CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE –Willow–
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
–Willow–
I HAD JUST reached the top of the stairs in Sutherland Castle’s great hall, keenly aware of Lilias, considering she was my long-lost sister, and this was the first time we’d met outside the Morrow, when I not only felt Sloan’s rage but caught a glimpse of what he was looking at.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I said aloud without thinking because I was just as baffled and angry by the state of the dungeon cell he had been imprisoned in days before.
The blasted Sutherlands had knocked down even more of the wall, making it look like my dragon had caused truly substantial damage, and now King Robert was down there with them assessing things.
“Is all well?” Lilias wondered softly, eyeing me curiously as we continued down a long corridor with narrower walls than those at MacLeod Castle. I thought she was just as pretty as Aspen and Hazel said she was, with soft features and thickly lashed, earthy olive-green eyes.
“I think we both know it’s not,” I said just as softly, trying to muster up a small smile for her because I hated meeting like this.
I wanted to give her a big hug and let her know how worried our sisters and I were about her and the terrible life she’d been thrust into.
I could and would give her something, though, however risky it might be.
It was much-needed hope, I would imagine, and at the very least, she deserved that.
“Evan’s fully healed and safe at MacLeod Castle, but he’s as worried about you as—”
“This way, please,” Lilias said, clearly interrupting me on purpose. She put a finger to her lips and shook her head. “We have a lovely chamber prepared for ye.”
Nodding in understanding, I followed her into a room with two sizeable windows round on top and flat on the bottom, as well as several ornate furnishings that spoke to someone of a higher rank.
When I looked at her in alarm, thinking this might be Dugal’s chamber or worse yet, one he shared with her, she seemed to understand my concern because she shook her head no.
“I have ordered a basin to be brought up for bathing, then we will see ye into appropriate clothing for a royal visit,” she said, peeking out at the hallway in either direction, obviously making sure the coast was clear before shutting the door and looking at me with relief.
“Thank ye for letting me know Evan’s well. I have been so verra worried.”
She was about to go on but seemed to sense something first because she crouched down, peered under the bed, and her face lit up with a warm smile, which made her all the more lovely. “Och, my wee lassie, what are ye doing under there?”
“’Tis a great secret,” a little girl's voice whispered.
“Ye know ye dinnae need to keep secrets from me,” Lilias said gently, her smile unfaltering. “Now come out, Marjorie, and say hello to Willow.”
My heart leapt into my throat when the niece I never knew I had crawled out from under the bed and smiled up at me. She looked like a little replica of Hazel with her brilliant red curls and large emerald-green eyes.
“Hello, Willow.” She stood and curtsied politely, eyeing me curiously. “Welcome to Sutherland Castle.”
I met her smile, wondering if she knew I was her aunt or if Lilias had kept all of us a secret.
“Thank you, Marjorie.” Sensing something I couldn’t quite put my finger on, I cocked my head.
“I might not know much about secrets in your beautiful castle, but something tells me you might be playing hide-and-seek with a friend?”
She cocked her head, too, not wary of my question because I had a feeling she knew she didn't need to be. “What is hide-and-seek?”
“It’s a game where people hide and try to find each other.” I crouched down to be at eye level, making myself less intimidating. “And I would say, given I know someone very playful who would enjoy hiding under beds, that you might be playing with a good friend of the MacLeods?”
When she looked at her mother in question, clearly wondering if she could trust me, Lilias nodded. So Marjorie leaned close and whispered in my ear.
“’Twould be more proper to say he’s of the Wolves of Ossary, but he does enjoy his time among the MacLeods,” she said. “And whilst he likes the name Flame, he would much prefer being called Blaze.”
It seemed Marjorie had inherited her mother’s gift with animals, but I didn’t realize it went that far.
I looked from Marjorie to Lilias, startled because, to the best of my knowledge, Flame, or Blaze, it seemed, had not progressed enough as a wolf shifter to communicate telepathically. “He speaks to you?”
“He speaks to Marjorie but nae to me,” Lilias replied. “I occasionally sense his thoughts when he is on Sutherland territory, though.”
I peeked under the bed but didn’t see anything. “Where is he now?”
“Roaming about,” Marjorie said, her smile fading and her voice lowering as if she were afraid to even mention them. “He must be verra careful when Father and Grandmother are here.”
“No doubt.” I looked at Marjorie curiously. “So, perhaps a strange question, but is Blaze a wolf pup when you talk to him?”
