Page 20 of Taken by the Heartless Highlander (Falling for Highland Villains #2)

CHAPTER 20

The journey back to the castle was melancholy.

Keira had felt so happy and content in the seamstress’s parlor, but then those women had looked at her as though she were wicked. It had taken her right back to the night of the chase through the woods.

She glanced at Noah, seeking some reassurance from him, but his eyes were ever watchful, and there was a vein pulsing in his left temple. But eventually, he sighed as he glanced behind them, his gaze softening somewhat.

“I’m sorry, Keira. I thought better of me own people than to be influenced by a man such as he.”

“He can be very persuasive,” Keira replied, feeling a strange kinship with those women. Who wouldn’t trust a priest? “Lucas can be quite charming when he needs to be,” she added.

Noah’s eyes hardened, and he scoffed under his breath. “Charmin’ indeed. I should like to see that.”

They continued on for a short while, but he seemed agitated.

“Ye were never tempted?” he asked, the words ominous and low.

“Tempted?”

“To marry the priest,” he said.

Keira recoiled, glaring at him in disgust. “Nay. Never. He was me friend for a time, but soon it became clear all he wanted was to own me. There is nay love in that man’s heart save for himself.”

Noah nodded. “I wouldnae wish to be in his company for a second time,” he said, looking at her earnestly. “Ye will never have to see him again.”

Keira could almost believe him when he said those words, as though nothing could harm her when she was in his presence. It was a powerful feeling.

“How is yer chest?” she asked carefully.

He glanced at her, surprise in his expression as he shook his head. “Hurtin’. How did ye ken?” he asked in confusion.

“There is a tightness around yer mouth when ye are in pain,” she admitted. “I can see ye arenae comfortable.”

Noah looked surprised. “Is that so?”

“Just somethin’ we healers observe.”

“And what else have ye observed , lass?” he asked, his eyes twinkling.

“Och, many things,” she replied.

He looked as though he might tease her, but as his eyes met hers, he winced, his fingers coming up to rub at his chest again.

“I daenae like showin’ weakness,” he confessed, all traces of humor fading from his face. “I dinnae like the thought that it is as ye said, that it is all in me head. I can just imagine what me faither would say about that if he were here.”

They walked on for a short while until Keira plucked up the courage to ask him the obvious question.

“Is yer faither dead?”

“Aye.”

“And yer maither?”

MacAllen’s body stiffened, his hand gripping the hilt of his sword more tightly. Keira saw the soldier rear his head, a man who would fight for the people he loved.

“Aye. She’s dead, too,” his voice was laced with pain.

“I am sorry.”

They continued on their journey in silence for some minutes, MacAllen glancing incessantly behind them at first, but as they moved further from the town, any threat that might have existed seemed to fade, and he relaxed.

The path to the castle was pale against the green grass on either side of them, and Keira felt easier in herself now that they were away from the confines of the market stalls. Her new necklace bumped against her every time she moved, and it remained a source of great comfort she could not explain.

“Thank ye,” she said finally.

MacAllen looked back at her with a frown.

“I told ye the dresses were a gift, ye dinnae need to?—”

“For being honest with me,” she said, cutting him off. “That is the first time ye have told me truthfully what ails ye and that ye dinnae like talkin’ about it. I can see why, with yer position, ye might wish to conceal somethin’ like this, but ye dinnae need to lie to me. I am here to help ye, remember? Or what use am I?”

His eyes met hers and there was something unreadable in his expression as they lingered on her face for a short while until he nodded, looking thoughtful.

When they returned to the castle, Noah’s man-at-arms appeared with important business to impart, and the laird gave her a shallow bow before leaving her without a word.

She watched him go, feeling as though some barrier between them had finally begun to crumble away.

She looked down at the garments they had purchased and made her way through the winding corridors of the castle up to her rooms.

As she opened the door to her bed chamber, about to set the clothes down on the bed and rest, she still felt agitated from the encounter with the villagers and changed her mind, walking down the corridor to Daisy’s room.

