by Jennae Vale
* * *
“YE LOOK like ye’ve been to war,” Angus announced to Maggie as she entered their chamber. Angus was relaxing on one of the beds and Maggie settled wearily on the other.
“I feel like it too,” Maggie responded. “This is a lot harder than I thought it would be.” She glanced over at Angus, who was giving her that fatherly look he saved for all his lasses. “Actually, that’s not true. I had no idea what it would be like. One of the many things I don’t understand is why the MacKenzies are putting up with Brielle.”
“The MacKenzies are a very welcoming and hospitable clan. No matter how Brielle behaves and no matter what they think of her, they will be kind to her. Now, as for ye, yer doing an amazing job of keeping Brielle under control. Yer Aunt Edna would be so verra proud of ye. She had faith in ye and yer proving she was right to believe ye could do this.”
“But what exactly am I doing? I know I’m putting out fires and stopping floods and a dozen other things, but what is the end goal? That’s what I don’t understand. I’m frustrated beyond belief, because no one here knows who I am! They all believe that witch is me, and I can’t say I’m happy about it. She’s rude and inconsiderate most of the time and yet smiling in their faces as she turns away to cause more trouble. I’d like to wipe that smile right off of her face.” Maggie had built up quite a head of steam as she continued to vent her frustrations. “She could destroy them in a heartbeat, yet she doesn’t. She’s playing with them – like a cat with a mouse. What is she up to? Why is she even here? And why is she after my Dylan?”
“Are ye through with yer ranting, Maggie?” Angus shook his head. “I agree with ye. Brielle gives witches a bad name, but yer Aunt Edna is the only one who can answer those questions for ye and if she doesnae wish to, well, ye ken it’s like requesting answers of a brick wall. A very lovely brick wall, but a brick wall, nonetheless.” Angus chuckled at his own analogy.
“Well, that goes a long way towards not making me feel better.” Maggie flopped back onto the bed with her arm covering her eyes.
“Rest awhile before we go in for the evening meal. I believe I’ll take a nap as well,” Angus yawned and closed his eyes.
Maggie ran through the day’s events in her weary head and had to admit that despite her frustrations, she was pleased and proud of the way she had handled everything. When Edna had told Maggie she wanted her to take care of Brielle, Maggie had been terrified that she would fail, but so far everything had been relatively easy to fix. The one thing she had no control over, was what Brielle would do next and Maggie feared that this was just the beginning of her troubles with that one.
* * *
AT THE EVENING MEAL, everyone chatted about the unusual day it had been. Dylan was singing Alec’s praises and telling how amazed he was, to see Alec gather all the horses and bring them back to the stables singlehandedly. Irene thanked Alec again for his help with the flooding and further down the table, Jenna was relating the story of the dough as she shared a piece of the bread, made from the same troublesome batch, with Cormac.
Maggie was sure to put up a protective barrier around herself and Angus. She wished she could cover all of the table’s occupants, but Brielle was thwarting her efforts at every turn and casting a steely gaze her way, in an effort to intimidate her. As Dylan continued to sing Alec’s praises, Brielle was getting more and more irritated and Maggie worried that she’d do something to hurt him. The thought no sooner came to Maggie, than Dylan’s voice grew hoarse and he sounded like a croaking frog. He tried clearing his throat by coughing, but to no avail.
“Are ye alright, my love?” Brielle cooed. “Here, drink something, it should help.” She handed Dylan his tankard of ale, which he drank from, but his voice did not come back to anything more than a whisper. “Don’t speak, love. Rest yer voice for now.” She smiled triumphantly towards Maggie. She couldn’t have been any plainer regarding her intentions. Maggie got the message loud and clear.
Conversation picked up around them once again and Maggie gazed down the table, to see Brielle kissing Dylan’s cheek and rubbing his back. Maggie ate the rest of her meal in silence and kept her eyes focused directly in front of her. She knew that if she saw Brielle touch Dylan one more time, she’d be tempted to break her arm and since that would be a verra bad idea, it was best to turn towards Angus and ignore the other end of the table.
