and I don’t wish them to see you, understood?” he waited for her to respond.

  “Aye,” she said between bites.

  Anger flooded him and his whole body shifted, he slammed his fists on the table, “Aye? AYE? You will respond to me as your master, wench, or I will feed you to the pigs,” he
screamed at her.

  The sudden explosion of anger forced her off her chair and she scrambled into the corner as tears erupted from her eyes and streamed down her face, she could barely nod. Without saying another word, he turned and left, two servants came in behind him and started clearing the food.

  Between racks of sobs she managed to say, “But I’ve nae finished eating?”

  They ignored her as they cleared up the food. She managed to climb her way back to standing with one arm, while wiping her face with the other. She couldn't stop the crying but she hid it as best she could.

  She left the room and could barely walk as she sobbed her way back to her small quarters. A guard stood outside of it and opened the door for her. She tried to smile at him as she passed, but he didn’t return it. The door closed and locked behind her.

  She flung herself on the bed and cried until exhaustion and hunger took her.

  ***

  She awoke to the sound of the door being unbarred. A male servant entered carrying an arm of clothes, a bottle of something she didn’t recognize and a brush.

  “Get undressed, put this on, drink this, and for god's sake braid that rat's nest of hair, I’ll be back shortly to escort you to the master's room.” He didn’t wait for a response, he just left.

  She sniffed the bottle. It smelled like her father’s breath after a night of drinking. The clothes he left her were sheer. She resisted the urge to start sobbing again and did as she was commanded. She shed her dress first, it was cold in the room; even with the fire, goosebumps peppered her creamy white skin.

  The sheer gown went over her, it was one piece and hid nothing. She burned bright red just putting it on. Next, she pulled the brush through her hair until she could braid it, nothing elaborate, and finally she picked up the bottle. She wished she could have taken what Gwen offered her but the guards had taken everything she had.

  She took a drink and coughed, it was bitter and acidic, it burned her throat as she swallowed. She took another drink, it wasn’t as bad that time, and finally a third. By the time she put the bottle down she was feeling warm and light headed.

  The servant returned, he was an older man, probably her father’s age, the grin on his face was unsettling. He took her by the arm and stood her. Then he walked around her, admiring the view. He grabbed her again and led her out. The halls seemed particularly busy, full of guards, servants, maids, mostly men, and they all stared as she walked by.

  Her heart beat in her chest so hard she feared it would burst. She knew what was next, she would lay with him and then there would be no escape for her, not ever. The tears returned and her stomach tightened. With no food to cushion the effects of the concoction, it left her feeling queasy.

  The main bedroom was larger than the dining hall at her da’s dun. A massive four post bed filled with pillows and blankets was in the center of the room. Kirkpatrick was at one side reading a letter of some kind. He didn’t even look up when she came in, just motioned toward the bed. The servant dragged her there and pushed her down. He grinned at her as he left, the door shut, but there was no locking sound this time.

  Kirkpatrick rose and shed his robe behind him. Mackenzie's breath caught in her throat. He was as well muscled as Cesan, his chest rippled with each step. Her eyes drifted down to his legs, she quickly looked away. Never before had she seen a man’s sex. Despite what her stepmom believed, she was a virgin.

  Her mind drifted somewhat. The alcohol in her system was making things fuzzy. There was a noise outside, some sort of commotion. Kirkpatrick was on her, his hand roaming her skin, his taut belly pushed against her. Part of her mind shut down to what was happening, she didn’t want it, but she had no choice. Her father, her village, all would be destroyed. His hot mouth kissed her neck, then her shoulders; his hands grasped her breasts, she moaned, out of fear, and the strange feelings it sent through her skin.

  A woman’s scream cut through the fog of her mind, the door crashed inward with a thousand splinters. Standing in the ruin was a man, tall, with flaxen hair, clothed in fur. Kirkpatrick jumped to his feet. Mackenzie tried to focus on the intruder but whatever they gave her to drink made it hard.

  “Guards, guards,” Kirkpatrick screamed as he retrieved his sword. The intruder stalked into the room and slapped Kirkpatrick aside like a gnat.

  “Mackenzie, are you okay?” the man said.

  “W-who are you,” she managed.

  “A friend,” he said. He lifted her up with one arm and held her close to him. He backed out of the room, sword toward Kirkpatrick.

  “If you know what’s good for you, Kirkpatrick, stay in your little kingdom. If you come looking for her, it will be yer doom.”

  Mackenzie tried to stay conscious but the concoction was too much. She felt movement and the air rushing by her. The smell of the city faded, then only darkness.

