The Highlander's Servant: Book One of the Highlander Possession Series (24 page)

Chapter Twenty-Nine

              Kirstin stepped back and almost tripped over the chair that was there. She let out a shout when Lachlan came into view. His eyes scrutinized her at his desk, with drawers open, books on the floor, and a sole letter at an arms reach.

             
“What have ye got there?” he asked, stalking towards her casually with long strides

             
“I-I,” she stuttered, steadying herself and preparing herself for the worst. When Lachlan reached for the letter, so did Kirstin. She managed to grab it first since she was at closer proximity to it. Grasping the letter in her hand, Lachlan looked her up and down and then into her eyes, “Give it here,” he demanded, holding his hand out.

             
She did not give it to him at first, and he added, “This letter must be of importance if it has caused ye to ransack my chambers. Now,” he said again, “give it here.”

             
Kirstin hesitantly handed him the letter, at which point she regretted her action when Lachlan took it from her. His eyes scanned not but two lines before understanding dawned on him, “Ye ken.” He stated calmly.

             
She gulped, ultimately choking on her anxiety, “I ken that I am betrothed to Graham.”

             
Lachlan looked up to her with a mixture of austerity and curiosity, “How did ye come across this?”

             
Kirstin hesitated, stuttering on her words once more.

             
“Tell me,” he said more firmly, “How did ye come across this?”

             
“Jean Ruskin visited me in the field today.” Kirstin began, noticing the fall in Lachlan’s expression; “She told me that ye had evidence to my betrothal, when I had doubted her.”

             
The letter that was still in his fingers began to crumble as he fisted the paper, “That damned woman.” He said, “I will have her head.”

             
With wide eyes, Kirstin put a hand to his arm, “Nay!” and the with more calmness she continued, “Jean was very kind to me. She wishes for our matrimony.”

             
Lachlan roughly pulled away, “Jean is a traitor to me and to her son, surely ye canna think so highly of her?”

             
A glare plastered on Kirstin’s face almost instantly, “And what does that make ye? A traitor as well, for ye have kept things from me and told me of only lies!”

             
“But Jean-“

             
“Nay, I donna want to hear it. Yer just as bad as her, if no’ worse.” Kirstin retorted, storming away from him, “No’ one person in this world can tell me the truth. Why must I figure it all out myself?” She was yelling by the end of her rant, uncaring of who may be nearby with open ears.

             
Lachlan gave her a saddened look, “Because,” he answered, “yer betrothed to Graham. I only wanted to protect ye.”

             
Kirstin stopped and turned around to face him once more, “Nay, ‘tis no’ the reason.”

             
Lachlan questioned her with a raised eyebrow, “Why do ye say that?”

She gave a half smile, “Because, I may be betrothed to Graham, but I am fated to be with ye. So the reason ye give is no reason at all.”

“Then what reason would ye give for having to figure it all out out by yerself?” Lachlan asked curiously.

A deepened frown touched Kirstin’s lips, and she was left with one answer that twisted her emotionally, “My father.” The words came out choked, and she pointed to the letter that was in Lachlan’s hand, “
’Tis the only explanation I have. He asked ye to take me away, and ye did.”

“Kirstin,” Lachlan began but she stopped him.

“In a way, I am grateful for all that has happened.” She explained with a tear running down her soft cheek, “I have made many friends, discovered a brother I may never have known about, and I have fallen in love.” She gave a half smile and continued, “I may have lost one sanctuary, one that I had grown to ken since a child, but I am no longer that child, and have made another sanctuary with the love and compassion that people have given me.”

Lachlan listened to her adoringly. He admired the woman in her, and the maturity and knowledge she had gained over the past several months, “My heart will always beat for only ye.” He found himself saying, as he had so many times before.

“Aye,” she choked on a sob, but soon found herself smiling, “And mine will only ever beat for ye, as well.”

They both smiled warmly at one another, as they found a sense of belonging in the other’s heart. Then Lachlan closed the distance between them, and took her in a tight embrace. He put his chin atop of her head, and held her like that for a long time, taking in her soft curves and her pace of breath.

Then, there was a knock at the door.

             
As soon as Neil had stepped into the room, Lachlan and Kirstin pulled away from one another. Neil had caught their loving act and a smirk came to his lips, “I am quite pleased to ken that my sister has fallen in love with the laird whom Graham wishes to behead.” It was a sarcastic reply, but one that made Lachlan chuckle.

             
“Unless I get to him first.” Lachlan replied nonchalantly, “Now, what is it that yer still doing here?”

             
Neil held his head up high and motioned to Kirstin, “I wish to speak to my sister.” When Lachlan made no move to leave, he added, “Alone.”

             
Lachlan was the one to smirk next, “I see yer pushing me out of my own chambers. Very well then, but only for a few minutes.”

             
Then he left, shutting the door behind him.

             
Kirstin was left fidgeting with the ribbon on her bodice, as if all of a sudden she had taken more interest in the fabric rather than her own brother. Then, a question came to her and she looked up to him, “How many years do ye have?”

             
Neil smiled, taking a seat at Lachlan’s chair as he motioned for Kirstin to take a seat in the chair across from him.

             
“I have seven and twenty years.” Neil answered, leaning back in the chair so that he could get comfortable.

             
Kirstin pressed, “So, yer older than Graham and Lachlan?”

             
“Aye,” he waved a hand in the air, “But this is no’ what I wanted to talk to ye about.”

