Dangerous Highlander

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

Quinn stretched his shoulder. He’d wanted on top of the towers where he usually sat, but Lucan had wanted him closer when the attack came. So he stood on the battlements, his nerves edgy and ready for the fight. He kept his gaze on the east side of the castle and the cliffs, the same cliffs Cara had fallen from.

That day seemed so long ago, as though Cara had always been a part of their family. Their lives before her had been sedate and boring. If they could have known what her presence meant, would Lucan still have saved her?

Quinn knew the answer would be a resounding “aye.”

He paused in his musing as Fallon strode toward him. His eldest brother had changed, and for the better. Though Quinn wasn’t sure he liked the attitude that had returned with the absence of the wine.

Fallon had always been a good man. He was good at everything, including leading their clan. Their father had been proud of Fallon’s accomplishments, and everyone knew in Fallon’s hands the clan would only prosper.

It was good to see parts of him return, yet there was no mistaking the thread of fear in Fallon’s eyes. He was right to be afraid of the god inside him, for Fallon had used the wine to dull his senses—and the god.

Now, when they needed Fallon the most, he would likely fail them. But Quinn didn’t begrudge his brother. There had been many times Quinn had thought to follow Fallon into the flavorful oblivion.

Quinn had his faults—and they were many—but he wouldn’t leave Lucan alone to tend to everything. It was Lucan’s way, though. He liked to be in control, in charge. He liked to get things done and see to people’s needs. It made him the man he was today.

“Quinn,” Fallon said, his voice low in the still night. “How is everything?”

“Quiet,” Quinn replied. “You making the rounds again?”

“Aye. One last look before I return to the great hall.”

Quinn snorted. “You just wanted to give Lucan and Cara some time alone.”

“I did. There’s nothing wrong with that. If Lucan’s senses are right, they may not have any time after tonight.”

Quinn blew out a breath and nodded slowly. “Lucan’s senses have never failed him before. He’s always known where the boar or deer are when we hunt.”

“Aye. It’s why I didn’t question him.”

“The others don’t understand.”

“I don’t give a damn,” Fallon said. “As long as they stay on guard and alert us if they see anything, they can believe what they will.”

Fallon and Quinn stood quietly side by side for several moments before Quinn spoke again. “You would have married that woman, what’s her name, Da asked you to, wouldn’t you?”

Fallon chuckled. “I cannot even remember her name, either. And, aye, I would have. Da said it was for the good of the clan.”

“Regardless of what you wanted?”

“It didn’t matter what I wanted, Quinn. That’s the point of being laird. Sacrifices had to be made. The alliance with the MacDonalds would have been a great boon. Two of the largest, strongest clans in Scotland. It was Da’s goal for a long time.”

Quinn scratched his jaw and shifted his feet wider. “Your life could have been awful with that woman.”

“Maybe, but then I could live through you and your good life with Elspeth.”

He cringed and turned away, but he must not have been quick enough, for Fallon’s hand gripped his shoulder and turned him back around.

“I’m sorry I spoke of Elspeth. I know you don’t like to talk about her.”

Quinn looked over the moonlit land. “Speak of Elspeth as you will, Fallon. I didn’t speak of her because I failed her and our son. To make matters worse, I didn’t love her.”

“So why did you marry her?” Fallon’s voice was filled with concern and shock.

“It seemed the right thing to do. She wanted me, and I wanted a family. I knew Elspeth had always been of a gentle nature, but once we were married, it became worse. Much worse. I couldna get annoyed without her cowering in fear, even though I never laid a hand on her in anger.”

“I had no idea.”

“No one did. I wanted it that way.”

“There is more, isn’t there?”

Quinn leaned his hands on the stones and lifted a foot to rest it in the crenel, the opening between the merlons of the battlements. “Do you remember when my son was born?”

“Vaguely. It was a joyous day in our family.”

“It was hell,” Quinn said. “The labor was long and the baby had to be turned. Elspeth was so weak afterward and had lost so much blood that she nearly died. The midwife cautioned us about having any more children. In Elspeth’s mind, that meant I could no longer make love to her.”

“Shite,” Fallon murmured.

“The midwife had given her some herbs to take every day so she wouldn’t conceive again, but Elspeth refused to take them. And I refused to touch her unless she took them. I may have wanted more children, but I wasn’t going to risk her life for them. I was happy with my son, my family that I had.”

