Courage of a Highlander

by Katy Baker

  She was spared making a decision by the door opening suddenly. Bhradain came striding in. He halted, looking them over for a second.

  “Ah, Beth, I’m glad I’ve found ye. Aiden wants to see ye right away. Something about a loom ye asked him to fix?”

  Beth rolled her eyes. “Finally! I’ve only been badgering him about that since he returned!”

  She climbed to her feet and hurried to the door. “I’ll see ye later,” she called to Kara before exiting the room.

  Kara expected Bhradain to leave, but he didn’t. Instead, he walked slowly over to her table and stood looking down at the book on her desk.

  “It’s a history of your clan,” she explained. “I’ve been gathering together all the record fragments I could find and copying them into one document.”

  He looked at her sharply. “Nay my clan,” he said. “I’m nay a Harris. I’m a Garrick.”

  The vehemence in his voice shocked her. “From what I understand, a ward is practically the same thing as family.”

  He glanced at her but didn’t answer. His fingers lightly traced the open page. “Ye would do well to write yer own history, Kara Buchanan. It’s far more interesting.”

  Kara snorted. “Hardly. There’s nothing interesting about a down and out city girl like me.”

  “Really?” he said, raising an eyebrow. “Is that what ye really think? How could ye be so ignorant, Kara Buchanan? Or should I say, Kara MacAskill?”

  She frowned at him, puzzled. “What are you talking about? Why would you call me that?”

  He stepped closer, placed his palms flat on the table and leaned down so that his face was only inches from her own. In a soft whisper he said, “I saw what ye did at the battle. I saw the way ye slowed time and saved Aiden’s life. Ye canna lie to me, Kara. I know what ye are.”

  A sudden jolt of alarm went through her. Her heart was suddenly racing. “I...don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Oh yes ye do. Dinna worry. I willnae tell anyone. Ye canna imagine how irritated I was when ye thwarted my plan. It took quite some effort to set up that ambush. If it had gone according to plan I would have finally been rid of Aiden Harris, and I would have been named the heir to the lairdship. Then all I would have had to do was arrange for Andrew to have a little ‘accident’ and I would have gotten what I deserve.”

  Kara’s eyes widened. She scrambled up from her chair and backed away. “You!” she breathed. “You set Aiden up!”

  A sardonic smile curled his lips. “Aye, I did. And I was mighty aggrieved when ye thwarted it. I considered killing ye. But then I saw what ye did at the battle and everything fell into place. I finally put the pieces together and realized what ye truly are. It’s took me quite some time and lots of digging, but I finally have the truth.”

  Kara thought back to all those times she’d encountered Bhradain in the library, poring over old manuscripts, family histories and genealogies. What had he been looking for? She glanced at the door and considered making a run for it but Bhradain had placed himself between her and escape. She could scream and hope somebody heard but the library was high up in one of the towers and it was unlikely anyone would hear.

  She squared her shoulders and lifted her chin defiantly. “What do you want, Bhradain?”

  He held up a finger. “Ah! Now we get to it.” He stalked towards her and Kara backed away until she was up against the wall. She looked around for a weapon, a poker, a candlestick, anything, but there was nothing within reach.

  “Stay away from me!” she warned.

  He halted a few paces away and took a cloth-wrapped bundle from his pocket. He unwrapped it, revealing the Key of Ages that she and Aiden had stolen from Devereux all those weeks ago. It glinted in the sunlight.

  Cold settled into her bones. “What are you doing with that?”

  “Ye will see. We had better be going, Kara. We have a long way to go.”

  “Go where? What the hell are you talking about?”

  “Haven’t ye guessed it yet? This trinket may be called the Key of Ages but that is an error. The Key of Ages is something else entirely.” His eyes fixed on hers. “The Key of Ages is ye.”

  There was a sudden blur of movement. Something struck the side of her head and she knew no more.

  ***

  Aiden burst into Kara’s chamber without knocking. “Kara!” he yelled. “Are ye here, lass?”

  Her bed was neatly made, her fire had been banked and her room tidied, but there was no sign of her. Aiden cursed. He strode out of the chamber and nearly collided with Beth coming the other way.

