by Amy Jarecki
“Perhaps not this time. What about your wounds?” Duncan frowned. “I can tell by looking at you, you’re weakened from starvation.”
Without moving, Sean eyed him. “I’ve fought while in worse condition.”
Duncan stood and crossed to the sideboard then poured three tots of whisky. “’Tis a risk to go in there on your own.”
“Aye,” Sean agreed.
“I cannot allow it in daylight.”
“Duncan, I can—”
The lord turned with a flagon in his hand. “I, more than any other, know what you are capable of. But I’m in charge of this standoff and I’ll not have anyone recognizing you.”
Sean bowed his head and accepted a cup from Duncan. “M’lord.”
“A missive from the king,” a messenger said from the doorway.
Sean kept his face averted.
“Thank you—report to the cook’s tent and fill your belly.” Duncan took it and ran his thumb under the wax seal and read. “My oath, the miserable sop has Herculean cods.”
“What does it say?” Sean asked.
“It appears your bastard brother demanded the king grant him the Chieftainship of Dunollie and the Lordship of Lorn.” Duncan tossed the missive on the table in front of Sean. “It seems there’s been a premature announcement of your death as well.”
Sean scanned the note then clenched it in his fists when he read the last line from the king: Rid Scotland of this arrogant vermin. ’Tis why I hold ill favor for illegitimates. They oft do not ken their place.
Sean crumpled the velum. It will be my pleasure.
Duncan inclined his head in the direction of the camp. “How many people saw you?”
“Angus,” Sean said, thinking back. “The guard down below. The camp was only beginning to stir when I arrived.”
“Good. I want to keep your presence quiet.” He pointed at Angus. “Go fetch Lady Meg. She can tend to Sean’s lesions whilst we plan our attack.”
It was a good thing Angus spotted her when she’d first arrived at Dunstaffnage, else Gyllis might have told the entire camp Sean was not only alive, she’d come to give him a piece of her mind. During the ride with Cadan, Gyllis had ample time to collect her conflicting thoughts. And the more she pondered it, the more she didn’t care to wake up alone in Sean’s enormous four-poster bed.
He had no business taking up his sword so soon after she’d found him on the precipice of death only the day before. For heaven’s sake, he’d hardly been able to climb the stairs last eve. Would he even be able to raise a heavy two-handed sword above his head? Aside from his foolishness, he’d up and left her alone at Dunollie. What if a chambermaid happened upon her sleeping in his bed? She shuddered. He could have at least had the decency to wake her before he took his leave. Who knew what kind of deleterious state he was in when he arose that morn?
Angus led her toward the gatehouse tower. “If anyone asks, tell them you’re here to see your brother. Mind you, the chieftain’s presence must be kept quiet.”
“I understand.” She tried not to limp and keep up with his fast pace. At least this time he hadn’t told her to go home.
She followed the henchman up the stairs to the first floor of the tower until he stopped outside a closed door and turned to her. “Sir Sean told me it was you who found him in the cave. Please forgive me for not believing you, Miss Gyllis. If I had known you were planning to go after him alone, I would have assigned a guard to assist you.”
Gyllis blinked. The man had been downright arrogant toward her. At the time, she sensed Angus considered her presence as irritating as a briar’s thorn. But now was not the time to argue. She gestured toward her legs. “I hope you will disregard my limp and take me seriously the next time something important as your chieftain’s life is in peril.”
He turned scarlet and bowed his head. “Aye, miss.”
When he opened the door, Gyllis clapped a hand to her chest. She’d expected to see Sean, but Duncan stood and glared at her. “Leave us, Angus.”
“Very well, m’lord.” The henchman shut the door and left Gyllis alone with her dragon-hearted brother. And from the look on his face, the dragon was awake and fiercely guarding his treasure of gold.
“You disobeyed me.”
She moved her hands to her hips. “Pardon? As I see it, you refused to listen to me—even when your dearest friend’s life was on the line.”
He crossed his arms. “Let us not skirt the issue.”
