Highland Savior

by Sarah Hoss

  “Now, let’s get Gillian back and put an end to Archibald’s terror.”

  Rebecca’s horse skidded to a stop as she pulled the reins back hard. She searched the area, but no one was to be found. She’d followed the horse’s tracks here, which is where she figured they would be, but apparently they had gotten it wrong. She circled her horse close to the house examining. Only one set of footprints which meant a scout had been looking around.

  Hoofprints and footprints led to the barn, then they took off to the left. Kicking her horse, she followed after them. She knew they had to be safe. There was no sign of anything bad happening.

  Up until now, she thought she had played all of her cards correctly, but, coming here, she wasn’t so sure.

  Up until now, she had done everything to make him love her. It was the only thing she had ever wanted out of life.

  Up until now, she had secured her place in his life.

  Until now.

  She wasn’t sure if her deceit would be told by her brother or not and coming here tonight would ensure that the truth came out. But at least being here, she could explain herself. Make him see.

  As she rode, she kept telling herself that everything would be okay. It had to. She would make sure or die trying.

  Gillian’s scream penetrated the night, causing the hair at the nape of his neck to stand on end. Hamish took a step forward, but was drawn up short by James. He was shaking his head no. The last thing they should do was run in fully cocked without thinking. It would only get them hurt.

  They stood in the snow, staggered around the front of the barn with two men at the back entrance. There was light coming through the cracks of the doors and windows. Further inspection heard their voices and saw Gillian with Archibald standing next to her.

  “Archibald Murdock, come on out and let the woman go. This is between ye and me.”

  Silence was his answer. Snow began to fall; softly, in fluffy little flakes. There was movement inside.

  He took a step forward. “I willna ask again, Archibald. Come outside and bring Gillian with ye.”

  The doors to his barn opened slowly. Standing in the middle of the doorway was Archibald and he held Gillian against him, his dirk at her throat. Anger flooded him like a raging river. He hated seeing her in danger and even though he had seen it many times, it was getting old.

  He glanced over at James to see him take a step forward. His fists clenched and unclenched several times. Then he looked at Alexander and with his chin, pointed toward James. Alexander took a few steps and stood beside his brother.

  “Let her go,” James hollered out. “This has nothing to do with her.”

  He laughed and it gnawed at him.

  “Yer half right,” Archibald said and smiled. “It doesna have anything to do with her, but it does have something to do with him.”

  The men stood ready. Waiting to see how this would play out, waiting for James to give the signal.

  “He poured whiskey over me and the barn,” she hollered out before he poked the dirk a little further into her skin, causing blood to trickle down.

  Hamish glanced at his two brothers.

  “He means to burn the barn down with her in it,” Alexander said.

  James gripped his sleeve, both staring at each other in disbelief.

  “We willna let it happen.” Alexander walked around to stand in front of his brothers with his back to the barn. “Ye both need to get yer heads on straight. I canna have ye both going in there and getting hurt. Watch yerselves.”

  Hamish stepped forward. Fists clenched at his sides, he realized his brother was right and let go. Wiggling his fingers, he had to calm down. He could not lose focus or let Archibald see how he affected him.

  “Let the woman go and ye and I can talk this over.”

  “There is no talking. We are beyond talking.”

  James and Alexander approached, one standing on either side of him. They spoke in whispers.

  “I doona understand how this goes from fighting about land and burning people’s houses to kidnapping and murder. It doesna make any sense.”

  James shrugged, but never took his eyes off Gillian and Archibald. “There is something deeper here. But I doona know the man, so I canna figure him out.”

  The land was quiet. Whether it was the weather or the proceedings, there were no animals out foraging for food. Even the birds stayed hidden in their nests. The night moon appeared larger than normal and shone bright against the white of the snow, giving the earth a Cerulean blue color. He was thankful for this. Trying to save Gillian and capture Archibald in the dark would not have been easy. He was not as close to her as he liked to be with nearly twenty-five feet or so between them. Close enough to see the panic in her eyes, the way her chest rose and fell with each fearful breath. She knew the danger she was in. But she was smart. She wouldn’t do anything to endanger herself further. He had to think, had to find a way to get her safely away from Archibald.

  James turned to his brothers. “We need to act fast. We need a distraction.”

  Alexander snapped his fingers. “Ye keep him talking. I’ve got an idea. Let me go speak to the men and I’ll come back.”

  “Tell us what the plan is,” Hamish asked as he snaked out a hand to stop his brother.

  “I will, but let me set the men in motion, first. Then I will come back and share the information with you. As James said, time is of the essence.”

  He watched Alexander jog over to where the men stood, then turned his attention back to the barn and its occupants. He’d built this barn. It was as basic as they came and there were only two sets of doors, one on the back and one on the front. In the future, this would be remedied.

  “Archibald, make me understand. If ye want the land, tis yers.”

  Gillian resisted, trying to get away and he tightened his hold, rearranging the knife at her throat so that the blade lay across the front of her throat again.

  James stepped forward. “Gillian, doona fight. All right, love?”

  “Okay.”