Her sister’s bonnie face opened the door and grinned at her. She had been plaiting her hair very inexpertly, and it was sticking up at strange angles all over her head.

“What have ye been doin’ with this, flower?” Keira asked, chuckling.

“I was tryin’ to make it look like yers, but it willnae grow.”

Keira stroked her cheek as she came in and placed the dresses over a chair. “Ye are a foolish thing; yer hair is perfect the way it is. I would love to have curls like this.” She said truthfully. Daisy’s hair had a natural bounce to it that Keira’s had never possessed, and the color was a warm copper that reminded her of a sunrise.

“Do ye wish to see what I have bought for meself?” she asked gleefully. “Well, what Laird MacAllen has bought for me?”

Daisy’s eyes lit up when she saw the dresses. “Keira, these are so beautiful!” she squeaked. “Let me see, let me see!”

Keira chuckled, stripping out of the uncomfortable dress she had worn to the market and getting down to her undergarments.

She had chosen a dark grey dress as well as the black one that MacAllen had admired. There had been beautiful golds and yellows, too, but often, as a healer, when people were very sick, she wanted to look as somber as possible. There was a green at the bottom of the pile, however, as she could not resist adding a little color to her new finery.

She had decided the black was her favorite; trying to convince herself that it was not because MacAllen had looked at her like he might devour her when she wore it.

She tried on the grey, and Daisy clapped her hands in delight as she spun for her.

“Och, ye look like a princess!” she said excitedly, making Keira smile. Daisy rose and came to touch the embroidery against the sleeves.

“I dinnae like him,” Daisy said tentatively. “I thought he was grumpy and unkind, but he has helped us a lot.”

Keira nodded. “Aye. He has.”

And he has made me feel things that nae other man has ever made me feel in me life.

“He has paid for all of this for ye? How will we ever pay him back?”

Keira watched her sister’s worried expression crinkle her young face. She knew it was only what she herself had taught her.

Keira never wanted to be in anyone’s debt and she had instilled that belief in her siblings from a young age. Until recent weeks she had paid her own way and always ensured she never owed anyone even a penny. She had no idea how much these dresses had cost, but she knew it was foolish to believe she could ever repay him with money.

“We are repayin’ him, Daisy, just as I taught ye,” she stated, trying to convince herself as much as her sister, “I am helpin’ him with his wound and givin’ him advice every day. Sometimes a debt may be repaid with unequal means. I cannae afford this fabric, nay, but I can help him heal.”

She had a strange thought that she might be healing herself as well. Her time in the castle had been happy, it had helped her to feel whole somehow, in a way she could not quite explain.

Nothin’ good will come of such thoughts , she admonished herself. Moving forward is the only course.

“I like the green the best.” Daisy said, “ye look like a fairy in it.”

Keira chuckled, keeping the grey dress on as she folded the others. She would have to be foraging about the castle that afternoon, and she didn’t wish to spoil them all at once.

“I must go and collect some herbs that I’m running low on. Will ye be alright here? Where is yer braither?”

“He was fightin’ with the guards all mornin’ and fell asleep,” Daisy said, giggling.

Keira rolled her eyes. “I hope he doesnae get himself killed in the process,” she said good-naturedly. “I’ll be back later this evening, flower. I’ll see ye later.”

And leaving Daisy to admire her gowns, she set off for the wilds to find the herbs she needed.

The day was bright and sunny now that the wind had blown the clouds away, and she made her way out of the castle and toward the loch in the distance feeling cheerful and content.

She had a mind to collect some foxgloves and try to create the tea that might alleviate Noah’s pain. She was also after some willow bark and sundew flowers, often found beside the water in the Highlands. She hoped it would be a fruitful mission.

She had decided that any type of treatment used in moderation might give her an indication of MacAllen’s predicament. She was not too proud to admit that she was eager to impress him.