“Come again? The issue is—”
Duncan sliced his hand through the air. “I told you to ride home with the guard. And then my scheming wife convinced me you were helping her in the hospital tent. I ought to—”
“What?” Gyllis stamped her foot. “Send me to Ardchattan Priory to learn piety? Have you forgotten I’ve just returned from three months of their hospitality?” Oh no, Duncan wasn’t about to quash her with: I’m your brother and your lord so you’d better do as I say. Gyllis balled her fists. Of all the pompous, bombastic, single-minded men she’d ever met, Duncan had to be the worst. She stomped up to him and glared. “When will you realize I am no longer a child?”
His eyes flashed with ire like they always did when she challenged him. “But ’tis my duty to protect you.”
Though he could shoot daggers with his black-eyed glare, Gyllis wasn’t about to back down. He always recited his duty as if it were more important than anything. “Mayhap, but ’tis not your burden to hogtie me and dismiss my every word as that of a daft cripple.”
Blinking, Duncan stepped back. She’d caught him there. “I would never—”
“Oh no? And where would Sir Sean MacDougall be now if I had gone back to Kilchurn with my tail tucked between my legs? Tell me? Would you rather have his death on your hands?”
His face turned bright red. “But think of your reputation.”
“My God, Duncan, is that all that consumes your mind?”
He pulled out his chair and plopped down, rapping his fist on the table. “Damn it all, you test me.” He raked his fingers through his thick black hair. God, he looked like a dragon-fighter if there ever was one. “I’ve been friends with MacDougall since we were lads. We…we did things that young men do. I abhor the thought of my own sister—”
“Stop.” Gyllis placed her hands on the back of a chair and leaned forward. “Do you think I have not heard the rumors? As I recall, you were considered as much a rogue as Sir Sean. Mayhap more so.”
“That is different.” Blinking rapidly, he swatted a dismissive hand through the air. “Lady Meg made me realize the error of my ways. Since she came into my life, I have put the single man’s lifestyle behind me.”
“And Sir Sean is incapable of changing as you did? Have you even discussed it with him, or did you draw your thick-headed line in the sand and make a decree that he would never be worthy of a Campbell lass?” Gyllis shoved the chair against the table with a clatter. “That’s it, isn’t it? Ever since the time of the Bruce, Campbells have deemed themselves superior, especially over the MacDougalls. After all, Sean’s archaic ancestors supported the reprehensible King Edward of England. Sean and all MacDougalls should be punished throughout eternity for their ancestor’s treachery and lack of vision.”
Duncan stood. “Gyllis, you push me too far.”
“Aye?” She straightened and folded her arms. “I did not come here to argue with you.”
He swiped his hand across his mouth and looked away as if he were conjuring yet another dispute to dissuade her from loving Sean.
Whatever absurdity was about to spew from his mouth, Gyllis didn’t want to hear it. “Where is he? When I found him yesterday, he was on the very precipice of death—so weak and pale. He shouldn’t be here. He should be abed.”
“Sir Sean is young and resilient. Besides, he’s hell-bent on revenge. There’ll be no stopping him.”
Gyllis pursed her lips. “I ken, but I’ll see him before he takes on Alan and his army, and you’ll not stop me.”
After a lon
g stare, Duncan pointed toward the ceiling. “One floor up. Meg is tending his wounds. And the next time I see you, you had better be dressed as a proper noblewoman.”
29
Gyllis slipped into the chamber the next floor up. The guard tower wasn’t built for comfort. The stairwell was extremely narrow and the stairs had been worn over years of use. Still sore and tired, she stumbled twice on her way up.
Fortunately, at each landing there was only one pie-shaped chamber. She caught her breath and pushed inside. Naked from the waist up, Sean sat in a wooden chair beside the hearth.
Meg stood beside him with a pot in her hand. She looked up and grinned. “Gyllis!”
A burning sensation spread throughout her chest. Limping, Gyllis marched across the floor and took the pot from Meg’s grasp. “I should be tending his wounds.”
The matron—Gyllis’s closest friend—bowed her head and took a step back. “Of course. Apologies. Duncan sent me up. I was unaware you were here.”
