Page 24 of Wendy Meets the Highlander Hamish (Scottish Highlander I Never Knew #5)
H amish and Wendy rode back toward the edge of the copse of trees to watch the bandits and make sure they weren’t preparing to leave. Wendy was still trying to convince Hamish that he should go and gather his men, while she kept watch, but he was reluctant to do that.
“Lass, did you nae hear Annabelle regale you with the story of what happened to her when Jamie left her to do the same?” Hamish said with a frown.
“It was because her horse was recognized by Malcolm’s. I’ll tie Rune to a tree deeper in the copse so that won’t happen,” Wendy suggested. “Look, you’re the one in charge, the guards will listen to you. Just go get them Hamish. It’s not that far, and I’ve got Kier nearby if I need help.”
Hamish hesitated.
“The faster you go, the faster you can return,” Wendy urged.
“Very well, love,” Hamish said, but as he turned his horse, he spoke to the kelpie who was hidden from view in the loch.
"Kier, you best mind your manners with my ladylove. Because if you donnae behave kindly toward her an’ try to harm her, an’ she doesnae put an iron blade in you, I will put several. "
“Hamish,” Wendy gasped, and tried to shush him.
Hamish just maneuvered his horse toward her and pulled her half out of her saddle into a passionate kiss. "I will return swiftly with the men," he assured her before settling her back down and riding away, the sound of hoofbeats gradually fading into the distance.
Left alone among the ancient stones, Wendy pondered the significance of Hamish calling her his ladylove. It made her feel giddy and she couldn’t help the giggle that slipped from her lips as she dismounted and stood next to Rune, rubbing his neck.
As Wendy tied Rune’s reins to a tree, Kier returned. "Hamish must be madly in love with you to be so daring," he remarked, his eyes glinting with curiosity and admiration.
A wistful smile played on Wendy's lips as she replied, "I've had three miracles in the last month: escaping a watery grave thanks to Dub Sith, discovering the legends and myths I’ve always believed in are actually real, and meeting Hamish.
" Her words echoed with the realization of the fantastical journey she had embarked upon.
Intrigued by her tale, Kier, he asked, “I suspected you were nae from here, you bear the heart of one from another world. Will you tell me how you came to be here?”
As they walked back to their post at the edge of the copse to watch the bandits, Wendy explained her journey to seventeenth century Scotland.
“Tis a wonderous tale, lass, you are indeed blessed to have been brought here by Dub Sith.” He smiled.
“You know my story now, so will you tell me of yours and your sisters?” Wendy asked, curious to know if there was anything significant that she wasn’t aware of about kelpies.
Kier inclined his head. “You wish insight into my kind?” he questioned.
“I wish to understand you better.”
“I see. Kelpies tend to keep to their own kind. We’re playful in nature, with our own kind. Like other Fae, we can be very dangerous to those who do not respect us as carnivorous creatures.”
Wendy gulped. “Are humans often in your diet?” she asked, moving slightly away from him, feeling just a little uncomfortable.
Kier snorted. “Not normally. I’m not saying we willnae devour a human, but tis nae because we have a craving for them.
We’re typically partial to deer, boar, and sheep.
We are nae evil, as many like to think. We simply wish to exist and be left alone.
We do nae feed daily upon game, as we supplement our feeding with the plentiful fish.
The only humans who find themselves on our menu are those who try to capture and ride us without permission. ”
As he spoke, Wendy was struck by the simplicity of it. “It’s about respect. If they asked, you might be inclined to say yes, but in not asking, they show their disrespect for your magnificence and therefore aren’t worth more than a meal.”
“As you say,” he acknowledged.
“You know, in my time there are men who’ve raised wild cats, large ones, that are very dangerous and will sooner eat a human than look at him funny, but these men, they respect the tigers and because of that the cats show them affection. From what you’ve described, it sounds similar.”
“We are wild creatures at heart, lass. I would imagine any creature who is wild would feel the same. Show us respect and we will do the same for you, though there are some more wild than we and you may nae want to approach them less you find yourself in peril.” He gave her a rare wry smile.
“That is good advice. I can say I would never get in an enclosure with a tiger, so it should be the same with any other wild creature.”
“Nae all Fae appear dangerous, lass, though they are the most wild creatures you will ever encounter. Do nae be fooled by a gentle appearance.”
“I will take your words to heart, Kier.”
He looked wistfully toward the bandits. In a moment of candid revelation, Kier admitted, “I do feel a sense of disappointment at not being able to eat Malcolm. He is the one responsible for my sister's captivity and torture. Tis too bad I agree to hand him over.”
Wendy sighed. “I think, for what he’s done not only to your sister, but to everyone and everything he’s harmed, a quick death by kelpie might be too good for him. He deserves to feel what he’s put out into the world.”
“Hamish mentioned he’s killed many men.” Kier nodded. “I suppose allowing him to pay the price for those deaths trumps the pain and suffering my sister is enduring.”
“Not trumps, Kier. Never. He deserves to experience that same pain and suffering threefold, and in addition to that, pay the price for the deaths he dealt.”
Another slight smile crossed Kier’s lips. “As you say, lass. I hope that comes to pass. And should your laird wish to make him pay a harsh sentence, I am sure I can call upon some other Fae to provide the pain and suffering he deserves.”
A shiver went down Wendy’s spine at his words.
She knew there were some extremely vicious Fae in the myths and legends and if they were as real as Kier, then she was fully aware of what kind of pain and torture Kier was speaking of.
“I will be sure to share that with the Laird, should I get the chance to meet him.”
The atmosphere crackled with a sense of impending resolution—a reckoning that resonated with the copse of trees and the mystical waters of the loch.
Wendy, caught in the ebb and flow of supernatural revelations and human retribution, marveled at the convergence of their worlds.
She would have to remember this conversation and make a note of it for her book.
“That is enough darkness for now,” Kier murmured, and then with a glance toward her, he added, “tell me more of where you come from.”
“What would you like to know?” Wendy asked.
Kier paused, and then said, “What is different in the future from this time?”
Wendy giggled. “There is so much, but then again, much is the same.” She hadn’t meant to be cryptic, but it was true.
She told him about the advances the humans made in travel, and building and how connected they all were via the internet, but then how disconnected they were with the people around them.
How it seemed that even though the world was much smaller in her time it felt like the people were more distant than ever.
“And what of the Fae. Do they interact with these humans of your time?” he asked.
Wendy shook her head and frowned. “No. I don’t think the Fae want to interact with the humans of my time much.
I think most have retreated from our world and into their own, keeping the veil between the two worlds locked.
Most humans of my time don’t believe the Fae ever existed.
They call them children’s stories. Or tall tales to entertain or scare others.
There are a few of us who believe, and I was working on book about the Fae and other creatures of a supernatural nature before Dub Sith brought me here. ”
“Are you glad he did? Would you have chosen to come were you not about to die?” he asked.
A smile crossed Wendy’s face. “I am glad and yes, I would have. I may not have trusted him immediately, skepticism is pretty strong in my world, but I think I would have taken the chance that he was telling me the truth.”
Kier nodded and he turned his gaze back toward the trees behind them. “Your mate will be here soon,” he murmured.
“How do you know?” Wendy asked, looking into the dim light of the forested area behind them. She couldn’t see anything really beyond her horse. The trees were too thick and the sunlight too dim in the copse of trees.
“I can hear them.”