  “Careful!” his sister cried. “Ye just about trampled me! I’m glad I found ye. What did ye want to see me about? Have ye managed to fix my loom?”

  Aiden frowned at her in puzzlement. “Yer loom? What are ye talking about?”

  Beth frowned in turn. “Ye mean ye havenae fixed it? So what did ye want to see me about?”

  Aiden shook his head. He didn’t have time for this. “I’ve nay idea what ye are talking about. I didnae ask to see ye.”

  “Oh. But Bhradain said ye had asked for me.”

  Aiden’s head came up at that. “Bhradain said so?”

  “Aye. A little while ago. He came into the library where Kara and I were working and said ye wanted to see me.”

  Aiden’s neck prickled. “Where is Kara now?”

  “Still in the library most probably. I left her with Bhradain and came to find ye.”

  Aiden whirled and sprinted down the corridor to the staircase of the east tower.

  “Aiden! What’s going on?”

  He didn’t answer. He had to find Kara. He took the steps two at a time and after a moment he heard Beth’s footsteps coming up behind him. They hurried up the spiraling staircase and together he and Beth burst into the library. It was empty. A big book lay open on the desk, a quill and inkpot standing next to it. Beth’s sketchpad and charcoal lay on a seat by the window.

  Heart pounding, Aiden forced himself to keep calm and scan the room for any sign of what might have happened. He narrowed his eyes as he spotted something over by the far wall. Hurrying over to it, he went down on one knee and examined it.

  A small puddle of blood marked the flagstones with a man’s boot print clearly outlined within it.

  Beth’s hands flew to her mouth. “Lord! What’s happened?”

  Aiden stood. “Bhradain is a traitor. He’s kidnapped Kara. Go warn Father. I’m going after them.”

  Without waiting for an answer, Aiden hurried through the door and down the stairs, taking them so fast he risked tripping and breaking his neck. He didn’t care. That fire was in his belly again. That urgency. But this time it was from fear. For Kara.

  Kara, he thought as he jogged through the castle corridors. I’m coming, lass. I’ll find ye. I promise.

  He exited the main doors and hurried to the stables, throwing open the doors with a bang and spooking the horses inside. A figure was lying prone in the straw between the stalls: Drew, the stable master.

  Aiden knelt by the man’s side. A bruise the size of a duck’s egg was forming on his temple but other than that he appeared unharmed. Aiden shook his shoulder. “Drew?”

  The stable master groaned and his eyes fluttered open. They alighted on Aiden and widened in alarm. “Bhradain!” he cried. He lurched upright and then groaned again, putting a hand to his head.

  “Easy, man,” Aiden said, placing a hand on his shoulder. “Tell me what happened.”

  “Bhradain came in demanding I saddle his horse. He seemed in a right temper,” the stable master said. “I didnae question him—he often goes out riding alone. He was carrying a large bundle over his shoulder and I didnae question that either. Until that bundle groaned. When I asked about it, he got very angry. Hit me with something. Next thing I know I’m waking up here.” He found Aiden’s eyes with his own. “I fear he’s up to something evil, Aiden. It was a lass he had wrapped in that bundle, I swear it.”

  Aiden nodd
ed. “Aye. This is very important, Drew. Do ye have any idea where he might be heading?”

  Angus shook his head. “I dinna. But he had something else with him as well. I saw it sticking out of his pocket. Some sort of jewelry I reckon. Gold, with three interlocking swirls. I’ve nay seen the like before.”

  The Key of Ages, Aiden thought. That bastard is trying to get to Kara’s time.

  And there was only one place he would be able to do that.

  “My thanks,” Aiden said, straightening. “When my father arrives, tell him all ye know.” He hurried to his horse.

  “But where are ye going?”

  Aiden swung up onto Smokey’s back without a saddle. “I’m going to stop Bhradain.”

  Clutching Smokey’s mane he guided him from the stable and then kicked him into a gallop out of the gates of Dun Arnwick and down the road at breakneck pace. He knew where they were heading.

  The arch through time.