Gyllis glared at Sean. “Again it seems everyone wanted to cosset me in a tower whilst they solved the problems of all Christendom.” She knew she was overreacting, but seeing Sean’s bare chest in the presence of another woman with her eyes on him struck a nerve she could not control. “Must everyone take pity on me because I am a cripple?”
She shoved her fingers in the pot and filled them with gooey ointment.
Sean grabbed her wrist. “What are you saying? No one in this room has ever treated you any less because of your condition.”
There. He’d said it—referred to her limp and slowness as a condition. “You do not need to say anything. Your actions give you away.”
“How so? I, least of anyone, would pamper you because of a mild limp.”
“You left me at Dunollie as if I could be of no help to you at all. And now you have my sister-in-law tending your wounds.”
Sean’s gaze darted to Meg. “That is because her husband ordered it.”
Gyllis stammered. Hot blood pulsed beneath her skin. She wanted to scream. She wanted everyone to treat her as they had done before the paralysis. She hated being different—left in a big, comfortable bed to sleep whilst Sean rode into danger. How could he have frightened her like that?
“Do you think you are not wanted?” His voice grew softer.
Gyllis, too, looked at Meg. The lady curtsied and offered a gentle smile. “I should allow you two to talk. If you should need me I shall retire to the war room with Duncan for a bit.”
After the door closed behind Meg, Sean stood and brushed his fingers over Gyllis’s cheek. “Mo leannan. Look at yourself. You’ve come so far in such a short time. Everything you do amazes me.”
Her lips quivered—not quite ready to forgive him. “Then why did you leave me behind? You didn’t even tell me where you were going.” She wiped her fingers off on his chest. Still mad, she needed to talk this through or she’d burst. “I did not row for miles to see you run through by Alan MacCoul’s blade.”
Sean stared at her, his dark features growing darker. “If I had told you, you would have tried to stop me.”
She nodded vehemently. “As God is my witness, I would have.”
“But this is something I must do.”
“Why? Only yesterday, you were in purgatory, your body is weak. For heaven’s sake, the color has not yet returned to your face.” She gestured to his torso, riddled with seeping lesions. “How on earth do you expect to wear a hauberk over all those open sores?”
He grasped her palms between his hands. “I’ve fought injured before.”
She jerked her hands away. “But you are too weak. Please. Let Duncan and the others—”
“Do you not understand? I will never be able to live with myself if I recline in my bed whilst others fight my battles. I must do this.” He grasped her shoulders and held firm. “He imprisoned me in irons and left me for dead. His crimes are unconscionable.”
“But I’ve seen him fight.”
“He cannot best me. My entire life he has distained me. And now he is staking his claim on my title.”
“I am not saying what he’s doing is right, but I want you to live.” Burning tears rimmed her eyes. How could she convince him not to fight? “Would you choose your will for revenge over me?”
His eyes narrowed. “What are you saying?”
“Am I to stand idly by while you march to your death?”
“Gyllis, do not do this. I love you. When this is over, I will talk to Duncan and we will be wed. Is that not what you want?”
She shoved her finger in the pot and smeared it across a line of lesions. “I want you to survive this siege. You are wounded.” She didn’t wait for him to respond. If she didn’t leave now, he’d twist her heart around his finger and she’d never be able to see reason.
How could he do this? How could he cast aside the sacrifice she’d made for him and the intense love they’d shared only the night before? Gyllis was so angry, she dashed down the stairs moving far too fast, but she needed air. She’d nearly made it down the two flights when one of her ankles twisted on an uneven step. Crying out, she flung her hands against the narrow walls to slow her momentum. But down she went with a crashing thud. Her buttocks hit the unforgiving stone first, followed by her back, then her head. The last thing she remembered was a man’s voice hollering for the healer.
Gyllis clapped her hands over her eyes. She wasn’t outside, but there was a blinding light surrounding her. “Where am I?”
Meg’s face came into view right above hers. “You’re awake.” She inclined her head. “I had the guards carry you to Duncan’s tent. It wouldn’t have been proper to tend you in the hospital tent—too many men there. How are you feeling?”