  CHAPTER SIX

  In her dreams she was home with her da, in the dun, overlooking the village. The parapet she favored stood vigilant over her home. Her da was next to her, watching over her. “It’s time to wake up little one, time to go,” he said to her.

  “I don’t want to go, Da,” she cried, the tears rolled down her cheeks. “I want to stay yer little girl forever,” she said, her face pressed into his clothes.

  His clothes were wet, his body steamed from the heat it put off.

  “Time to grow up Mackenzie,” he said with a whisper.

  Mackenzie awoke with a start. Her hands were full of something coarse and wet. She rubbed her face to get the sleep out of it. She wasn’t in any room but in a forest. Her hands clasped black fur of the enormous wolf that seemed to follow her wherever she went. She bit back a scream as she scrambled away from it. His chest rose and fell with sleep, steam drifted off of his wet mane as the sun warmed him in the glade they slept in.

  She still wore the sheer finery from the night before, now torn and ripped from being carried through the woods. Cold seeped through her and chilled her to the bone. The rain was still falling in sprinkles and though the sun was out, she could see her breath. She was freezing to death.

  The wolf stirred, its head rose with a lazy gaze and its yellow eyes pierced her.

  “What do ye want, ye beasty, to eat me?” she asked with a tremble in her lip.

  The wolf responded by raising to its four legs, a long yawn flashed his razor sharp teeth at her. He lopped to her and lay on her lap in a heap. She froze as he lay there, the warmth of his body seeped into her bones fighting away the chill that had set in so quickly.

  “Yer keeping me warm? Why?” she asked, confused. The animal bit her twice in the woods, now it saved her from freezing to death.

  The wolf looked at her with disturbingly human eyes. Within a breath it changed, his fur vanished, his claws became fingers, his snout, a face, and suddenly, in the span of one breath, a man lay in her lap, his eyes on her.

  “Hello Mackenzie, I’ve been looking for you for a long time, hjarta,” he said in a deep voice.

  The last of whatever Kirkpatrick's servant had gave her was gone, her wits were hers. This man, the one who had shattered the door and rescued her from her husband, looked nothing like any man she had ever seen. His blue eyes, a near mirror of her own, pierced her soul, freezing her in place.

  “Who are ye?” she whispered.

  “I told you,” he said with a smile that made her heart melt, “a friend.” His accent was all wrong. She could barely understand him, though he spoke her language.

  “I don't know ye though, we’ve never met, why did you save me, how are ye what ye are?”

  He turned and sat up with a big yawn that rippled his muscles through his belly to his chest.

  “That’s a bigger question than I can answer here, hjarta.” That smile again. “Come with me, I’ll show you where we can get some rest.” He stood and held his hand out for her.

  He was tall, taller than even Cesan. His hands were rough, like her father's, from a lifetime of use, but he looked no older than
any other young man.

  She took his hand. He lifted her as if she were nothing. With her other arm, she tried to hide herself. The dress she wore was even more transparent than she realized and it was all but useless. Not that he was wearing any clothes at all.

  She couldn't help but examine him, she was curious, and his body was only the second man’s she’d seen naked. The memory of the first made her shudder. What almost happened, her life that almost was. She could never go back now.

  “So… yer the wolf then? How did ye find me? That place was huge,” she said.

  “When I’m the wolf, I have a keen sense of smell, even as you see me now I have much sharper senses than a man.”

  “Are ye a man then? Or a wolf?”

  “Would you believe me if I said both?”

  “Ye saved my life, and I don’t even know yer name, please, what is it?”

  He was still holding her hand as they walked. She could have let go, but something about it was comforting. All the turns her life had taken in the last month, walking naked through a forest holding a strange man’s hand seemed the least difficult to grasp.

  “Forgive me, Mackenzie, but it has been so long since I spoke with anyone that names lose their meaning. My parents called me Thor, I’m from Lochlannach, like your mother.”

  She stopped and pulled her hand free. “How do you know who I am? Who me ma was?”

  He smiled at her again. She could feel her insides twisting with his look. Never in her life had a man affected her in such a way.

  Gods, I don’t know this man, but he makes me feel like.... I love him, I can’t though, can I? How can I love a man I just met?

  “At first,” he started, “I was looking for you because my jarl sent me. He and your mother were... close, she would have married him if things worked out differently. He heard from a trader that she bore a daughter who lived in the north. He sent me to find you and bring you home.”

  “What do you mean at first?” she asked. Despite the cold, sweat formed on her brow. She held one arm across her chest, trying to comfort herself with it. She was confused, and his explanations were not helping her.