by D. K. Combs
“I…I would like to know,” Saeran said, oddly sure of that. She should suspect Blaine of using sympathy to make her defenseless, but she sensed none of that. She knew Blaine, she knew her attitudes. She was genuinely opening to Saeran, and for the first time with Blaine, she was…happy. Happy that her sister was telling her all of this, even though she didn’t know why.
“Your cousin, King James. She was his mistress. She had an affair with my father, James found out, and had her executed. He left my father alone, but…I was sent to live with you when I was six. I was forbidden to ever tell you.”
“So we really aren’t sisters,” Saeran said, feeling her heart clench. The signs were there, of course. They did not resemble each other in the least, she had another father. Their personalities were different to the point of being polar opposites and it was all just…there.
“No,” Blaine said. She squeezed Saeran’s hand. “That doesn’t change the fact that I do love you, in my own twisted, terrible way.”
Saeran shook her head. “Why now? Why tell me all of this now? Why show me your true self…now?”
“I tried everything I did to make you hate me. Everything I could think of.”
“But why?”
“So that when the time came, and I gave you to the MacLeod for my father’s sake, you would hate me, not mourn me. I…that is the only excuse I have for you Saeran. I wanted power. I needed it. I still do. When I became pregnant with Grayham’s child, I—“
“What?”
Pain darkened Blaine’s eyes. “King James sent me from court when I came to him with news of my pregnancy. Grayham knew, but he…wanted more than just an adopted heiress.”
“I don’t…Blaine, my God. Is that why you made me parade around as a lad?”
“To gain more power through Kane, yes. We were going to marry, I was going to poison him, and then Grayham would take me as his wife.”
“But you never…showed.” There should have been signs to Blaine’s pregnancy, right? A swelling in her stomach? Strange cravings?
“I lost it within the first few days of coming here. The ride was too much for my body to handle and…Gwen helped me through it.” A tear fell down her sister’s cheek. Like always, though, the strong Blaine wiped it away, taking a deep, steadying breath.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Saeran choked. “I would have…I would have helped you.”
“You would have looked upon me differently. You would have doted to my every need and I was trying to make you hate me. Saeran, I…” A sob wracked her sister’s hunched body. Saeran wrapped her arms around Blaine, holding her tightly. She had thought Blaine uncaring, unable to feel for anyone but herself. Now, she was seeing so much more…and she hated it. Hated how Blaine had gone through everything alone, without speaking to her.
“I had to…I had to get the baby back. Grayham would have murdered me without it, so I…I went to Alasdair. I had to find a way to kill Kane, and as his enemy, he was…he was perfect. I…I seduced him and we kept up with each other until Kane finally came for him. Then…then Alasdair sent for Gwen and I.”
“Lord...” Saeran breathed into her sister’s hair. “Were you…were you going to kill me?”
“No,” Blaine said sharply, pulling away. “The plan was to kill Kane, give you to the MacLeod to appease him, and then I would marry Grayham. After that, I would kill him and take over the Shaw clan and the MacLeod. My father is sick, Sae,” she whispered. “He’s too sick, and I have to make him well. I’ll have enough power in the Highlands to give him anything he wants.”
“I was just a bargaining tool,” she said, numb. It made sense. She had always felt that way with Blaine, like she had no worth. Her sister felt justified in her reasoning, but…it still made Saeran sick to her stomach.
“Alasdair would have taken care of you,” Blaine said firmly. “See, it’s that hurt in your eyes, the betrayal, that I was trying to avoid. I…everything was for my father. You had everything, Saeran. You had the perfect family, the beauty. Do you think, with the two of us standing side-by-side, that I had a chance to make myself stronger?”
“I was never—“
“Kane fell in love with you with one look, Saeran,” she said softly. There was envy in her eyes, but it was softened by reality. “I had no chance in getting him to marry me when I knew he had found you. It was the exact reason I dressed you as a boy. Then you let yourself become involved with him…”
“How did you know?” Saeran asked, feeling guilt stab her heart.