  ***

  Kara ran as fast as she could with her hands bound behind her back. Thick clumps of heather tried to trip her but she kept going, fear and desperation giving her speed. Then something struck her from behind and she went tumbling to the ground, whacking her chest hard enough to knock the breath from her lungs. Something flipped her over and she saw Bhradain glaring down at her.

  “If ye try that again,” he growled. “I will beat ye unconscious. I dinna need ye awake for this.”

  Kara glared at him. The ride from Dun Arnwick had passed in a blurry haze. Bhradain had hit her hard and it had taken most of the ride for her to come to her senses. Finally they’d stopped at the edge of a cliff and Bhradain had dismounted and then pulled her off the horse. Kara had seized her opportunity and ran.

  “You’re never going to get away with this,” she hissed at him. “Aiden is coming.”

  “Ye reckon I fear yer lover?” Bhradain said, amusement shining in his eyes.

  “You should. He’s going to kill you.”

  “Really? I dinna think so. Not even the great Aiden Harris can follow us where we’re going. Get up and behave yerself or ye’ll regret it.”

  He hauled her to her feet and over to the cliff-edge where a zig-zag path snaked its way down onto the beach below. Bhradain pushed her ahead of him as they descended, the tip of a short-sword pressing into her back to make sure she did as she was told. As they reached the bottom, Kara suddenly realized where they were. Ahead of her was the eroded piece of cliff face that formed a natural archway through which she could see the churning gray sea.

  It was the arch through time.

  Her eyes widened as realization dawned on her.

  “Aye,” Bhradain breathed. “We are going to yer time.”

  “You’re crazy,” she replied. She spun and tried to run again but Bhradain grabbed her arm in a pincer grip and dug the tip of the short-sword against her neck.

  “Final warning,” he growled.

  He yanked her towards the arch until they both stood underneath it and then took out the Key of Ages.

  “It doesn’t work,” she spat at him. “You were there when we told all of this to Andrew and Lucy. Aiden and I already tried it. It can’t take us anywhere. Only Irene MacAskill can do that.”

  Bhradain raised an eyebrow at her. “Do ye think I dinna know that? Ye underestimate me, Kara MacAskill, just like everyone else. All those books in the library? I’ll bet ye were told Lucy collected them. In fact, a good portion of them were ones I managed to find—especially the family histories and the genealogies. I’ve been very interested in Irene MacAskill and her family since the time I learned of her involvement with my adopted family. Those fools dinna ken the half of what she really is or how old she is. I do. I pieced it together. I collected all the scraps and folk tales, half-whispered legends, any old documents I could lay my hands on.” His eyes were alight now, warming to his subject. “Do ye know what I found? That Irene MacAskill has been walking this Earth for hundreds of years. That she had children and that she went to great lengths to hide her descendants. For that reason they took her maiden name.” His eyes narrowed and his gaze turned predatory. “That name was Buchanan.”

  Kara stared at him for a moment, letting his words sink in. “You think I’m one of Irene MacAskill’s descendants?” she said incredulously. “Just because I have the same name? Do you have any idea how many people there must be in my time with the name Buchanan?”

  “But she didnae choose to send any of those back in time did she?” Bhradain countered. “I first started to suspect what ye were when ye started speaking Gaelic without ever having learned it. Dougie told me that ye picked it up more quickly than anyone he’d ever taught—as though it was a language ye already knew. Then what ye did at the battle confirmed it.” He stepped forward, so close he could have touched her and gave her a grin full of malice. “Like I said, it isnae some trinket that is the Key of Ages. It’s ye, Kara MacAskill.”

  She shivered and wrapped her arms around herself. She tried to denied his words but memories suddenly surfaced. A dark night. Standing stones rising up into the sky and sibilant voices whispering.

  “Why are you doing this?” she asked. “The Harris clan took you in. They’ve been nothing but kind to you and this is how you repay them?”

  “Kind?” Bhradain spat. “They took me in out of pity and that’s all I’ve been shown since! I’ve made myself invaluable to Laird Andrew. There’s nobody a better administrator than I. I tally his land grants, I collect his rents, I manage Dun Arnwick’s stocks. But what reward do I get for my efforts? None at all! Everyone with half a brain knows I would make a fine laird. I should be his heir but the second Aiden cursed Harris comes simpering back into our lives it’s as though I dinna even exist! Everyone bows and scrapes like he’s some kind of conquering hero. They forget that he rode out and left us!”

