A Fire Within (These Highland Hills, Book 3) (8 page)

Though he imagined, he thought with a sardonic smile, his
loathsome presence would be indignity and suffering enough. She
wouldn't take kindly to being abducted, of that he was certain.
Caitlin Campbell was, after all, a headstrong, fiery-tempered
vixen.

On second thought, perhaps the custody of a squalling bairn
might indeed be a far more agreeable undertaking.

"Are ye daft, man? Has reason finally and completely fled yet
brain?" Kenneth raged at Dar the next morning. "It wasn't enough
to learn yestereve that Caitlin is the Campbell's sister, and now ye
propose to abduct the lass and hold her hostage for Athe?"

Dar shrugged. "Is it any worse than our original plan to steal
my brother right out from beneath Campbell's nose?"

"Aye, it is indeed. Breaking Athe out is a lot like reiving cattle.
No one likes it, but no one's overly surprised by it. Besides, it's the
Highland way. Taking a man's sister, however, touches on family
and clan honor. And ye know how prickly a subject that can be."

Kenneth rose from his bed and gingerly placed his weight on
his sore foot.

Dar frowned. "Ye're not supposed to be walking on that, ye
know."

"Have I any choice? It seems we'll soon be on the run again,
ifye truly aim to carry out yer lack-witted plan."

"It's the only option left us." Dar sighed and shook his head.
"Ye know that as well as I."

"Aye, that I do." The bard took several careful steps, then looked
up and grinned. "Besides, my foot feels surprisingly good. That
thorn tip must have been what was causing most of the pain."

"I wasn't planning on making ye walk all the way back to
Glenshira, ye know."

"Och, and wouldn't that be a sight, with me on yet back, and
you dragging a squalling lass behind ye!"

Dar rolled his eyes. "I was thinking more like filching a couple
of Campbell horses. We'll need to put as much time between us
and Niall Campbell as we can, as fast as we can. Once he discovers
what we've done, ye can be sure he'll come after us on horseback,
with a pack of bloodthirsty clansmen at his side."

Kenneth gave a disparaging snort. "And horse thieving sounds
about as easy as getting that little wench out of here undetected.
But, as ye said. What choice have we? Tell me what ye need of
me, and I'll do it."

"Well, that's still the part I haven't quite worked out yet. I'll
need today to nose around a bit and see what comes my way."

"See to it then." His friend walked back to his bed and lay
down, propping his foot on the pillows. "First, though, something
to break our fast would be most appreciated."

"Right. I'll get to it." Dar strode to the door. "Might as well
also begin the nosing around."

"Aye," Kenneth muttered dryly as Dar opened the door and
walked out. "Ye do that, lad. Ye just do that."

He was no more happy than Kenneth, Dar thought as he
headed down the corridor, to have to change plans and stoop
now to an abduction. Freeing his brother from prison seemed a
far more honorable undertaking, but that idea had died a final
and ignominious death last night.

At least, though, that particular plan had been fairly straightforward and simple. Now all he had to do was find some way to
steal horses without getting caught, spirit Caitlin from Kilchurn
undetected, and then outrun her enraged brother with a woman
who would fight him every step of the way in tow.

Not long thereafter, however, what some might call the work
of a merciful God, but Dar chose rather to consider fate, presented the perfect solution to at least part of his dilemma. Just
as he was about to exit the stairs and turn toward the kitchen,
Caitlin's voice, coming from the nearby storeroom, caught him
up short. Immediately, he halted and drew back into the shelter
of the staircase. She stood in the doorway, apparently talking to
Anne.

"It's such a lovely morn," she was saying. "I think I'll go for a
ride around Loch Awe to where that burn empties into the loch
beneath those big oaks. I'll get Maudie to pack us a picnic, and
bring along Janet and Jamie."

"I suppose that'll be all right," Dar heard Anne reply from
inside the room. "Ye'll still be in sight of Kilchurn, though barely
so, and Jamie's a most intimidating presence for any who might
think to cause mischief. Still, I always feel best when Niall's at
home, though from the message I just received this morn, it seems
it'll be another day or so before he returns."

"We'll be fine, Anne." Caitlin laughed. "And I'll see what I can
find of any flowers or herbs we might need for our healing."

"Aye, be vigilant especially for the love-idleness flowers. They're
likely blooming by now. I could use them to boil up a batch for
those with fever. And also the leaves of the hart's tongue fern. Ye know how well it helps old Edith with that constant cough of
hers. Och aye, and if ye happen on some cuckoo's shoe flowers
anywhere ..."

"I can see this is rapidly turning into a plant-gathering expedition," Caitlin said with a chuckle. "We might be gone most
of the day then. Not that I'm complaining, mind ye. Already, it
promises to be a beautiful day."

"Aye, that it does. When do ye plan to depart?"

"In a few hours. I need to first find Janet and Jamie, get Maudie
to pack our midday meal, and then have the horses readied. We'll
be back before supper, though."

"Remember to pick up an extra basket for all the plants and
flowers. And a good, sharp cutting knife."

"I will." Caitlin paused. "Is there aught more, or may I see to
my tasks?"

"Go. It sounds as if ye've got plenty to busy yerself with."

Dar decided it was past time to turn and disappear down the
stairs back into the darkness. He had the information he needed
to set his part of the plan into motion. And he didn't want anyone
to see him and suspect him or his motives.

