Forgiving Hearts: Duncurra 1-3 (20 page)

Malcolm looked slightly puzzled.

“Oh, I see, ye thought I was as faithless as the woman who spawned me, and would willingly betray loved ones.” Fingal finally let the rage he felt show. “Ye were wrong, Laird MacLennan. In this case, the apple has fallen far from the tree—both trees it would seem.”

“Fingal, my son, ye misunderstand—”

“No, Laird, ye misunderstand! Tis my misfortune your seed resulted in my birth, but my father was Alastair MacIan and my brother is Laird Niall MacIan and it is to him I have sworn my fealty. I want no part of ye or your craven scheme.”

He started to turn his mount away, but stopped and warned, “If your army continues to approach Duncurra, ye will be driven back and I will pierce your black heart myself if need be.” Then Fingal turned and galloped back to the Chisholm army, leaving Malcolm and Eithne astonished and staring.

When Niall’s army neared Matheson land, they found the Matheson army had assumed a stationary position on the western edge of a stretch of the moorland that straddled their border. The MacIan army rode hard across the heath, prepared for battle, when Niall saw Katherine, surrounded by Matheson guards at the forefront. He signaled for his men to halt. “What is he doing?” Niall roared, “Is he trying to get her killed?”

As they reined their horses in, some distance away from the Matheson’s position, Diarmad saw the white flag. “Laird, they appear to be surrendering, do ye see the flag?”

“It has to be a trick. This is the bastard who slaughtered animals and burned buildings. He is capable of hiding behind a white flag, or even a woman, it seems.”

“I don’t think this is a trap, Laird. Matheson’s warriors surround Lady Katherine, but Tadhg Matheson is in the open, well away from his men. Ye could kill him before they ever reached ye. Perhaps ye should move closer and see what he wants.”

Although terrified for Katherine’s safety, he knew Diarmad was right. He also knew Matheson could have Katherine killed before his eyes, and he would be too far away to reach her. There was nothing else to do; he had to ride forward and talk to the bastard. “Diarmad, ye are in command until I return. If I give the signal, show no mercy.”

Niall rode forward and stopped his mount about twenty paces from where Tadhg Matheson sat on his horse, well in front of Katherine and her guard. “What is the meaning of this, Matheson? It isn’t enough ye take my wife, and slaughtered her MacLennan guard, now ye hide behind her skirts?”

“Slaughtered? MacIan, ye have been woefully misinformed. Laird MacLennan was nowhere in sight, and the six knaves who were supposedly guarding her practically handed her to me without raising a blade. The most impressive resistance came from the lass herself. The worst I did to her guard was leave them trussed on the road, and steal their horses.”

“Why are ye lying about this? I received a message from Malcolm yesterday saying most of his men were killed, and he himself was gravely injured.”

“Laird, ye have been deceived and I suspect Laird MacLennan is behind it. If your army will stand down, I will let Katherine come forward and she can tell ye herself.”

“
Ye
will let her come forward? She is
my wife,
ye bastard,” Niall roared.

“And she is as stubborn as ye are, which is why she is here, against my better judgment. However, unlike the MacLennans, my guard have sworn to protect her with their lives, and until I am sure your hot temper is not going start a war in which she could be injured, she will stay where she is.”

Niall could not believe what he was hearing. Matheson was protecting Katherine from him! “Fine,” Niall ground out. He signaled for his men to stand down and dismounted. A very small part of him was grateful Tadhg appeared to be protecting her, but only a very small part.

Tadhg also signaled for his men to stand down, dismounted, and motioned for the guard to bring Katherine forward. Katherine flew off Eachann’s back and into Niall’s arms in a flash.

After the message he had received from Malcolm, Niall had imagined the worst. “Katherine, are ye all right? I swear I will kill him now if he hurt ye.”

“I’m fine, Niall. Laird Matheson has treated me as a guest. But there is no time to waste. Ye must listen, love, what he said was true. Malcolm abandoned me, and my guard simply surrendered. It was as if they expected an ambush, and I suspect they did.” As quickly as she could, Katherine explained what she and Tadhg had pieced together.

