My Lady Highlande

by Nancy Lee Badger

  The tires skidded on the gravel edge of the roadway. Bull corrected by turning the wheel to the right, but it was too late. As if in slow motion, the truck skidded down the wet grassy embankment, toward the river. As rocks and rushing water rose up to meet them, a terrified scream resonated through the small cab. One exceptionally large boulder filled the windshield, until a louder thump, and the slap of an airbag, signaled they’d stopped.

  As metal crinkled, two huge cracks snaked up the window. The deployed airbags retreated in the blink of an eye, disorienting Bull with a fury of compressed air. His hands still held the steering wheel in a crushing grip, and he ached where the shoulder belt had dug into his collarbone.

  “All in all, ‘tis a miracle, we are no’ drowning.” Izzy whispered, returning Bull’s attention to his passenger.

  “Miracle, my ass.” He wiggled his eyebrows, moved his jaw side to side, then cautiously straightened his back. After his fight with the MacGregor spawn, his ribs were still healing. The airbag packed a punch. The hood of the pickup truck had crumpled around a boulder, so it was a good thing that the shoulder belts held, and the airbags had deployed. They saved him and his quiet companion from significant injuries. The two flattened bubbles of fabric, and the white smoke-like powder that filled the cab, were lasting evidence of their protection.

  Izzy was uncharacteristically quiet. “Pardon me. Didn’t mean to curse, Izzy. Are you okay?”

  “I think I be uninjured.” She slapped at the deflated airbag, and wiped powder from her face. Blood trickled down her fingers, staining her delicate forearm.

  “You are certainly not okay.” Bull unsnapped his seatbelt, then shoved at the driver’s door. Metal squealed and the hinges creaked. Once free, he held fast to the truck bed, as he walked through knee-high water. The front fenders were partially submerged and the rear tires were hung up on rocks. His sneakers soaked through in seconds. Slipping on moss-covered stones, Bull continued until he reached her side of the truck.

  His muscles bunched as he grabbed the handle, then pulled. When he finally forced her door open, he cringed. Blood flowed from her nose. She had grabbed a handful of tissues from a box that sat on the console.

  “I asked Jenny the purpose of these soft wads of paper. I never thought they would prove useful.” Izzy smiled up at him, and his shoulders relaxed.

  “Let me help you. I need to check out the rest of you.”

  Her cheeks colored quite prettily. Did she realize how edible she looked, even with blood dripping down her chin?

  “Allow me,” Bull said, helping her out of the wrecked pickup. Once she was on her feet, he grabbed the tissue and wiped the blood from her face. “Pinch your nose until it stops. Do you hurt anywhere else?”

  Bull ran fingers over her head, and down her arms, and inspected every inch of bare flesh. She glared at him. When he asked her to turn in a circle, she followed his instructions. He held on to one of her arms to steady her, as she rolled her eyes at him. Her small hand grabbed for the doorframe moments before her knees buckled.

  “Ye dinna’ give me time to answer,” she said in a nasally tone.

  “Sorry, just want you safe. The truck might shift.” The water was only inches deep on this side of the wreckage, and the rocks less slippery. When she nodded, he roped an arm around her waist, and half-carried her up the slope toward dry land. She wiggled, as if she wanted to pull away, but he didn’t let her go until they reached the roadside. He loosened the arm around her waist, at the same time she pushed his fingers away from her arm.

  “I can make my way without any further help,” she said, “I shall be fine.”

  “I’m sure you can, but you don’t look so good.” He steadied her with both hands on her hips, but she stepped away.

  “I be fine, I said. My looks are no’ yer concern.” Once away from his side, her knees gave way, again. Bull gathered her in both arms before she hit the ground, then swept her off her feet. “I feel like the hero in a romance novel.”

  “Yer acting more like the villain. Unhand me, ye big brute,” Izzy said.

  When her eyes closed, and her body went limp, Bull cursed. A small red car screeched to a stop near them, and a young woman bolted from the driver’s door.

  “Jenny?”

  “Bull? I thought that was you. What happened? Is she okay?”

  Jenny Morgan shoved Izzy’s hair from her face, wincing when she saw the small trickle of blood. The shock on Jenny’s suddenly pale face worried him.

