by Victoria Zak
He noticed her squirm and rub her neck, visibly uncomfortable underneath his heavy gaze. “Are ye well, Kerr?”
“Why do ye ask?” He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it.
“Because ye keep looking at me as if I were naked,” she whispered.
Kerr smiled wickedly. “That’s because I am.”
Masie slapped his chest playfully and then sat up straight, acting like a proper lady. “’Tis no’ appropriate, Kerr Gunn.”
“Och, lass, then let’s make it proper. Be my wife.”
*
Masie’s eyes widened. So, this was why Kerr was acting so strange. Her blood had left his body and she knew Kerr still wanted her to be his wife. She should have seen this coming, but in all honesty, she didn’t want her time with him to end. As soon as she told him the truth about who she truly was, he would never accept it. And worse yet, what would he do to her for betraying his trust? Witches were burned alive. What would they do to blood drinkers?
He drew her in like a moth to a flame. “Masie, I’m only going to ask ye once. I can make ye happy.”
“Ye do make me verra happy.”
“Then marry me.”
She nodded. “Aye.”
“Aye.” Kerr confirmed as if he didn’t believe her.
She only nodded, for if she opened her mouth, the truth would fly out and she’d shatter. She wanted to tell him, but the pain she would endure from losing him kept her from being honest. Keeping her secret a wee bit longer seemed better than losing him forever.
Kerr took her into his arms and held her tight. “I love ye, Masie Keith.”
“And I, ye.” She whispered against his neck.
Chapter Eighteen
Masie spent the better part of the day in her chamber with her maid and two helpers. They bustled about, pinning and trimming her in extravagant blue silk, for they had no time to waste. Kerr insisted they were to marry by tomorrow eve.
“Mistress.” The seamstress took a step back. “Ye make a bonny bride.”
“What?” Masie asked as if she had been drawn away from her thoughts. “I’m sorry. It seems my mind is elsewhere.”
The woman tsked. “Och, child, no apology necessary.”
Masie ran her hands down the dress, admiring the woman’s work. She twirled, marveling at how her skin felt against the soft material.
“Careful,” the woman warned. “We wouldn’t want a pin to prick ye.”
Regret crept over her, knowing she was pretending to be someone she wasn’t. Her mind spun out of control as she thought about ways to tell Kerr the truth. It was ripping her apart. He deserved to know. She couldn’t live a lie no matter how many excuses she desperately wanted to believe. Happiness didn’t belong to her kind.
With a heavy heart, she carefully removed the dress and handed it to the chambermaid. “I hope I’ll still be the princess who gets to wear this.”
The woman gave her a confused look.
Massie donned her regular clothes and left the bedchamber. She had to find Kerr before it was too late. She couldn’t marry him without him knowing her everlasting, blood-drinking side. No matter how she presented the truth, she was still a monster.
Masie strode down the corridor in a nervous sweat. Checking Kerr’s bedchamber first and knocked on the door. When he didn’t respond, she knocked again and opened it. “Kerr?” she called out.
Relived he wasn’t there, she closed the door. He must still be out hunting. She’d wait in the great hall for him. From the bottom of the stairs, Masie took in the hall. It was fit for a king. Servants were preparing the tables with sprigs of evergreen and candles. Fresh peat had been placed in the hearth, the roaring fire warming the hall. Vibrant tapestries hung on the walls, depicting stories about Clan Gunn’s triumphs, family, and great battles.
“Masie.” A woman came her way. Shite, it had to be her.
Masie ignored the brunette who had given her so much grief before, and walked in the opposite direction. She was in no mood to deal with her. Every time they had an encounter, Masie fought the compulsion to rip the woman to shreds.
The woman blocked her path. Masie stopped, planted her hands on her hips, and huffed in frustration.
“I dinnae want any trouble,” the woman stated.
“Then get out of the way.” Masie stepped to the side. But the woman blocked her path again.
“Let’s start over.” She held her hand out to Masie. “I’m Ina.”
Masie eyed her up and down, suspicious of her changed behavior.
Ina withdrew her hand. “I wanted to congratulate ye. Kerr is a fine man.”
“Aye, he is.”
