Highlander Enchanted(21)

The connection she first experienced at the river, the one she did not wish to feel, was warm inside her, tossing doubt into her mind with the same force the wind tossed the tiny sparkles into the air around Laird Cade.

Her brother had died, as did her father after his bout of madness. Driven into despair by the loss of his only son and heir, he had not even tried to save himself and had fallen to the darkness of his mind.

That Laird Cade likewise struggled with the darkness of his mind, and yet did not succumb to it, left her feeling raw, disturbed. How did one man survive such loss while another did not?

But even if he had not been directly responsible for her father’s death, the man before her had slain her brother, a bright, doting and loving man she had adored as long as she could remember. Of this, there was no doubt. Word had reached her from more than one source about Black Cade murdering the future Baron of Saxony in cold blood. Richard himself had brought her such word upon his return from the Holy Lands.

Vulnerable and exposed, Laird Cade had nonetheless robbed her of everything she held dear in life. If her brother lived, she would never be forced to flee her home or watch her father die or learn the truth of her birth or face Lord Richard’s anger daily. Most importantly, she would not be alone in the world, without her champion and brother, the only man who had not ridiculed and shamed her for bettering her mind.

This night, either she murdered her brother’s killer, or she died trying.

Isabel closed her eyes and offered a brief prayer requesting forgiveness. She reached into her pocket with one hand and crossed herself with the other. Her heartbeat raced, and her stomach was in knots.

Gripping the hilt of the dagger hard, she withdrew it and opened her eyes. She had never hurt a man let alone cut one. She took a silent step forward, then another and another, until she was almost upon the unsuspecting laird. The sparks around him made way for her and floated around her, too, as if unconcerned with her presence.

Isabel raised the knife, licking her lips nervously and shaking with fear and anticipation. She stared at Laird Cade’s broad shoulders and wide back, trying to prepare herself for what it would feel like to kill him. Would she feel happiness? Regret? Horror when she felt his blood splatter her?

He was scarred already, long, jagged marks that crisscrossed his back from a weapon she was unable to imagine but which seemed much larger than the dagger in her hands.

Releasing her breath, she raised the blade high above her head, failing to notice his near imperceptible tensing.

She closed her eyes again and gave herself up to her fate. She was about to discover whose side her god was on.

The second her hands began to descend, Cade snatched her.

Isabel’s eyes flew open, and she barely had time to breathe let alone register what happened next. One moment, she was on her feet, preparing to stab him and the next, the world was a blur of moonlight and darkness. She was suddenly on her back, his muscular form pinning her to the ground, his silvery eyes inches from her face, and both her wrists clenched in one of his massive, warm hands.

She stared up at him, unable to move, afraid to breathe. Up close, his was a savage beauty, as harsh as the lands whence he came, as strong as the naked, muscular torso atop her body. His size, accompanied by the coiled power he was waiting to unleash, terrified her. Richard was half this man’s size and left bruises that made her weep for days. What would Black Cade do to her?

Why was she once more unable to look away from his piercing gaze, unwilling to move beneath his thick frame? Why did her heart beat faster now, and the fever burn hotter?

She became aware of her breathing, ragged and uneven, and the panic stirring within her the longer he stared at her and the more time she had to imagine what horrific deeds he was about to commit.

At long last, she closed her eyes to escape his scrutiny, though it did nothing to buffer her from the tension stretched taut between them.

“Slay me,” she whispered, hating her trembling voice. She had hoped to go to her death brave and resolute and instead, was ready to weep. Her family’s honor died with her failure.

“I won’t kill ye, lass.” His tone was low, rough. “How did ye find me?” His question held a dangerous edge, one that made her flinch.

“I followed you,” she replied.

“’Tis not possible t’follow me through the forest.”

His silver-blue eyes cored her, made her breath catch, and she hesitated to respond, fearful yet fascinated. His scent – of forest, heather and pure male – sent dizzying awareness through her. It was a warm, welcoming smell. “There is a path,” she said finally. “How else would I follow you?”

His jaw ticked. For a moment, he studied her, before he spoke again. “What did you see?”

“You. The water. The lanterns that glow with unholy fire.”

“Ye shouldna ‘ave followed me.” This time, there was no mistaking the lethal threat.

“Then … then kill me.” She swallowed hard, and tears stung her eyes. “I am prepared to meet my god.”

He twisted the dagger loose from her hands and tossed. “Ye bring a child’s weapon t’slay a man?” He shook his head once. “Nay, lass, ye wanted me t’kill ye.”

“I did not,” she breathed. “But I was prepared for this outcome.”

Cade considered her then sat up, straddling her thighs. He took her upper arms and pulled her into a seated position, glaring at her. “What madness is this?” he whispered. The mad rush of floating gems had grown into hues of every shade. They floated in the air above them, around them.