Charming the Highlander Laird

by Verlin Underwood

  No, no, no!

  “Tara, Baldric, move!” They looked at him in confusion, but Tara was quick to realize the danger. She pulled Baldric quickly out into the street just as their attacker came down at them from behind, missing them by a hair.

  But he wasn’t going to let the man get away like that. Colin jumped toward the Englishman and clashed swords with him. The impact sent him flying backward, but he was quick to get up. The other man was still off his feet, and it gave Colin enough time to successfully lodge his blade deep into his chest. The man fell, blood bubbling out of his mouth. Colin wasn’t a trained soldier, but he thanked the old blacksmith who lived near Wymond Castle for showing him a few tips.

  Tara looked up at him in bewilderment. She had Baldric in her arms and was hiding his eyes from the horrific sight of the dead man’s body. The sweet cakes lay abandoned on the ground.

  “Colin, what is goin’ on?”

  Colin tried to catch his breath. They were safe. Baldric and Tara were safe.

  “Haddington is under attack. We need to get out of here, now.” He held out his hand and helped Tara up just as more soldiers spilled into the streets, swords and torches in hand. He grabbed Baldric out of her arms.

  “They’re all over,” Tara exclaimed, her voice rising in panic.

  “We’ll find a way out. Run!”

  He smelled the smoke first, and soon the flames were licking high above them, turning the sky orange. Quickly, the fire spread from building to building. All went up like kindling. People were screaming, dying on the streets from both the fire and from the Englishmen’s merciless blades, and Colin was powerless to stop it.

  The English continued to slaughter, laughing and shouting like this was all a game to them. He saw one man kill a woman and immediately rummage through her skirts just to take her small coin purse.

  These are my people, he thought with disgust as the English slaughtered innocents left to right. Have I been supporting a king who would murder innocent women and children like this?

  “Come,” he told Tara, grabbing her arm and leading her through an alley that had yet remained untouched by the horror.

  The alley was long, filled with doors to houses of the poorer folks in Haddington. A young mother holding her baby stopped them. “What’s all of this noise?” she asked.

  “You need to get out here, quickly. The English are here. Go now!” He was about to ask her to come with them, but the woman seemed to have panicked and taken off in the other direction. “Not that way!” he called out, but it was too late. He cursed under his breath as an English soldier yanked her by the arm and drew her into an abandoned house. He wished he could drown out the screams he heard moments later.

  “Tara, c’mon.” Tara was frozen in place, her eye wide like a frightened deer. Baldric was whimpering in his arms.

  “I want to help them,” she said.

  “Nay, there is naught you can do,” he pleaded with her. “C’mon.”

  Tara, thank God, finally came to her senses and nodded at him. They continue sprinting down the road, toward the western side of the city, when Tara cried out. Colin turned around to see Tara down on the ground. An Englishman had her pinned down with his boot, a sword pointed at her chest. With Baldric still in his arms, Colin feared he could not get to her in time. He put the boy on the ground, telling him to hide under a wooden box by the side of the building.

  But he didn’t need to. Through the smoke and ash, another man jumped seemingly out of nowhere and rammed his body against Tara’s attacker, sending them both flying onto the stone ground. It was the man he had seen in the tavern when he first had dinner with Tara. What was his name? Ealair? Ealair had a knife in his hand and held it against the Englishman’s throat.

  “Long live King David,” Ealair hissed, then killed him.

  The threat was over. Colin ran over to Tara. “Are you all right?” he asked her.

  “Aye, I’m fine,” she said, staring down at her bleeding hands. She shook her head and wiped them on her dress. “Ealair, you can come with us!” she told the man, who had stood up from the dead Englishman and was swaying unsteadily on his legs.

  “No, I would only slow you down,” Ealair said as he held onto his bleeding leg. Colin hadn’t realized he’d been injured. Tara kneeled and tore her breacan, tying it tightly around his leg.

  “You cannot walk?” she asked him.

  “We’ll be killed out here if we don’t move,” Colin warned.

