Blair laughed again and walked away.
“I can decide for myself,” Brianna said, the
pain beginning to ease and feeling a bit of her hard-won freedom
vanish before her eyes.
“I have no doubt that you can. Do you wish
to sit?”
“Nay,” she said with a shake of her head.
“The hard ground will only serve to aggravate the pain. I wish to
walk some.”
“It will not pain you to do so?”
She was honest. “At first, but the walking
will eventually ease it.”
He supported much of her weight as they
walked slowly along the worn path the horses traveled.
“If you have no doubt that I can decide for
myself, why, then, would you decide for me?”
“Because I wish to protect you.”
“From whom?”
He eased his hold on her as her steps became
stronger. “Yourself.”
She stopped and glared at him, ready to
battle, when suddenly she changed her mind. “You truly cannot bear
to see me suffer, can you?”
“I would suffer all your pain if I
could.”
She stepped forward to slip her arms around
his waist and lay her head to his chest. “I am so blessed to have
you love me.”
His arms circled her, making certain most of
her weight rested against him. “You may not feel that way in a few
years. You may grow tired of me.”
“Never,” she said with conviction. “I will
take joy in you waking by my side each morning and great pleasure
in falling asleep in your arms every night.”
“I will remind you of these words one
day.”
“You will not need to. I will cherish our
time together and look forward to every moment I spend with
you.”
He lifted her chin with a gentle finger so
that their eyes could meet. “It is I who am blessed to have
you.”
She smiled. “We will do well together. I am
sure of it.”
“Aye, we will, for I am sure as well.”
They kissed, lingering for several moments,
and then walked down the path and off into the woods, where they
kissed and touched and wished they were back at the cottage.
After Royce was certain that she was feeling
better, they returned to the horses.
Blair suggested that they could camp for the
night if Brianna did not feel up to continuing the journey.
Brianna insisted that she wished to arrive
home this evening, that she was anxious to see her family and have
them meet Royce.
Blair nodded, looked to Royce, and ordered
his men to mount their horses.
Several hours later, as dusk covered the
land, they arrived at the clan Cameron keep.
As the horses approached the village
surrounding the keep, Royce whispered in her ear, “Remember.”
The villagers called out greetings as the
men entered, but they grew silent when their eyes fell on Royce. He
was a stranger scarred by battle and owed respect. She had thought
they would understand and be more accepting of him. They were not.
Their stares were blatant and their whispers hushed. She felt a sad
disappointment for him and herself.
Her brother would be different, Brianna was
certain of that. He would greet Royce with the respect due a
battle-scarred warrior.
The keep was of impressive size, though not
overly large. It was well crafted and situated wisely for battle
and protection. It loomed dark in the gathering gloom of night,
though two huge torches mounted on either side of the large wooden
doors lit the entrance.
Blair had ordered the men to return to their
families before they reached the keep. Brianna was grateful, for
then she would have the privacy of reuniting with her family and
introducing Royce without anyone about. There would be time for all
to learn of her impending marriage soon enough.
Royce helped her to dismount and assisted
her up the few stone steps, Blair at her other side. The two men
exchanged knowing glances before entering, but Brianna was too
excited to notice.
“Ian!” she shouted upon entering the great
hall and seeing her brother standing near the dais. She ran right
into his arms.
He was a handsome man of formidable size and
possessed a charm that empowered him. His reddish brown hair fell
past his shoulders and his eyes were sometimes blue and sometimes
green depending on his emotions. He stood several inches over six
feet and was a skillful warrior and leader, and Brianna was proud
of him.
He hugged her fiercely to him. “Thank the
good Lord, I thought you were dead.”
She hugged him back, tears glistening in her
eyes.
There was only the two of them, their mother
and father having passed on.
“I am too stubborn,” she announced, kissing
his cheek.
“Determined,” a familiar voice
corrected.