             
She looked at him puzzled, “Then what do ye wish to speak of?”

             
“Our Ma, and Graham are planning to ambush Laird Bateson’s estate, but more particularly, his manor.” As Neil told her this, Kirstin’s eyes had widened, “I need ye to do me a favor.” He finally said.

             
Kirstin nodded, “And that is?”

             
Neil leaned forward as if to grab her attention, and looked sternly into her eyes, “I need ye to run, when the time comes. Graham will stop at naethin’ to get ye, and marry ye. Surely ye have a family friend ye can stay with, if need be?”

             
Kirstin nodded once more, “Aye, I do. Her name is Vanora, but she is more of a friend than a family friend.”

             
Neil gave her a look of approval, “Good.”

             
“So,” curiosity came to Kirstin’s eyes, “Does this mean Ma is on Graham’s side?”

             
Neil frowned at that but confirmed any suspicions she may have had, “Aye, ye canna trust her right now for she is confused. I donna ken exactly why she is helping him, but I feel that she thinks ‘tis in both of yer benefit. I had to bring her to Graham for I already disobeyed him once, and I want to remain his squire because ‘tis to my advantage.”

             
“What do ye mean ‘tis to yer advantage??” Kirstin’s questions seemed to have no end, but she needed her answers, “Whose side are ye on?”

             
Neil grinned at that, “Laird Bateson’s.”

             
Her eyebrows furrowed, and a deepening in the crease on her forehead appeared, “How did all of this happen? With me no’ aware of having a brother, and ye working for Graham, but also Lachlan?”

             
“Hold on there with the questions,” Neil responded, leaning back in his chair as if calm again, “I will start from the beginning.”

             
Neil took a deep breath and began to explain, “When our parents had come to warn the Bateson Clan of the dangers that may arise, they left me behind to cover their disappearance. It may sound harsh to put it on a boy of only seven years, but it was my duty in a sense to help.”

Neil took a moment to collect his thoughts, his eyes seemed haze over before continuing, “At last, when our family was exiled, Lachlan asked me to be a spy for him. We may have been just children at the time, but he was somewhat aware of the conflicts between both clans, and his father was dead and his mother dying. I also wanted to give ye the most protection, and felt that I could do this by working for both clans. So, I agreed and begged forgiveness of Graham’s father, and swore my loyalty to him, even though I was far from loyal to the man. Ronan accepted my plea, and Graham and I had grown to have a friendship of sorts. When Ronan died, Graham made me his squire, which gave me more flexibility in being aware of his intentions.”

Kirstin thought he was done because he took another pause and settled back further into his chair, but then he said once more, “Often times, Graham would go to the markets on Laird Bateson’s land, and I was there that day he saw ye. I believe he knew who ye were when he first laid eyes on ye, but I donna ken for sure. In fact, I donna ken when he realized who ye were, but he involved me in the matter after he intercepted yer letter of warning. Mayhap, that was when he knew ye were Kirstin Croft, or mayhap it was before that.”

Neil shrugged, and waited for Kirstin’s reaction. She reacted by asking more questions, “Why did Lachlan no’ seem so keen on seeing ye when ye took Ma away?”

Neil grinned, “He was merely acting for yer sake. Though, I fear when I showed up in the foyer, our act of deceiving ye had been spoiled.”

Kirstin thought for a moment more, and then another question hit her, “Why did ye follow me that day when the two clans were battling?”

Neil shook his head almost instantly, “Ye have to understand,” he said, “I was only following ye for yer protection. I wanted to make sure that ye got back safely. Earlier I said that I disobeyed Graham once before, and I did because that day he wanted me to bring ye to him, but I couldna will myself to do that. ‘Tis why I couldna disobey him again or else I would lose my title as his squire, and lose valuable information that comes to him, so I brought him mother instead of ye.’”

She grinned at that, “I wish ye did no’ bring mother to him, but ye still make a good brother.” Then, Kirstin got up from her chair and walked over to him. He stood up and they embraced each other as a brother and sister for the first time in history.



             
Jean had made it back to the manor, just as the sun was setting. A stable’s boy took the horse that she had rode from her, and she calmly brushed her skirts before retreating to the foyer. She went to the dining hall and made her way to her spot at the head of the table, ignoring the rowdy drunkenness of the men. Graham sat at the other end, with Mrs. Croft to his left.

             
Jean eyed the two of them, and then finally Graham spoke, “Where have ye been, Mother?”

             
She looked up at him casually, “I was in town visiting Gail and her family.” The lie came off her tongue easily, but she could tell that Graham believed her.

             
“And Neil?” he pushed, “Have ye seen him?”

             
Jean met his gaze once more, “Aye, I have. I passed him in town, too. He should be back shortly.”

             
Graham believed that lie, as well. Then, he motioned to Kirstin’s mother, who sat next to him, “Do ye remember Mrs. Croft?” he asked genuinely.

             
Jean nodded sincerely, “Aye. How are ye, Mrs. Croft?”

             
She smiled back at Jean, “Quite well, and yerself?”

             
“Just as well.” Jean replied, politely playing her part.

             
Jean took some bread and vegetables, as the boisterous laughter from the men at the table overcame what calmness there may have been. Only after a while longer, when she was nearly done with her dinner, had Neil come in through the door.

             
He coolly took a seat next to Jean, who nodded in acknowledgment. Graham was too concerned with Mrs. Croft at the moment, so Jean took her chance to whisper at Neil, “How is Kirstin?”