After hearing it all, Niall said, “Katherine, ye are accusing Malcolm of the unthinkable. He is a trusted friend and ally. Ye would have me believe these heinous accusations because Matheson, the man who kidnapped ye, said he didn’t lead the raids on my land? He could have as easily made up the story of how he knew ye would be traveling to Brathanead.”

In a gentler voice, he added, “Ye look for the best in people, sweetling, and are too willing to trust. That was my father’s downfall—he trusted Eithne and she nearly ruined us. Why can’t ye see Fingal is behind this? He is in league with this devil.” Niall glared at Tadhg. “Matheson will see us both dead and Fingal as Laird MacIan.”

“If that were the case, Niall, why would he have met ye here, in the open? He could have stayed behind the walls at Cnocreidh and let ye lay siege until he decimated your forces. I know as well as ye do ye would never have given up as long as ye thought ye had a chance to rescue me. As to killing me, he certainly didn’t have to bring me here to see that done. Ye are as guilty of blind trust as ye say I am. Ye may believe all of the rest of this is conjecture, but here is a fact no one can deny. I witnessed it. The man ye trusted to guard me, the man ye believed to be your most faithful ally, abandoned me and apparently lied to ye about it.”

“Why would he do that, Katherine?” Niall asked, sounding irritated. “What could he hope to gain?”

“Duncurra,” she answered, exasperated. “I suspect he thought to fatally weaken ye with the raids last spring. Malcolm and Eithne are an unholy pair, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the financial ruin she nearly achieved was part of the plan. If that had gone on unchecked, Malcolm could have taken Duncurra by now with an army of squires. Instead, he had to ensure ye would retaliate against Matheson with a sufficient enough force to leave Duncurra vulnerable. The raids have become increasingly more brutal, Malcolm was goading ye to do this.”

“But Malcolm didn’t kidnap ye.”

“Nay, he just laid the groundwork for someone else to. Malcolm intended to draw ye and your army out of Duncurra. Niall, don’t ye see, Duncurra can be held for quite a while with a small number of men, but not if the approaching army is expected to be there as reinforcement.”

The realization hit Niall like a rock fall. Tadhg, who had been standing to one side, cautiously watching the exchange, said, “Niall, I swear to ye, by all the angels and saints, I led one raid on your holding last fall in retaliation for your many raids on mine, and I abducted your wife to force ye into negotiating a truce. I fear the man who is responsible for this may already be in control of Duncurra but, if ye are willing, I will lend ye the support of my army to reclaim it.”

Niall considered the offer for a moment. This, too, could be a trick to ensure the Mathesons surrounded and destroyed his army. However, Katherine was right, Tadhg could have achieved that, with much less damage to his own army, if he had simply stayed at Cnocreidh. Finally, Niall extended his arm and said, “I would be grateful for your support.” He added, “But make no mistake, Matheson, I haven’t forgiven ye for abducting my wife.”

Tadhg gripped his forearm, grinned, and said, “I didn’t expect ye had. However, speaking of your wife, perhaps it would be best to send her back to Cnocreidh now until Duncurra is secured.”

Niall agreed, but Katherine refused. “I will
not
go back to Cnocreidh. My place is with ye.”

“Katherine, we are going into battle, it would be folly for ye to be there. Ye could be killed,” he said as he pulled her into an embrace.

“Nay, Niall. Nay,” she said, and beat her fists against his chest. “I didn’t want ye to send me away to Brathanead, and look what happened. I will be safe with ye.”

“Katherine, I was wrong to send ye away and I am sorry, but I will not allow ye to return to Duncurra until I am sure it is safe.”

“Ye’ll send an excessively large number of men to guard me, anyway. I can stay well to the rear of any battle, miles back if ye choose, but please don’t send me away.”

Niall considered her plea for a moment. Truthfully, he didn’t want her out of his sight ever again, but this was just too dangerous. He had no idea what they would find when they reached Duncurra. “Nay, Katherine, I will come for ye as soon as it is safe. Ye will go back to Cnocreidh now.” Although his voice was gentle, it brooked no further argument.

Angry and frustrated, Katherine once again had no choice. She mounted Eachann and headed back to the Matheson stronghold, accompanied by Tadhg’s commander, Hamish, seven other Matheson warriors, and four of Niall’s elite guard, Muir, Turcuil, Rab-the-red, and Keavy.

