Raven struggled to free herself enough from her brother’s tight grasp to look him in the eye. “I will not see them harmed. They were, and continue to be, the family I missed and longed for these last five years.”
It was answer enough for now, though Arran didn’t like that she had avoided confirming that no one had harmed her. In time, he’d learn the truth and make anyone who caused her pain suffer.
“My turn,” Oria said and hurried her arms around Raven. “I am so happy you are finally home. I have missed you.”
Raven forced a smile. She’d let them be happy for this short time. They would learn soon enough.
“I have missed you as well,” Raven said and patted Oria’s protruding stomach. “You and my brother have been busy.”
Oria blushed. “The first of many.”
“It’s good to know the MacKinnon Clan will grow and flourish,” Raven said and looked to Wren. “And that you will have a wise healer here to see that you deliver safely.”
Wren stepped forward with a smile that faded when Raven hugged her.
“I can see you know. Say nothing,” Raven warned with a whisper.
Wren nodded to confirm as she said, “It is so good to have you home.”
Raven turned to Purity, standing off on her own and the two young women hurried to each other, their arms reaching out and grabbing hold to hug tight.
“You remained a good friend, Purity,” Raven whispered.
“Always,” Purity said, not able to stop her tears from falling. “And somehow I got the man I loved. Your brother Arran and I are wed.”
Raven stepped away from Purity and turned a wicked grin on Arran. “You know you don’t deserve her.”
“Aye, but she took pity on my poor soul and wed me anyway,” Arran said with a chuckle.
“Lucky you,” Raven said.
Arran’s warm and loving glance went to his wife. “Something I tell myself every day.”
“Praise the Lord, you’re home!”
Raven turned her attention to the top of the keep steps and ran up them to give and receive another loving hug, this time from Bethany. She might be the keep cook, but she was more than that to Raven. She was the closest thing to the mother she never got to know, her mum living only long enough after giving birth to bestow a name on her.
“You are beautiful just like your mum,” Bethany said through tears. “She would have been as proud of you as I am. I knew you’d survive and return home. You’re too stubborn not to.”
Raven walked down the steps with Bethany in tow. She glanced around to all of them as questions fell rapidly from their lips and she answered vaguely, at least for now. The years had changed them just as they had changed her. Her da looked good, though he was thinner than she remembered and he had aged enough for her to notice. Arran’s tongue wasn’t as charming and witty as it had once been. More serious thought had left permanent lines on his brow, a reminder of the pain he had suffered. Royden was bigger, more muscular than he’d once been and his dark eyes more attuned to all that went on around him. He would not be caught unaware again. Oria’s face bore the scar she had seen her get during the attack on the clan and her bravery still astonished Raven, as did Purity’s. If it hadn’t been for Purity’s courage, Raven’s da would have died.
“Enough! Enough!” Parlan announced. “We go inside and celebrate Raven’s return home.”
“There’s food aplenty,” Bethany said and rushed up the steps and into the keep to see it served.
“My crew will join us. I want you to meet them,” Raven said with a nod to the men who dismounted at her signal.
The sudden clang of the bell had everyone jumping, except Raven’s crew. The five men stepped forward and circled behind her.
Someone came yelling through the village. “The Beast! The Beast rides on the village with a large troop of warriors.”
Parlan couldn’t hide his fear when he looked to Royden. “The clan isn’t strong enough to defend against him.”
“He’s not here to attack, Da. He wouldn’t dare do that to Oria, his sister,” Royden said, looking to his wife.
“Royden’s right, Da,” Raven said.
“How would you know that?” Arran asked, his hand gripping the hilt of his sword.
“Because I know why he’s here,” Raven said.
Royden’s gut stirred wondering how his sister would know such a thing and why she hadn’t looked surprised when he mentioned Oria was the Beast’s sister, and he asked, “Why is he here?”
“For me,” she whispered, not intending for anyone to hear her.
“Did you say something, Raven?” Arran asked.
“Aye, I did.” She lifted her chin with courage as she had done so many times when she’d been young and was about to admit to something her father wouldn’t like. “The Beast is here to collect me… I’m his wife.”
Chapter 2
“NO! NO! NO!” Royden’s words echoed his brother’s.
Raven let her two brothers protest and argue that there was no way she was the wife of the man who had brought such pain and suffering to the Clan MacKinnon.
“You’ll not be wife to our enemy,” Royden yelled, shaking his leather-clad stump at her.
“Royden’s right. I’ll gut him before I let him lay a hand on you,” Arran argued.
Raven remained silent through their tirade as did her crew. They kept their vigil around her without uttering a word.
Tears pooled in Oria’s eyes and Purity had turned pale and, strangely enough, Raven felt the two women—her friends—understood.
“Enough!” Her da’s strong command silenced his sons and he went to his daughter. “You paid a high price.”
Her da realized what she had done. “I listened outside the solar door that day when you and my brothers made a promise to see us all safe. I made that promise along with you, though you never heard it, and I, like you, honor my word.” She tilted her chin not in defiance but with pride.
“You didn’t,” Arran said, shaking his head as he realized what she meant.
Royden shut his eyes tight for a brief moment, it dawning on him as well.
