It was time to fight.
Chapter 22
Ailith cringed as the explosive battle began. Shouts boomed all around, and swords, battle axes and pikes clashed. A warrior came at Hunter and he blocked the fierce blow, their claymores slamming dead center into each other’s. Bloodcurdling battle cries ricocheted all about and Mathesons and MacKenzies fought in a fray of fierce fighting.
“Stay close to me,” Kirk yelled to Hunter as the two men fought right in front of her and Cherub. “We’re shifters and you and I will be strongest when we fight side by side.”
“Hear, hear,” Hunter chanted then slashed his blade against his adversary’s.
Kirk grunted and with a deadly growl that came straight from his inner bear, met two attackers head on, striking first one and then the other with deadly intent.
Her two kin fought, sweat pouring from their bodies while beside her, Cherub whisked her hands about as she stared up at the misty sky. High above, a furious tunnel of wind swirled, which mixed with a tumultuous mass of dark, seething clouds that blackened the sky. Cherub fought with her element of air and she could be a powerhouse when she did. A storm raged high overhead, just as it raged right here on this land too.
Ailith kept her place as weapons clashed and Colin MacKenzie forced his way through the battling men. Their enemy chief met Hunter head to head. Her mate ducked the MacKenzie’s high strike, rammed into Colin with one shoulder and took him down to the ground, although not for long. The MacKenzie bounded back to his feet and struck Hunter across his chest. Breath ragged, Hunter gripped his front, his cotun sliced open but no blood pouring forth and she searched the spot to make sure.
Damn the Chief of MacKenzie. He was bloodthirsty, and she needed to help Hunter halt him in his tracks. Before she could move though, her sword at the ready, another of Colin’s warriors came at Hunter from his other side and Hunter shoved his blade high and met the fierce blow. Fighting next to him, Kirk swiped his aggressor then after taking care of their enemy and ensuring he remained down, he bounded to Hunter’s side and fought the warrior double-teaming with the MacKenzie against her mate. Hunter turned his full attention on Colin and battled him, landing several hard blows, one after the other then ducked a dagger as it flew from Colin’s hand.
“I’m bringing forth a tornado!” Cherub yelled to her over the ruckus. “I need your aid, Ailith.”
“Tell me what to do and I’ll do it.” She couldn’t stand just waiting in the wings, watching this war unfold.
“I dinnae wish to harm even one of our warriors with this weapon of destruction.” Cherub churned the skies until they blackened the entire skyline, her red woolen skirts swishing about her legs and her white fur cloak flapping back from her shoulders. “Ailith, I need you to use your faerie dust to propel this deadly vortex at the MacKenzies, but no’ for it to touch any of our Matheson kin. Can you do that?”
She’d never wielded such a powerful spell before, one that could differentiate between so many men as they fought, but she had to do something, or else they could very well lose this battle.
“You can do this, Ailith,” Hunter whispered in her mind as he struck another warrior who’d jumped into his fight with Colin MacKenzie. He brought the warrior down to his knees. “Use me and my bear’s ability to separate my enemy from my kin through his senses alone.” He knocked the warrior out with the hilt of his sword, just as Colin MacKenzie swiped across Hunter’s arm. Blood poured from the wound, but it quickly closed over
“Hell, you’re one of the immortal fae too.” Colin glared at Hunter. “Give me your name.”
“You can call me your destroyer, because that’s what I’m about to do. Destroy you.”
“Look out behind you,” she screamed to Hunter as another MacKenzie warrior snuck around behind him.
“Do it, now,” Hunter commanded her as he twisted about and met the warrior’s strike. “Reach for my bear. He’s waiting to offer you his aid. Take Colin MacKenzie and his men and send them packing.”