“Does she ever just do what she is told?” asked Tadhg.

“Gave ye trouble, did she?” responded Niall with a chuckle. “Good for her.”

With Katherine headed to safety, Niall and Tadhg turned their armies toward Duncurra.

“He’s a romantic fool,” said Malcolm sadly as he watched his son ride back to the Chisholm army.

“He’s a lapdog,” said Eithne with disdain. “Every time he’s kicked, he slinks back to Niall.”

Malcolm leveled an angry stare at her. “And yet ye have gotten in your fair share of kicks, but he doesn’t show ye that same devotion. Perhaps he sees nothing in ye worth slinking back to.”

Eithne sneered at him. “Well, that is at least one similarity he doesn’t share with his father.”

“Ye need to guard your tongue, woman. If things don’t go well for us today, I suspect ye will be banished from Duncurra, and would therefore be well advised not to bite the only hand left to feed ye.”

“If things don’t go well? Have we not already failed?”

“Not entirely, my dear. Victory will be a bit more difficult, but it is still within our grasp.” With that Malcolm turned his horse and headed back to his men.

Eithne followed him. “You are going to do battle with Chisholm?”

“Well, I have no intention of leading the charge, but aye, I have an army here, and I intend to take Duncurra very soon.”

“Then what are you waiting for? Order the attack and let’s get this over with.”

“Eithne, my love, I believe in having contingencies. I had hoped it wouldn’t be necessary to use them, but as soon as I realized the Chisholm army approached, I sent a large number of my men into the forest on the east side of Loch Craos. It was partially to prevent Chisholm from knowing just how large a force I brought. But also, if a battle became necessary, my men there could approach from the other side, effectively surrounding Chisholm. I can destroy him. I just need to give my men enough time to get into place.”

“And what if Niall returns before they do?”

“That will not happen. Ye continue to underestimate me. I also sent Duncan with a contingent of men into position near Cnocreidh yesterday. Once Niall has had the chance to get there and lay siege, my men will move in and take up positions well behind him. If Niall appears to be making any gains, they will attack. If he retreats, they will do away with whatever is left of his army. Either way, my dear, before the end of the day, Niall will no longer be an obstacle.”

“And what if Niall happens upon them himself before reaching Cnocreidh?”

“Naturally, he will think I sent them there to support him,” Malcolm said with a malevolent sneer.

~ * ~

When Fingal returned, Fearghas asked, “What’s wrong? Ye look defeated. What did they tell you, lad?”

“It is as we suspected. Malcolm intends to take Duncurra. He planned to stroll in as an ally and simply seize control.”

“He admitted this to ye?” asked Fearghas, looking astonished.

“Aye. He told me the entire plan. Lady Chisholm was right; he and Eithne have been plotting this for some time. They mistakenly believed I would join them.”

“Because Eithne is your mother? Are they daft? Do they not recognize your devotion to your brother?”

“It seems that Niall is not my brother.”

Fearghas looked at Fingal askance.

“Apparently, Malcolm is my father. Eithne was already carrying when she married Laird MacIan. They did all of this for me,” Fingal said bitterly. “Niall was right, it is my fault.”

“Don’t be an idiot! If anyone is to blame, it is I. I should have known that conniving witch was up to something when she pushed me to arrange the marriage. But I’m not sorry I did. Ye are the man ye are now solely because Alastair MacIan raised ye. Make no mistake, lad, ye are his son, regardless of what man that tart spread her legs for first.”

“But the destruction they have wrought was for me,” said Fingal in anguish.

“If ye believe that, ye are the daft one. Ye had nothing to do with this. This is about what they want. If this was truly all for ye, Malcolm should be turning his army home now ye have refused to be a part of it. Greed is the only thing that drives him, not paternal devotion. Given the chance, he would run ye through today regardless of whose son ye are, if it was the only way to achieve his goal. I’m not sure why he waits to attack, but I have no doubt he will, and probably very soon.”

