Highlander Oath Of The Beast

by Donna Fletcher

  “Raven,” Clive whispered, tears shining in his aged eyes.

  She gripped his hand. “I don’t want to lose any of you, but it’s not fair to keep hold of you.”

  “You’ll never lose us, Raven,” Clive said, sniffling back tears. “We’re family.”

  “And families grow as they should.” She nodded toward Fyn, Greta, and Tait.

  Clive elbowed Raven again. “Brod has an eye for Ida and I believe the interest is mutual.”

  She looked at the way the two stared at each other from a distance. Clive was right. There was interest there.”

  “You didn’t only free your brothers to live their lives,” Clive whispered, squeezing her hand. “You freed us all and gave us a chance at a good life.”

  Raven felt the tears build deep inside her, but stamped them down. “Then you better get living yours. Bethany probably has a hardy stew brewing to warm everyone during the snowstorm and honey oat cakes as well.”

  Clive’s eyes lit with delight, then faded.

  Raven let go of his hand. “You’ve done all you can for me, Clive. It’s up to me to do the rest. If Bethany feels about you as you do about her, then stay with her. You’ve more than earned your own happiness.”

  “He was right about you. You’re unique, like no other.” Clive wiped at his wet cheeks. “I still miss him.”

  “So do I,” Raven admitted, thinking about the old man and wishing she had him to talk with.

  “I’ll talk with the men, then be off. And God willing all goes well, I’ll be back to visit or whenever you need me.”

  Raven’s chest tightened in pain as Clive walked away and began to talk with Iver and Brod. Family was growing but it was also separating and that was the difficult part of change. But she wasn’t losing anyone and she had to keep hold of that thought.

  Gorm approached her and she wondered what dictate he brought from her husband.

  “Lord Wolf is speaking with Sten. He asked that you join him.”

  She nodded, surprised at the invitation, not that she had intended to wait for one. She knew he wouldn’t waste any time in speaking with Sten. It was something she would do and it was growing more obvious that they thought alike more often than not.

  She followed alongside Gorm. “You do a lot here, Gorm.”

  “It’s no chore,” he said. “It pleases me to serve Wolf. He is a good man and an exceptional warrior.”

  That Wolf’s tribe thought highly of him had become apparent since her arrival here. Their view of him was in sharp contrast to what she had thought of him the last five years. It wasn’t easy seeing beyond the vicious warrior she had believed him to be. All she had to do was recall that day his warriors had attacked her clan and remember the carnage left in its wake, including her brother losing his hand and her family being ripped apart.

  A sudden thought narrowed her brow. He hadn’t participated in that attack. Why?

  Her eyes went straight to her husband when she and Gorm approached the area where Sten was being questioned. Her husband was a fierce warrior but not a vicious man, nor a cruel leader. He was commanding yet tolerant when needed and from what she had seen so far of him… he was fair in judgment with his people. She had chosen to wed him and it was growing more apparent by the day that it was time to make the most of her marriage.

  “Nothing? You know nothing?” Wolf asked the man on his knees in front of him.

  “I tell the truth, sir,” Sten pleaded. “Toke said nothing to me about an escape.”

  Wolf shoved Sten to the ground with his boot and planted it on his chest. “You claim to know him well and yet he says nothing to you about his intention to escape?”

  Sten continued to plead, his body shivering and not from the cold. “I’m truly sorry, sir. I don’t know if Toke intended to escape or just took advantage of a moment? The look in his eyes a few moments before he ran made me think he decided at that precise moment, but why that precise moment, I couldn’t say. I beg you, sir, please believe me. I speak the truth. If I knew anything I would tell you.”

  “Or I could have the truth beaten out of you,” Wolf said and Sten paled when Lars stepped forward.

  Lars fisted his hands and his nostrils went wide with a snort. “I say we beat him.”

  Sten paled and the pitiful plea in his eyes fell on Raven. She couldn’t say why but she believed Sten told the truth. If Toke had known something, he hadn’t confided it to Sten. But why not?