“Aye, I will.” She hurled her pouch into the vortex Cherub had created, then dug deeper into Hunter’s mind and connected directly with his bear. She sought out along his bear’s senses, caught the scent of each and every Matheson warrior on the battlefield, each like a beacon of light dotted within the raging storm of the battle. She could taste their scent on her tongue, just as Hunter’s bear could, even saw within her mind’s eye the depth of brotherhood love which Hunter’s bear already held for their kinsmen. She sent that depth of love like an arrow that rebounded off each of her kin and connected them to her like a glittering web, including Hunter, Cherub, and Kirk too. With her voice rising high and the golden dust scattering within the churning tornado, she glared at Colin MacKenzie and yelled, “Beginning with you, this wind shall strike and take you with it, along with each man you’re connected to. Those within my protective web shall remain right here with me, without any harm coming to them.” To the heavens, she lifted her voice, “Do it now, and do it fast. See my will done.”
The tornado touched the ground and whipped about in a dizzying frenzy, picking up first Colin then each of his warriors in turn, one after another. The vortex sent her enemy whirling high into the air, missing every single Matheson warrior. It carried Colin and his men out over the loch then flattened out and when it did, the Chief of MacKenzie and his men plunged with arms waving madly. They splashed into the loch, went down deep then bobbed back to the surface, eyes wide.
“Board your vessel and dinnae look back,” she shouted, her dust fluttering from the skies and glittering across the waves.
“You heard my niece. Be gone with you.” Cherub whipped her hand and sent another blast of wind into the vessel, just as Colin and his men boarded it. They tumbled into the hull, drenched as they grabbed their oars and rowed.
“We are clan Matheson, the ‘Son of the Bear’ and ‘Blood of Ailbert, King of the Fae.’” Ailith shoved her sword high in the air and her fellow warriors cheered, the men bruised and battle weary, but their spirits still high and strong. “Never will the Chief of MacKenzie take what is ours. We shall never falter.”
Out at sea, the MacKenzie’s vessel disappeared into the raging storm, then Lilias splashed through the waist-deep waves and ran out.
Her sister flung herself at her and sent water flying. “We did it. The MacKenzie has been sent packing.”
“Did you see the vortex Cherub created?”
“Aye ’twas awe-inspiring.”
Grinning, Kirk swamped Cherub in a hug, bent her backward and nipped her ear. “You and Ailith were a sight to behold, my elusive imp.”
“So were you and Hunter. You two fought well.” Cherub beamed as she eyed Hunter. “Welcome to the immortal world of the fae, Hunter Matheson. May you forever stand strong at your mate’s side.”
“You can guarantee I will.” Hunter sheathed his sword and wrapped Ailith up in his arms. He twirled her about, then captured her lips with his and kissed her fiercely.
She kissed him just as fiercely in return, then sucked on his lower lip before sinking her teeth into it. She marked her chosen one, and she’d continue to do so for all time to come.
Never had she believed such a perfect union with her mate awaited her, his shifter soul fully and completely melding with hers. Together, they’d fought an immense battle, and in the years ahead they’d fight plenty more, but always at each other’s sides.
Forever, they’d love one another and keep each other safe.
There could be no other way.
She’d ensure it.
Stay Tuned for a Bonus Scene…
Even though this book is complete, I couldn’t help but write a bonus scene with Ailith and Hunter. This scene also gives a little insight into the next book in this series titled, Highlander’s Courage.
~ Joanne
Bonus Scene
Twenty-first century, a few days after the battle with the Chief of MacKenzie.
Ailith stood at the darkened window
inside Matheson Castle’s gatehouse security control room after returning with Hunter to his time through one of Cherub’s portals. Cherub and Lilias stood rigidly either side of her, shared tension flickering between all three of them. Not unusual. Ailith was connected to her aunt and sister at the deepest level. Clearing her throat, she muttered, “Cairstine is cutting it fine this morning.”
The night skies were lightening, dawn a mere few minutes away and Cairstine had yet to return from her night out exploring the mist-shrouded Highlands farther to the north of this keep.
A quizzical look crossed Lilias’s face. “Can I ask exactly why we’re all spying on the clan physician while awaiting Cairstine’s return? That I dinnae understand.”
