by Hazel Hunter
Rachel had often wondered if she should tell her fiancé about her uncanny intuition. But David might think she was delusional, and over the last few weeks her sensitivity had been so muted she rarely even felt her own emotions. His father had to be happy about the marriage. If nothing else, Rachel was now one of the richest women in the country.
It was all thanks to her dad, who had used the millions he inherited from his corporate CEO father to become the most successful start-up investor in modern history. From solar-powered smart phones to 3-D printed replacement heart valves, the ventures Sheldon Ingram bankrolled always proved wildly innovative as well as profitable in the extreme.
“I’m not a genius,” Sheldon told a reporter once. “I invest in people. Guessing which ones are going to change the world is what I do best.”
Her father had slowed down only long enough to romance and marry Beatrice, Rachel’s Italian heiress mother, who had brought old world money, blue blood, and ancient connections with European royalty as her dowry. He’d built this Mediterranean chateau for her when she’d gotten pregnant with Rachel, called it Avalon, and then set up his kingdom in the Covenant.
Her father had always fancied himself a Merlin rather than a King Arthur. Since everything he touched turned to gold, Midas might have been more appropriate. Thanks to him, Rachel would never have to work, or worry, or do anything except what she wanted.
But all she wanted was what she could never again have.
Rachel would happily give every cent she’d inherited to hear once more the reassurance of her father’s deep voice, and the sweet trill of her mother’s easy laughter. They had given her so much love she’d never once considered how it would feel to be without it. She would beggar herself to bring them back to life. If only she’d skipped the weekend shopping trip to L.A. with David and his mother. She’d have been here when the fire started. She knew she would have woken up in time to get them out of the house—or not.
I could have died with them.
How long Rachel stood there wishing for what she could never have, she didn’t know. She only came out of her trance when her fingers began to cramp, and glanced down to see the white-knuckled grip she had on the balcony railing. Carefully she released it and turned around to face Avalon, now fully cleaned and restored. The only signs of the electrical fire that had consumed the master suite and burned her parents to death was scorched earth around the newly-built wing. In another week the landscaping company would finish putting in the new sod, and even that would be gone.
Like her parents, cremated in their own bed.
“Darling?”
From inside the sunroom David Carver emerged, his elegant hands holding two slender goblets of champagne. From his razor-cut short blond hair to his spotless white shirt and shorts he looked immaculate, but then he always did. Rachel knew he had spent the morning playing tennis at one of his mother’s charity fundraisers, and yet he still appeared pressed and polished, as if he’d just gotten dressed.
Rachel admired his perfection—who didn’t?—but something about his appearance this morning bothered her. He seemed almost too spotless. Did her fiancé even have the ability to sweat?
• • • • •
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Glossary
Here are some brief definitions to help you navigate the medieval world of the Immortal Highlanders.
Abyssinia - ancient Ethiopia
acolyte - novice druid in training
addled - confused
advenae - Roman citizen born of freed slave parents
afterlife - what happens after death
animus attentus - Latin for "listen closely"
apotheoses - highest points in the development of something
Aquilifer - standard bearer in a Roman legion
arse - ass
auld - old
Ave - Latin for "Hail"
aye - yes
bairn - child
banger - explosion
banshee in a bannock - making a mountain out of a molehill
barrow - wheelbarrow
bastart - bastard
bat - wooden paddle used to beat fabrics while laundering
battering ram - siege device used to force open barricaded entries and other fortifications
battle madness - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
bawbag - scrotum
Belgia - Belgium
birlinn - medieval wooden boat propelled by sails and oars
blaeberry - European fruit that resembles the American blueberry
blind - cover device
blood kin - genetic relatives
bonny - beautiful
boon - gift or favor
brambles - blackberry bushes
bran'y - brandy
Brank's bridle mask - iron muzzle in an iron framework that enclosed the head