She continued onward, her medical bag slung over her shoulder and the sun on her face.

As she turned the corner in the path, she stopped, frowning at a dark shape sitting at the edge of the road. As she walked closer, she realized it was a laborer sitting in a crumpled position, cursing colorfully as he gathered mud in his hands.

“Are ye well?” she called, moving more swiftly as she noticed the blood on his leg.

He turned. “Away with ye, woman!” he shouted, but she knew the look in his eyes was pain, not anger.

“I am a healer, sir; let me help ye,” she said gently, kneeling beside him.

As soon as he saw the multitude of herbs and jars glinting in her bag, he seemed to calm down a bit.

“Sorry, lass, I thought ye were one of the children from the town.”

“It is alright; where are ye injured?” she asked, looking at the mud dripping through his fingers. “And what are ye plannin’ to do with that?”

“Rub mud in the wound; that’s what me maither told me,” he replied as the black mass oozed unpleasantly onto the ground beneath him.

“Let me take a look, and we can see if yer maither is right,” she said hurriedly, pushing his hands gently back to the earth, grateful that she had reached him in time. Heaven knew what foul humors might be lurking in the soil.

She looked down at his leg as he pulled his trews up, and she saw a nasty cut just above the ankle.

“How did ye do that?” she asked as she pulled out the items she needed from her bag.

“Och, I was tryin’ to get up from the bank,” he nodded behind him at a net full of fish, “and there was somethin’ stickin’ out, a nail maybe? It cut into me leg when I fell.”

“Well, it’s nae too deep,” she said, examining the wound more closely. “We’ll stop the bleedin’ and get ye on yer way”.

The man grunted. “Ye are an angel, lass; I wasnae sure if I could walk back.”

“Is it far? I could splint it for ye?”

“Nae, bandage it up, and I’ll be alright,” he said. “Where did ye appear from?”

“I came from the castle,” she replied as she cleaned the wound of grit and mud.

“Och, MacAllen Castle is where me nephew works. He’s a good laird and no mistake.”

Keira glanced up at him with a smile. “He is,” she said quietly, feeling a pulse of secret pleasure even hearing Noah’s family name. “Now—this may sting a little,” she said as she unstoppered a bottle of liniment.

The man had the rudest mouth on him she had ever heard, and she learned some new curse words that day as she applied the liquid to the wound.

After she had bandaged it and helped him to his feet, she asked him to walk a few yards to ensure he could move about alright. Once she was satisfied that he could, she sent him on his way.

“Will ye take nae payment, lass? Can I give ye yer dinner at least?” he asked, indicating the fish.

“That is kind, but nay, I must get to the lochside before nightfall. Take care and rest yer foot when ye get home.”

She saw him nod but knew he wouldn’t. This was a working man, and he would probably overuse the injured limb to put food on his family’s table. She watched him hobble away and then quickly began the walk to the loch, aware that the sun was getting lower in the sky.

She was excited when she reached the edge of the water to immediately see some sundew flowers, their little beaded heads popping out from the ground below her on the bank. A willow tree grew a few yards away from where she stood, its long tendrils dipping into the water. The scene was so calm and serene she took a moment to stare out at the water, feeling safe and untroubled for a few precious minutes.

When she had retrieved the willow bark and ensured that she had gathered everything on her list, she looked again at the water, feeling too hot in the sunshine. She missed the lakes of her own clan where she used to swim freely whenever she liked.

She glanced back the way she had come but the path was completely devoid of people. The castle rose in the distance, dark against the setting sun in the sky, streaks of gold painted behind it over the green hills and meadows.

“Beautiful,” she said to the world at large, as though complimenting it on a job well done.

She looked at the water again and made up her mind. There was no one to see her, and she yearned to feel the cool water against her skin. She stripped off her new dress and placed it carefully over a low-hanging branch of the willow tree. But she kept her undergarments on, leaving her bag by the edge of the water, and dove into the cool bliss of the loch.