Page 13 of Forge of the Highlander’s Destiny

T he next few days were uneventful, but they were relaxing.

Cohen knew that it might be dangerous, but he was slowly allowing himself to not be so on edge, constantly thinking about who betrayed him.

Sienna was happy to be with him after she heard he’d been captured, and they were able to discuss a lot of clan business.

She would have stayed for the Yuletide celebrations, but she had her own clan to return to.

“There is so much to be done. The villagers appreciate when we are there to host the celebration each year,” Sienna explained to Arya as they were all walking out of the castle gates into the cold winter sunshine.

“Well, that is kind of ye,” Arya said with a smile, and Cohen couldn’t help but watch their interaction with a little tingle of happiness.

He remembered Arya’s statements about feeling jealous of his sister, and so they’d spent much time together over Sienna’s visit.

Arya asked her many questions, and Sienna even put forth a few solutions about Arya’s future.

He knew it was a foolish thing to do, but his mind, especially when he was tired, would start to daydream about this being his daily life.

Arya speaking to his sister over games or at dinnertimes, or even in front of the library fireplace, when the weather was growing cold.

And she…his wife. Then there was that kiss. So brief and yet so warm and perfect.

The thought and the image of Arya as his woman always warmed him to the core, but then once he realized what he was doing and thinking about, he scolded himself.

She would move on, and he had no need of a wife.

Not yet, when there was still a traitor at large.

And no doubt her father would soon be coming after her.

“It is sad they cannae stay,” Arya said, waving after the carriages as she and Cohen stood side by side.

“Aye, I ken, but I was glad to have her here. She always makes things brighter, more energetic.” Sienna waved back from her carriage and then tucked herself away inside.

“Aye, it is such a shame that she is stuck with such a husband.”

Cohen started laughing, and he saw Arya cover her mouth with her hand. “Forgive me. I didnae mean to be so rude. She is yer sister after all.”

“Aye, but ye are quite right,” he answered, still chuckling. “The man is useless. Kind enough but has nae energy or desire to dae anythin’ but lie by the fire and snore until kingdom come.”

Arya grinned up at him, and Cohen felt his heart skip a beat.

Her lips looked even softer and redder in the sunlight, and her bright-blue eyes were sparkling.

She seemed at ease now, far more than when they’d first arrived.

She had a white fur blanket around her, and she looked like she was at home.

Unfortunately, she also looked like she was in bed, and Cohen was reminded of how she looked so wonderfully crumpled the first morning they awoke together.

Since Sienna arrived, however, Arya had returned to sleeping in her own chamber, and Malcolm had kept his distance. However, they were still no closer to finding out who had betrayed him.

“Well, even though the day is a sharp, cold one, the men and I will go hunting, I think. The meat stores need to be filled again, and we want to have plenty when the ground is too hard to travel upon or if the snows get too heavy.” He turned to walk back to the castle gates.

“Then I will go with ye,” Arya said, running to catch up with him, her fingers holding the fur blanket around her tightly.

Cohen shook his head and frowned. “Nay, there is nae need. Ye can stay here where it is safe. I daenae like the idea of havin’ ye out and exposed, when yer faither could return any minute. He might even be watchin’ the castle from afar even now.”

Arya stopped in the entrance hall, and the groan of the castle gates filled the passage. She put her hands on her hips, moving the fur to her shoulders and exposing her bodice to him. Cohen glanced at it once and turned away.

The lass is far too bonnie for her own good. Enough to drive a man mad.

He’d been keeping his distance a little ever since Sienna arrived, and ever since her awkward disappearance after the card game.

Once the gates settled, and the passage was quiet again, she said, “I daenae ken why ye think that ye willnae be unsafe while ye are out there, exposed, as ye call it. Why should ye too nae remain here in the castle and protected?”

Cohen rubbed a hand over his beard, thinking of what to say back. He could feel her ire rising, the fire showing behind her bright-blue eyes. He needed to think well on his feet, or else she would find a way to get out there with him when he didn’t want her to.

“Because, Lass, I am the Laird, and I dae need to go about me lairdly duties. I will lead the men in the hunt as I always dae. All me men will be there to protect me if we get attacked.”

“And if the castle is attacked?” she asked with rancor.

“Then ye will have men here tae help ye as well. And ye will be inside the safe walls of the castle, one of the best protections in all the Highlands. Sinclair Castle is tall and strong. It takes much to penetrate these walls.” He patted one of the walls of the stone passage to emphasize his point.

Arya flushed. “I ken exactly why ye willnae let me go with ye. Because ye are tryin’ tae keep me trapped. Because I am a woman and cannae dae anythin’ or help with anythin’ in any way. Ye daenae even ken that I ken how to hunt.” She jutted her chin out in defiance, and Cohen sighed.

“That is nae it at all, Lass.” He put his hands out in a conciliatory gesture. He felt like they were repeating the conversation they had the night she was almost taken to his dungeon. “Ye ken that I want to keep ye safe, and this is a way that I think is a good idea to do that.”

She sighed and turned away. “Fine, then. I shall stay here.”

Cohen almost laughed with relief but then he frowned, watching her walk out of the passage and into the main rooms of the castle.

Why did the lass just agree so easily?

He walked after her, not saying anything else, but he had a bad feeling about her sudden acquiescence.

From the battlements, Arya watched Cohen leave for the hunt with his men.

There was a bitterly cold wind, but her anger would keep her warm.

She waved to him with a fake smile plastered on her face.

Even thoughts of the kiss they’d shared did little to quell her fury.

And it only made her feel more foolish. As if he felt he could control her with a kiss.