Britannia - Latin for “Britain”
brownie - Scottish mythical benevolent spirit that aids in household tasks but does not wish to be seen
buckler - shield
Caledonia - ancient Scotland
caligae - type of hobnailed boots worn by the Roman legion
cannae - can't
cannel - cinnamon
canny - shrewd, sharp
catch-fire - secret and highly combustible Pritani compound that can only be extinguished by sand
Centurio - Latin for “Centurions”
century - Roman legion unit of 100 men
chatelaine - woman in charge of a large house
Chieftain - second highest-ranking position within the clan; the head of a specific Pritani tribe
choil - unsharpened section of a knife just in front of the guard
Choosing Day - Pritani manhood ritual during which adolescent boys are tattooed and offer themselves to empowering spirits
chow - food
cistern - underground reservoir for storing rain water
claymore - two-edged broadsword
clout - strike
cohort - Roman legion tactical military unit of approximately 500 men
cold pantry - underground cache or room for the storage of foods to be kept cool
comely - attractive
conclave - druid ruling body
conclavist - member of the druid ruling body
contubernium - squad of eight men; the smallest Roman legion formation
COP - Command Observation Post
cosh - to bash or strike
couldnae - couldn't
counter - in the game of draughts, a checker
courses - menstrual cycle
cow - derogatory term for woman
Coz - cousin
croft - small rented farm
cudgel - wooden club
da - dad
daft - crazy
dappled - animal with darker spots on its coat
defendi altus - Latin for “defend high"
detail - military group assignment
dinnae - don’t
disincarnate - commit suicide
diviner - someone who uses magic or extra sens
ory perception to locate things
doesnae - doesn’t
dories - small boats used for ship to shore transport
draughts - board game known as checkers in America
drawers - underpants
drivel - nonsense
drover - a person who moves herd animals over long distances
dung - feces
EDC - Every Day Carry, a type of knife
excavators - tunnel-diggers
fack - fuck
facking - fucking
faodail - lucky find
fash - feel upset or worried
fathom - understand
fere spectare - Latin for “about face"
ferret out - learn
festers - becomes infected
fetters - restraints
fibula - Roman brooch or pin for fastening clothes
filching - stealing
fisher - boat
fishmonger - person who sells fish for food
floor-duster - Pritani slang for druid
foam-mouth - rabies
Francia - France
Francian - French
free traders - smugglers
frenzy - mindless, savagely aggressive, mass-attack behavior caused by starving undead smelling fresh blood
fripperies - showy or unnecessary ornament
Germania - Germany
god-ridden - possessed
Great Design - secret druid master plan
greyling - species of freshwater fish in the salmon family
gut rot - cancer of the bowel
hasnae - hasn’t
heid doon arse up - battle command: head down, ass up
Hetlandensis - oldest version of the modern name Shetland
Hispania - Roman name for the Iberian peninsula (modern day Portugal and Spain)
hold - below decks, the interior of a ship
holk - type of medieval ship used on rivers and close to coastlines as a barge
hoor - whore
huddy - stupid, idiotic
impetus - Latin for “attack"
incarnation - one of the many lifetimes of a druid
isnae - isn’t
jeeked - extremely tired
Joe - GI Joe shortened, slang for American soldier
jotunn - Norse mythic giantess
justness - justice
kelpie - water spirit of Scottish folklore, typically taking the form of a horse, reputed to delight in the drowning of travelers
ken - know
kirtle - one piece garment worn over a smock
kuks - testicles
lad - boy
laird - lord
lapstrake - method of boat building where the hull planks overlap
larder - pantry
lass - girl
league - distance measure of approximately three miles
Legio nota Hispania - Latin name for The Ninth Legion
loggia - open-side room or house extension that is partially exposed to the outdoors
magic folk - druids
mam - mom
mannish - having characteristics of a man
mantle - loose, cape-like cloak worn over garments
mayhap - maybe
milady - my lady
milord - my lord
missive - message
mormaer - regional or provincial ruler, second only to the Scottish king
motte - steep-sided man-made mound of soil on which a castle was built
mustnae - must not
naught - nothing
no’ - not
Norrvegr - ancient Norway
Noto - Latin for "Attention"
Optia - rank created for female Roman Legion recruit Fenella Ivar
Optio - second in command of a Roman legion century
orachs - slang term for chanterelle mushrooms
orcharders - slang for orchard farmers
