Highland Hellcat (2010) (2 page)

There was a truth and a solid one.

She made her way through the winding stone corridors that made up Chattan Castle. In spite of the way they all looked so similar, she knew them well from the years that she had been raised inside of them. What might strike a stranger as an endless series of hallways that all looked the same was something she knew how to navigate from recognizing a stone here and the chip in a door frame. Her own mother had spent two years needing help deciphering the passageways when she had come from the neighboring clan of Hay.

Her father liked his castle exactly the way it was, and made certain that any repairs to the interior maintained the same look, so that it would continue to be a labyrinth. He claimed that it would be their last defense if the stronghold were ever overrun. The inhabitants would have the advantage of knowing where the escape doors were hidden, while the invaders struggled to find their way.

Brina stopped when she entered her chamber, a soft gasp passing her lips and alerting the men inside to her presence. It wasn’t fear that prompted the sound, but surprise, for the men were two of her father’s most trusted captains, and her father stood with them. She could not recall the last time her father had entered the chamber that she shared with her sisters, Deirdre and Kaie.

“Come here, Brina.”

“Yes, Father.”

In spite of her recent thinking that it might be time to depart for her future, Brina suddenly felt her belly tighten as she moved across the floor toward her sire. It was very possible her father was there to tell her to go from her childhood home to assume the place that would be hers.

The day that had just passed suddenly felt too precious, but at the same time she was strangely excited by the prospect of going to devote herself to making sure that justice was carried out. As a laird’s daughter, ambitious to become a mother superior, that position would give her the authority to right wrongs.

“Good evening, Father.”

She stopped in front of him and lowered herself as she had been taught to do in the presence of her father and laird. There was a short grunt of approval, but she wasn’t sure which man made it, because her eyes were cast toward the floor to complete her submission.

“Ye perform the acts of obedience so well, but yer tone is full of fire.”

Brina raised herself and stared into her father’s eyes. He was still a formidable man, even with his hair turning gray. The wrinkles near his eyes didn’t make him look old, to her way of thinking, because her father kept pace with his Highlanders, never sitting down until they did. Even now he wore the same kilt and wool doublet as his captains, the three feathers in his knit bonnet the only difference, for they were pointed straight up with a brooch to keep them there. The captains had three feathers, but only one of them was positioned upright.

“I hear ye brought in two rabbits tonight. Tell me where ye were hunting.” Her sire’s voice was still strong and powerful too. It was also edged with authority and the expectation that his words would be obeyed quickly. What disturbed her was the hint of anger in his tone. Suspicion returned to needle her.

“Off in the north valley with Bran, in the trees there.”

Her father cast a look back at the darkened corners. Brina could feel tension flowing through the air, and when her sire looked back at her, his face was a mask of disgruntlement.

“Did ye see anyone leaving the castle?”

Brina suddenly gasped, her mind connecting her sire’s unexpected appearance and the serious nature of his questions. She should have thought to question how the woman she’d seen had been riding a horse. That fine animal was a mark of wealth, and so was the thick cloak that the woman had worn. Brina didn’t need to see that the beds were empty to understand her sire’s suspicion, but the idea stuck in her throat, for it meant that her sister Deirdre was turning her back on her clan, because Kaie had been in the kitchen.

“Sweet Christ, she’s gone insane.” The words went past her lips before she recalled that there were others in the room.

Her father made a low sound that left no doubt of his displeasure. Even though it was not directed toward her, Brina felt a ripple of apprehension travel across her skin.

“Ye have a temperament that would scare most men, Brina, but I suppose I should be thankful, for ye will tell me the straight facts.”

“Well, of course I will. I do nae lie.” Brina propped her hands onto her hips, and her father’s lips twitched in spite of the darkness of his expression.“Nae, ye do nae, for ye fear no living soul because tradition demanded that I promise ye to the church.”

There was a note of regret in her sire’s voice.

Brina relaxed her stance, her heart aching to see him in such turmoil. “I will honor yer word, Father. I swear it.”

“Ye swear too.” Robert shook his head. “It’s obvious that I did not force ye to learn to be meek and pleasing for a husband.”