“We arenae spying.” She frowned at her sister, then turned her gaze back on the first-floor window across the other side of the inner courtyard where indeed the Matheson clan physician, Liam Matheson, clasped his hands rigidly behind him as he awaited the moment when Cairstine soared across the pre-dawn skies in her golden eagle form.
“This is called surveillance, important surveillance.” Cherub gripped the windowsill, her crimson velvet skirts swishing about her ankles as she focused more fully on Liam. “His concern is clear to see and it worries me. We are used to Cairstine and the way she cuts her return in the mornings to a fine degree, but mayhap we should speak to her about it.”
“She’s been pushing her boundaries more of late, far beyond the fine degree.” Ailith’s chest tightened and she rubbed it to ease the discomfort. Cairstine was an immortal, but since the age of eight or nine when she’d foregone all food and relied solely upon feeding from her and Lilias, she’d been forced to give up walking within the sunlight.
“I’ve noticed that too.” Lilias caught her hand and squeezed it.
“I have no desire to see her become one of the Bloodthirsty.” If Cairstine ever chose to forego her feeds from her and Lilias, then she could become fully dark and should that happen, death and destruction would be set loose on this Earth. Squeezing Lilias’s hand in return, she continued, “Liam is well versed in all of the fae skills, even those as ancient and rare as Cairstine’s ability.”
“We need to speak to him further about her, to ensure he keeps her under his watch.” Stepping away from the window, Lilias cast her gaze on Kirk and Hunter seated across the room. Both men had their undivided attention on the monitors before them, the screens trained on each part of the forest beyond the keep’s curtain wall. “Do you see her?” Lilias asked them.
“There’s no sign yet.” Kirk cast a look at Cherub, his gaze softening. “Come here, my elusive imp. I can sense your worry along our mated bond and I need to soothe it.”
“She’s my niece. I’ll always worry about her.” Cherub strode across to Kirk, set her hand in his and peered at the screen over his shoulder while she cuddled against his broad back. In his ear, she uttered, “She is blood of my blood, our bond as strong as that between mates.”
“Almost as strong.” Kirk lifted Cherub’s hand to his lips and kissed her palm. “I hold the other half of your soul, so my bond with you is the strongest of all.”
Ailith agreed. No bond could trump that of the soul bond.
Hunter snuck a look at her, his golden shifter gaze smoldering with intensity, his mind merged strongly with hers. “Should anything happen to you, Goldilocks, I’d never survive it.”
“Neither would I if anything happened to you.” She blew him a kiss, her chosen one who’d defied the odds and begun the chase with her before the full moon had even arisen.
Beside her, Lilias walked across to Cherub, a white toweling robe donned over her wet blue tunic worn underneath, her red hair still dripping with water from her pre-dawn swim in the loch. With her sister’s advanced eyesight, her ability to see through the murky depths of the darkened waters she adored, Lilias searched the extended range on the monitors as Kirk zoomed each of the cameras farther out.
“Do you see anything, even a speck within the blue?” Kirk asked Lilias.
“Nay, I see naught.” Solemn words from her sister.
“I’ll reach out to her telepathically, and blast her for worrying us as she has.” Ailith had had enough. Her sister would certainly get an earful once she connected with her. Turning back to the window, the sky painted with streaks of red and gold and the sun mere seconds away from rising, she sought out Cairstine. She tunneled her mind toward her sister’s link along their telepathic connection. Almost there. She sensed the periphery of her sister’s mind, dug deeper and—she crashed into a stone wall of darkness and stumbled back at the brutal blow.
“I’ve got you.” Hunter whipped out of his chair and caught her in his arms. He scooped her close to his chest, their private mated bond at full force and his link with her ensuring he too caught the devastating blow, just as she had.
“What happened?” Lilias was at her side in a flash.
“She has her shields up.” Catching her breath, Ailith tried to slow the racing of her heartbeat. “She’s never done that to me afore.”
Hunter tucked her even closer against his chest. “She’s gotten trapped in the forest as the sun rose, even became a bug and crawled underneath a log to hide from the coming daylight. You told me so yourself.”