“Quinn.”

He shook his head. “Doona say it, Fallon. There’s no need. I married Elspeth because I wanted what Mum and Da had. Those special looks and secret smiles they shared with each other. I thought all marriages would be that way.”

“Nay. Not all.”

“I learned that too late. I see those same looks between Lucan and Cara, and I envy them what they’ve found. You’ve always been the eldest, the one in charge. Lucan has always been able to fix anyone’s problems, no matter how big or small. I had nothing. I was nothing.”

“You had us,” Fallon said as he faced Quinn.

“You are a MacLeod. A fine warrior, and a Highlander I’m proud to call brother.”

Quinn slammed his hand down on the stones, cracking them. “Look at me, Fallon. I cannot control the creature, and God help me, but I don’t really want to. I’m not fit to be near anyone.”

“The god chooses the best warrior from each family, Quinn. The god inside us chose all three MacLeod brothers. What does that tell you?”

“That the god is an idiot.”

“That all three of us are the best warriors.”

Quinn shook his head, desperately wanting to believe his brother. “You and Lucan are all I have now, but the rage inside me burns and grows the longer I watch Lucan and Cara. I’ve tried to control it. Lucan deserves joy. I don’t begrudge him in the least.”

“Neither of you left me while I stayed in my wine-induced haze. We won’t leave you now. We’ll get through this, Quinn, as we’ve done everything else. We’re MacLeods. We only have each other.”

Quinn opened his mouth to answer when something on the cliffs caught his eye. He narrowed his gaze and leaned over the battlements.

“God’s blood,” he murmured, and watched as a Warrior came in sight.

“I’ll go to Lucan and Cara. You tell the others,” Fallon said before he ran from the battlements.

Quinn’s gut clenched with unease while his blood burned for battle. He cupped his hands around his mouth and gave the whistle that sounded more like a bird than a man. Shadows moved on the castle letting him know they had heard and understood.

The attack they had been expecting for days was upon them.

Quinn tilted back his head and let the rage consume him.

* * *

Cara sat in Lucan’s lap, her head resting on his shoulder. She didn’t regret telling him of her love nor had she expected him to reply in kind. But she had hoped.

They had long since dressed, but they had been unable to stop touching each other. She closed her eyes as his fingers combed through her hair, prickling her scalp with delicious pleasure.

She didn’t understand his love of her hair, but she enjoyed it. She had a particular fascination with his body in which she could never look enough, feel enough of him.

Her hand moved over his heart. It beat strong and steady, just like him. She glanced up to find his gaze in the flames before them. He was thinking of the coming battle.

Since he was a Warrior, she didn’t fear him being wounded. And since Deirdre wanted all the Warriors, especially the Macleods, Cara didn’t worry about their heads being chopped off.

But Lucan worried about her.

Her gaze shifted to her sword, which stood next to the hearth, leaned against the stones. Her dagger, the beautiful dagger Lucan had made for her, was strapped to her hip. All they could do was wait.

Suddenly the sound of Quinn’s whistle, the alarm for danger, sounded. Cara jerked upright and met Lucan’s gaze. The battle was upon them.

The door to the castle burst open and Fallon rushed inside, slamming the door behind him. “Quinn spotted the first Warrior.”

Cara started to rise from Lucan’s lap when his hands held her down. She looked at him and saw the fear in his eyes.

“Stay with me, Cara.”

“I will,” she promised.

He slid his hand to the back of her neck and pulled her to his mouth for a kiss that was slow and sensual, full of passion and the love they had confessed. “We’ll beat the Warriors again,” he murmured.

When he released her, she rushed to get her sword and palmed the dagger in her left hand. She missed Lucan’s warmth already. She had dreaded this night, for she knew her life would be forever changed.

Fallon leapt on top of the table, two swords in his hands. She waited for Lucan to ask him to transform, but he didn’t. Lucan held her gaze as his skin darkened to black and his beautiful sea green eyes vanished beneath the obsidian. He flexed his fingers and the long claws that gleamed onyx in the firelight.

She walked toward him and rose on her tiptoes to place her lips against his. His arms wrapped around her, holding her tight. His fangs gently scraped her lip, but instead of hurting, she found the sensation thrilling, and dangerous.

He released her and she moved against the wall. Lucan stood in front of her and a little to her left so she could see Fallon.