“Many things,” Blaine replied, smiling wistfully. “You were happier. Smiling more, blushing whenever you were around Kane. Then people started to notice you, Kane was speaking about you to his men, and…it just fell into place.”
“And you told Kane I was having an affair with myself…”
“Yes,” she said. She lowered her eyes to her lap. “I was desperate. He was not proposing to me, he was leaving the next day, and I thought…I thought that if he could cast you away, both Saeran and your counterpart, I would be able to finish the plan.”
“I was never meant to be happy, was I,” Saeran whispered. Her heart cracked. Blaine had meant to destroy her, and yet…yet it had all been for a good cause. For her father. To give him the life he needed. Surely there could have been something done, though, that didn’t involve Saeran being discarded like a chess piece. There could have been something else for Blaine to do. She would have found a way if she cared, right? Or had she really been driven by need and jealousy.
She stared at her sister and found it all hard to believe. There was real guilt, real remorse. Real sadness. Her sister had been pushed into a corner and done the only thing she could.
“Saeran, I swear to you. If I had thought of a way for you and Kane to be happy, I would have left you two alone. I’ve only made your life hell—I know that, and I’m so sorry for it, but it had…had to be done. There was no time for me to think of a new plan. I had to act fast. You saw him—you saw my father, didn’t you?”
She recalled the foaming man, his tremors, the deranged quality he had about him, and nodded. Blaine had done everything out of love for her father, who needed more than Saeran did.
“I don’t have much time. I just…had to tell you this before I continued. I didn’t want you to die thinking that I hated you, because I never did. Ever. I might have been jealous and greedy, but I never once hated you. I tried to convince myself that I did, but it never worked. You were too kind and compassionate. Even my black heart can’t hate something as pure as you.”
“Die?” she echoed, meeting Blaine’s eyes. There were tears in them.
“I will do everything I can to protect you, but I—I’m with child. I am weak, and—I promise, I’ll do everything I can. But you…Saeran, you killed his son. He’s not going to let you get away. If I could have done something to save you, I would have. I swear. I promise on my unborn child that I would have.”
Saeran stood up, hands shaking and heart falling to her stomach.
“Where is he?” she asked, voice hoarse. “Where is he? How long—how long do I have until he’s here?”
Blaine stood as well, taking her hands. Her voice was pleading when she spoke. “Saeran, you’ll only enrage him if you try leaving. I can try to talk him out of it. Just please, don’t try to run.”
“You said yourself, he’s not going to let me get away. That means I’m going to die. I can—I can find Kane. He’ll fix this,” she said, hysterical. “I can’t—Connor said he was coming back for me. I believe Connor. I have to see Kane, he can do something about this, he can kill Alasdair.”
“No,” Blaine whispered, shaking her head. “He’ll be here by the morrow. It’s too dark to find Kane. I—God, Saeran, I wish I could—I had no idea he and Gwen were planning on kidnapping you. I never would have let this happen—“
The door crashed open.
By the tensing of Blaine’s body, she knew something was wrong. Very, very wrong.
THT | 42
“I’ll kill you.”
Grayham. Grayham was standing behind her. Slowly, feeling like her world had fallen apart, she turned on her heel. Immediately after seeing the three figures in the doorway, bile rose in her throat. Not just Grayham was standing there, but Alasdair and Gwen. The tall blonde was cowering behind the men, watching the scene with wide, nearly satisfied eyes.
Blaine took her hand, holding it in the folds of her skirts. She gracefully maneuvered herself in front of Saeran, a cool smile coming over her face. As if it had never been there, the remorse and fear cleared from her face. She saw the Blaine she had known her whole life—the haughty, impulsive woman who had too much confidence for her own shoulders.
Now, though, Saeran knew something she hadn’t before.
That was not the real Blaine.
“My lords,” she greeted. It was as if she had no clue they were looking as murderous as angry bulls. Saeran tried to move back, but Blaine squeezed her hand, a silent warning. Her heart started to race, mind reeling.