Brianna turned to see her sister-in-law,
Moira, entering the great hall with her six-month-old son, Duncan,
in her arms. Her friend Anne came up from behind her, hurrying past
Moira to hug Brianna.
Anne was barely a few inches over five feet
with beautiful blond hair, a pretty face, and an independent
nature. She was also Blair’s wife.
“It is good to see you safe,” Anne said
after the hug, “and good that my husband was successful in finding
you.”
Anne walked toward her husband. He in turn
hurried to her side to greet her with a hug that swept her off her
feet.
“I said that I would find her and I did. Now
I deserve that reward you promised me.”
Anne playfully swatted at him and turned
bright red. “You are no gentleman.”
Moira handed her son to his father and threw
her arms around Brianna. “I have prayed for your safe return.”
Brianna welcomed her embrace. Moira was five
years older than her brother’s twenty and five years, and plain in
features, though her wide intelligent eyes produced a different
kind of beauty that many found appealing, especially her brother
Ian.
He loved her with all his heart, as she did
him. They made a good pair, and Brianna had envied them their love.
Now, however, she had found her very own. She turned to give her
nephew a quick hug and kiss, promising him that she would spend
time with him later, and then hurried over to Royce, grabbing his
hand and pulling him toward Ian, though he went willingly.
Brianna could not hide her excitement. “Ian,
I want you to meet someone special.”
Sudden silence descended over the great
hall. Even the few servants who mulled about froze where they stood
and stared with wide eyes at Royce.
Brianna grew alarmed when Ian’s eyes fired
with heat and he sent a quick glance to Blair. Blair in turn gently
urged his wife aside and moved to stand beside Ian. Anne hastily
joined Moira, and they quietly moved away from the men.
Blair spoke. “He saved your sister’s
life.”
Brianna did not understand. No introductions
had been made and yet Ian seemed to know Royce.
“I am grateful,” Ian said with a guarded
stance.
Royce barely nodded in return.
Brianna felt the need to explain. “Royce
took exceptional care of me.”
Ian kept his eyes on Royce. “Again I am
grateful.”
Brianna was beginning to grow annoyed and
she spoke bluntly. “I was severely injured and could do nothing for
myself. Royce saw to my every need.”
Ian spoke calmly; though it was obvious he
measured his words carefully. “I am indebted to you.”
Royce finally spoke and shocked all. “Then I
request permission to wed your sister.”
Brianna’s eyes widened in surprise, though
it took only a moment for her to smile, slip her arm through his,
and look to her brother. “I love him. I do not know how it happened
nor do I care. He is a good man with a tender heart and soul, and I
wish to be his wife.”
Royce smiled, kissed her cheek, and focused
on Ian. “What say you?”
Ian stepped forward. “I want my sister to be
happy.”
Brianna smiled, relieved that things finally
looked as if they would work out all right.
“As do I,” Royce said and waited. He knew
what would follow, and he placed his hand over Brianna’s, where it
rested on his arm.
Ian kept his eyes on Royce when he asked,
“Brianna, do you know who this man is?”
Brianna spoke with pride. “He is a warrior.
I thought he would serve the clan Cameron well.”
Blair moved up behind Ian, and Brianna
noticed that several of her brother’s fiercest men had entered the
great hall and were lined up along the sides.
“He serves his own clan well,” Ian said.
“You know Royce? He is not a stranger to
you?” she asked, puzzled.
“I had the opportunity to see him
fight.”
“He is a skilled warrior.” Once again she
spoke with pride.
Ian turned his attention to his sister. “He
is a legendary warrior.”
Her puzzlement grew. “Legendary?”
“His reputation precedes him.”
A sense of foreboding swept over her, and
she attempted to ease her arm off his. Royce held firmly to her
hand.
“What does my brother speaks of?” She could
not keep the tremble out of her voice. “Who are you?”
Royce found it difficult to tell her. He
knew her well and knew her reaction would not be to his liking. He
simply said, “Remember.”