  “So that’s it?” Kara said. “Jealousy? You’re jealous of Aiden and this is somehow your revenge?”

  “Jealousy? Ye think I’d be driven by so mean an emotion? Nay, woman, this is about far more than that. It’s about getting what’s mine. It’s about fulfilling my destiny. Aiden is in my way. And ye know what the most ridiculous thing is? He doesnae even want the lairdship! He’s going to be Earl Marischal and go live on the other side of the country! They fawn over him and they dinna even know the level of contempt he holds for them!”

  Kara gasped. Aiden was going away? Why hadn’t he told her?

  Bhradain’s eyes narrowed. “I can see ye didnae know. But why would he tell ye? Ye are only the latest of a long line of his doxies. Aiden Harris is not the man everyone thinks he is. Come, time grows short.”

  He grabbed her arm and before she could react, he scored the tip of his short sword along her forearm. Stinging pain ignited and a line of blood welled up. Bhradain caught the blood on the tip of his blade and then used it to transfer a drop to the rough stone of the arch through time. Gripping her arm so she couldn’t escape he began to speak. Kara didn’t recognize the language but the sound of it set her hair on end. It sounded as though it had been dredged up from the bowels of the Earth, an ancient language not meant for mortal tongues.

  Suddenly the air beneath the archway began to shimmer like heat-haze.

  Bhradain glanced at her, a grin curling his mouth. “Ready to go home, lass?”

  Then he dragged her through. There was a moment’s disorientation where Kara felt like she was falling. She cried out and threw out her arms to steady herself but her questing grip met nothing but empty air. Then her feet hit something hard and she fell to her knees. Fighting back a sudden wave of nausea, she lifted her head and took in her surroundings. The beach, the sea, the arch were gone. Instead she was kneeling on damp mud below a railway bridge.

  Bhradain was already on his feet and Kara forced herself to stand, preparing to run. But a gun-barrel suddenly poked her in the chest.

  Four men detached themselves from the shadows beneath the bridge and surrounded them.

  “Boss!�
� yelled one of them. “You’d better get in here!”

  Another man appeared from somewhere beyond the bridge. He walked quickly and with a grace that reminded Kara of a predator. He approached her and Bhradain then stopped, looking them both over with snake’s eyes. Suddenly the man smiled.

  “Well, well, the prodigal daughter returns. Welcome home Kara Buchanan,” said Michael Devereux.

  Chapter 15

  Aiden rode like he had the very devil on his tail. It was dangerous to ride the cliff-top trail at breakneck speed but he dare not slow, even for an instant. Dun Arnwick was far behind him and he’d been riding all day, stopping at a local croft to change horses when his became lathered. He paused from time to time only long enough to check the trail. Sure enough, each time he dismounted, he found the tracks of Bhradain’s horse in the mud, moving quickly but not as fast as he with its burden of two riders. He was gaining on them. Just a little further...

  He yanked his horse to a halt as he reached the place where the trail split, a branch leading off down the cliff to the beach where he and Kara had originally come through the archway. He hurried to the trail and careened down it, slipping and sliding and sending showers of rocks sliding over the edge. At the bottom he found the arch exactly as he remembered only this time two sets of tracks showed clearly in the sand. They led right up to the archway—and then disappeared.

  There was no sign of Kara or Bhradain.

  Aiden’s heart leapt into his mouth. Fear raced through his veins. He pelted up the beach, following the tracks until they disappeared under the archway. They didn’t emerge on the other side. Letting out a string of curses, Aiden turned in a circle, eyes scanning the terrain.

  “Kara!” he bellowed. “Kara! Are ye here, lass?”

  His shouts died into silence. Gritting his teeth, Aiden drew his sword, took a deep breath and stepped through the arch.

  Nothing happened. He exited the archway on the other side, his footprints clearly showing in the wet sand. He passed back through and tried again. Nothing. Whatever magic the arch employed, it wouldn’t work for him. Not without Irene MacAskill.