~ * ~

Malcolm didn’t wait much longer. Just before midday, he ordered the attack to begin. From the rear he watched the battle with some dismay. The Chisholm warriors were fierce and highly skilled. Although Malcolm had superior numbers, he was losing men quickly. Then he saw something which caused him to doubt his ability to win the day. The men he sent around the loch had arrived as planned. However, Niall’s army, reinforced by Matheson, approached from the west. Now, not only were his opponents more skilled, his army was also seriously outnumbered.

Malcolm did not know what could have happened. Niall should have just been reaching Cnocreidh and yet here he was with Tadhg Matheson at his side. Now it seemed not only would he not be victorious, he stood to lose the entire force currently in battle. If he ordered a retreat now, Niall would pursue him. He risked not being able to make good his own escape.

~ * ~

Niall wasn’t sure what he expected to find when he reached Duncurra, but perhaps the last thing he imagined was Laird Chisholm’s army defending it.

“It looks like your baby brother has your back after all,” Tadhg said, his face splitting into a grin.

“If ye would stop patting yourself on the shoulder for a moment, ye would realized they are about to be surrounded,” Niall growled, pointing to the MacLennan men approaching from the east.

Once the Matheson and MacIan armies joined the fray, however, the battle ended quickly. A small number of MacLennans turned tail as soon as they realized their laird had retreated, but many others died or fell wounded. When the battle was over, Niall ordered Duncurra opened so the injured could receive treatment. Then he found Fingal and Fearghas Chisholm. Gripping Fearghas’ forearm, he said, “Laird Chisholm, thank ye for defending Duncurra. I will never be able to repay ye.”

“I trust ye will do the same for me if I ever need ye,” Fearghas replied.

Then Niall turned to face Fingal. He had spent much of the ride back wondering what he would say to his brother. He felt he had no right even to ask for Fingal’s forgiveness. Finding Fingal defending Duncurra in spite of everything was humbling.

“Fingal, I am sorry. Ye have never once given me a reason not to trust ye, and rather than rely on that fact, I have listened to barbs and innuendos from people whom I had good reasons not to trust. I fear in my blindness, I have lost something of great value—the love and respect of my brother. Please forgive me.”

Fingal smiled, but there seemed to be a deep sadness behind the smile. He said, “There is nothing to forgive. Malcolm and Eithne have been practicing deceit for so long, they have become masters. I have only just learned the true depths of their treachery today. As fate would have it, I am not truly your brother after all.”

“Fingal, of course ye are my brother. What are ye talking about?”

With a sad shake of his head, Fingal explained. “Apparently, Eithne was pregnant by Malcolm when she married your father. I am ashamed to say everything that has happened was their attempt to wrest control of Duncurra and Clan MacIan from ye. Malcolm’s primary goal was to expand his own power, and ultimately to pass it all on to me as his heir. To make matters even worse, my father revealed the true depths of his cowardice by fleeing and leaving his men to die as he escaped.”

“He is not among the dead?” asked Niall.

“He never entered the battle,” replied Fingal in disgusted. “He held a position at the rear of his men, surrounded by a handful of guards. Shortly after ye and Matheson arrived, he escaped without ordering a retreat. I intended to follow him, but by the time I fought through, he was long gone.”

Laird Chisholm said, “I think we should run the cur to ground and finish this today.”

Niall answered, “There is nothing I would like more. It is not wise to let him reach Brathanead. Select the men ye wish to take and we will leave immediately.”

As Fingal prepared to join them, Niall pulled him aside and said, “Fingal, I think ye should stay here.” At the pained look on Fingal’s face, Niall added, “It isn’t what ye think. I will never again question your loyalty, and I know ye want vengeance. However, I don’t think ye should be put into the position of possibly having to kill the man who sired ye.”

“Niall, he deserves to die, even if only for abandoning his own men today.”

“I agree, but still, no man should have to carry that on his conscience, justified or not. Let me do this. Stay and see to things here for me.”

Fingal reluctantly agreed. Within minutes, Lairds MacIan, Chisholm, and Matheson, with warriors from all three clans, headed south toward the MacLennan border.