Leastwise not, he thought with a satisfied smile, until it was
too late.

Three hours later as she galloped her horse down the road
leading from Kilchurn, Caitlin almost laughed out loud. It was
a glorious day, the sky deep blue and streaked with high, windswept clouds, the sun warm, the grass green and lush. She felt
so alive, so attuned to nature, and God, and every living thing.
Something momentous was about to happen in her life, and she
was ready, no, eager, to embrace it.

Nudging her mare in its side, she signaled the already fleet
animal to widen the growing distance between her and her com patriots. Not that it was difficult. Janet wasn't overly comfortable on a horse, and Jamie, though his big gelding was a strong
beast and nearly the equal of hers, was too polite to leave Janet
behind.

Caitlin wasn't about to ride like some old woman plodding
along, though. Not today and likely not ever. And it wasn't as if
she would keep such a fast pace overlong. Soon enough, out of
the same need for politeness, she would turn her horse around
and rejoin the others. But not just yet.

The day was fresh and new. Her blood ran hot with the exhilaration that springtide always stirred, and she was free. Free
of castle life strictures. Free of the tall, closed-in walls. And free,
most of all, of that maddeningly arrogant Darach MacFarlane.

Already, Caitlin felt lighter of heart and mind. Dar was exciting, of that there was no doubt. But the feelings he stirred in her
were so dark and unsettling, so unlike any she had felt for any
other man. And the truth was that he frightened her. Frightened
her with his intensity, his veneer of self-assurance when even
she could see that a deep pool of pain shimmered just below
the surface.

She was well and tired of pain. In the past eight years, she
had lost her mother, then her father, not to mention Niall's first
wife-who had also been named Anne-in childbirth. Lost the
best friend she had ever had and her little nephew, Niall's first
child, a stillborn son.

And then there had been that debacle with David. Even now,
Caitlin shuddered at the humiliation he had caused her, when-in
his exact words-he "had suddenly lost interest in taking her as
wife." The truth of the matter had surfaced much later, when they
had learned he had been offered a prestigious position at Court.
A position that necessitated he wed another woman.

Niall and Anne had been surprisingly accepting of the broken
betrothal, both finally confessing they'd had their doubts about David all along. Still, it had been the end of the world for Caitlin. Or, she thought with a mocking grin, the end of the world
leastwise at the time.

But that disaster was over and well behind her now. She was
glad to be free of him. She was glad just to be free. And free she
intended to remain for a long while to come.

Glancing over her shoulder, Caitlin noted she had left Jamie
and Janet far behind. With a resigned sigh, she reined in her
horse, turned it around, and cantered back to them.

"So, finally decided to rejoin us, have ye?" Jamie asked, a slight
smile on his lips.

"Likely only because ye carry the basket of food," Janet muttered through tight, white lips as she clung to the saddle and her
horse's mane with a death grip. "Otherwise, if she had been the
one in possession of the basket, we'd have caught up with her an
hour later to find the food all eaten and her sound asleep beside
the loch."

Caitlin laughed. "Och, Janet, ye're such an old prune at times.
Can't ye, just once, relax and enjoy an outing?"

Her cousin scowled. "Of course I can and do! I just don't enjoy
doing it from horseback."

"Suit yerself."

Caitlin turned back to the road ahead. The first glimpse of
the big oaks, shading either side of the little burn that emptied
into Loch Awe at this particular spot near Kilchurn, came into
view. For a fleeting instant, she imagined she saw something
move in the shadows beneath the trees, then thought better of
it. Few frequented the area, so it was likely a bird or squirrel, if
even that.

Constrained now to the pace Janet had set, another fifteen
minutes passed before they finally reached their picnic spot. Immediately, Caitlin jumped down from her horse and tied it close
to an especially succulent patch of grass where it could graze. By then, Jamie had also dismounted, untied the basket of victuals
for their midday meal, and set it atop a nearby boulder. He then
turned to help Janet with the major undertaking of climbing
down from her mount.

Knowing that little ritual would involve the good-hearted
man for another few minutes, Caitlin walked over, picked up
the basket, and headed for a flat, shady location where the burn
emptied into the loch. However, as she passed a particularly
ancient and very large oak, a hand snaked out from behind the
massive trunk and settled over her hand that clutched the basket.
With a gasp, Caitlin lurched to a halt.

"My thanks for bringing food for the journey," a deep, masculine voice said. "We'll be needing it, ye can be sure."

She wheeled about. There, standing beside the tree, was Darach
MacFarlane. Behind him stood a wide-eyed and very nervous
Kenneth. Caitlin released her hold on the basket and leaped
back.

"Wh-whatever are ye d-doing here?"

The corners of Darach's mouth lifted, but the smile never
quite reached his eyes. "Why else, sweet lass? I've come to take
ye away with us."

As he spoke, the hand that still hung at his side moved, lifting
to reveal a rusty old dagg that he pointed directly at her. "Ye will be
a good lass now, won't ye? Because I'd so verra much hate to have
to use this. And, like it or not, ye are going with us this day."

Caitlin's eyes widened in disbelief. Then, just before anger
narrowed them to glittering slits, Dar saw a fleeting glint of
pain.

The pain surprised him, stirring an answering swell of anguished guilt, before he hardened himself once more to the task
at hand. Indeed, he was grateful when the anger came.