“I believe tomorrow will be a day of celebration and feasting, Alec.” Angus finished the last piece of food on his plate and poured himself another drink.
“Really. What are they celebrating?” Maggie asked distractedly.
“Samhuinn, of course. Where is your head at, lad?” Angus raised an eyebrow in disbelief.
“Oh, that’s right. I forgot.”
“It will be a good time. Ye’ll see. First thing we’ll do is go apple picking. And then we’ll return here to a feast, music, dancing and end it all with a huge bonfire in the courtyard.” From the gleam in Angus’ eyes, Maggie could see how much he was looking forward to the next day’s events.
“I don’t know if a bonfire is a good idea. Not with you know who here,” Maggie tipped her head in Brielle’s direction.
“I see what ye mean, but we cannae ask them to ignore tradition without good cause.” Angus took another sip of his cider. “Ye’ll have to be extra vigilant.”
Maggie was feeling overwhelmed. “It’s exhausting keeping track of that witch,” she muttered. “I wish she’d go away and leave us all in peace.” Her anger and frustration were showing and she wasn’t certain how to deal with it. Never in her life had she needed to deal with a situation like this. Up to this point, her life had been mundane. She had enjoyed a happy childhood, had good parents and the love and support of everyone around her. The only remotely difficult thing she’d had to deal with was her parents’ divorce, and even that had been done in such a way that it caused little heartache in the family.
The MacKenzies were all finished with their meal and were slowly leaving the table, heading off towards their chambers or to seats in front of the fire. It had been a relatively quiet meal, Brielle had seen to that. Maggie had gotten her nerve up again and was about to peek down the table when Dylan walked right up to her. Casting a quick glance around, Maggie noted that Brielle wasn’t with him and seemed to have already left the Great Hall. Dylan was trying to say something to her, but nothing was coming out of his mouth. Maggie couldn’t stand to see him suffer from the effects of Brielle’s magick, so she focused on his throat and with a few quick words spoken silently to herself and a wave of her hand, his voice was back. No one seemed to notice and Dylan, after clearing his throat a time or two, realized he could speak again.
“Looks like I finally got my voice back. I wanted to stop over here and thank you again for your help today. You were pretty amazing with the horses.”
Maggie felt a blush creeping up her neck and suddenly felt extremely shy. “It was nothing.”
“I wouldn’t say that. The stable boys and I would have been out there all day, and long into the night, trying unsuccessfully to grab even one of them. They obviously responded to you.”
She didn’t answer him, instead turning to Angus. “Angus, I’m going to head off to bed.”
“Alright then. I’ll be up shortly,” Angus rose from his chair and turned to Dylan. “I’m glad ye got yer voice back, lad.”
“Thanks, me too. I don’t know what happened. I was fine one minute and the next I couldn’t make a sound.” Dylan cleared his throat one more time, as if to confirm he could still speak.
“Allergies,” Maggie offered.
“Maybe. Hey, I’m heading back to the soldier’s quarters, too. I’ll walk with you.” Dylan smiled, nearly undoing her.
“Where’s Maggie?” she asked, glancing around the hall.
“She was tired, so she went to her room. Are you going to this apple-picking thing tomorrow?”
“Aye. Everyone is, I think.” Maggie was seeking some way to avoid walking with
Dylan, but she didn’t see how she could do it without appearing completely rude. She’d just have to keep acting as Alec and tried to guess how two guys would normally talk to each other. Maggie was definitely a girly-girl. Always had been, but even as a girl she didn’t have a lot of experience talking to men, other than her Da and Uncle Angus. She decided the less said the better and let Dylan do all the talking, which he seemed happy to do.
“Your friend, Angus, he’s a great guy. I met him back at Glendaloch and I wish I’d had more time there to get to know him. It’s nice that he’s here. I know Maggie is happy about it.”
“Is she now?” Maggie queried lightly.
“Yeah. She’s told me how much she loves him and her Aunt Edna. What they’ve meant to her, you know.” They were approaching the stairs to the soldier’s barracks and he stopped. Maggie was content to continue without him, but he caught her by the arm and stopped her.
