Wicked Highlander

Seven

Marcail found herself watching Quinn as her mind turned from the chanting and music she had sworn she heard yet again. Every time Quinn walked about the cave or spoke to his men, her gaze tracked him. His movements were fluid and powerful.

She noticed the way he and his men would search the Pit with their eyes relentlessly. It didn’t take her long to understand what Quinn had meant when he said he had put her in greater danger by saving her.

Even in the shadows of Quinn’s cave she could feel the eyes of other Warriors on her. There was no privacy for her, but as long as she stayed in the cave, she was safe.

Safe, however, was a relative word at the moment. As long as Deirdre held her, Marcail would never be secure. Despite knowing this, she couldn’t make herself leave Quinn. Deirdre might not kill her, but Deirdre would make sure she was dead.

The thought of never looking into Quinn’s pale green gaze again left Marcail feeling ill to her stomach. Every Druid in Britain knew how important the MacLeods were to their survival. Was it the idea, as Quinn had said, of him and his brothers in the tales she heard that made her look at him as her savior?

It’s more than that. I know it is.

Marcail had seen into Quinn’s eyes. She had glimpsed for herself the shadows that haunted him, but she had also seen him take command. Every Warrior in the Pit regarded him as a leader. They might not all side with him, but they knew better than to question his authority.

Quinn turned and caught her staring at him. He frowned and asked her with just a shift of his head if everything was all right. She nodded and looked away. But it was too late. She saw him approach out of the corner of her eye.

“What is it?” he asked.

Marcail drew her legs up to her chest and rested her chin on her knees. She had been sitting on the slab Quinn used for his bed ever since she had left him that morning. Her bottom was numb, but she was scared to move, terrified to bring more attention to herself.

“Marcail?”

“It’s nothing. I was just watching you with your men.”

He sat beside her and leaned his elbows on his knees. “None of the Warriors would dare to come inside my cave. You can move around freely.”

“And if Deirdre discovers me?”

“In truth, it’s only a matter of time before she does.”

Marcail licked her lips as her skin rippled with trepidation. “Why put off the inevitable then? I’m putting you, Arran, and the twins in danger by hiding here.”

Quinn straightened and turned his head to look at her. “Do you think we care what Deirdre will do to us? Marcail, she puts people she wants to break in the Pit. We will either turn to her side or die. It’s the only way any of us will be released.”

“So you think she will leave me in here?”

“It’s crossed my mind. You said yourself she wants you dead.”

Marcail hoped Quinn was right. She had a better chance of survival with Quinn than anywhere else. “I hope you’re right.”

“I am. My brothers are coming for me, and when they do, I’m taking you out of here.”

“Are you sure your brothers know you are here?”

Quinn smiled wryly. “Oh, aye. Deirdre told me she left them a missive. They know she has me.”

“How did Deirdre capture you?”

By the way Quinn frowned she wished she hadn’t asked. “Never mind,” she said. “It doesn’t matter.”

“What did the stories tell you about me and my brothers?”

She hesitated, unsure of where to begin. “We were told you three were the first Warriors Deirdre found, that she killed your entire clan to get to you three.”

“That’s truth. Deirdre killed everything from livestock to children and babies. Anything that was on MacLeod land died.”

The way he said it made her soul ache. She heard the horror and acceptance in his voice, and it saddened her. “I’m sorry, Quinn.”

“My wife and son died in the slaughter along with my parents. I was with Fallon and Lucan and a handful of clansmen as we went to meet Fallon’s intended. Deirdre must have attacked right after we left.”

Marcail’s stomach rolled. She’d had no idea Quinn had been married and a father. She placed her hand atop his on his leg. “There is nothing I can say that will lessen the pain of losing a wife and child.”

“What else did you hear?”

She removed her hand and cleared her throat. It was obvious he didn’t like talking about his wife and son, not that she could blame him. She had always heard time heals all wounds. It might diminish the pain, but one never forgot the dead.