  “The sasunnach is right,” Ealair said. He tried to smile, but it turned out to be a grimace. “Go on, get. I don’t want you killed for my sake.”

  Tara embraced Ealair as Colin picked Baldric back up. As they continued to make it out of Haddington, Colin glanced behind him and saw Ealair crawling for a dark spot under the bridge before the smoke obscured his vision. Colin prayed to whoever was listening that he’d make it out.

  “Where are we going?” Baldric asked. It was the first word he’d heard out of him since this all started. He was shaking from head to toe.

  Colin kissed the top of his head. “North,” he replied.

  Where north? He did not know. Just as far from Lothian as they could get. Going back south to England was not an option; he was probably considered a fugitive in that country.

  His mother had lived in her family’s estate in the Highlands ever since his father passed away years ago, so maybe they could find a safe refuge there until he figured things out. Unlike his brother, Colin was close to his mother, writing letters to her frequently. If she knew what Eldron was planning to do to her grandson, she would be horrified and would want to help Colin.

  For now, however, the most important thing was to keep running.

  The smoke cleared as they made it through Haddington, but Colin’s lungs still burned from breathing in so much terrible air. They stood on the top of the hill, watching in horror as the town lit up like a bonfire.

  “I hope Rhona made it out alive,” Tara said sadly. “An’ Ealair. He saved my life. Twice.”

  Colin looked over at her in surprise. “Rhona?” he asked. “You know her?”

  Tara looked at him, her mouth open to say something, but just then a group of Englishmen on horses paraded past them. Colin and Tara got down low to the ground until they passed by.

  “They must be on their way to Edinburgh,” Colin whispered. “We don’t even have time to warn anyone there.”

  “Not that they would believe us, anyway,” Tara muttered. “They probably would’ve thought we were mad, unfortunately.”

  Colin did not want to linger there for any longer, in case more of the English showed up. “Let’s go.”

  They skirted around Edinburgh as they made their way north for most of the evening and into the night. He and Tara took turns holding the sleeping Baldric in their arms.

  “I can hardly go on any farther,” Tara finally said, sinking down onto the grass. “My legs have stopped workin’.”

  Adrenaline still surged through Colin’s veins. He could perhaps continue running for another day straight but probably at the cost of his own life. Aye, they needed to rest.

  “I agree. Let’s make camp somewhere well out of sight from the main road.”

  Eventually, they found a tiny cave nestled between two large boulders. The sound of the North Sea could be heard nearby, and a chilly wind blew up from the coast. Colin and Tara huddled together, forgetting any proprieties that society had established between an unmarried man and woman. The woman was shivering and, placing Baldric in between them, he wrapped his arm around her, holding her close.

  Tara stiffened at the gesture and looked at him questioningly. “You’re cold,” he said. “My body heat will warm you.”

  “Aye,” she said softly and relaxed into him. She sighed, rested her head on his shoulder, and closed her eyes.

  He was grateful that both she and Baldric were able to sleep. Colin listened to the sound of the waves. He needed to be careful with the ocean being so close by, but h
e had no other choice. All three of them were dead tired, and it would be better for all of them if they got some rest before continuing the journey north. He just hoped there would still be a Scotia by the time they woke up.

  Colin didn’t think he’d fallen asleep and was surprised to wake up lying on the ground of the cave. It was morning. Tara was still in his arms, fast asleep, with Baldric snoring lightly by his legs. He looked at her, startled by the beauty in her sleeping face, though it was covered in soot from the fires. Her lashes were long and dark, blending into the soot that stained her cheeks. Her lips were full and colored a delicate pink. He fought the desire to lean forward and explore those lips with his own.

  Tara’s eyes flashed open, startling him. She looked confused at first then seemed to remember where she was. Colin reluctantly moved his arm away from her as she sat up and yawned. He was quick to notice how she moved away from them, keeping an appropriate amount of space.

  “Good morning,” Colin said. “How are you feeling?”

