Excerpt copyright @ 2019 Kara Griffin
The evening meal ended, and everyone sought their beds.
Furor flowed through his veins and the more he thought about it, the more his
blood boiled. Colin kicked a chair by the hearth. He pulled off the cushions,
ripped them apart, and the stuffing fell to the floor. He kicked the trestle
table, which fell to its side. With the rise of his temper, so rose the noise
level.
“About time.” Robin and Brendan spoke through the entrance
of the hall.
“Go bugger yourselves. I’m ridding the keep of her wee
reminders.” Colin pulled a tapestry from the wall and shredded it.
“If it makes you feel better, go ahead. We’ll watch,” Robin
said.
Brendan nodded in agreement.
“Watch all you like.” Colin pulled another banner from the
wall. She’d sewn his clan’s emblem on it, a wolf’s head sewn in blue, with a
red bone stitched in its mouth, embroidered perfectly. His breath hitched, and
he slumped to the floor. He gripped the banner resolutely and leaned his head
against the wall.
“Colin?” Brendan said.
“Aye, Brendan?”
“I must tell you about ma and da. Don’t try to stop me.”
Brendan sat beside him. “I talked to Dame Hester about them, after her husband
died. She was lonely, so I’d keep her company. Mostly, I wanted her cooking. I
asked questions, and she told me Da often hurt Ma. Ma was scared, that’s why
she was sad and why she’d kept to herself,” his voice wavered.
Colin stared at his brother. Brendan knew the truth all the
while, and others were privy to the truth, too. He felt like a beguiled arse.
Since his talk with Walt, he accepted it.
“She cared about us, Brendan,” Colin said.
Brendan set his hand on his shoulder. “Aye, she cared, but
he never gave her a chance. He should have protected her, but instead, he beat
her.”
“I always thought he was a good man, now I find out he…wasn’t.
Walter had the McFies kill him. He avenged Ma because Da killed her. I cannot
banish him for it.” Colin couldn’t reveal the other things Walter told him. If
Brendan learned it, Walt should be the one who would tell him.
“He avenged her. Walt’s a good man. I agree, Colin, it
wouldn’t do well to banish him for his bravery,” Brendan said.
“Walter’s been more a father than ours. He’s always put us
before the clan,” Robin said.
“I don’t know what to do about Jules.” Colin faltered, his
jaw twitched at his uneasiness.
“Colin, you must go after her. She’s your wife and might be
in deep trouble. We have to leave now,” Robin insisted.
“You want to chase after Tess, Robin. Let him make up his
own mind. If he loves her, he’ll go.” Brendan pulled Robin’s arm, and they left
the hall.
Colin’s chest tightened at the remembrance of her pleas. She
didn’t want to die and feared what would happen if she was held by her father
or John. He couldn’t stand the thought she might be upset he hadn’t come after
her. Jules needed him and he had to put aside his wounded pride.
“Well, hell.”
Walter and Bleeth strode in the hall and saw him on the
floor. “What are you doing, Colin?” Walter asked.
“Contemplating.”
“Bleeth needs to speak to you. Is there anything I can do to
help you contemplate?”
“Nay, I’m making my mind up. What is it, Bleeth?”
Colin noticed the strain on Bleeth’s face.
“She went to King John to prevent his attack on the
KirkConnell’s. I tried to protect her, but when I returned from the bush where
we’d stopped to rest, she and Tess were gone. I should have followed and
tracked her, but I returned here and thought to ask for your help, but—”
“She’s facing a king with no one to aid her.” Colin got off
the floor, muttered an expletive, and stormed from the keep. He trotted directly
to the garrison to ready the men.
By morning Colin prepared to set out. He waited by his horse
and for his men to ready for the journey. He scowled at his brother, Brendan.
“Brendan, what are you doing?”
“I’m putting soil in my boots,” he explained.
Incredulous, Colin shook his head. “I can see that, but
why?”
“So my feet won’t leave Highland ground.”
Colin laughed and smacked his brother on the back. He’d
never heard of anything so outlandish. His brother held strange beliefs about
warring, but he was probably the fiercest warrior in the MacKinnon clan and the
most superstitious.
“Your feet will stink as a sty.”
“Aye.” Brendan’s eyes smiled, but his scowl remained.
Colin couldn’t believe he was about to go to the king’s
castle to retrieve his wife. The men were enthusiastic about the journey,
although, no one asked where they journeyed. They knew exactly where they
headed and why. Their trek continued as they rode through the thick woods until
something occurred to Colin. He veered his horse around and led his men back
toward the Highlands.
“Where are we headed now, Colin?” Robin asked.
“We’ll need our allies. Make camp here and have the Kerrs
and KirkConnells meet us here by morn. I need to get to Jules.”
“Julianna and Tess will fare well, Colin. No need to worry.”
“I hope so, Robin. I don’t want to lose her.”
“I know how you feel. I feel the same way about Tess.”
“We must gain entrance to the king’s castle. I hope she
makes it there safely. It’s best we take our allies with us and save us the
trouble of calling on them later. We’ll need more men for this war.”
“Are you saying we war against England?” Brendan asked.
“If I need to do so to get Jules back, then we shall.”
Don't miss Warrior's Pledge
2 comments:
This sounds amazing. Thank you for posting this ❤
Hi Alison!! Thank you for stopping by my blog. I appreciate your kind words. ~Kara
Post a Comment