“He will nae keep me back,” she whispered under her breath, not wanting to alert the soldiers who were wandering about behind her on duty. Her breath curled up into the sky, white against the air, and she wrapped the blanket more tightly around her.

She watched Cohen leave for a few more seconds, and then she left the battlements for her chamber. She would change her clothes and then be gone again, running out from under everyone’s view. She had done that all her life with her father and his guards.

She had spent far too long feeling lowered by a man, and there was something about Cohen that both irritated her and spurred her on to fight back.

It was a strange mixture of emotions, but she liked the way that he made her feel strong.

Even if his actions at times annoyed her, he himself never made her feel weak.

Once inside her chamber, she pulled on the clothes she’d worn on her travels to Cohen’s castle.

They were made from warm, durable wool, and she wrapped a plaid around her and belted it, hoping to keep away some of the cold at least. She also pulled on a leather cloak that the maid had left for her when she’d first arrived, and she tied that around her waist as well.

She would be warm enough, but even if not, her pride would keep her from freezing to death.

Leaving her chamber, she looked left and right down the passage.

Sucking in a breath, she tiptoed out, and shut the door behind her as quietly as she could.

There would be servants about, but they would surely not question her movements unless they were one of Cohen’s men.

She thanked God that he hadn’t thought to put a man on duty outside her door, and she was free to roam as she wished.

Me lecture on goin’ from one dungeon tae another must have done the trick.

She moved quickly and quietly and came across no one as she left the backdoors of the castle, having found them in one of her tours with Sienna.

Racing across the green to the stables had her heart in her throat.

While the stable boy might give her trouble, he wouldn’t prevent her from wanting to see her own horse, the one they chose to take with them from her father’s house.

It was cold, but she didn’t think about it because her nerves were taking her over.

Inside the stable she crept, the large wooden door creaking as she’d opened it.

The familiar scent of hay, oats, and horse filled her senses, and she looked around, hoping not to meet with any questions from the man who guarded the stables.

To her great relief, there was no one about, and she hurried to find her dear horse.

It appeared she had been well taken care of. “Sàbhailte,” she whispered, leaning close to her horse’s soft, wet nose. “It is me. Come, we will join the men.”

The horse whinnied with pleasure as Arya stroked her nose.

Smiling, Arya opened the door to her stall and led her out.

She would ride without a saddle if she needed to, but there was already one at the ready, and she heaved it onto Sàbhailte’s back with a bit of struggle and grunting.

Her saddle also contained her bow and arrow, which she was used to using as she hunted when she could find the time away from her father’s castle.

Arya had spent years working on her own with her horse since her father didn’t approve of it, and thus the stable boy wasn’t allowed to assist. But if she could do it herself, her father seemed to find some sort of respect in that, so she was no stranger to saddling, feeding, and cleaning Sàbhailte.

Once the leather straps were buckled into place, and Sàbhailte was fitted with reins, Arya led her out of the stables and into the cold sunshine. “A hunt. What do ye think of that, Lass?”

Arya smiled, thinking back to when Sàbhailte was her only friend for so long.

Arya had even given her a name meaning ‘safe’ because of a game that she and Olivia used to play when they were children.

They would run away from their father, his loud voice yelling after them.

Whether it was in the castle or outside, once they found their hiding place, they would crouch down inside of it.

They would shut their eyes and whisper “safe” over and over until they heard their father leave, frustrated that he couldn’t find them. At memories of Olivia, Arya’s heart ached.

“Ye would love it here, Olivia,” she whispered to the air, hoping that somehow, she could send her sister some comfort until she was able to get there to see her. Gripping the leather saddle, she slid over the horse’s back with ease and kicked her into motion.

Arya steered her mare to the path which Cohen had taken with his men. It led into the woods. Now, that she was riding, she could feel the season in the icy breeze moving over her cheeks. Her breath was coming hard and fast as the hooves pounded over the hard earth.

Her freedom was intoxicating. This was not just one of the regular times that she’d escaped her father for a few hours. He was far away, long gone, and she could let that curl of tension finally release in her chest. At least for a little bit.

Spotting the men in the distance, she rode up to them, smiling as she did so, wanting to see the look on Cohen’s face.

He was a stubborn man, used to getting his way, and it would be all too satisfying to show him that he didn’t control her, even though he’d helped her escape and was housing her now.

She also wanted to show him that women were not useless creatures, although deep down she was certain he didn’t really think that, after having such a strong sister as Sienna. But she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of thinking that she respected him, not after he’d refused to let her join him.

Some of the men turned her way when they heard her approach, slowing their pace, and she grinned when she saw the surprise in their eyes. Right then, it seemed as if God was smiling down upon her. A rabbit was scuttling nearby, trying to escape the horse’s hooves, and Arya saw her chance.

Cohen was at the front of the group and hadn’t yet turned around, but she would make him do so. Silently, she pulled out her bow and fitted it with an arrow, and as the rabbit dashed between her and the other group of horses, she aimed and fired, and her arrow struck true.

At the same time, Cohen turned around and spotted her. Some of the men laughed, some clapped, and Arya felt vindicated. She grinned proudly up at Cohen, but he just glowered back at her.

“What in the Hell are ye doin’, Lass?” he thundered, and his horse turned to her. Slowly, he began to trot back toward her, and Arya just watched him with smug satisfaction.

“Joinin’ ye for the hunt since I told ye that I can. And clearly that is so.” She motioned to the dead rabbit in between them, but Cohen didn’t look down.

Instead, his eyes were trained to her side, and instead of anger, she saw fear in his look. Frowning, she turned to see what Cohen’s gaze was drawn by, and her heart stopped when she realized that it was a wolf.