  “Don’t you faint on me, too,” Bull said to Jenny.

  “I dinna’ faint, ye big brute.”

  Bull gazed at the bundle in his arms, and relief poured through him. Wide-open gray eyes glared up at him. “Sure looked like it to me.”

  Setting Izzy on her feet, he didn’t let her go, until Jenny’s arm wrapped around the little beauty’s waist. He missed acting the hero, but Izzy was acting prickly. Her injuries might have caused her harsh words. His training as a volunteer firefighter prompted him to watch her closely.

  Whether she wants me out of her hair, or not.

  Gently cupping her chin, he gazed into her eyes. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

  “Aye.” Izzy slipped from his hand, turning back to her neighbor, the woman Bull had eagerly hoped to meet up with, as soon as he returned from the past. They’d briefly met the day before he, Jake, and Skye were cast back through time.

  “Hello to you, Jenny. I am verra’ sorry.” Izzy nodded toward the vehicle.

  Jenny smiled, then turned toward her wrecked pickup, and understood. “It’s…just a machine. I’m glad you two are fine. I’m insured. I wouldn’t have let you drive it, if I was worried.” Jenny shrugged.

  “I was driving,” Bull said.

  “Really? What happened? I can understand her driving into a river, but you?”

  “Something ran into the road, and I swerved. I hit it, I think.” While the women huddled together, conversing quietly, he searched the roadside. When he found the crumpled body of a little brown doe, he groaned.

  “Sorry, little one.” Bull knelt, and ran his hand over the deer’s side. There wasn’t any movement, and he didn’t see any blood, but its head lay at an odd angle. “Dead.”

  Bull stood, but before he could retrace his steps, and return to the women, the tiny creature twitched. Bull jumped back. Her eyes opened, and she struggled to her feet. The doe glared at him, then bounded across the road. Bull’s mouth dropped open in shock, as the deer disappeared into the thick forest.

  Bull walked over to the women, who were still pointing at the demolished truck. “Did you see that? I thought she was dead.”

  Jenny turned toward him and shook her head. Izzy, on the other hand, stared at the invisible hole in the dark stand of trees that had gobbled up the little animal. “ ‘Tis odd, and I have a feeling ‘twas an unnatural event.”

  “What? No, deer hits are common. Usually, though, getting slammed by the bumper of a truck kills the animal. I could have sworn its neck was broken. Hmm…”

  “Why don’t we get you home, Izzy, then I’ll call a wrecker,” Jenny said.

  “Yer vehicle ‘tis already wrecked.”

  Jenny giggled, and Bull laughed so hard, his bruised ribs ached.

  “She means she’s calling a tow truck. It will pull the vehicle back onto the road, then take it to a repair shop.” When he remembered that Jenny was Izzy’s neighbor, and both lived next to Jake, he added, “Jenny, can you give us, and our cargo, a ride?”

  “Och, I forgot about my wares! Are they damaged?” Izzy hobbled back toward the truck, but wavered, unsteady on her feet.

  “Let me get them. You stay with Jenny.” Bull pulled the boxes from the truck bed and piled them on the roadside.

  “Sure, I can fit those boxes in the trunk. I’m not sure if someone as big as you will fit, though.” Jenny’s eyes flashed with interest and desire, in his direction.

  Bull was hesitant to read more into it. Hadn’t he told Jake he wanted
to head home, and hook up with the lovely neighbor? Hadn’t he used the chance to get to know Jenny better, as the main reason he declined the chance to stay in ancient Scotland?

  Watching, as she helped Izzy to the car, he thought about how different Jenny was, when compared to Izzy. Jenny wore denim shorts that showed off two shapely legs. She was tall and slender, while Izzy was short and round in all the right places. Izzy had poured herself into her jeans, and her luscious breasts filled out her shirt and vest. Jenny sported less spectacular curves but her pretty, pink tank top complimented her flushed cheeks. He muttered a small prayer, thankful she was no longer as pale as a ghost.

  Jenny had streaked her short brown hair with blonde highlights, which initially drove him wild. Had they met only a few weeks earlier? Due to the mystery of magic and time travel, to Jenny, it was only days ago.