Gyllis slid her hand to the back of her head and connected with a sizeable knot. “My head’s throbbing.”
“I’m sure it is. You had quite a tumble.” Meg stuffed a pillow beneath Gyllis’s shoulders. “I take it all didn’t go well with Sir Sean earlier.”
“I’ll say.” She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. “He refused to listen to reason and he’s about to get himself killed.” Gyllis tried to sit up. “I must stop him.”
“You must rest.” Meg sat beside her and rubbed ointment on Gyllis’s head. It had a potent, minty smell and made her eyes water. “This should help clear the cobwebs.”
“What’s in it?”
“My own concoction. Smelling salts blended with peppermint, valerian and whale oil.”
Gyllis blinked to clear her tears. “’Tis potent.”
“Aye.” Meg wiped her fingers on a cloth. “You ken, Sir Sean is one of the most skilled knights in all of Scotland.”
“Aye.”
Meg let out a long breath. “If I were bound in irons and left to starve, I’d want justice.”
Gyllis reached for Meg’s cloth and wiped off the ointment, so foul it was clearing the cobwebs a bit too fast. “Would you seek vengeance yourself or would you allow others to do battle for you?”
“If I were a knight, there’d be no question. I would face my oppressor.”
“Even if you were weakened by hunger and had lesions all over your body?”
“Aye, even then. When a man faces battle something potent overcomes him. I even got a sense of it when I helped Duncan escape from the Edinburgh gaol. It’s as if fatigue no longer matters—as if your muscles are infused with superhuman power.” Meg brushed a wisp of Gyllis’s hair from her face. “Have you ever been stronger than you ever dreamed possible because you had no other option?”
She didn’t have to ponder that question. “Aye. Only yesterday I rowed a skiff all the way to the southern end of Kerrera because I kent Sean was there. He needed me.” Gyllis closed her eyes and swallowed. “I still do not know how I found the strength to row all that way from morning to late afternoon.”
Meg drew a hand over her heart. “You rowed for miles and did not stop because you had to save the man you love?”
Gyllis gulped. �
�I did.”
“Is it so different that he needs to take part in tonight’s siege?”
“But he’s not yet recovered.”
“I’ve seen him better, for certain.” Meg clasped Gyllis’s hand. “Sometimes a man needs to prove he’s a man—if not to others, to himself.”
She bit her lip. “But I’m so frightened.”
“Do you think I have no fear every time Duncan rides out with the enforcers?”
Gyllis pushed up on her elbow. “How do you face it? How can you bear to watch him leave?”
“I pray.” Meg grasped her pot and stood. “And busy myself by helping others.”
Sean hated upsetting Gyllis. On one hand, she was right. He’d need a few days of hearty meals before he regained all of his strength. But he doubted any woman would ever understand why he must face Alan.
At least he’d regained enough strength to overpower that scoundrel.
Sean looked at his hand. He closed his fist. An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth.
Angus burst through the door. “’Tis Gyllis.” He drew in a sharp inhale and pointed. “She’s fallen and hit her head. Lady Meg is tending her in Duncan’s tent.”
“My God.” Sean shoved back his chair and bounded toward the door. “What happened?”
“Wait.” Angus grasped his wrist. “You cannot be seen. Where’s your cloak?”
“Ballocks, we must make haste.” Sean snatched his mantle from the peg and threw it over his shoulders. He pulled the hood low over his head. “Is she hurt?”
“She was unconscious when we carried her from the tower.”
Sean kicked himself for allowing her to run off. He knew she was angry and those uneven tower stairs were difficult for a soldier to negotiate. He’d been so wrapped up in his desire for vengeance, he’d not thought about her paralysis or the toll it must have taken on her body whilst she rowed for miles to his rescue. No wonder she was so distressed.
He flew down the steps with Angus right behind.
So controlled by hate, Sean hadn’t thought to follow her. He just assumed she’d join Lady Meg with Duncan in the war room. He’d planned to give her time to cool off, but he should have escorted her. Christ, this was an army encampment filled with men, and he’d sat dumbly while the woman he loved fell, hit her head and lost consciousness.