Danior’s cackle frosted the blood in his pulse.
That decided it for him—Honoria needed himnow.
Lash rose to his feet, stalling mid-rise at Honoria’s name being shouted. The Highlander.
His shoulders sagged in relief.
Nothing would happen with Hugh MacCallan present. Honoria was safe. For now. But it was only a matter of time before a servant spoke about him, mentioned him to the wrong person. Lash could not remain here any longer. His presence put Honoria and her family in danger.
The best thing to do was depart from MacCallan Castle.
“Och, hardly,”Honoria was saying. “They have not seen fit to introduce themselves.”
He cursed beneath his breath.
The damn woman possessed not an ounce of self-preservation. Did she not grasp the danger in baiting a tiger? What was wrong with thesegadjos? And how the hell was he going to explain this? He hadn’t wanted to reveal anything about his life to them. He no longer had a choice. They deserved to know who they were protecting him from, the danger.
And then he’d bid them farewell.
Hot anger pulsed through his blood when he heard Danior refer to him as his kin. They might share the same blood, but they were not family. They will never be again. Danior was a vicious fighter. His father had raised him to be one. And Lash had been the outlet. Until the day he had punched back and knocked Danior out cold. His brother had deserved each blow.
The disappointment and horror in Syeira’s eyes when Danior had beaten a boy she favored had nearly undone him. She had cried herself to sleep that night. Damn near broke Lash’s heart.
Yes, Danior had deserved for someone to knock him flat after that.
But Lash hadn’t thought it through. Their family had already been cast from their tribe. And after that night, he’d been cast from his family. He had left willingly, had thought their sister safe. Had believed she was better off with a father than no father. Better off with what little of their family was left. But he had made a dire mistake. Must have. Why else would Syeira have followed him?
Waiting until Danior left with his crew, Lash turned and strode from the garden, leaving Honoria with her brother. He was weary. Drained. Dog-tired. It was doubtful that Danior believed Honoria and Hugh’s denial. And if that was the case, their lives and the lives of anyone in the castle were in grave danger.
It was time to leave the MacCallans behind.
He just had to warn them first.