“You know, you remind me of someone.”
“I can’t imagine who,” Maggie said anxiously, getting nervous about where this conversation was going.
“Me either. I’ve been racking my brains since you got here, trying to figure it out. It’ll come to me, but we’ve never met before, have we?”
“No, of course not. Where would we have met?” Maggie hated lying to him, but she had no choice. “I’m heading up. I’m really tired.”
“Yeah, me too.”
They climbed the stairs to their rooms and stopped in front of Alec’s door. “Okay. Well, I’ll see you tomorrow, Alec. Thanks again for your help.” Dylan patted Maggie on the shoulder sending her flying forward. “You could use some muscle there, my friend, but don’t worry, you’ll get there. You’re still growing, plenty of time for that.”
Maggie stood there for a moment, feeling like a daft fool. How could she not? Here she was standing face-to-face with the most attractive man she’d ever met. Everything about him exuded masculinity. A sexual gravity was pulling her towards him and then, idiot that she was, she reached her hand out and tentatively placed it on his chest. The feel of the solid muscle beneath her fingers made her panic. “See you,” Maggie darted into her room and closed the door in the face of Dylan’s confusion. That was close. She’d had to bite her tongue to keep from telling him who she really was. Walking beside him from the great hall, she could feel the heat of his body next to hers and then standing so close to him outside her room and looking into his eyes, she’d wanted to reach up and kiss him and she almost had. Luckily she caught herself in time. It was bad enough she’d actually touched him and then she’d used what little control she had left, to turn away from him. Now here she stood, back against the door, fighting the urge to open it again and march down to his room and… Stop it, Maggie! Don’t be stupid! I’ve got to stop thinking about him that way, at least for the time being. I’ve got to let the thoughts I’m having go, for my own sanity. If Dylan is still interested in me when this is all over with, I’ll be in a better place to pick up where we left off, but until then I have to focus on Brielle.
* * *
AS DYLAN WALKED AWAY from Alec’s door, he was haunted by the continued suspicion that he knew the young guy. The idea would simply not leave his mind. Alec had told him they’d never met, but he didn’t necessarily believe him. Dylan knew he had to figure it out. It would drive him crazy otherwise. He hummed to himself as he entered his room, happy that his voice had returned. It had been weird how he’d been fine one minute and the next he couldn’t utter a sound. He had been talking about what a great job Alec had done rounding up the horses and then Maggie had given him a strange look. He was trying to read her, understand what she was trying to say to him with her eyes and next thing he knew he couldn’t speak. Did Maggie do that to me? What reason could she have, to want to stop me from talking about Alec? Dylan shook his head, deciding he was letting his imagination get the better of him, but the more he thought about Maggie, the more he realized she had been acting very strangely, from the very first moment he saw her in the woods. Chester was scared to death of her, which was very unlike him, and now that Dylan thought about it, ever since Maggie had arrived, Chester had stayed as far away from Dylan as he could. He was spending almost all of his time with Cormac. Jenna and Ashley had also commented on Maggie’s behavior. Jenna was having a hard time believing she was the same person they’d met in Glendaloch and Ashley thought the girl she’d met in the teashop had been much friendlier, with a bit of mischief hovering just beneath the surface. The Maggie currently residing in Breaghacraig definitely didn’t fit that description at all. She was standoffish with everyone, seemed lacking in the personality department and as for mischief, there was something there, but it seemed a bit darker. Dylan could almost believe that she had been kidnapped and replaced with a physically exact replica, but was he being too cynical? He had always been a very easy-going guy, not letting things bother him, intent on enjoying life and up until this very moment, having a woman in his life for more than a day or two didn’t seem to matter. Maggie, Maggie, Maggie, where did you go? Dylan decided he was going to have to dig deeper to find out what was going on with her. She had come all the way from Glendaloch to see him and while she was very attentive where he was concerned, she didn’t seem sincere. He decided to play it by ear and see how things went in the next few days. Having briefly glimpsed love back in Glendaloch, Dylan wasn’t about to give up on it now that he had the object of that glimpse here within reach, but he did have a few things to figure out. How could he have such strong feelings one day and then none. With any luck, whatever was going on with her would work itself out and he’d have the Maggie he longed for back in his life again.