“You’re a god damn whore,” Grayham shouted. He flew forward, his fist raised. Before she could react, Blaine threw Saeran out of the way. The only thing that saved her face from meeting the swing of his fist was the skirts that tripped her. She stumbled back, throwing her arms out to catch herself.
“There she is,” Gwen said to Alasdair, pointing to Saeran. “The bitch.”
Like a dog who had been given a bone, Alasdair came at her. There was no blade this time. Kane’s training came to mind, and she waited until he was almost to her. It wasn’t until the last minute that she whirled out of his way, an agonized gasp leaving her throat, and threw her elbow out. It caught him on the side of his face, knocking his head to the side.
She might not be as strong as him, but she did have speed and surprise as an advantage.
Too bad for her, he recovered quickly, throwing himself at her. He took her to the ground, his fist raised. It slammed into her jaw. From beside her, Blaine shrieked with pure outrage. Saeran laid there, dazed, fighting her minds dumbfounded reaction to the hit. He came in again, this time putting his hand on her abdomen to hold her down, his large hand slamming into the other side of her face.
All of the knowledge she had on self-defense left her. She forgot about Blaine, about Alasdair. The only thing she could focus on was the black splotches entering the corners of her vision and the rushing in her ears. The black dots became cluttered, until they were completely blocking her vision.
She couldn’t…pass out. Not this time. She had to fight, she had to get Blaine and her to safety. Pure determination was the only thing that gave her the mental strength to fight off the unconsciousness. As soon as her eyes were blinking open, a weight was lifted off of her.
A blur moved over her.
Blaine.
She had managed to throw Grayham away from her, and had lunged for Alasdair.
“What did I tell you?” she shouted, slamming her hand at an upward angle at his nose. He roared, falling back. “You don’t touch her. I told you, over and over again, not to touch her.”
“She killed my son!” he bellowed. Saeran pushed herself weakly to her feet, wobbling. Nay. Nay, she couldn’t become weak right now. She had…to help Blaine. A rough cry of pain escaped her lips as her stomach twisted. He’d done more than put a hand on her, she realized. He’d dug his fingers into the wound and pulled, worsening it.
Through her pain, she became aware of the other people. Blaine seemed to have a hold on Alasdair, but Gwen was creeping along the way, eyes glued to Saeran. The hate in them was unlike anything she’d ever felt. It hit her like a blow to the chest. Gwen darted through the fray, past a waking Grayham, and came at her.
“You stole him from me,” she hissed, grabbing Saeran by her hair. “I was going to be his bride. I was going to have his children. You stole him from me.”
Saeran wrapped her hands around the woman’s wrists to try and alleviate the pressure, but Gwen wrenched harder. “I don’t know who you are,” she gasped.
“I was the one he loved!” she hissed. “The hemlock was for you. I was going to get rid of you and the two of us would have been happy. I heard what you two were talking about. I told Alasdair and Grayham so they would kill you, but you—but you just—“
She was cut off and the pressure fell. Blaine stood over her, staring down at the dazed woman she’d hit. “I never liked her much,” Blaine said, wiping a hand over her face. “She was always acting like a spoiled bitch.”
Gwen slumped to the floor. Blaine reached down, taking Saeran’s hand and pulling her to her feet. Like a mother would hold their child, Blaine brought Saeran to her chest and breathed slowly.
“We need to leave,” Saeran whispered, pulling back. She thought she had the strength to hold herself up, but as she began tumbling backward, she misjudged. Blaine grabbed for her, steadying her. “Kane will—“
“It’s too dark out. I’m not entirely sure where we—Saeran.” Everything happened so fast. The only thing Saeran could register was being thrown away, into the wall, and Blaine’s agonized scream. A sick, cold feeling went through her, just as a hand grabbed her, jerking her down.
Alasdair growled in her ear, “Two Sinclair bitches dead.” He wrapped a hand around her throat, blocking her view of Blaine.
She heard the sobbing. The uncontrollable sobs—the gasps of pain. They rang in the air like a bell…then it all ended.
Nay, it didn’t end. It was overcame. The unholy roar that sounded through the room was louder than Blaine’s sobs and Saeran’s gasps for air.