“’Tis a miracle ye were able to heal the laird and his brother. Ye must come from a long line of healers.”
Masie raised a brow. “What do ye want? I’m in a hurry.”
Ina leaned into Masie. “I’m ill.”
Masie’s eyes widened. “What do ye mean? Ye look well.”
“I’ve had a terrible fever at night. My head aches all the time.”
“Ina, I’m sure it will pass.”
“Please, I went to the clan healer. Her herbs can no’ help me. I’m begging. Please help me.”
Masie studied her pleading face. The lass was being sincere. “Do ye know what ye ask of me?”
Ina nodded and brushed her hair off her neck, exposing a thick vein running from below her ear to her collarbone.
Masie’s eyes fixed on her lifeline—her stomach knotted. Depriving herself of blood was dangerous, but she couldn’t cross the line. If the lass was ill, her heart wanted to help, but her other side pricked her skin, urging her to drink.
Suddenly, Ina doubled over, holding her head in her hands.
Masie grabbed her shoulders, steadying the lass. “Ina, ye need to sit.” Masie helped her to a quiet place next to the hearth. “Here.” She helped Ina to a chair.
“Please, Masie, ye must help me.”
The pain in her face tore at Masie. “Aye, I will help ye. Can ye make it to your bedchamber?”
Ina rose weakly, then fell back into the chair. “I’m too dizzy.
Quickly, Masie looked around the hall, making sure no one was watching. Thankfully, everyone was too busy preparing for tomorrow’s festivities to notice.
Masie scooted a chair in front of Ina and sat looking into Ina’s pleading eyes.
“Take the pain away,” the woman begged.
Masie nodded. She leaned into Ina’s neck, inhaling her skin. Odd, Masie thought, there was no smell of disease or illness. She breathed in deeper and before she could hold it back, the demon inside unleased.
Her gums throbbed as her canines extended. Her fingers wrapped around Ina’s neck as she pushed her head to one side, exposing more of Ina’s delicate flesh. The urge to drink consumed her, overshadowing the underlying warning.
Ina’s heartbeat raced as she pressed her lips against the lass’s skin. Masie bit her neck. Ina winced, then settled into Masie’s touch. The blood pumping through Ina’s veins poured into Masie’s mouth. She closed her eyes and sucked harder, allowing the demon to take her fill.
Suddenly, a sweet taste tinged Ina’s blood. Ripping herself from Ina’s neck, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t retract her fangs. Masie hissed in pain and clutched her cramping stomach as she fell back into the chair. “Poison? Ye tricked me.”
A low laugh escaped Ina’s mouth. “Did ye think ye were the only witch in Wickshire?”
Masie slouched lower in her seat. “I dinnae understand.”
Ina yanked Masie’s head up by her hair until their eyes met. “Before ye, Kerr was mine. I was to wear that dress the seamstress made. I was the one to warm his bed and bear his children. Now he’ll see ye for who ye really are.”
“Bitch!” Masie hissed. “What did ye do to me?” She struggled against Ina’s grip.
“Och, lass.” Ina reached into the top of her dress, pulling out a small leather flask. “The potion I mixed was made to keep ye
in yer true form. I must confess, I wasn’t sure what ye were and if the spell would work. My instincts were right, ye’re a bloodsucking Unseelie fairy, a Baobhan sith.” She threw the flask at Masie.
Dumbfounded, Masie couldn’t believe she’d fallen for Ina’s trickery. Anger consumed her—there was no holding back the monster. Masie grabbed Ina’s hand and twisted her arm until Ina lost her grip on her hair. The wench might be a witch but Masie was more powerful.
“Ye have no right to claim Kerr. He does no’ love ye.” Masie growled as she pushed Ina up against the wall next to the hearth. “Dinnae ye understand, all magic comes with a price.” She wrapped her hand around Ina’s throat and squeezed.
“Go ahead, blood-drinker, try yer best to kill me. Everyone will soon know the truth and ye’ll live yer life rotting in the dungeon—alone.”
The beast inside snapped and Masie’s powerful jaws clapped down on Ina’s neck, crushing her bones. Ina screamed out in harrowing pain.