CHAPTER 7
Sir Richard Jefford entered the great hall of his castle. Situated on the border between Northern England and Scotland, it was an expansive fortress, surrounded by lush green fields and forests. It was the type of castle any man would be happy to call home, but Richard rarely spent more than a few days there. Most of his time was spent plotting and planning ways to get back at Robert MacKenzie. Events of the past week had him questioning that need to seek revenge. After yet another sleepless night, Richard’s normally handsome face revealed a haggard appearance.
“Richard, you look as though you’ve not slept a wink.” The Lady Catherine stood before him with a disapproving scowl on her usually sweet, pretty face.
“That would be because I haven’t, my dearest mother.” Richard made his way wearily to the table where servants immediately set out food and drink for him to break his fast. “Will you join me, mother?”
Lady Catherine did not answer, silently seating herself by his side. “What troubles you, Richard?”
He ignored the food, staring off into a corner of the room. “I’m having terrible nightmares. I don’t understand why. I normally sleep like a baby, but for some reason during this past week, every time I close my eyes I’m—” Richard dropped his head into his hands and lapsed into silence.
“Tell me what you are seeing. Mayhap I can help you,” Lady Catherine suggested.
“It’s those damn MacKenzies. Every time I close my eyes, I see them,” he explained, sounding distressed. “I see all of the terrible things I’ve done to them, one after the other and the memories repeat themselves, over and over again. I feel so guilty and I don’t know how to make it stop. Every night for the past week, I’ve been having horrible visions of my past.” He lowered his voice to a whisper as he continued. “The young Lady Ashley, she haunts me more than the others. I struck her, mother. I feel I was possessed by a demon. Perhaps I am a demon.” Richard searched his mother’s shocked face for an answer. She had always been there for him and had been more than patient with Richard in the past, but she also never let him get away with anything without giving her opinion. Lady Catherine had been very unhappy with his behavior regarding the MacKenzies and she’d been quite vocal in her disapproval.
“Guilt can only be relieved by taking actions to correct the error in your ways,
Richard.”
“What do you mean? How can I possibly make anything I’ve done in the past right?” Richard pounded his fist on the table in frustration.
“Richard, you were such a good boy when you were young, but you have let your emotions rule you as you’ve gotten older. This vendetta you have against the MacKenzies is foolish. You need to stop it before it is too late, before you do something you will regret forever.”
His mother was a wise woman, but he hadn’t truly listened to her in years. She had always told him to forget about Irene and to go on and live his life. She had told him he would never find anyone to replace Irene in his heart, until he had truly let her go. Richard had turned a deaf ear to her all along. Instead, he’d spent all his time thinking of ways to exact revenge on Robert MacKenzie. He had begun to believe that he was losing his grasp on his sanity, but maybe the exact opposite was happening. Perhaps his mother had been right all along and perhaps these nightmares were the key to him reclaiming his future.
“What is it you have done this time, Richard? What is it that is giving you nightmares so horrible that you cannot sleep?” Lady Catherine seemed to see right through him. She stood and placed her hand on his shoulder. When he didn’t respond to her questions, she said, “I love you so very much, my son. I want nothing more than your happiness, but you will never find happiness until you make your peace with the MacKenzies.”
Richard was embarrassed to tell Lady Catherine what he had planned with the witch, Brielle, but she was the only person whom he could trust. The one person who would always love him. He wished he were a young lad again, so that he could seek solace in his mother’s arms. He was too old for that though, or so he told himself. “Mother, I’ve…” he began to speak and then hesitated. Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to continue. “There’s a witch named Brielle. I’ve sent her to Breaghacraig, disguised as someone they know, to destroy the MacKenzies. She’s there as we speak and I don’t believe I can stop her… not now.”