  She walked over to her husband and looked down at Sten. His shivering had increased and he was pale with fright. “Did Toke trust you, Sten?”

  He went to respond and stopped, a sadness so heavy descending over him it was difficult not to recognize it. At least for Raven, since she was familiar with the heavy burden.

  “I thought he did,” Sten said. “But now I wonder if either of us trusted anyone anymore.”

  “Time with Brynjar can do that to you,” Lars said as if he understood.

  “Toke never had a loose tongue. He listened more than he spoke. Now and again he would tell me what he heard, snippets mostly, unless he heard more and didn’t say.”

  “Would fear hold his tongue?” Raven asked.

  Sten didn’t have to think on that question. “Fear held us all prisoners, especially our tongues. Dare to utter a single word against Brynjar and he’d somehow find out and you weren’t the only one made to suffer for it and suffer badly.” He looked up at Wolf. “You are feared because you are a courageous and a ferocious warrior who knows victory more than defeat. Brynjar is feared because he is pure evil.”

  Wolf moved his boot off Sten and the man sat up slowly.

  “Can you think of any reason why at that moment Toke may have chanced an escape?” Raven asked.

  Sten shook his head as he spoke. “He looked around as we worked just as I did, it all reminding me of home and my family. Though, Toke did seem focused on your men.” He nodded at Raven. “When the guards left us to finish the task at hand, Toke pulled his hood up and walked off, blending in with everyone.”

  Wolf contained his fury upon learning the escape was his guards’ fault. His warriors would be punished for their neglect. “How long before the guards returned?”

  “Maybe about twenty minutes,” Sten said.

  “Gorm,” Wolf said with a distinct growl in his voice.

  “I’ll see to it, my lord,” Gorm said, understanding he was to gather the guards responsible, and left in haste.

  Sten shook his head again. “I don’t know where he thought he would go, seek shelter or find warmth, when the scent of a snowstorm was so heavy in the air. It makes no sense.”

  Raven heard the question she was about to ask come out of her husband’s mouth.

  “Could he have been meeting someone?”

  “There were no other men that traveled with our small group that I was aware of, but there were other men on the ship that brought us here. And Brynjar rarely lets anyone know his true plans. All I was told was that—” Sten paled again.

  “You were to see my wife dead,” Wolf said, anger twisting his gut and growing his muscles taut.

  Sten nodded, fearful of saying any more.

  Gorm returned with four fierce looking warriors. “They volunteered to guard the prisoner.”

  “You don’t need that many,” Raven said and the scowl that spread across her husband’s handsome face showed he thought otherwise. She ignored it and voiced her opinion. “There’s a small storage room in the keep that would serve as a better cell and would prove more difficult to escape, though I don’t think Sten has any intentions of doing so. And one guard at a time will suffice, freeing your other three warriors.”

  His wife was right, though he didn’t openly admit it. “See it done, Gorm.”

  “One last question, Sten,” Raven said as the largest of the warriors grabbed his arm and swung him up off the ground and held him firm. “Were you and Toke together the whole time you were held captive by Brynjar?”

  “No, we w
ere separated and only came together a couple of months ago.”

  Raven directed her order to Gorm. “See that he is fed well and kept warm. He’ll do us no good dead.”

  Gorm looked to Wolf and he nodded, giving permission for Gorm to carry out her order.

  “I could use some food myself,” Lars said, as Sten was carted away.

  “Then share the meal with Sten. A full belly may encourage him to talk more,” Wolf said.

  “And ale… lots of ale loosens tongues,” Lars said, his hardy laugh trailing after him.

  As soon as everyone departed, Wolf turned to her but she spoke before he could. “I know… your clan, your people, your command.”

  “I’ll always have the last word in matters, wife. That won’t change. But I respect your opinion.”

  Raven smiled and poked him in the chest. “So what you’re saying is… I’m not allowed to give orders to your men like I do to my men.”

  “That’s exactly right,” he said, returning her smile. “And what order did you give Clive that had him leave?”