~ * ~

Katherine and her escort were only a few miles away from Cnocreidh when Hamish reined in on the edge of a clearing and motioned to Muir. After a quick discussion with Hamish, Muir came to her and said quietly, “My lady, I don’t wish to worry ye; however, there appear to be a large number of men on horseback in the woods beyond the clearing. We can hear them, and Hamish doesn’t know who they might be or why they are here. Until we know differently, we can only assume they are a threat, perhaps sent by Laird MacLennan, but we don’t think they have seen us yet.”

“We are going to backtrack with ye and avoid them by circling to the north. Stay as quiet as ye possibly can and, if we are attacked, ye must not leave my side unless I tell ye differently. Do ye understand?”

Katherine nodded.

They quietly retreated a safe distance, and skirted around the threat, reaching the edge of the forest on the northeast side of Cnocreidh.

Before they entered into the open land surrounding the castle, Muir said, “We think we have avoided them, but if we are attacked as we move into the open, ye ride with Hamish as hard as ye can toward the keep. He will see it opened to ye, and the rest of us will protect your back.

They had barely entered the open area when a group of at least two score and ten men swarmed out of the forest to the east of Cnocreidh. As Muir instructed, Katherine rode hard toward the keep with Hamish at her side. They had barely covered a quarter of the distance when Hamish’s horse took an arrow to his chest and crumpled under him. Katherine stopped to reach a hand to Hamish, but he slapped Eachann’s rump, forcing the horse back into a run toward the castle. However, that momentary pause was enough time for Duncan, who had separated himself from the battle, to reach her. He pulled her onto his horse and rode full speed toward the forest. Before he reached the forest with her, Katherine was able to twist in his arms enough to see her escorts were holding their own, joined by warriors pouring out of Cnocreidh. Duncan crushed her against his chest and pushed her forward, leaning low over the horse’s neck to avoid the branches. He held her so tightly she could barely breathe. She wanted to fight, but knew if she fell from the horse at the breakneck speed they were riding, she could be seriously injured and possibly lose the baby. So she held on, praying someone would catch them.

As they rode, Duncan shouted orders to the others, telling them to cover his back and follow as soon as they were able.

“Duncan, there is no way ye can win this today. We know Malcolm was behind everything. Niall and Laird Matheson have joined forces and returned to Duncurra. Stop now, take me back, and Niall will reward ye.”

“Ye are daft if ye think I believe that, my lady. Malcolm is my cousin and has been planning this for years. He is not only cunning and cautious, but he was also prepared to do whatever was necessary to achieve his goal.”

“Ye are the daft one if ye believe he will prevail against their combined armies.”

“I will admit that together Matheson and MacIan will present a challenge, but it is likely Malcolm controlled Duncurra well before they arrived. The fact is, my lady, if Malcolm holds Duncurra under siege, having Laird MacIan’s wife as hostage could only be advantageous. Nevertheless, if ye are right and Malcolm fails, I still stand to gain control of Clan MacLennan. Having ye as a hostage won’t hurt me, either. This is far from being over for me, and ye are too valuable a tool to just let ye go.”

The ride was bone jarring and Katherine suspected Duncan pushed his mount as hard as he dared. She heard horsemen following them, but she didn’t know if they were the other MacLennan warriors, her own guard, or more Mathesons from the castle. Late in the afternoon, Katherine finally recognized her surroundings. They were just north of the mountain pass where Tadhg had kidnapped her only two days earlier, and she knew this was MacLennan land. However, rather than turning south, in the direction of Brathanead, Duncan turned north.

“Why are ye not riding toward Brathanead?”

“So ye know where ye are, do ye?”

“Aye, but why are ye riding north?”

“Because, my lady, it is unexpected. If the men following us are MacIans or Mathesons they will ride toward Brathanead. By heading north we will elude them. Besides, Laird MacLennan is likely to be at or near Duncurra, and we may have a better chance of reaching him there.”

Duncan’s ruse appeared to have worked, for as they travelled northward, there did not seem to be anyone in close pursuit. However, they had not been on their new course long before they heard horses approaching ahead of them. Duncan swore and turned his horse into the woods. Before Katherine realized what was happening, he clamped a hand viciously across her mouth. “Ye are more valuable to me alive than dead, Lady Katherine. Still, I will slit your throat if ye make a sound.”