“Masie!” A stern voice called out from behind her—the voice reached through the violent fog in her mind and went straight to her heart. Desperately, Masie fought to gain control, but the poison was holding her hostage inside her own body.
“Masie, let Ina go.”
She lifted her head, listening to Kerr. Blood trickled down her mouth. She couldn’t allow Kerr to see her this way.
“Masie.” Kerr approached cautiously. “I’m no’ going to hurt ye, but ye must let Ina go.”
A low, deep growl escaped her mouth, sending out a warning to stay back. The noise was soul-shaking. She’d never made it before. What if the monster tried to hurt Kerr? In her current state, she was no longer in control and couldn’t chance hurting the man she loved.
Slowly, she let go of Ina’s neck. The woman dropped to the floor.
“I told ye,” Ina said, looking up at Kerr. “She’s a monster.”
Masie’s heart shattered at the horror she saw on his face. This was not how she planned on telling him but now her secret was out.
Another ripple of pain swam across her stomach. She needed to find a place to hide until the poison wore off. There was no telling what she was capable of doing.
With tears in her eyes, Masie covered her mouth and ran toward the castle doors. She rushed into the bailey and looked back. A small part of her hoped Kerr still cared enough to follow her. That thought dissolved into a painful reality as she watched the double wooden doors close, shutting her out of Kerr’s life. Masie swiped a tear from her cheek. She should have told him the truth when she had the chance. Now, after seeing her for who she truly was, he’d never accept her.
Chapter Nineteen
Somewhere between the evening meal and the rising of the moon, Kerr found himself mindlessly walking the battlements heavy in thought. He’d left Ina with the healer, for there was nothing he could do to help. The healer was hopeful the lass would make it through the night, but prayers were desperately needed. If the loss of blood didn’t kill her, infection would.
The wind blew relentlessly as snow flurries collected on his eye lashes, yet he didn’t feel a thing. He was in a state of shock. He’d never seen anything quite like it. Masie was evil and yet so delicate.
In a way, he blamed himself for what had happened to Ina. He’d failed in protecting his people. How foolish could one be? He allowed a stranger to capture his heart, and now an innocent woman clung to life. How could he allow this to happen?
The lass he’d fallen in love with was truly a monster. The same woman who’d saved his brother and himself. The lass who had a heart of gold. The kind soul who nurtured Rabbie like a mother. What could have driven her to unleash such terror? And why, Ina?
Kerr leaned against the stone wall. He looked up at the moon. What was she? An image flashed of sharp white fangs and blood dripping from the corners of her mouth. Her black-as-night eyes looked like they’d seen hell.
Kerr shook her from his thoughts. Nay, that is not my Masie.
Pushing off the wall, he trudged to the edge of the battlement and looked down. She was out there somewhere, frightened. He wanted to be sympathetic, but he was numb. More than being a monster, she’d lied to him. Mayhap it wasn’t the beast at all he loathed, it was the lies. Could he forgive her and accept her dark nature?
Kerr made his way back inside the castle, headed to Masie’s bedchamber. He stopped in front of the door and rested his forehead against it. Should he knock or walk away? Was their love worth fighting for? Was Masie worth fighting for? God’s Teeth, be a man and go to her. He cracked the door. “Masie?” She didn’t answer.
He walked over to the hearth, only a glowing ember remained. He placed some peat on the fire. As he looked around, he found Masie’s cloak on the bed. He picked it up and smelled it. Her scent wrapped around him. “Masie,” he whispered. “Why?”
A wave of anger coursed through him. Furiously, he threw her cloak on the bed, then ran his fingers through his hair. Like his father, he’d been bewitched by a lass, the one thing he vowed never to succumb to. Heartbreak had sent his father to an early grave. Kerr was now in the same predicament. The moment he opened his heart to a lass, she crushed it. What a fool!
Now he was stuck with a decision. If Ina didn’t make it through the night, would he charge Masie with murder or would he turn the other cheek? Should he forgive her and send her away?
Kerr walked over to a darkened corner and sat in a chair. He placed his elbows on his thighs, resting his pounding head in his hands. What was he going to do? He loved her. He sat there for a while, questions he had no answer to plaguing his mind. He leaned back and drifted off to sleep.
