“Ye bedded him, dinna ye, lass—the stable hand? I heard talk of it and still I was willing to wed ye. Ye dare chastise me for my anger when I have treated ye with nothing but respect. I believed ye to be the kind of lass who would go to her marriage pure. Had I known ye were a whore, I would’ve bedded ye myself long ago. Mayhap ’tis time for me to do so now.”
I had hoped to leave MacNeal Castle without revealing my powers to a man undeserving of the knowledge, but the moment his hand grabbed at the center between my legs, I let go of any apprehension I had about spelling him.
My first instinct, however, wasn’t to utter a spell. In my haste to get his hands off me, I did the only thing that came to mind. I lifted one hand in the air and jabbed two fingers so deeply into his eyes that I swore I heard one of them pop. He fell back screaming and gasping as blood poured from his eyes.
“My eyes! I canna see. I canna see.”
He screamed the words over and over as I retched onto the ground.
I couldn’t imagine the pain he was in, but I suspected I’d not blinded him permanently. His rage gave him the strength to stand. Just as he tried to charge me, I spoke a spell that bound him against the wall, making him unable to move anything other than his mouth.
I stood back and watched him as he realized what I was.
“Ye are a witch. I dinna believe the rumors. Had I known, I never would’ve agreed to marry ye.”
It was oddly satisfying to watch him panic at the knowledge—knowing that he could do nothing to prevent anything I wished to do to him. I stayed silent as he rambled on.
“Do ye mean to kill me? Would ye kill a man for losing his temper?”
I wondered if perhaps I should, but I knew that I could not. While the world would most certainly be a better place without him, I couldn’t live with blood on my hands.
“No, I willna kill ye, but if ye ever slap one of yer servants again or if ye ever try to bed a lass against her will, rest assured I will learn of it. When I do, I shall come and cut yer tongue out while ye sleep.”
The admittance that I wouldn’t kill him made him bold.
“Witchcraft is an offense punishable by death, lass. When I am free, I will let all of the Highlands know what ye are. Then even yer dear brother will be unable to help ye.”
The spell wouldn’t hold him forever. I wasn’t even sure I would have enough time to get Jerry away from Grier before Henry was free of my spell. There was no sense in arguing with him further. I wouldn’t kill him, and he knew it.
“I could always cut yer tongue out now, then ye would be unable to tell anyone anything ever again.”
I hated that I wasn’t as frightening as I wanted to be. He easily called my bluff.
“Ye retched after poking my eyes. Ye doona have the nerve to cut out my tongue.”
Placing both hands on his shoulders, I smiled.
“Ye are right. Goodbye, Henry.”
Swinging my knee far back behind me, I threw it into his groin with so much force that I knew it was he that would now be retching long after I left.
Chapter 39
I ran from the tower as quickly as my feet could carry me. I didn’t stop until I burst into the stables, screaming for Mary and Kip to meet me.
They were ready with all of our belongings, though we’d had no opportunity to plan how best to get Jerry alone.
I’d not seen him since the day I walked in on he and Grier in his cottage. I wasn’t sure my already rattled nerves could take it.
“Ye must breathe, lass. We’ve still much to do. We must do it quickly. Kip has a plan.”
More surprised than was perhaps appropriate, I lifted my eyes to look at him. Kip was a man of few words. To think he’d been sitting around thinking of a way to help me touched me deeply.
“Ye’ve a plan, Kip? Whatever ’tis I’m willing to try it. I’m too shaken to think.”
Kip’s calm demeanor helped ease my breathing as he approached and placed a gentle hand on my shoulder.
“Ye look it, lass. How did MacNeal react?”
Still trying to catch my breath, I spoke in broken lengths.
“Not well…he…he knows I’m a witch…and I might…I might have blinded him. I canna say for sure.”