  Izzy was beautiful, and curvy, and a few of those curves made his body hum. Her blonde curls hung down her back, reminding him of a fairy princess. When she had closed her gray eyes, he’d worried the crash had injured more than her nose.

  “Are ye coming?” Izzy said.

  Adrenaline had shot through every muscle. Those same muscles twitched as the chemical wore off, and he clasped his hands into fists. Drained, the after effect made him tired and sore. Flopping down into a bed sounded like a good idea, right about now.

  “Let’s get you home, and put you to bed,” Bull said.

  Izzy glared at him, then smiled, as she settled into the front seat. His groin tightened, but he was too tired to explain his words to a woman he suspected, was not of this world. Jake had hinted at her being Dorcas Swann’s employee, and it made perfect sense that she had traveled through time, to work for the old woman. He had nothing against that, but she sometimes acted as if she didn’t understand plain English.

  Bull joined them, sliding into the vehicle, beside Izzy. “Jenny, Jake asked me to look over his place while he’s out of town.”

  “You know where he is? I haven’t seen him since the other morning, the day after I took care of his girlfriend’s injury.”

  Girlfriend? “Oh, right. Yes, he’s traveling through Scotland with Skye. I think the two hit it off. You’ve been looking after Balfour?”

  “Balfour?” Izzy asked.

  Why did she look sad, as if the name meant something to her, besides a horse that Jake owned?

  “Jake owns three horses. Two went with him. Balfour was lucky to escape.”

  “Escape? I assumed…”

  “Jake is okay. Trust me. When I left him, he was fine. Better than fine.” The man was enjoying a well-deserved honeymoon in the Highlands of ancient Scotland, but that was a story Bull wasn’t prepared to share.

  ***

  Jaden-Tog sneered, then let loose a high-pitched, snarling laugh. It echoed through the woods. In his hiding place, behind a thick stand of birch trees, he watched the small metal vehicle rumble down the road, and away from the scene he had caused.

  He had shape-shifted from the dirty, broken confines of the doe’s form. He brushed off his leather jerkin, and kicked his boots against a stump.

  What fun!

  He had used his magic to cause the four-wheeled conveyance, holding the woman he sought, to crash into rocks. He kicked the stump, again, then growled with pain. If she and her servant had fallen farther into the river’s current, she might have drowned.

  And, my mission would have ended in success.

  The old laird promised Jaden-Tog riches beyond the wealth of the Faerie Queen. However, since he had merely injured the girl, the man would pay him nothing.

  This be the second time today I failed.

  The fire he had started at the rear of her tent might have roasted her alive, but she had escaped with the aid of her brute of a servant.

  With hopes dashed for his task’s rapid completion, he thought he could soothe his ego with the treasures inside the strongbox. He had stolen it from beneath her nose! After carrying it deep into the forest, he had smashed it against a boulder. To his regret, it contained only peculiar baubles and unusual currency, and it smelled of powerful witchcraft. Inside a small sack, beneath a stack of greenish currency and a potion bottle, were a few colored stones.

  The realization that he was dealing with a formidable enemy, made him rethink his deal. He feared his magic was not as powerful. Had his associate known all along? If the old laird had sent him to kill a witch, or a woman protected by a witch, without telling him of the danger, a renegotiation was in order.

  Aye, ‘tis time to rethink our agreement.

  Jaden-Tog slipped beneath brambles, and headed toward his temporary domain, a small cave hidden in the same mountain, as the odd place hosting what appeared to be a festival. Soon, he would discover the woman’s whereabouts, after following the road of impenetrable black rock. He was too close to the prize the laird promised to give up now, but wariness had its place. Disguises, and his ability to hide behind acts of mischief, might not succeed against witches.

  As he headed away, the leaf-covered forest floor crunched beneath his tiny boots. He whispered several magic-laced words, in preparation for his next attack on the unsuspecting lass.

  CHAPTER 6

  “Aye, Bull. Two of Jake’s beasties disappeared, at the same time he did. At least, neither Jenny nor I could find any clues.” Izzy’s head hurt, and her nose ached.

  “We had to assume Jake took them with him,” Jenny added.

  “You had no idea?”

  “Nay.”

