Eighteen
From his vantage point in the woods, Callum watched Marsaili on the rampart with Ulster. It had surprised him when she had appeared there so soon after arriving at the castle, and it surprised him even more when Ulster drew Marsaili to him and kissed her. Granted, he could not see the reaction on her face from a distance, but he could see that she circled her arms around the earl’s neck. She had not pulled away, and the kiss went on far longer than Callum cared for. Jealousy gripped him in a merciless hold. His blood strummed in his ears as he reminded himself that Marsaili was most certainly doing what she needed in order to survive, but that did not mean he had to like it.
When the kiss was finally over, he exhaled a ragged breath, only to catch it again moments later when she stepped toward the earl and kissed him. Callum gripped his sword in hand and waited for the kiss to end. It felt like an eternity before it did. She had done what she had needed to, and he would, as well. He glanced toward the castle. Somehow, he had to breach it and rescue her, and he feared he did not have long.
Callum spent the night discovering as much as he could about the castle, and what he learned did not fill him with much hope. It was greatly fortified, and the only way he could find to breach it was to swim the moat and try to gain the bridge. He waited as patiently as he could for darkness to once again descend, and as he waited, he plotted how to distract the guards so he would have a chance. The only thing he could think to do was set a fire in the woods. Near nightfall, he gathered brush to put his plan to action, then went back to his position, where he could see the castle clearly and wait.
Before the darkness set in, Marsaili appeared on the rampart again. She was accompanied by two guards who led her to Ulster. After they stood speaking for a moment, she dropped to her knees at Ulster’s feet, and Callum’s stomach lurched. What had occurred the night before? What had the man done to her? Callum could barely see her past his red haze of anger, and when Ulster yanked her to her feet and covered her mouth with his once more, Callum swore. “God’s blood!”
Behind him, wood cracked underfoot. He swiveled into a stand, sword drawn, legs parted, and anger coursing. Before him stood three men, one of whom he recognized as Alex MacLean, laird of the MacLean clan. The other two men he did not know.
“Ye should nae let yerself be so distracted by a harmless kiss that ye dunnae hear when someone approaches,” the man standing directly in front of Callum said. They locked gazes, and the man assessed him with keen green eyes.
“And ye are?” Callum demanded.
“Lachlan MacLeod,” the man replied. “Half brother to Marsaili.
Before Callum could respond, the fair-haired warrior standing beside Lachlan said, “I’m Cameron—also half brother to Marsaili. Dunnae pay heed to this clot-heid.” Cameron elbowed his brother in the side. “If Lachlan came upon his wife, Bridgette, kissing another man, his logic would flee, and he’d likely get himself killed storming an impregnable castle to retrieve the stubborn lass.”
“I hate to admit it,” Lachlan said, “but my brother speaks the truth. But the difference is that Bridgette is my wife. Marsaili is nae yers. If she cares to kiss another man, then—”
“She dunnae,” Callum interrupted. “She simply does so as a deceit. I’m certain.”
Alex waved a hand at Lachlan and Cameron. “Dunnae pay heed to these two. They ken how Marsaili feels about ye. Broch told us.”
Callum had already concluded that Broch must have crossed paths with them and sent them here to aid him. “When did ye see him?” he asked Alex.
“Shortly after ye parted ways with him. We came upon him in the woods on the edge of Inverurie. We had received word of the Campbell traveling there and had followed in hopes of finding Marsaili. We tried to close the distance to ye after Broch told us what had occurred and where ye were going, but ye made impressive ground, and we trailed ye almost all the way here. How long have ye been here?”
Callum glanced to the darkening sky. “One day.”
Lachlan motioned to the castle. “We will have to swim the moat to reach her.”
“Aye,” Callum agreed, studying the castle and its fortification again. “We’ll move when it’s dark.”
“Dunnae ye think we should wait until the residents are slumbering?” Alex asked.
“Nay,” Callum answered immediately. He had a bad feeling in his gut.
“I agree,” Lachlan said, an odd tension emanating from the man. “My wife was taken before we were married, and I reached her too late.” He paused for a moment, and Callum could hear him audibly swallow. “I will nae ever forgive myself for that.”
Callum had heard some news of what had occurred, and by the tone of Lachlan’s voice and the tortured expression on his face, Callum knew what he had heard was true. Stony anger made Lachlan’s green eyes look like green crystals. The man rolled his shoulders before focusing once more on Callum. “Ye need to ask yerself, if ye are too late, if she is married, if she has been defiled—”
“I will kill the earl with my bare hands,” Callum spat.
Alex clamped a hand on Callum’s shoulder. “He dunnae wish to ken what ye would do to the earl. It’s given ye would kill him.” All three men nodded at Callum. “What Lachlan wants to ken is, would ye still want her?”
“What?” Callum asked, astonished. The three warriors stared in silence at him. “Aye,” he replied. “I would want her always. It does nae matter what happens.”
“Then we will aid ye,” Cameron said.
Lachlan bent over and picked up a stick then crouched near the dirt. “Let us plan how we will breach the castle.”
Callum nodded, kneeled down beside Marsaili’s brothers and spoke. “It’s as ye said. We must swim the moat, but in order to gain entry into the castle, one of us must get the attention of the tower guards, compel them to lower the bridge, and while they are occupied with that person, the rest of us will loop a rope to the bridge, gain it, and enter through the main courtyard. I also considered starting a fire.”
“Nay,” Alex said. “I’ll distract the guards while the three of ye gain entry to the castle.
“Nay,” Cameron replied. “Lena—” He glanced at Callum as if realizing he may not know who Lena was. “Lena is Alex’s wife and our sister, and so she is Marsaili’s half sister.”