“The stories say you went looking for Deirdre.”

“Nay,” Quinn said with a shake of his head. “She sent us a note saying she knew who had attacked us. My brothers and I never realized the trap for what it was. As soon as we stepped foot in this mountain she chained us and unleashed the god.”

“What was it like having the god unbound?”

“More painful than you can imagine.” He blew out a breath and leaned back against the stones. “It felt as if every bone in my body snapped in two and then melded back together. My blood was like fire in my veins as the power of the god flowed through me. My body shook from the pain, but the power the god gave us overcame even that. We shattered the chains she had put us in and escaped before she realized what had happened.”

“You three were lucky.”

“Extremely so. Though at the time we didna think it. What do the stories say happened to us?”

Marcail tucked her legs underneath her. “Once you escaped Deirdre you disappeared, always fighting her.”

“Disappeared.” Quinn chuckled. “We lived for fifty years like animals in the mountains, fighting each other. We were too afraid to go into villages. It was Lucan who took us back to our castle.”

“MacLeod Castle?”

“Aye.”

Marcail couldn’t believe it. “No one ever thought to look there. The MacLeod lands were divided between clans and everyone assumed the castle was empty.”

“There was a village near the castle that made it interesting for us. We led them to believe the castle was haunted.”

“And you never left the castle?”

Quinn shrugged. “Occasionally I would, but my brothers didn’t. We wanted to stay hidden from Deirdre, and any time we spotted a wyrran we would kill it.”

“Is that how you got captured?”

Quinn hung his head. Marcail was full of questions. He might not have wanted her to know the real him, but it would come out eventually. He never cared to lie, and he didn’t want to lie to her, even if the trust disappeared from her turquoise eyes.

“Nay, Marcail. I got captured because Lucan fell in love with Cara, and I couldn’t bear to see them together.”

“Because you missed your wife?”

If only it were that simple. “In a way. Deirdre attacked the castle in an effort to capture Cara, who is a Druid. We beat back the Warriors and wyrran to save her, and despite Cara being mortal and Lucan immortal, their love knew no bounds. So, I ran away to have some time to myself. I spotted a wyrran and gave chase only to fall into a trap. Again.”

“So Deirdre discovered where you and your brothers were?”

“She did. I’m sure she’s attacked again since that time, and if I know my brothers and the other Warriors with them, Deirdre wouldna have stood a chance.”

“There are other Warriors with your brothers?” she asked, shock in her voice.

Quinn paused in his story. Marcail hadn’t turned from him when he confessed to running away from his brothers. He was curious as to why. “Aye, there are others. When I left, four had joined us to fight Deirdre.”

“Does she know this?”

“She does.”

Marcail’s eyes were wide with disbelief and hope. “Do you expect more Warriors to join you?”

“My brothers expect more, and Arran, Duncan, and Ian have joined me.”

“Will that be enough to defeat Deirdre?”

“It will have to be.”

Marcail put her hand on his arm and scooted closer to him. Quinn’s heart raced every time she touched him. He wanted to drag her into his arms and kiss her until they were both breathless and lay her down so he could cover her body with his own. To press into her softness, to hear her soft moans of desire.

“Another Druid can help,” she said. “May I join with you?”

Quinn’s mouth suddenly went dry. Marcail’s face was breaths away, her breast brushing against his arm. His body was ablaze and the only thing that would quench him was the woman beseeching him with her exotic turquoise eyes.

“Of course,” he answered. “Cara will enjoy having another Druid in the castle.”

Marcail’s smile was blinding. “Thank you.”

It was Quinn who should be thanking her. Marcail was special, and not just because she was a Druid. She was extraordinary because she made him feel like a man again.

The desire flooding his veins must have shown in his eyes because the smile slowly dropped from her face. She didn’t move away from him, though.

And that was all Quinn needed to give in to the urge to kiss her.