  Jenny slowed, as she drove around a sharp curve, then glanced at Bull. “Jake told me to look after all his animals, because you and another woman were visiting.”

  Bull sighed, laying his arm across the back of the bench seat. Squeezed between her friend and Bull, his musky scented body warmed her in more places, than where their hips and shoulders touched.

  “They’re all fine. Jake told me to take care of his…things. Old Balfour is one headache I hadn’t counted on.”

  Bull was hiding something, but Izzy trusted his word when he talked about Jake. The inflection in his voice was one of reverence for a mutual friend. Time to change the subject.

  “Dorcas will be upset if she discovers the mess at her tent. I hope I can stay awake long enough to sort through wares that were damaged by the fire.”

  “I’ll help.” Bull piped up.

  Great.

  She had planned to jump into her tub, wash away the day’s grime, and clear her head. Opening her home to the handsome athlete was not a good idea. She also hoped Gavin had not followed them home. Could he have sent the magical beast to cause their accident?

  “Wait a minute,” Jenny said, her voice rising, “a fire? Was anyone hurt?”

  “Nay, but ‘tis a mess.”

  “That friend of yours probably started it.”

  “Nay, Bull. Gavin wants me alive. ‘Tis his only hope, if he wishes to get me under his control.”

  “What guy? Tell me more about him,” Jenny said.

  “Why are you two talking about that bastard?” Bull asked, his flushed cheeks depicting the anger Izzy assumed was building up inside him.

  “Why not? Could he be some kind of pyromaniac?” Jenny asked, as she pulled into a parking spot behind their shared home.

  “What he is, is a controlling bastard who may or may not, have torched Izzy’s tent at the Highland Games. In case he’s followed her home, keep an eye out for a tall, thin, dark-haired guy wearing a long leather coat, and a sneer.”

  “He is no’ a dangerous man,” Izzy muttered.

  “Ha! Could have fooled me! He pulled a knife on me, and would have cut me, if it wasn’t for Izzy.”

  “His dirk never left its scabbard. Stop yer havering.”

  “Havering what?”

  “Havering...what ye might call talking nonsense. He is basically a pleasant man.”

  “When not strong-arming a woman!” Bull slammed a fist against the inside of the car’s door. Jenny and Izzy jumped, as
much as they could, wearing seatbelts.

  “I’ll lock my door,” Jenny said. “Did you say Gavin?”

  “Gavin something-or-other. It’s a good idea to lock your door. I’ll keep an eye out, since I’m staying at Jake’s.”

  “Really?” Jenny smiled at Bull.

  Izzy listened, in silence. Jenny did not know of her world, or the people from it. If Gavin proved desperate, he might use Jenny, to force her to come home with him.

  That will no’ happen, no’ while I still breathe.

  Although her unspoken thoughts were the truth, her stomach cramped at the oncoming battle. Whether with swords or words, if she could not win, all was lost.

  ***

  A trickle of fear accompanied Jenny as she headed to the barn, to feed Balfour. After they had arrived safely at the farmhouse where Izzy, Jake, and she lived, she retreated to her apartment. Bull and Izzy had started arguing before the car stopped, and their argument continued, but with their voices lowered and their heads close together. They said nothing, not even a thank-you, when she had left.

  They argued over something they obviously didn’t want her to hear. Her upstairs window was wide open, so when their voices rose, she did her best not to listen.

  “Such passion. They should just kiss and get it over with.” Maybe they had already kissed. Who knows what had happened before she stopped at the accident scene. When she noticed the crashed truck, and then recognized the two people standing next to it, she slammed on the brakes. Jake’s friend Bryce Buchanan--Bull, he had told her to call him--had Izzy in his arms. To find them beside the wrecked pickup, was a shock.

  She waved away other thoughts. Balfour needed his dinner, so she walked across the yard to the small barn. The nearby mountainside was a riot of red and gold. The sun had lowered behind them, with only a few rays, a last vestige of light, illuminating the peaks surrounding their valley.

  Autumn nights in New England had already turned cool, but she didn’t want to pack away all her summer clothes just yet. Sunny days were a gift, but she loved the snow. A blizzard that kept everyone off the roads, and sent them huddling around fireplaces or woodstoves, was wonderful. Romantic. Lonely.