Brina felt her cheeks warm. “I should have said that I promise to make ye proud.”

“Nay. Be who ye are, Brina. I let ye learn from Bran because ye needed more strength than yer sisters. Ye will have no husband to shoulder burdens for ye. I’m right proud of ye.”

Shock held her silent for a moment.

Her father chuckled softly. “Did ye think that I would nae know that he was teaching ye to hunt with the bow?”

“I did think ye might be unaware of it.” She raised her chin again. “But I swear… I assure ye that I meant no deception, only that it seemed rather unimportant compared to the tasks ye must deal with each day.”

Her father growled, startling her with how much anger there was in that sound. She’d witnessed him yelling at other men, but he had always maintained his control with her and her sisters. That was a Highlander’s way.

“Aye, there are pressing matters that I must face, ones I have no liking for, but I know now which of me daughters is set on deceiving me tonight.” He pressed his lips into a hard line. “Did ye see her face?”

Brina shook her head, staring straight back into her father’s eyes in spite of the rage she saw flickering there. “Nay, Father, I was too far away, and dusk fully fallen. She also wore a cloak with the hood raised over her head. It might nae be Deirdre.”

There was a soft step near the doorway, and a figure appeared there, pausing in surprise just as Brina had. Kaie’s eyes widened, and she raised a hand to cover her lips, but her trembling fingers betrayed her.

Their sire snorted. “Why so frightened, Daughter?”

Kaie’s eyes shimmered with unshed tears, and she clutched the door frame tightly with fingers that had turned white. Robert didn’t hold his temper in check tonight but let it fall on his second daughter.

“I’ve no stomach for a coward, and even less when that person is me own daughter. Stand ye firm in the face of my displeasure and tell me where yer sister is gone, for I see the guilt on yer face. Make yer choice, Daughter, for I’ll nae be tolerating this behavior from me own children.”

Brina had rarely seen her father so angry. He normally controlled his emotions and left one guessing as to his true opinion on matters. Once she had heard him telling her brothers to always mind their tongues, for as the sons of the laird, a hasty word might cause suffering when the other members of the clan followed those rashly spoken phrases.

Kaie shivered visibly, her delicate frame still in the doorway. Their father snarled softly.

“I told ye to step forward and face me, girl. Ye are born of Highlander stock, so stop shivering when ye should know full well that I am nae a man who is pleased when his word is broken. Yer sister is promised to Connor Lindsey, the banns cried years ago.” Her father turned and pointed at the empty beds. “So tell me why she is no’ sleeping in that bed and nae even beneath me own roof. Me men claim she is no’ to be found.”

“I pleaded with her nae to go…”

“Pleaded? Ye should have taken yerself to me, yer father, and told me of this sordid business! The Lindseys are nae a clan to be mocked, and I assure ye that Connor Lindsey will nae wear the horns of a cuckold gracefully! Are ye insane, girl? There might well be bloodshed over this insult to the entire Lindsey clan. I gave me word on the match, my solemn oath!”

“I told her that! I warned her that she would be found out, but she fancies herself in love, and I believe it to be true, for she is insane with it, unable to resist going to him.” Kaie forced her quivering legs to carry her into the chamber. She drew in a stiff breath but managed to raise her chin in the face of their sire’s displeasure. It gained her a grudging look of acceptance from their father, but fury still danced in his eyes. He pointed at her with a finger that carried the authority of the laird of the Chattans.

“Where is she?”

“I do nae know! I swear it on Mother’s grave!”

Their father opened his hand, and Brina gasped. She stepped in front of her sister so quickly, her father didn’t have time to realize her intention.

He delivered a sharp slap to her, but even in his anger, he controlled his much greater strength and used the flat of his palm to strike with. A blow from his closed fist would have sent her stumbling across the floor, possibly knocked her senseless too. Pain went through her jaw, and her head turned with the strike, but she jerked her face back toward him immediately.

“Kaie is too delicate for yer strength, Father.”

“Ye are every bit the image of yer mother too, Brina.” He pointed at her. “Step aside and allow yer sister to face what she has earned.”

“She was torn between ye and Deirdre.”