  She was frightened but they had to keep her calm. With each hand, she took her thumbs and placed them over each finger’s knuckle, pressing. He watched as she repeated the gesture over and over.

  Alexander ran back to his side. As he began to question him on his plan, a horse and rider rode into the middle of the group. They were going so fast that when the rider pulled on the reins, the horse skidded to a stop, causing snow to fly up everywhere. The horse reared up, almost unbalancing it’s rider. Once its feet were firmly on the ground, the rider jumped off and ran over to where Archibald and Gillian stood.

  Taking the hood off, Hamish inhaled when he saw that the newcomer was Rebecca.

  “Please, let her go. Don’t do this.”

  Now, two women connected to him were in harm’s way.

  “Rebecca, what the bloody hell do ye think ye are about?” He started to go to her, but James and Alexander held him back.

  She turned, slowly, and their gazes met. He could see the sorrow in her expression and it confused him.

  “Hamish, I can make this right. Just give me a moment.”

  He struggled against his brothers’ hold, but they wouldn’t give. “Nay, I willna hold on for a moment. Ye are with child. Are ye daft to place yerself and our child in harm’s way? Come woman, now.” His voice vibrated through the air, demanding she listen to him. If she didn’t care about herself, she should at least be concerned about their child.

  Archibald laughed and it grated on his nerves to hear such a sound. Focusing on Rebecca, he asked, “Ye havena told him?”

  He darted his gaze between them, trying to find out a connection. None of this made any sense. His brothers’ had let go of him. Both now stood ready, holding their swords.

  �
��Tell me what?”

  Archibald nudged Rebecca in the arm with his fist, then wrapped his arm back around Gillian’s waist. “Go on, sister dear,” he said. Then turning his gaze back to Hamish, he said more profoundly, “tell him.”

  Hamish swallowed. His heart slammed against his chest at the words that echoed through his head. Sister, dear. He stared at her, brows creased and his eyes narrowed in disbelief.

  She glanced down at the ground. There was a moment where Archibald and Rebecca had words that he couldn’t hear. He watched, like an outsider spying, and waited. Archibald had an appearance of smugness, as if he still held all of the cards. Rebecca appeared horrified and was shaking. Then he glanced at Gillian. Their eyes held each other’s but the look upon her face was shock, then sorrow. There were so many emotions in one setting. He was done waiting. He had to get control of the situation. Taking a few steps forward, he stopped when Archibald yelled and tightened his grip on Gillian. He could see blood trickle down her neck and a small fist of fear gripped his stomach. He hated not being able to get to her. For right now, he needed to focus on Rebecca. The thought of her endangering their child, and for what? What was she doing? He had so many questions running through his mind and having her near Archibald intensified the situation.

  “What is it ye need to tell me, Rebecca?” He stuck his hand out for her. “Come to me and we can talk about whatever ye want.” He curled his fingers in, beckoning her to come.

  She kept her eyes to the ground. “Hamish,” she paused. “Archibald, he’s my brother.”

  Slowly, she began to look up at him, but all he saw through his confusion was red. Her brother? He didn’t want to believe it. He didn’t want to think that he had been duped by a woman. But moreover, he didn’t want to believe that she would have done anything to purposely make him appear the fool and put Gillian in harm’s way. Gillian had never done anything to her.

  “Do ye speak false to save this man, Rebecca?” James turned to Hamish and they exchanged angry stares for a moment before James turned to Alexander. His reaction was the same.

  “No, I doona speak false. We are of the same blood.”

  Hamish turned his back to the barn and ran his hand through his hair. Rebecca was Archibald’s sister. He had lain with and created a child with a woman whose brother had deliberately killed his sister and she had never said a word. He was beyond angry at this point. He wanted to hit something, to cry out to the universe that the sick joke it was playing on him was not funny.

  James and Alexander came around to stand in front of him. They kept peering over his shoulder at the scene behind him.

  “Hamish, ye need to get her away from there. If we have her, then we can get him.”

  He looked disgusted at Alexander. “Do ye really think at this moment, I want anything to do with her?” He wiped his hand over his mouth as he thought.

  “None of us are too pleased at what we’ve heard, but we need him to be punished for his crimes and we need to save Gillian,” James said. “We have to protect the child.”

  Alexander placed his hand on his arm to get his attention. He squeezed slightly. “She loves ye and has clearly done whatever she needed to be with ye. If ye talk to her, she will believe all ye say.”

  He shook his head. Turning around, he licked his lips as he took a deep breath and let it out. He cleared his throat. “Rebecca, please come to me and we can talk about this.” She just stared at him. “Tis all right, I swear.”

  “Doona ye want to know why I kept such a thing a secret?”

  “Aye, I do. Why doona ye come tell me.”

  She shook her head no. “Not until ye understand.”

  James leaned in and whispered. “She’s buying time. Keep her talking.”

  Out of the corner of his eye, he saw two of his men that had been placed on the side of the barn, creep a little further into place. They were quiet and they were good. Archibald had no idea what was happening around him. Two other men should be waiting by the back door.