  “Like I swallowed a pile of ash,” Tara said, her voice sounding terribly dry. She coughed.

  “We should find some fresh water. There must be a river nearby. We’re going to have to find some food as well, although we probably shouldn’t be heading toward any towns—if any are still standing.”

  “Do you know how to hunt?” Tara asked him.

  “With a bow and arrow,” he replied. “Alas, I have neither.”

  “Well.” Tara lifted the skirt of her dress, and Colin politely turned his head away, lest he see anything. “It’s quite fine,” she said. “You may look.” He turned back around and saw her holding a decently-sized knife in her hand.

  “My sister-in-law taught me how to throw it,” Tara told him, running her finger along the blade. “I’m quite good at it.”

  “Did I hear correctly? Your sister-in-law?” He’d heard tell of Scottish women being wild, but he didn’t know how wild.

  “Aye, her husband—my brother—taught her. I can possibly kill a hare with it.”

  Or an Englishman’s throat.

  Colin swallowed.

  “Poor Baldric,” Tara said, thankfully lowering her blade down. “I can’t imagine what it’s been like for him.”

  “He has been taking it well, but aye, it must be hard on him.” He was grateful that he was sleeping quietly and not speaking in his fairy language. He wasn’t sure how he would explain that to her. But… didn’t she say she knew Rhona? Was she somehow associated with the fairies?

  Before he could ask her, Tara was on her feet, her dagger still in hand. “I’m going to hunt,” she told him. “You can stay here with Baldric.”

  Colin frowned. “I am not sure how safe it is out there.”

  “I won’t wander far,” Tara assured him. “And don’t worry, my family raised me strong.”

  Who were these Maxwells? Colin wondered as he watched her leave. He stayed as Baldric continued to sleep through the morning and was about to grow worried when Tara finally arrived back. Two hares were slung over her shoulder, and in her hand was a bucket filled to the brim with water.

  “How…?”

  She grinned at him, the brightest thing he’d seen all morning. “I told you I was good at throwin’ daggers,” she told him. “And I found this bucket out in the woods and filled it up in a nearby creek.”

  “Bless you,” Colin said gratefully. “Baldric. Baldric, darling. Are you thirsty?”

  He roused the boy, and they quickly built a fire. Once built, they didn’t want to linger for too long in case someone was to see the smoke, so after they ate their meal and extinguished the flames, they moved quickly on.

  Chapter 12

  They continued their march north. As they walked through the fields, they could see distant smoke lingering through the countryside. The English had burned towns, hamlets, and cities. All of Lothian was afire, and it seemed to be coming closer to them.

  Was this my mother’s doing? Tara thought.

  The sickening rock in her stomach had not gone away since this all started. It seemed so random for the King of England to suddenly attack Scotia with such relentless force. If Una had seen where Tara was when they connected in her vision, then did she enchant all of these men to destroy Lothian?

  Was this all Tara’s fault? Did she bring the English to Scotia because of her mother?

  The very thought made her want to fall to her knees in horror, but she had to keep running. She had to keep going for Baldric and Colin’s sake. She wasn’t going to lose them like she had everyone else in Haddington and all of Lothian.

  If they were to be successful in their escape, they needed horses. They were somewhere to the west of Edinburgh when they came across a farmer’s house. The stable was a good way away from the house and full of the nickering of horses.

  “We need to steal a horse,” she told Colin. They both stopped and scanned the farm in the distance.

  “Do not worry,” he said, “I have done this before.”

  “I thought you were a duke, not a brigand,” Tara retorted jokingly.

  “Aye, I can be both.” He gave her a wry smile. “Take Baldric and hide behind that copse of trees.”

  “Be careful, Colin,” Tara told him, and she led Baldric away by his hand.

  “Aye, I will.”

  Even from a distance, her fairy-eyes clearly saw Colin walking to the back of the stables. He opened a door and looked in, then looked back at Tara, shaking his head. Tara frowned.

  What is goin’ on?