  She wasn’t surprised that he knew. He had either seen him leave or someone had told him.

  Raven’s smile grew with her response. “Love.”

  “Explain, kona,” he said, doing his best to hide the jolt the word had delivered.

  Raven detailed why she sent Clive to her clan and also mentioned Fyn and Greta as well. It was too early on with George and Eria or Brod and Ida to mention them.

  “My men have served me well and I want them to be happy,” she said.

  “I wish Clive well and I’m glad that Fyn is planting roots here. He will make a good mate for Greta, and Tait seems to care a great deal for him. No wonder your men are so faithful to you—you’re an unselfish leader, a rare quality in one who leads.”

  “I was taught well,” Raven said, thinking how she often did as to how the old man’s teachings had guided her and helped her survive.

  That she continued to hold the mysterious man she loved in high regard continued to annoy Wolf. Even in death she was devoted to the man. That strong of a love was difficult to find and he couldn’t deny he continued to be envious of it.

  Wolf’s tongue was sharp when he spoke. “I go to reprimand the warriors who neglected their duties. Go and see to a wifely duty instead of getting into any trouble.”

  Raven laughed. “I will see to a wifely duty when you see to your husbandly duty.”

  He was left with the sting of her barb as she walked away and he grumbled to himself as he went to see to his other duties.

  His warriors were known for their exceptional skills and he made it clear that their neglect—their failure—had reflected on themselves and him. And it wasn’t a pleasant reminder since the Beast had delivered the reprimand and punishment. The two warriors were left shivering when he finished with them.

  The snow wasn’t falling heavily when Wolf headed to the longhouse, hoping to find his wife there. He had to admit that he enjoyed talking with her, even though she challenged him at times—most times. He discussed things with her that he had never thought he would discuss with a wife, nor did he ever think her opinion would be of value to him. But it was impossible not to pay heed to her words, since she spoke with a wisdom unusual for a young woman. Though the last five years had probably aged her beyond her young years.

  Wolf spotted one of the guards he had assigned to follow his wife headed to the longhouse. Leif was one of his most trustworthy warriors, the reason he had assigned him to watch over Raven.

  “My wife is in the longhouse, Leif?” he asked as he got near.

  Leif halted and turned. “No, my lord. She is with Brod and Iver in Brod’s cottage. Hagen stands guard outside while I fetch food for her men and Greta, at your wife’s suggestion, since Greta is busy seeing to Tait, fright still having a hold on him.”

  Hagen was another trustworthy and exceptional warrior, easing Wolf’s concern. “She intends to share the meal with them?” He didn’t care for the thought. Their meals together could be contentious at times, but he enjoyed them.

  “No, my lord. I heard her tell her men she would be eating with you later.”

  Wolf was pleased to hear that.

  They were both about to enter the longhouse when Ida stepped out wrapped in a cloak and a covered basket hooked on her arm.

  “I was about to look for you, my lord,” Ida said. “Brother Noble is here and I was about to take food to him.”

  “Take the food to the small cottage no one uses and set a fire in the pit so Brother Noble may have a warm place to eat and wait out the storm.” Wolf turned and hurried off after a nod from Ida, eager to talk with the leper. He’d been a voice of reason at times and Wolf could use some reasonable advice right now.

  “Brother Noble,” Wolf called out when he arrived at their usual meeting place. “Food and heated shelter waits for you.”

  The leper stepped from behind the tree. “Your people will not want me near.”

  “My people know I won’t put them at risk,” Wolf said, seeing a dark cloak draped over the brown cleric robe that usually covered the leper. He appeared more stooped than usual and his steps slow.

  “You are well?” Wolf asked.

  “My illness takes its toll.”

  His voice was raspier than usual and Wolf was concerned for him. “These missions are too much for you, especially in the cold.”

  “Abbott Thomas says the same.”

  Wolf was relieved to hear that. “I am glad the Abbott looks after you.”

  “Enough of me, tell me you’ve found, if not love, at least peace in your marriage.”