ovate - Celtic priest or natural philosopher
palfrey - docile horse
paludamentum - cloak or cape worn fastened at one shoulder by Romans military commanders
parati - Latin for “ready"
parched - thirsty, dry
parlay - bargain
penchants - strong habits or preferences
perry - fermented pear juice
Pict - member of an ancient people inhabiting northern Scotland in Roman times
pillion - seated behind a rider
pipes - bagpipes
pisspot - chamber pot, toilet
plumbed - explored the depth of
poppet - doll
poppy juice - opium
pottage - a thick, stew-like soup of meat and vegetables
pox-ridden - infected with syphilis
praefectus - Latin for “prefect”
Prefect - senior magistrate or governor in the ancient Roman world
Pritani - Britons (one of the people of southern Britain before or during Roman times)
privy - toilet
quim - woman's genitals
quoits - medieval game like modern ring toss
repulsus - Latin for “drive back"
rescue bird - search and rescue helicopter
roan - animal with mixed white and pigmented hairs
roo - to pluck loose wool from a sheep
rumble - fight
Sassenachs - Scottish term for English people
scunner - source of irritation or strong dislike
sea stack - column of eroded cliff or shore rock standing in the sea
Seid - Norse magic ritual
selkie - mythical creature that resembles a seal in the water but assumes human form on land
semat - undershirt
seneschal - steward or major-domo of a medieval great house
shouldnae - shouldn't
shroud - cloth used to wrap a corpse before burial
skelp - strike, slap, or smack
skin work - tattoos
smalls - men's underwear
SoCal - slang for southern California
solar - rooms in a medieval castle that served as the family's private living and sleeping quarters
spellfire - magically-created flame
spellmark - visible trace left behind by the use of magic
spew - vomit
spindle - wooden rod used in spinning
squared - made right
stad - Scots Gaelic for “halt"
staunch weed - yarrow
stupit - stupid
Svitiod - ancient Sweden
swain - young lover or suitor
swived - have sexual intercourse with
taobh - Scots Gaelic for "Flank"
tempest - storm
tester - canopy over a bed
the pox - smallpox
thickhead - dense person
thimblerig - shell game
thrawn - stubborn
’tis - it is
’tisnt - it isn’t
toadies - lackeys
tonsure - shaved crown of the head
TP - toilet paper
traills - slaves
trencher - wooden platter for food
trews - trousers
trials - troubles
Tribune - Roman legionary officer
tuffet - low seat or footstool
’twas - it was
’twere - it was
’twill - it will
’twould - it would
Vesta - Roman goddess of the hearth
wand-waver - Pritani slang for druid
warband - group of warriors sent together on a specific mission
wasnae - wasn’t
wee - small
wench - girl or young woman
wenching - womanizing or chasing women for the purposes of seduction
white plague - tuberculosis
whoreson - insult; the son of a prostitute
widdershins - in a direction contrary to the sun's course, considered as unlucky; counterclockwise.
w
illnae - will not
woad - plant with leaves that produce blue dye
wouldnae - would not
ye - you
yer - your
Dedication
For Mr. H.
Copyright
Copyright © 2017 Hazel Hunter
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written consent of the copyright owner.
The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the copyright owner is illegal. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.
Making Magic
Welcome to Making Magic, a little section at the end of the book where I can give readers a glimpse at what I do. It’s not edited and my launch team doesn’t read it because it’s kind of a last minute thing. Therefore typos will surely follow. Be careful where you step.
I think I write about Scotland because of the weather.
I’ve lived in California all my life. Sure, there are some rainy and cool spots in northern part of the state. But here in SoCal, it’s pretty sunny and not often chilly. But in my writer’s head, a cool, rainy day is the perfect time for reading and for writing. On the rare occasion that it does rain here, I’ll actually just watch it for a while before I write. It provides a kind of white noise that’s both soothing and keeps distractions at bay. It’s perfect!
Of course I don’t have to drive in it much, since I no longer have an epic commute. You’d think from all the accidents that happen on a rain day here that we Angelenos don’t know how to drive in the rain (which may be true in my case!). But the reality is that oil from our millions of cars builds up on the roadways. When the first rain finally hits, it’s slicker than owl snot.