“Well, lass,” his voice still calm and steady, Kip continued on like there was nothing unusual about what I’d just told him, “we best get started then before he has a chance to send his men after us. Here is what I propose:
“Under no circumstance can Grier see ye. She willna trust ye and will hide Jerry away. I doona trust Mary to approach her. She’s too angry and willna be able to hide it. I must be the one to lead Grier away from their new home in the village, and I know just how to do it.”
* * *
We approached the dimly lit home as quietly as we could, tying one horse just a short distance away while the rest remained tied in the woods for our escape. Mary and I sat on the ground on the left side of the cottage, our backs pressed against the wall.
The moment we saw Kip leave with Grier, we would enter and try to speak with Jerry. At that point, the result of our efforts was entirely dependent upon his reaction.
The cottage was in terrible condition, but its thin walls allowed us to hear every word as Kip burst inside without knocking.
“Grier, ye’ve arrived just in time. I need yer help most urgently.”
I wanted to scream in response to the rage that built inside me at the sound of Grier’s voice, but her tone echoed surprise, and it gave me hope that Kip’s plan just might work.
“What’s happened?”
“’Tis Laird MacNeal. He’s been attacked by one of his servants and tied up in a tower. I canna stop his bleeding.”
“Have ye called for a healer?”
Kip played his part wonderfully. His voice never faltered, and his story never slipped as she questioned him.
“There is no time for that, lass. Only magic will save him, and Morna doesna possess the skills to aid him. If ye are worried that someone will learn of yer magic, ye needn’t be. I killed the servant that harmed him. Only Morna is with him now.”
I could hear Grier gathering things inside, and Mary reached over to squeeze my hand. Whispering so quietly that it was barely above a breath, Mary spoke, “’Tis almost time. Are ye ready to see him?”
“No, but as long as ye are by my side, I will be fine.”
From inside, I heard Jerry’s voice for the first time. “Do ye need me to go with ye?”
“No.” There was such command in the way she said it that I knew Jerry would object to her ordering him around. His silence was all the proof I needed that something was terribly wrong with him. “Which tower is he in, Kip?”
“The west tower. I’ll lead ye there.”
“No, ye stay here with Jerry. Ye would only slow me down if ye came. Doona leave here until I return.”
I held my breath as I watched her leave. Once Kip believed it safe, he called us inside.
* * *
It would’ve been so much easier if he’d looked different—if his eyes appeared spelled or if he’d not recognized me. What made it so much more painful was that he looked exactly the same, and he knew who I was immediately. He simply didn’t care.
“Morna, Mary, what are ye doing here? Ye should have entered with Kip. I’m sure Grier would’ve loved to have seen ye.”
It was such a ridiculous question—a ridiculous statement—I couldn’t even bring myself to respond to him.
Fortunately, Mary found herself far less speechless than I. She marched right over to him and grabbed his head between both of her hands.
“Ye listen to me, ye damned fool. What is the matter with ye? How can ye speak to her so plainly after what ye’ve done to her? Doona ye remember that ye love her?”
“Morna?”
The confusion in Jerry’s voice sounded entirely genuine.
Mary shook him a little more violently than was necessary.
“Aye, Morna. O’course M
orna. Do ye really mean to tell me ye doona remember loving her?”
Understandably, Jerry pulled away from her. As he approached, my entire body went still.
“What is she going on about, lass? I did love ye, but I love ye no longer. I thought everyone knew by now.”
Nothing could’ve wounded me more. He remembered everything. She’d simply changed his feelings entirely.
Kip was in no mood to dawdle. He knew it would take Grier no time to realize she’d been tricked.
“I doona believe the castle is enough distance, lass. We must take him with us.”
Before any of us could respond, Kip lifted a candlestick and struck Jerry on the back of the head.
Chapter 40
Jerry was a docile captive. He didn’t scream or thrash about once he gained consciousness. Instead, he told us repeatedly, as Kip secured the bindings keeping him strapped belly-down on my horse, that whatever we were trying to do to him was futile—that Grier would be along soon and would find him.