  Wolf laughed. “I hope peace is possible between Raven and me since we are stuck with each other. She is more of a challenge than I realized.”

  “Is there anything you find you like about her?” Brother Noble asked, a cough disrupting his words.

  “She is brave for a woman, too brave at times, placing her life in danger when she shouldn’t. She’s also quick in mind and word, her barbs stinging.” Wolf laughed again. “I do enjoy talking with her, though our conversations can be prickly at times. And—”

  “Something you’re not sure of or you don’t want to admit, my son?” Brother Noble asked when Wolf suddenly paused.

  “I like that she seeks my embrace at night when we’re in bed. She feels good—somehow right—in my arms. It may be only the heat she seeks from me, but I favor her there nonetheless.”

  “Perhaps there is room for love to grow between you and Raven,” Brother Noble suggested.

  “Love isn’t something I’ve given much thought to. I’ve had no time for such foolish notions. I would wed to benefit my tribe which in a way I’ve done—”

  “Again you pause,” Brother Noble said and when Wolf hesitated, he encouraged. “Tell me what troubles you, my son.”

  The need to confess hastened Wolf’s response. “I’ve never told anyone that love has lingered on my mind, due mostly to the way my grandmother talked and continues to about the love she still has for my grandfather even though he is gone. She sacrificed much to be with him and never once regretted it. I never saw two people so much in love, so caring, so understanding of each other, then my grandparents. My mother and father have a good, loving marriage, but it isn’t anything like my grandmother and grandfather’s was. They shared something rare. I suppose if I were honest with myself, the true reason I’ve paid no heed to love is because if I can’t have what my grandparents shared, I don’t want to love at all.” Wolf paused but not for long. “I think my wife already found that rare kind of love. You can hear the love in her voice when she speaks about this man who taught her and helped her survive these last five years. I don’t think she will ever love another man that way and oddly enough I find myself envious, and also annoyed that she won’t at least confide his name to me.”

  “Perhaps trust is an issue with her.”

  “You’re wise, Brother Noble. Trust is the very thing she asks of me.”
r />   “You don’t trust her?”

  “She tells me she’s never been intimate with a man and yet she was, from my understanding, deeply in love with a man. How then did they stay apart? And what if she carries his child?”

  “The child would need a father. If you like how this woman feels in your arms, you must care somewhat for her. Wouldn’t you then care for her bairn who was part of her, help him grow into a strong man or if a lass, keep her safe since her da couldn’t? Or are you too bitter you were forced to wed Raven?”

  Chapter 15

  Wolf couldn’t get the conversation he’d had with Brother Noble out of his head, especially the question he had no answer to. Was he bitter that he’d been forced to wed Raven? Had he been forced? He could have refused the proposal, but on further thought, it was a solution that seemed the best at the time. He had wanted to settle and establish a good life, put down roots in a land that was his heritage.

  It seemed Raven’s men wanted the same. He was pleased for Fyn and Greta, and little Tait deserved a good father. Greta had barely spoken about Tait’s father, when she had arrived at his tribe seeking safety and shelter. The wound on her face had yet to heal and the only thing she would say was that the father of the bairn she carried wasn’t a good man. He was glad she and Tait finally had a good man. And it meant that Fyn would plant roots here and being in love and loyal to Greta would make him loyal to the tribe. He had also noticed how Eria was spending time with George. And he hadn’t missed the glances exchanged between Brod and Ida.

  Raven’s men were settling nicely in the tribe, establishing roots that would keep them here, keep them loyal. That was what he needed to do with Raven, establish roots and loyalty with her. Unfortunately, that wouldn’t happen until they trusted each other.

  He’d been so lost in his thoughts he hadn’t realized the snow had turned heavy, coating the ground. Bairns ran around squealing with delight as they tried to catch the snowflakes as pups nipped at their heels, and parents were busy making sure they had all they needed to weather the storm. Gorm was seeing that food and firewood were generously distributed and shovels were available to those who were assigned to digging pathways.