It was Kane.
Before the bellow had finished, Alasdair’s weight was lifted, once again, from her body. She sucked in as much as her lungs would let her, clawing at her throat. The spots were back, and no matter how hard she told herself to get rid of them, they wouldn’t leave. Saeran rolled onto her side, in time to see Kane throw his sword aside.
Then he lunged for Alasdair. He growled words too low for Saeran to hear, then took him by the head and wrenched to the side. The man fell lifelessly to the ground.
Kane stormed his way to her, sliding a hand under her neck. “Did he—that bastard,” he growled. His eyes were trained on her cheeks and neck, and the blood staining her shirt an even darker red than before.
“Kane,” she rasped, pushing him away from her. “Kane—no.”
Grayham was standing directly above him, murder in his eyes. Kane didn’t react at all, except to give her a swift kiss on the lips. Then he slowly turned away from her.
As the two men stared at each other, she became aware of the silence. The dead, still silence. It wasn’t the fact that Kane and Grayham weren’t talking, but she couldn’t hear Blaine. Hysteria wracked her just as strongly as her sobs attacked her. Using the last of her strength, she crawled her way to Blaine.
She was still. Blood was seeping from her stomach and her eyes were dead, even though soft breaths still left her lips.
“It’s gone,” Blaine whispered.
“No,” Saeran said, reaching for her sister with a trembling hand. Blaine only stared at it as she lay on her back, hands cover her stomach, tears streaming down her cheeks. “No, it’s not. Neither are you. Blaine—“
“Saeran, don’t do that. I’ve always hated the whining.” The soft teasing was lost on her. She shook her head, gathering Blaine against her. She pushed her sister’s hands aside and frantically looked around, for anything that she could use to stem the floor of blood.
“Saeran…”
“No,” she snapped. “No. No this isn’t—this isn’t happening. I swear to God, Blaine, if you…if you die, I will—“
Saeran’s sobbing was the only thing on his mind. Not the retribution he should be exacting for his sister’s murder, but the sobbing. Grayham, the man who he had been dying to kill for ages, was now in front of him. It would take him hours to go through all the things he wanted to do to the son of a bitch for killing Annalise, but Saeran needed him.
He cold-cocked the bastard and watched as he fell next to Alasdair. With a growl, he gave the disgrace of a man no words when he grabbed him by the head. Just as he had done with Alasdair, he wrenched his head to the side.
He collapsed to the ground without another sound.
Dreading the sight he was going to see, he turned around—and was right. He hadn’t wanted to see it. His heart shattered at the sight of Saeran, kneeling and clutching her sister.
Blaine met his eyes.
“Kane…the king lied. To you.”
He froze. Her voice was raspy and weak, but he had heard the words as clear as day. He knelt beside her, wishing he knew what to do with Saeran. She was rocking and sobbing, mumbling incoherently, while Blaine had her eyes locked with his.
“The king lied about your family. They…have been dead, for a very long time.” Blood started to seep out of the corner of her mouth.
“Nay, they—“
“Please, listen to me. The Campbells…were the ones who hunted them down and killed them. The King told me it all. He wanted you to marry me to alleviate his guilt in all the lies he’s told you.”
“No, no, no,” Saeran moaned, clutching her sister.
“And he wanted Saeran to be the one left to Grayham?” He ignored Saeran, furious and hurting. Some part of him had known, in the back of his head, that there was no way his family could still be alive. It had been a hope he’d held onto his whole life. To have it ripped away from him…He saw red.
“Yes. He…didn’t know of my plan to kill you. But Kane…You must protect Saeran. You cannot let her be on her own. She needs…you.”
“I need you,” Saeran cried, her frail body shuddering. Blaine’s glassy eyes roamed over her sister’s face.
“Just…take care of my father. That’s all I ask. You can hate me all you want, but he’s an innocent. He’s old…he needs help.”
Saeran’s sobbing grew louder, until it was ringing in his ears. “Kane, don’t let her go—don’t let her—she can’t. She’s not…she…I know the real her. She needs to stay alive. Her babe—.”