“You secured mine and Royden’s freedom from the mercenaries by agreeing to wed Wolf,” Arran said and waited for her to confirm what was painfully obvious.
“It was a small price to pay,” Raven said.
“No, it wasn’t,” Royden said. “You may have freed us, but you’ve condemned yourself to a life with a beast of a man.”
“We can’t let you do that,” Arran said and saw that Royden agreed with a nod.
“It’s already done and do you really want to leave your wives and return to the mercenaries never to know your bairns? Because that is what will happen if you attempt to defy what has been agreed upon,” Raven said, looking from Royden to Arran.
Oria took hold of Royden’s arm, letting him know she wouldn’t let him go, and Purity was quick to do the same to Arran.
“Your wives have no intentions of letting either of you go. They are the wise ones,” Raven said. “Besides, it is done, the marriage documents confirmed.”
“But not the consummation,” Arran argued.
Raven squared her shoulders. “This is done, Arran. There is no changing it and I would advise you to keep Purity and your unborn bairn in mind before you do something foolish.”
“It wouldn’t be any more foolish than what you’ve done,” Arran accused.
Raven forced a smile. “Is that the thanks I get for freeing you to return home?”
“It’s no excuse I give,” Purity said, speaking up before her husband could and keeping hold of his arm. “But he’s angry that you saved him and Royden when it should have been them who saved you.”
“I don’t need you to speak for me, wife,” Arran snapped.
“Then admit it yourself, since it’s the truth,” Purity scolded.
“You as well,” Oria urged, tugging at her husband’s arm.
Arran and Royden exchanged scowls.
“There is nothing that can be done to change this?” her da asked.
Raven shook her head. “No, Da. If I don’t keep this agreement, Royden and Arran will be returned to the mercenaries to live out their lives.” Gasps were heard from Oria and Purity and Raven wasn’t surprised to see them tighten their hold on their husbands.
“And how is that any different from you being condemned to spend your life with the Beast, if you live that long. What’s to keep him from doing away with you?” Arran asked, rumbling anger sounding along with his words.
“You think I’m foolish enough to agree to such a union without taking precautions? I have more sense than that,” Raven said and shook her head. “This is done. There is no changing it and at least I will be close, living at Learmonth.”
“We can visit often,” Oria said, her smile, though forced, a welcome relief to the scowls of Raven’s brothers.
“Not with winter approaching,” Royden argued. “The first good snow will make travel difficult.”
“You both,” —Purity looked from her husband to Royden— “need to see this more clearly. You worry about Raven being wife to the Beast, perhaps you should worry for the Beast being wed to your sister.”
Raven smiled at her friend for having such confidence in her.
There was no more time to talk, the Beast and his men were not far from the keep.
Parlan took hold of Raven’s hand. “Please tell me I have at least a few days to talk with you before you’re gone from me again.”
“You have today and more days to come since I will visit here often,” Raven assured him.
“I will hold you to that, daughter,” Parlan said, squeezing her hand.
“And I will make sure of it,” Raven said, finding it difficult to believe it had been five years since she’d last seen her da. She promised herself she’d never let that happen again.
Silence surrounded them when the Beast and six of his warriors drew close, the remainder of his troop waiting on the outskirts of the village.
All of the men were large, the Beast being the largest of them all, though not as one would expect. Some warriors were thicker and broader in the chest, not so the Beast. He was leaner and harder with muscles. His skin was fair, his long hair dark and his eyes were as dark as Raven’s hair. His features were more than fine. They rivaled even Arran’s, and her brother Arran was a man of extra fine features. Though, unlike Arran, the Beast wore a beard that was cropped short. He wore the furs and leather garments of the tribes across the North Sea. He was a Northman and enemy of the Clan MacKinnon. And from what her inquires about him had taught her, like the Northmen, his name was an indication of his nature, hence the name—Wolf the Mighty Beast—and the reason many referred to him as the Beast.
Raven had learned all she could about him even before the chance had risen to free her brothers and she wondered if she knew more about him than he did himself. She had prepared herself well and she was ready to take on the Beast.
The warriors waited until Wolf dismounted, then they followed and remained standing by their horses, their large size and their empty stares causing the villagers who had followed them to keep their distance.
Raven wasn’t surprised that when she stepped forward, her brothers did the same.
Raven offered no greeting. “You weren’t to arrive until tomorrow.”
“It matters not. We leave now,” Wolf ordered.
“Not likely,” she said and catching, out of the corner of her eye, Arran’s slight smile.
“You’re my wife and you’ll obey my command,” Wolf demanded.
“I may be your wife, but as far as me obeying your command—that’s never going to happen,” Raven said and turned her back on him. “Tomorrow was when you were to arrive here and I was to go with you, and I will leave here no sooner than that. Stay if you wish, camp outside the village. I care not what you do. I will see you tomorrow.” She heard her men chuckle as she took her da’s arm. “Come, Da, we’ll talk, drink, eat, and celebrate my return home.”
Raven nodded to her men as she walked up the steps to the keep and they followed behind her. She smiled when she heard Arran’s hardy laughter and the words that tumbled out with it.
“You might just have gotten what you deserve for foolishly marrying my sister.”