  “All right, tell me.”

  She nervously peered at her brother and took a step away from him. “There were four of us children. Me, Archibald, Fergus, and Aileana. She died when she was four. Caught the fever and never recovered.” She rang her hands over and over as she told her story. “My father was a drunk, a mean drunk.” Her lip curled up in disgust as she spoke of him. “We often found ourselves on the sharp end of his belt and at times for no other reason than we didn’t close the door all the way. And my mother . . .” As she spoke of her, her features softened. “. . . she tried to make things normal, but she was abused more than us because she tried to protect us.”

  Rebecca glanced over at her brother, but he ignored her, never taking his eyes off Hamish. He noticed, though, that when Rebecca mentioned her parents, Archibald grew angry. He saw his grip tighten on the dirk held at Gillian’s neck.

  Rebecca focused back on her audience. “One night, he was drunk and flew into a rage at Archibald because he had broken father’s handle on a pitchfork. He set the house on fire and was so drunk, he fell and hurt himself. Mom barely got us out, but our father died in the fire.” A pause in her story caused Archibald to stiffen. He started to back into the barn with Gillian.

  “Archibald was burnt in the fire.” She blew out a breath that danced on the cold air. “Our mother took to whoring to earn money to take care of us.”

  She glanced up at Hamish, staring at him. She was near tears and her expression begged for understanding. “As soon as I was old enough, I fled. I came to the castle in hopes of making a better life for myself. I didna want to be like them. Our mother was nothing but a drunken whore and my brothers are so filled with hate that they canna see anything else. Ye have to believe me, Hamish. I truly love ye.”

  He shook his head. It was all too much to take in. He took a step back, his head down, eyes closed, as he repeated all of her words. He knew nothing about her. All this time, they had been intimate and he had no clue. He felt betrayed, he felt angry, and he felt sick. Her brother had killed his sister and she’d said nothing.

  “Hamish, I swear to ye that I never knew he was the arsonist, until he came to take Gillian.”

  He quickly turned to her, anger coursing through his veins the more she spoke. “Ye knew he was gonna take her and ye never said a word?”

  Her hand flew to her mouth. Alexander and James took him by the arm and made him focus on them. James gripped him by the face. “I understand yer anger. I do. But ye canna upset her now. If she feels she has lost ye, then we most likely canna save Gillian, for it becomes two against one. We need to have her on Gillian’s side, not her brother’s. Convince her to come out. Make her believe ye still have a future. Ye have to keep her safe to keep the child safe.”

  He nodded his head, though it was difficult with James holding on to him. Alexander placed his hand on his shoulder. For a moment, they just stared at each other. No words were spoken, but a united family bond made each one aware of the ultimate goal, that they were all on the same page.

  He turned back to Rebecca and took two steps forward, slowly as to not spook anyone. “Rebecca, please, come here to me.” He held out his hand again to her. “We can speak more about it at the keep. I doona hold anything against ye, let’s just get ye out of the cold and back safely to the castle.”

  Her chest rose and fell with each breath. He watched her. Warring emotions crossed her face and he knew she wanted to believe him. “Ye do believe that I love ye?”

  “Aye, I do.” He stood there, not moving, watching her as he waited for her to come to him. He realized that he was holding his breath and he let it go, taking another deep breath and blowing it out. He could see Archibald on the side of her, almost out of eyesight. Gillian still held in his grasp, but the knife no longer lay across her throat and he was happy to see it.

 
Rebecca started to take a step toward him when a noise caught her attention. Everything seemed to go in slow motion. Rebecca turned her head to see what was happening at the same time he did. He saw the shift in Archibald’s feet and the way his shoulders relaxed. Archibald briefly closed his eyes in a blink that lasted just a little too long and he took a deep breath.

  Something flashed behind him and it took several seconds for him to realize what was happening. The men around him hollered out. Gillian screamed and the sound curdled his blood.

  “Gillian,” he hollered, desperation echoing through the cold winter night. In a space of a minute, a lifetime can pass. In the space of a few seconds, the last two months with the woman he loved, danced through his mind and the thought of losing her in a fire and the woman who carried his child, too, was more than he could handle.

  Rebecca glanced back at Hamish and for a brief moment, they stood staring at each other as the flames took hold in the barn and began to burn out of control. Something crossed her face and he didn’t understand it. Not until he saw her turn and dash into the barn. He ran toward the barn, along with his brothers, hollering her name. The fire grew quickly because of the dry hay.

  Rebecca grabbed a hold of Gillian’s clothes and pulled her out of her brother’s relaxed grip. Shoving her toward the door, she gave a final push, causing Gillian to fall to the ground. She rolled back and forth trying to put out the flames that had taken ahold of her dress.

  James fell into the snow next to Gillian and began to check her over. He helped her stand. “Go to the horses and wait.” Then he focused his attention on Rebecca. Her brother had yelled when she took Gillian from him. Now, they struggled and as she lost her footing, Archibald twisted and threw her further into the barn that was now burning out of control. He stood and searched the flames for any sign of her.