“Aye, that is true.” Her sister could be resourceful when needed, and that she’d never forget.
“Look!” A shout from Lilias, her sister shoving the darkened window open. “I see her.”
“Are you certain?” Ailith combed the skies, then caught the flapping of an eagle’s wings drifting on the air currents. Cairstine skimmed the treetops, breezed over the curtain wall, one wing brushing the sides of the stone crenellation. Her sister dove toward Liam’s window, pulled back and dropped onto his windowsill just as the sun speared the sky. The rays hit her sister’s wings and smoke billowed, her eagle screeching.
Liam bellowed, his yell echoing across the bailey, but he moved swiftly. He bundled a plaid over Cairstine and hauled her into his chamber, then flung the heavy drapes across his window.
“She’s safe.” She sagged in Hunter’s arms. “That was far too close for my comfort.”
“Mine as well.” He pressed his soft lips against hers, his kiss lifting the chill that had taken her. “We can speak to her later.”
“Aye, we can and we will.” Immense relief flooded through her. For now, her sister was safe and well in the physician’s rooms where if she’d suffered any terribly injury from any burn from the sun, her immortal healing would set in and mend her wounds. Across the room, Cherub eased onto Kirk’s lap and snuggled her cheek against his cheek, while Kirk held her tight in his arms and brushed a kiss over the top of her head. Next to her, Lilias closed the window and sagged her forehead against the cool glass. Aye, relief washed through them all, and she didn’t doubt they’d all blast Cairstine when they next saw her. Looking once more into her mate’s eyes, she murmured, “I need a moment alone with you.”
“As I do with you.” Without hesitation, he carried her out the door and onto the stone walkway running along the battlements. He rounded a corner, set her down on her feet and pressed her into the early morning shadows still clinging to the wall where the surveillance cameras couldn’t quite reach. “We’ll keep her safe,” he promised, his word once given, never taken back.
“Aye, we will.” She’d never allow her sister to choose any other path, other than life. “Please, I need you right now.”
“As I need you.” Gaze devouring, he took her cheeks in his hands and covered her mouth with his, his body a wall of heat which instantly surrounded her.
“I also need to feel your skin against my skin.” A husky demand she couldn’t help but issue.
“Toss some dust, and I’ll make that happen, right this very second.” More of his wickedly muscled body pressed against hers, one hand sliding under the hem of her white tunic, his warm fingers closing in over her breast. Tingles tightened her nipples and doubled her need.
“T
hank heavens I’ve replenished my supply since the battle with the Chief of MacKenzie.” She threw a sprinkle into the air and as the gold dust settled over them, she whispered the words needed to cloak them both from sight, then with her fierce need for him becoming an unstoppable beat, she gave herself over to their love and embraced her mate. He made exquisite love to her, with the sun shining down upon them and his glorious body joined fully with hers.
This was the soul bond, a force of nature none could ever deny.
She wouldn’t wish to either.
I hope you enjoyed that bonus scene. I promise Ailith and Hunter will be back within the upcoming books in this series. Adventures will abound.
If you missed the first book in this series, you can catch it here.
Highlander’s Shifter, (Book 1) Jamie and Bella’s Story
Coming next in this series.
Highlander’s Courage, (Book 3) Liam and Cairstine’s Story
Highlander’s Craving, (Book 4) Levi and Lilias’s Story
If you don’t wish to miss any of my upcoming releases, then feel free to sign up to my newsletter to catch those dates. Receive a FREE Starter Library when you do. https://app.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/r6s8r2
Coming Next – Book 3
Highlander’s Courage, (Book 3)
Liam and Cairstine’s Story
Want More of These Characters?
Don’t miss the Matheson bear shifter clan and faerie village novels.
SERIES READING ORDER
The Matheson Brothers Series
Highlander’s Desire, (Book 1)
Highlander’s Passion, (Book 2)
Highlander’s Seduction, (Book 3)
Clan Matheson Series
Highlander's Claim: Time Travel Romance (The Matheson Warriors Book 2) Page 17