Her heart pounded in her chest and her stomach dipped and pitched so much she thought she might be sick. She wasn’t ready for this no matter what she had told Lucan. But no amount of training could have readied her for the coming attack.

She pulled in a shaky breath and made her fingers loosen on her weapons. She held them too tight, was too nervous. They would be knocked out of her hands without much force.

With a great amount of effort, she steadied her breathing and tried to calm her racing heart. Lucan and the others had taught her how to stay out of reach of the wyrrans and the Warriors. All she had to do was stay near Lucan. He would protect her.

An eerie scream that wasn’t human sounded from one of the towers. Cara’s heart lurched.

“It seems one of the wyrran found a trap,” Fallon said with a joyful smile.

The castle shook as something broke through the stones in an upper part of the castle. Roars and growls and wails of pain reverberated through the castle. Cara shivered and moved closer to Lucan.

The urge to run and hide was strong, but she was a Druid, a woman who had been gifted with the griffin symbol from her lover. She would not run.

Fallon lifted his swords over his head with a battle cry that would have made any Highlander proud, as the first wyrran entered the hall. He cleaved the beast’s head off and rotated his swords as he waited for the next.

They didn’t have long to wait.

Wyrran poured through the great hall like ants. They crawled down the walls, their pale eyes focused on her. Their inhuman screams made her tremble and long to cover her ears.

“Cara.”

Lucan’s voice jerked her out of her fear. He gave her a quick nod over his shoulder before he bent his knees and waited for the next wyrran.

It was a beautiful sight watching Lucan fight. He moved with such grace and skill and beauty that for a moment she forgot her life was in danger.

A blur out of the corner of her eye was the only warning she got that a wyrran had come after her. She lifted her sword and spun around. There was a shriek as her blade penetrated the creature’s chest. She wasted no time in cutting off its head.

But as soon as that one fell, two more took its place.

The hall faded away as she focused on the two wyrran. They moved as quickly as she did, but she managed to use her dagger to slice one’s ribs while she severed the tendons in the back of the other’s knee.

When it went down, she chopped off its head. She sucked in a breath as claws raked down her back. She was careful not to cry out and cause Lucan to lose concentration while he fought. Instead, she ducked and spun, using her dagger to cut the wyrran’s head from its hairless body.

* * *

Quinn leapt from the top of the battlements to the bailey below where a blue-skinned Warrior had just come through the gate house. He landed atop the Warrior and sank his claws in the man’s neck. The Warrior howled and reached back to scour the side of Quinn’s face with his claws.

Quinn bit back a curse as pain lanced through him, but the pain became anger, fueling his need to kill. He gripped the man’s head and tried to twist it to break his neck, but the Warrior anticipated Quinn’s move and bent over.

Quinn lost his hold on the Warrior and fell to the ground. He ducked his head and rolled. He came to his feet with a twist to face the Warrior.

“You won’t win,” the Warrior said. “No one wins against Deirdre.”

Quinn laughed as he recognized his blue foe as the Warrior he had fought in the first battle. “Then you havena tried hard enough. We’ve stayed out of her evil clutches for over three hundred years.”

“Ah, but the Druid will be your downfall.”

Quinn narrowed his gaze as they circled each other. “What do you mean?”

“Exactly what I said.” The Warrior bared his teeth and ran his tongue over his fangs. “Deirdre wants all of you alive, but I’ve a need for blood this night.”

“Imagine that. So do I.”

They clashed with a bone-jarring crash. Quinn jerked his arm away before the Warrior could sink his sharp fangs into him. He threw back his head and roared as the Warrior wrapped his arms around Quinn’s middle and squeezed.

Quinn head-butted the royal blue Warrior, sending him stumbling backward. It was enough for him to loosen his hold and for Quinn to break free. As soon as Quinn’s feet hit the ground he threw the Warrior against the castle. He fell to the ground with a resounding thud.

The Warrior rose up on his elbow and shook his head. Quinn had wanted a fight for a long time. It felt good to give in to the rage and bloodlust.

A shout from above drew his attention. He looked up to find Hayden and three wyrran fighting, Hayden’s red skin glowing in the moonlight as he threw a ball of fire at the ugly creatures.

When Quinn turned back, the Warrior was gone. Quinn cursed and hurried into the castle, only to stop in his tracks when he saw the sheer number of wyrran in the great hall.

“Holy hell,” he murmured.