Raven sat at a table by the hearth with her da and Wren, who had followed along with them into the Great Hall. Her men settled at the table to her right, the reason she ignored the dais. She wanted her crew close by.
“They go with you tomorrow?” her da asked, turning to the five men.
“We go where she goes,” the man with good features said.
Raven smiled with pride as she introduced the man. “That’s Fyn, Da, a good friend and skilled warrior.”
“I’m relieved and grateful to hear that,” her da said.
Raven continued to introduce her men. “The red-haired fellow is Iver, an exceptional tracker and archer. The wiry fellow at the far end of the table is Brod. I believe you know Clive, the merchant who stopped here often, and George is the scholar among us. They are all good men and they are all like family to me.”
It wasn’t lost on her father that she hadn’t mentioned Brod’s skill and he wondered if it had been on purpose.
Royden and Arran had entered the Great Hall with their wives and joined them at the table, listening to the introductions.
Royden looked directly at his sister, still startled by the beauty she’d become. He went to speak and felt his wife squeeze his thigh under the table. He bit back the words he was about to say and instead said, “It’s good to finally have you home, Raven, and it’s good to have your friends join us.”
Raven smiled, her rigid shoulders easing some. “I’m so happy to be here with all of you again, and happy for you to meet my men.”
“To your safe return,” Arran said, raising his tankard and everyone raised their tankards with a cheer.
“I’m thrilled you’re home and that we’ll be able to visit often,” Purity said when the cheering died.
“My wife will visit when I allow her to.”
Everyone turned to see Wolf standing just inside the Great Hall, his men fanning out to his sides.
“You should know now I don’t take well to orders,” Raven said.
“And you should know I don’t take well to being disobeyed,” Wolf countered.
Arran stood. “And you should know that I’ll cut your heart out if you hurt my sister.”
“Enough!” Oria said, jumping to her feet, to her husband’s surprise. She looked to Wolf. “You and your men are welcome to join us if you can be civil.”
Wolf recounted with a stern scowl and a sharp tone. “I expected my sister to at least show me respect.”
Royden noticed that Raven didn’t appear surprised now or previously when it was made mentioned that Oria and Wolf were siblings. He shouldn’t be surprised that she was already aware of it. Raven always had a way of finding things out.
“And I expect my brother to show respect in his sister’s home,” Oria retaliated.
“Remember that when it comes to my home,” Wolf said.
Oria pointed to a table to the right of her. “Join us or not.”
Wolf went to the table, his men following, and he whipped off his fur cloak and dropped it on the bench, then to everyone’s surprise he sat next to Raven, while his men made themselves comfortable at the other table.
Raven almost moved closer to her da when Wolf sat close enough to her for their arms to rest against each other, but she stopped herself. She wouldn’t show this man an ounce of fear even if he did send tingles of dread racing through her. She could feel his taut arm muscles through the sleeve of his dark wool shirt and could see the soft, leathery covering he wore over it fit his chest snugly as did the wool shirt. She feared his scent might be offensive but he smelled mostly of pine and campfire smoke.
“I can’t wait any longer, daughter, I must know what happened
to you all these years,” Parlan pleaded.
Fear was something that had been a constant when Raven had first been on her own, but time had taught her how to face it rather than run from it. She turned to Wolf with a smile. “You must be curious to know as well, since you searched for me and failed to find me these last five years.”
She fought to keep the lump of fear that rose in her throat from enlarging when he turned his eyes on her. Never had she seen such intense dark eyes. They weren’t black, but one would think they were, they were such a deep brown color. They were eyes that lacked fear and were filled with self-assuredness. This man was confident in his worth, his skills, and his power.
“I am most curious,” Wolf said and held her eyes with his until she turned away.
“It’s a short tale. I dressed like a lad and joined a band of,” —-she paused and looked to her crew— “misfits. They taught me how to survive.”
“I’m grateful to all of you,” Parlan said with a nod to her men.
“How did you become their leader?” Wolf asked, since fighting and strength were ways of retaining leadership within his tribe. He also doubted that her tale was a short one. There was more to it and he intended to find out.
“When she proved herself wiser than us,” Clive said with a jovial laugh.
“Much wiser,” George agreed.
Wolf remained silent as talk went on around him, listening while he carefully kept watch on his surroundings. He had taken note when he first arrived at the way her crew of motley men stood ready to defend her. They were a loyal lot and he’d have to keep that in mind. They also obeyed her well and he wondered why. She had to have done something to win their loyalty, another mystery about his wife he intended to solve.
What had surprised him the most, though, was to see that she was far more beautiful than he had expected. One glance at her captivated the eye and held it, her features were that striking. It wasn’t a soft beauty she possessed but more of sharp angles and curves melded to perfection. Her pale skin was in direct contrast to her long dark hair that shined with a silky softness and had him wanting to reach out and touch it, a surprising thought. She was also taller than he expected, the top of her head reaching past his chin. It was difficult to tell much about her body, the shirt beneath her plaid a bit big for her. Her plaid was cinched tight at her narrow waist and from what he could make of her legs, they did suggest a slender build.
Highlander Oath Of The Beast Page 2