Her father was furious now, his face darkening, but Brina stood solidly in place.

“She has brought it to my feet with her silence on this matter! Step aside.”

“I will nae.”

A single sniffle got past Kaie’s lips before she drew in a stiff breath and silenced herself. Laird Chattan propped his hands on his hips and glared at Brina.

“’Tis a fortunate thing that yer place at the abbey is already secure, Brina, for ye have a stubbornness that would offend any man I tried to wed ye to, and that is the truth.”

He shook his head. “But it is also a fact that I admire yer spirit, for it reminds me of yer sweet mother.”

Robert Chattan reached out and pushed her aside with a hand that was more controlled now. Brina moved, and her sister stiffened.

“Straighten yer spine, Kaie. Ye are promised to Roan McLeod, and he’ll nae be thanking me for sending him a wife who trembles anytime he forgets to soften his words.”

“I’m sorry, Father.”

“Ye should be, for this is no light matter, but I have to find yer sister before young Laird Lindsey gets wind of this affair. The man is a Highlander through and through and may just choke the life out of her for taking a lover who is his sworn enemy.”

“Melor Douglas loves Deirdre; she told me that he said so.”

“Is that a fact?” Their father’s voice turned mocking. “Why, then, is the man no’ at me table to ask for her? Are ye so naive as to think that a man will nae say many a thing when his cock is hard or when he is intent on shaming a man he considers his enemy? The Douglas hope to inherit the Lindsey land through Connor’s sister, who everyone knows they intend to force to wed one of their own. I made an alliance with Connor Lindsey to keep those bloody Douglas on their own land and to make sure they gain no more territory, or we’ll have them raiding us. Since I put my name on the parchments, the other clans have recognized Connor as the Lindsey laird, and there is balance once again. Without that, there will be blood spilled come spring, have no doubt of it, Daughter.”

Kaie smothered a horrified gasp.

“Ye see there? That’s why marriage is a matter for yer father to be negotiating, because there are details that come into play far beyond whether or no’ a lass takes a fancy to a lad.” Their father stopped for a moment and fixed Kaie with a hard look. “Are ye still pure?”

Kaie stiffened, her face tightening. “I most certainly am.”

“Mind yer tone, Daughter. Those who allow scheming to happen without raising the alarm deserve to have their honor questioned. Ye will nae be escaping this with a few words tossed at me declaring how repentant ye are. This is more than just one girl shaming her father, because I am laird of the Chattan. Ye have been taught that since ye were old enough to leave yer nurse’s arms—everything ye do has more weight because of who yer father is.”

“I would happily remain pure forever, Father. I do nae want to wed.”

Their sire made a disgusted sound and waved his hand in the air.

“Enough, I’ve a daughter to fetch back, and yer future is settled.”

Kaie suddenly found her courage. “Please, Father, send me to the abbey. I want to be a bride of Christ.”

“Has this castle been invaded by demons?” Robert sputtered because he was so frustrated. “Both ye and Deirdre seem to have gone mad with the desire to argue against the place that ye have known would be yers by my word.”

“It is nae madness, Father. I have a true calling to serve the church.” Kaie hit her chest with a tightly closed fist. “Allow me to go in Brina’s place.”

Brina felt her breath freeze in her chest.

“Enough, Daughter. I’ve shook hands with Roan McLeod, and that’s the bond of every Chattan.”

“Give him Brina,” Kaie insisted.

“Nay.” Their father made a slashing motion with his hand. “Yer sister has been raised to obey only God as her master; she’ll take her position at the abbey.”

Laird Chattan walked to the door, his stride taking him there quickly. He and his captains were gone almost in the same moment his words finished echoing between the stone walls. That left Brina and Kaie with nothing, save for the soft flicker of the candles that burned on the table.

“Do nae look at me like that, Brina. I meant it. I want to remain pure, not wed.” Kaie snarled her words, turning so quickly that her skirts flared out from her ankles.

“Yer temper is misplaced, Kaie. I am a daughter too and made no choice on where either of us is intended to be sent.”

Brina’s voice was loud and bounced off the chamber walls. Her sister flinched, but Brina felt no remorse for her.