We all knew he was right. The first place Grier would go was Conall Castle. She would try to find us on the path. I couldn’t go that direction with him.
“I doona know where Allen territory is, but ’twould be best if I took Jerry there. Grier knows nothing of Hamish. The two of ye should come with me, as well. I hate to think what Grier might do to ye once she catches up with ye.”
Mary wasn’t worried.
“We must return to Conall Castle. Alasdair must know what’s happened so he may decide how to prepare for it before hearing of it elsewhere. If that bitch comes for us, I’ll run her through.”
Jerry started to protest at Mary’s description of Grier, but Mary just slapped the top of his head to shush him.
“No, doona ye say another word about her, Jerry. I doona wish to hear it and neither does Morna.” She twisted to address me. “Morna, did ye learn anything with Hamish that might give us more time—that might make us less catchable?”
It was a simple enough spell but one I doubted Grier would expect me to know. It was much like what his clan used to keep their territory hidden.
“Aye, I’ll muddy yer path a bit. Ride ahead, and once I canna see ye, I’ll cast it.”
They didn’t waste any time, and as they reached the edge of the village, Kip called back after me. “Hamish left towards the east, lass. Mayhap, if ye ride quickly enough ye can catch him.”
With Jerry draped over the back of my horse like a blanket, I climbed in front of him and took off as quickly as possible in an eastwardly direction.
* * *
I didn’t stop at all the first night. I cast a spell to light our path and continued through the woods, hoping with each passing second we would meet up with Hamish. He was nowhere to be found, and the mind-speak that had been available to me the day he stumbled across our path wasn’t working either.
All I had was a few blankets to see us through to Allen territory.
“Lass, is there truly any reason for this? Ye are my friend, Morna, but this willna work. Ye canna force me to love ye.”
He’d said little since we left. I was so concerned with trying to sense whether or not we were traveling in the right direction I’d almost forgotten about him.
“Oh, really? Ye do know that is precisely what Grier has done to ye, aye? Stolen ye from me and forced ye to love her? Yer feelings for her are not real, Jerry. She’s spelled ye.”
He was quick to protest. “No. Grier wouldna ever spell me.”
“Doona be a fool. Even if ye feel as if ye love her now, ’tis clear enough ye still have yer mind. Ye know how ruthless and vengeful she can be. Do ye truly believe that if she were hurt enough, she wouldna spell anyone to make them do anything she wanted?”
He fell silent for a long time, and I knew he believed it possible. Just as the sun began to break along the horizon, he spoke again.
“Is it truly necessary to keep me bound this way? All my blood has run to my head. ’Tis causing me to feel rather ill, and my head aches dreadfully.”
“We will stop and rest soon. As long as ye promise to cause me no trouble, I’ll allow ye to ride properly when we continue.”
True to my word, as soon as the sun was up, I found a place to rest.
“All right Jerry, I’m going to help ye to yer feet. Ye may be unsteady for a moment.”
Untying him, I pushed him off the horse so that his feet landed first. He held onto the horse for a brief moment then took off running in the opposite direction.
Sighing, I muttered a spell to trip him and watched while his legs locked, and he fell flat on his face. He only made it a few strides away.
“Doona ye remember I’m a witch, too?”
With his head still down, it took him some effort to answer me. “Aye, but ye are not a verra good one. I thought mayhap I could get away.”
Moving to stand in front of him, I nudged his shoulders so he would lift his head.
Begrudgingly, he did so. Blood was running freely down the front of his face.
“Ye cracked my skull open, lass. Do ye know of a spell that might heal it?”
* * *
It looked worse than it was, but the sight of him losing so much blood had me in tears as I led him to the river to clean his wound. I knew of nothing that would heal the wound completely. As long as we held something to it, I knew it would stop bleeding soon. I was far more upset by it than Jerry was.