Hours later, the creaking bedchamber door startled him awake. A slender form stood in the doorway, her long, blonde hair in tangles. He sat up.
“Kerr?” Masie entered the chamber, twisting her hands together. “Ye must think I am a monster.” She looked down at the ground. Seeing the shame written on her face felt like a boulder slamming into him. “I know I haven’t been truthful. I didnae know how to tell ye and keep ye.”
Kerr glared at her. “Didnae ye think I had the right to know who—” He paused. “What I was falling in love with?”
“Kerr, I’m—”
“Nay.” He shook his head and stood. “I dinnae want to hear how sorry ye are. All I ever wanted was the truth.”
She walked closer, causing him to take a fearful step back. “I will no’ hurt ye. Let me explain.”
He kept a watchful eye on her.
“Aye, I’m no’ like the other lasses. When I was a wee child, my sisters and I wanted to change our fate. Our father abused my mother terribly and he didnae stop there. He beat Adaira. One night, Leana wished upon a star and the fairy fire appeared. We followed it into the forest believing our fate would change.” Masie looked into the flames as she remembered how cruel the queen had been. “We made a deal with the queen. To kill the Doughall, the queen had to gain a life.”
“Ye made a deal with a fae? Are ye daft, lass?” Kerr exclaimed.
Masie spun around. “No’ daft. Desperate.”
The sharpness of her tone sliced through him.
“We stuck together, no’ allowing one sister to carry our burden. We had to help our mother. But we didnae know the truth. Our mother kept our true identity from us. The queen lifted the protection spell my mother placed on us that cloaked us from her knowing who we were. We spent ten long winters under the queen’s rule. She taught us how to become Baobhan sith.”
“Then ’tis true, ye are a—”
“Blood-drinker. Aye.” Vibrant blue eyes met his. “We only feed off the fatally sick and dying.”
“But ye healed my brother and I,” Kerr’s brows creased. “Why didnae ye kill us?”
“Kerr, I would never hurt ye. My blood is not only a curse but a cure. I can heal people who aren’t too far gone. Bhaltair was a close call.”
“This still doesn’t explain yer attack on Ina.”
“Och, attack!” Masi
e exclaimed.
Kerr softened his tone. “I saw ye with my own eyes. Ye bit her.”
Masie stood in front of him. This time he didn’t flinch. “What ye saw was Ina tricking me. She claimed to be sick and asked for me to heal her. She’s no’ who she says she is.” Masie handed him a leather flask. “She’s a witch.”
“Masie—”
“Nay, Kerr, ye must believe me. She poisoned me so ye’d see I’m a monster. It was of no coincidence ye happened to walk into the great hall when ye did and saw me attack her. She provoked me. She wants me gone so she can be with ye.”
Kerr didn’t know what to believe. Fae, blood drinkers, and witches—did they all exist or was he wrapped up in her web of evil lies? He wanted to trust her but refused to go down the same path his father had traveled. Protect ye heart, fool. “Did ye have any doing in Laird Cormag’s son’s murder?”
He silently sent up a prayer, for if she had lied about the murder, he wouldn’t be able to forgive her.
“Nay. I told ye the truth. We had to flee Dornoch. Cormag had been waiting to condemn my sisters and I. We’re an ugly reminder of the past.”
“Does he know what ye are?”
“Nay. Only suspicious.”
They stood in awkward silence. Kerr wanted to leave but he couldn’t make his feet to move.
Masie broke the silence. “There’s more.”
“Masie.” Kerr shook his head. “I dinnae think I can take any more talk about the supernatural.”
“I’m sorry, but I’ve wanted to tell ye everything for so long.”
Bloody hell, was he prepared to hear more? What was she going to tell him next? That dragons are real? “Go on.”
“The woman in the tapestry.”
“Helen?”
“Aye, she’s my mother.” Masie exhaled nervously. “She’s a Seelie fairy.”
He shook his head in denial. He’d heard enough. First thing tomorrow morn, he’d have the priest purge the castle of Helen’s spirit and any other creature who might be lurking.