“Aye, of course,” Marjorie admonished as if I should have already known that. She tapped her temple. “He isnae ready to embrace his other half, so we speak up here.”
“Ah.” I smiled. “I understand, and I’m glad to hear it. He deserves to have a good friend like you.”
“He says he has many friends at MacLeod Castle, but they cannae hear him yet,” Marjorie replied, smiling again now she wasn’t talking about Dugal and Elspet. “But I would say I am his verra dearest friend and he is mine.”
She was about to go on when a knock came at the door, and Lilias looked at her in warning not to say anything else about it.
“Off with ye now, my wee one,” she said loud enough for whoever was on the other side to hear and opened the door. She smiled at the servants who had carried up the basin and ushered Marjorie along. “And no more playing in the guest chambers, aye, lassie?”
“Aye, Mother,” Marjorie promised, giving me a little smile and wave over her shoulder before leaving.
After that, Lilias didn't say much to me as she bustled around the chamber, waiting for the wooden tub to be filled. Meanwhile, I drifted to one of the windows only to realize it allowed a far too perfect view of my willow in the distance. Maybe it meant something, or perhaps it didn’t, but it was worth noting I was in a chamber where I could see it so clearly.
Once things were prepared and she ushered the servants out, Lilias joined me by the window, eyeing the tree as well, her voice whisper-soft. “We dinnae have much time alone as Elspet will come looking for me, but know this, my new sister.” Her eyes met mine in warning. “Nothing is as it seems.”
“Here’s hoping.” I lowered my voice as well, praying she could fill in a few pieces of the puzzle.
As it were, it was said she was powerful enough to have banished our father from this castle at a very young age, considering she didn’t look much older than Ellie.
“Are you talking about my willow tree being here? About the gem over my dragon’s heart?
Are Elspet and Dugal up to something outside of the obvious? ”
“I cannae speak to the tree’s presence other than to say it, along with yer inner beast, are protecting more than just ye and Sloan, and Elspet has started to sense it.
” She shook her head gravely. “Lorna wasnae who Sloan thought she was, either, just a traitor in his midst feeding the Sutherlands information about the MacLeods in exchange for her to one day marry a high-ranking non-dragon clansman.
‘Tis impossible to know how much vital information she shared with them over the years.”
“And her father?” I wondered. “He knew as well, I assume?”
“Nay, I dinnae think so.” She shook her head. “He seemed upset when they first arrived, but by then ‘twas too late. The damage was already done, and Lorna, through her greed, made him just as culpable.”
“Wonderful,” I muttered, my worry over Lilias and her daughter stronger than ever. “You and Marjorie can’t stay here, Lilias. You deserve better than this and need to find a way out because these people are seriously dangerous.”
“If only it were that easy.” Lilias swallowed hard, wrung her hands together, and shook her head.
“Dugal willnae ever let us go. He would rather see us dead than free from his clutches.” She kept shaking her head.
“If ‘twas just me fleeing him, I might try, but I cannae risk it with my wee one, as she’s far more precious. Mayhap not necessarily to him because she was born a lass without dragon blood, but most certainly to me.”
“And to me and all her other aunts, as well,” I assured.
“Not to mention Evan and all the MacLeods.” I squeezed her hand in comfort.
“Evan worries about you constantly and loves you a great deal, so whatever else comes of this, don’t doubt we’ll find a way to safely get you and Marjorie out of here.
I speak for all your newfound twenty-first-century sisters when I say we won’t leave you behind, no matter what. ”
Lilias blinked back tears and nodded. “Thank ye, Willow. That means a great deal.” She gestured at the water. “Bathe and then we will see ye dressed, aye?” There was no missing the relief in her eyes. “After all, we have the pleasure of the king among us this eve and ‘tis truly welcome.”
Before I could question her further, as I still had many questions, especially about our father and his role in all this, she bustled out of the room, almost as if she sensed my impending curiosity. More so, I got the feeling she had no intention of answering those questions yet, if ever.
After I bathed, using the pleasantly scented soap left for me, I let Lilias know I was ready for her help getting dressed, thinking of more questions to ask her, only to find her gone and a pleasant servant girl waiting to assist me in her place.
All the while, Sloan was a comforting presence in my mind, catching everything but saying little because the king and the Sutherlands occupied him.
Eventually, I was summoned to dine with Laird Sutherland, his mother, and King Robert, led down corridors I had visited in the Morrow, only this time everyone knew I was there.
And this time, when I entered their private dining chamber, my father’s paintings struck me far differently.