  Colin went inside the stable and came out with a lit torch. To her surprise, he threw the lit torch in a pile of hay outside the stable. Smelling the smoke, the horses were soon restless, and she heard their cries as the flames grew bigger. A farmer ran out of his house in alarm, but it was too late; about six horses had fled from the back of the stables. Colin grabbed hold of one and lithely jumped on its back, riding the stallion toward them.

  Impressive. Very impressive. “Let’s be ready, Baldric,” she told the boy, picking him up. When Colin neared them, she lifted the boy up to the horse first, then nestled herself in between him and Colin.

  “Hold on tight!” She glanced at the farmer and saw him and a few other men trying to douse the flames with buckets of water. “That poor farmer,” she said.

  “The grass is wet; the fire will burn itself out soon enough,” Colin said as they hurried the horse away from the farm. Colin had one hand around her waist and the other gripping the horse’s mane. They were seated so close she could feel the steady beating of his heart.

  That night, they found another safe enough spot to camp. It was a warmer night than before, so Tara didn’t need to be huddled close to Colin, although she had to admit she rather liked the feel of his warm body so close to hers. Her face grew flushed every time she remembered how close she had been sleeping next to him.

  When she had awoken that morning, she almost thought he would kiss her! And she knew that she very much wanted him to.

  He must be enchanted by me, she reasoned, thinking about Ealair and his contradictory attitude toward her. That must be the only explanation. It would do well not to get my hopes up in believing he actually likes me.

  Tonight, she distanced herself from Colin, wrapping herself in her breacan for warmth. Colin slept with Baldric next to him, both of their cloaks tucked firmly around them. Tara fell asleep quickly, weary from the journey.

  She had always been a light sleeper. So when Colin cried out in a panic sometime in the early morning, she was already on her feet, wide awake. “What is it?” she asked him.

  “Baldric, he’s…”

  She didn’t give him time to say the rest; she was already sprinting down toward the ocean. Tara heard Colin call out her name as she slipped and fell on wet stones. Colin was running closely behind her, not faring much better in the rough terrain and darkness. The ocean waves crash roughly against the shore as she reached the beach. She scanned the white shoreline, her heart dropping as she saw
naught but kelp and rocks. But suddenly, she saw movement on the southern end and ran hopefully toward it.

  “Do you see him?” Colin called out to her.

  “Aye, I think I do,” she shouted back.

  “How?”

  She didn’t answer him but continued running toward what she saw, breathing a sigh of relief when it was, indeed, Baldric. He was ankle-deep in the water, staring at something unseen in the ocean depths.

  “Baldric!” she called out, but the boy didn’t turn his head. Instead, he took one more step into the water. The waves were not as rough where he stood, which seemed unusual. Had the selkies calmed the water for him?

  “Baldric,” she said again. She finally reached him and rested a hand on his shoulder. That simple touch woke him from whatever trance he was in.

  He looked up at her and smiled. “Tara,” he said. “Did you come to play with me?”

  “Your father is worried sick,” she admonished gently as she scooped the boy up into her arms. “And so was I.”

  Colin was still on the other side of the beach, calling out Baldric’s name. Tara forgot that he couldn’t see as well as her with his human eyes.

  “I found him, Colin,” she called out to him.

  “Oh, thank God,” Colin said as they got near. “Baldric, are you hurt?”

  “I’m fine, Colin,” Baldric said. Colin and Tara exchanged a look. Why did Baldric call Colin by his name?

  A sad lamentation could be heard coming from the water. Tara turned toward the ocean and saw about two dozen human heads watching them from the surface of the water.

  “What is it?” Colin asked her. “What do you both see?”

  “Selkies, I believe,” Tara replied. “This is the same spot I saw them on my journey down to Haddington.” Baldric was also silently watching them, his eyes intent. Did he long to join them?

  “Tara,” Colin began, looking out at the ocean, although she could tell that he could not see the Seelie fairies. It was still much too dark for him. “There’s a lot I feel I must tell you.”