Brianna looked to her brother for an answer
since she realized that she was the only one present who did not
know Royce was a legend.
“He is chieftain of the clan Campbell. He is
the infamous Royce Campbell.”
Brianna’s legs grew weak and her heart
fluttered until she thought she would pass out, but she let no one
know of her reaction. She stood straight and proud and spoke
calmly, turning her attention to Royce.
“I have heard many stories of your exploits.
You are known as a fearless leader who leads a fearsome clan. It is
said you know no fear and yet men fear your presence, and
women—women want nothing more than to please the mighty warrior. I
have heard told that you have no tenderness or compassion in your
heart. And it is whispered that you were born without a soul.”
A tear threatened to spill and she fought
with all the courage she possessed to hold it back. She would show
no weakness. “You were not truthful with me.”
“I told you no lies,” Royce said, making
certain all heard him. “You asked few questions of me.”
“I thought—” She paused, thinking how
foolish she had been yet again and shook her head slowly. “I
thought the time would come when you would confide in me. I did not
wish to intrude on what I thought were painful memories.”
She looked to Ian. “I am forever
foolish.”
She moved to step away from Royce, but he
kept a firm hand on her. “You know
me.”
“I thought I did.” Sadness welled up inside
her, and she could not stop the tear from falling.
Royce wiped it away with a gentle finger. “I
love you, Brianna.”
“You kept the truth from me. How can I ever
trust what you tell me is true?”
He wiped at the tears that followed.
“Remember—that is all I ask of you. Please remember how much I love
you.”
“At this moment I cannot. I am confused and
hurt and can think of nothing else. I thought you a gentle man who
cared.” She shook her head. “Your reputation speaks otherwise.”
At that moment his heart ached more for her
than it did for himself. He had not wanted to hurt her, and he had
thought it best she did not know his identity. He had not wished to
frighten her any further than she was already frightened when he
first found her. He was well aware of his reputation. He had forged
it with his own blood and sweat and created a mighty clan whom all
feared. He fought for kings and peasants alike, and he had fought
victoriously and with honor. And many times he had fought with a
cold heart—and, he often thought, an empty soul.
Those reasons had driven him to seek
solitude after the last battle. He had not intended to completely
keep his identity from her, but she had seemed so vulnerable, and
when she began to speak of her past and her husband, he felt it was
best that she did not know the darker side of him. So he had
purposely remained silent.
While the legendary warrior Royce Campbell
knew no fear in battle, he now feared losing the woman he loved,
and battle was the only way in which he remained victorious, so he
spoke as a man who commanded.
“Once we wed you will come—”
She stopped him, yanking her hand forcefully
from his grasp and stepping away from him. “Wed? I can never wed
you.”
“I understand you are upset—”
She stopped him again. “Upset? Nay, you
understand nothing. But understand this—I will not wed you.” She
looked to her brother. “I do not wish to wed him.”
Ian walked over to her and placed a
comforting arm around her waist. “It is your choice.”
“It is not her choice,” Royce said with
strength in his voice that caused many in the hall to shiver.
Ian stepped in front of his sister, and
Blair moved in beside him.
Royce showed not an ounce of fear, though he
stood alone in the hall. “My clan has no quarrel with you.”
He was letting Ian know that if they harmed
him in any way, his clan would retaliate with force.
Ian would not be intimidated. “Nor do I want
one.”
“Then hear me out.”
Ian nodded, always more ready to talk
through problems than raise a weapon to settle them.
“I love your sister and will see to her care
and protection. She is upset now but in time—”
Brianna stopped him. “Nay, in time I will
not change my mind. I will not wed you and that is final. I ask
that my brother give you the same courtesy that you gave me. Food
and shelter until you return to your clan.”
“My clan is aware that I am here and will
join me shortly, but I will not take my leave until you agree to
wed me.”
Ian spoke before his sister could. “How does
your clan know your whereabouts?”