“’Tis all right, lass. ’Twas my own fault for trying to run.”
He’d removed his shirt so I could clean the wound with it. Wetting it, I reached up to wipe more blood from his face.
“Are ye truly so eager to get away from me? Ye’ve said ye remember our time together. How then can ye be so callous about it?”
He closed his eyes as I pressed the cloth against his wound.
“I doona know, lass. I can only tell ye how I feel. I remember loving ye, but I canna feel the memory of it. I can only see it in my mind. I know I dinna mean to hurt ye, but when I think of Grier, all I feel is this overwhelming love and concern for her. That is why I tried to run. I know she’s worried for me, and I canna stand the thought of her in pain.”
“Ye felt just as strongly for me a fortnight ago. Can ye truly not see that ye might be spelled? How could yer feelings change so quickly otherwise?”
With his face now clean and the crack above his brow clotting nicely, he looked up into my eyes and stared at me in silence for a long time.
When he smiled, my heart fluttered with hope.
“Mayhap, I am, lass. Why doona ye kiss me, and we shall see how I feel?”
I’d missed the feeling of his lips so much that I threw myself into the kiss with abandon. It felt as if he were back. His hands caressed the sides of my face, his lips moved against mine willingly, his tongue slipped deftly inside. For me, it was perfect, but when it ended, Jerry leaned casually back and shrugged his shoulders.
“Nothing, lass. I felt nothing.”
Just as I was about to collapse into a heap of embarrassed tears, Hamish’s voice approached us from behind.
“Ach, lass. There is not a man alive that could be kissed like that and feel nothing. She’s spelled him worse than I thought.”
Chapter 41
Note from M.C.:
* * *
How are you doing, lass? I trust you are still reading and eager to hear how things turn out in the end. As I mentioned to you before, it’s important for you to hear my story—it will make everything easier for you to believe once we meet.
While I know you may have your doubts about the reality of everything now, one way I can assure you my story is true is this: Were this a work of fiction, I most assuredly would not have written these next two chapters of my life.
My father’s death was difficult to bear.
My own death was so much worse.
* * *
Allen Territory—One Month Later
* * *
“I should have never told ye about this
place, lass. Either way, regardless of what ye see within that pool, only pain can come from it. Please let me take ye back to the village. My uncle will continue to work with Jerry. Not a soul here will allow him to leave, and if Grier comes for him, ye know her magic is no match for what we have here. I’ll come with ye to Conall Castle. We’ll stay for the babe’s birth and learn what shall happen as everyone is meant to. ’Tis never a good thing to know another’s future.”
Hamish’s warning was useless. I’d made up my mind the moment he mentioned it. I couldn’t stand the unknown for a moment longer. Everything in my life felt as if it were one day away from entire destruction. If the waters within Hamish’s cave would allow me to know one way or the other how things would play out, then I wanted to know. I was in pain anyway. How much worse could it get?
“Just tell me how it works, Hamish. Please. If Elspeth’s worry is for naught, I willna leave Jerry here. If she has truly predicted her death, we shall go and leave Jerry in yer uncle’s care.”
Grier’s spell still held Jerry with a tight grip, and in the weeks since our arrival, he’d grown angry and cold. He hated me now. The way he looked at me sent shivers down my spine each and every time—his eyes were filled with malice.
“’Twill only show ye things that are unchangeable, which is precisely why it causes such pain. No matter what horrible things ye find inside, ye can do nothing to stop them.”
I was quickly losing my patience with him. “I doona care if I canna change them. At least I will know and can make my peace with whatever is inside.”
Hamish shook his head but turned to leave.
“Verra well. I’ll wait for ye outside.”
* * *
I don’t know how long I cried on the wet stones surrounding the shallow pool, but Hamish eventually gave up waiting and came inside to collect me. He picked me up in his long, broad arms and cradled me like a child.
Love Beyond Reach: Book 8 of Morna’s Legacy Series Page 18