Chapter 29
Killian stared at the wooden beams of his bedroom ceiling as the golden hues of morning illuminated the room.
He let out a deep breath, exhaling the last remnants of Leah's scent that lingered about him.
Flexing his jaw, he sat up, wishing the day would flee from him.
The pounding on his door vibrated through his bones.
"What?" he snapped as he threw his legs off the side of the bed. The floor was cool under his feet, but it did nothing to quell the ire. The door opened with force.
"Me laird, ye need to come quickly," Fraser stated; the urgency in his tone could not be understated. "The council have heard what ye've done with Mason, and they're gatherin' votes to oust ye from yer seat."
"Those traitorous imbeciles," Killian shouted.
"Someone seems in a rather sour mood this mornin'," Fraser noted as he followed on Killian's heels down the hall. "I saw Leah leavin' yer chambers rather late last night. If ye cannae keep up with her and the clan—"
"I let her go," Killian hissed as they turned the corner.
"Come again? What do ye mean ye let her go?"
"The story will be that she is to ride home to inform her family of the weddin'.
Only she'll nae be returnin'," Killian explained.
"I want ye to see to her safety personally.
After this meetin' I want ye to escort her to wherever she wants to go.
I daenae care if it's Asia, ye'll nae leave her side till she is safe, do ye hear? "
"I daenae understand," Fraser said as he rubbed the back of his neck. "The relationship was supposed to be a ruse."
"It became somethin' more. But I will nae have her in harm's way. She's to go home," Killian said as he felt a bit of his life draining from him.
"If there ever was an award for the biggest fool, I think ye might have just taken the gold," Fraser said. "Everyone in the castle can see ye have feelings for the lass. Why are ye so hell bent on pushin' her away? Why nae keep her around a bit longer and have some fun with her?"
Killian shook his head as he glared daggers at Fraser. "Ye'll hold yer tongue about that. I've made up me mind and nay harm is to come to Leah, is that clear? Ye'll see that she's kept safe. How I feel about her now will nae change me mind."
Pausing at the large oak doors, Killian took a deep breath as he set aside his feelings for Leah to focus on clan matters.
Behind the door, he knew he'd be stepping into a den of vipers.
Each one, no doubt, would have some excuse as to why he should step down.
Luckily for Killian, the law was on his side.
Pushing through the doors, Killian took immediate stock of the faces in the room. Each shared the same disbelief mixed with either horror or wonder. Once the sudden shock wore off, the bombardment of questioning began.
"Ye've put Mason in the dungeon? Ye cannae do that.
He is yer brother and the next in line for the lairdship," a council member blurted out as other voices rose over another until the room was a cluster of noise.
Killian marched to the seat at the back of the room and grabbed the gavel.
With a mighty blow, Killian slammed the gavel to the stone, cracking the white marble plate down the center.
"Enough," Killian snapped. "It is me right as laird to squash any and all threats to this realm, nay matter who the threats came from.
Mason was behind the assassination attempts not only at the ceilidh, but other times as well.
By law, traitors die. His actions place Mason squarely in the hang man's noose. "
The room erupted into chaos as each man gave reasoning as to why Mason should have mercy.
Despite the rising noise, Killian listened to the men before him.
He watched as they bickered and blamed one another for the failures of the land and the clan.
Fed up with all that he had been hearing, Killian curled his fingers around the chair his father once sat in and tossed it to the window.
The window shattered in a spectacle of sight and sound, and the room fell silent.
Heaving from the exertion, Killian tried to remain as calm as he could as he glared at each man who stood before him.
"That is enough out of the lot of ye," Killian snapped.
"I have listened to ye and done all that ye wanted me to do and still it is nae good enough for the likes of ye.
Two months ago, I stood before ye and told ye I'd find a bride.
I offered ye a lass nay less than twenty-four hours ago.
I promise to find those behind the turmoil in the clan and it turns out to be me own brother.
Yet ye crows have come here and dare to say that I'm the one unfit to be rulin'? How dare ye all."
"Killian," Alan's tone, while soft and cordial, grated on Killian's nerves. "Ye cannae blame us for thinkin' the way we do. Ye have accused yer brother of treason yet have no proof of such accusations. Ye cannae keep Mason in the dungeons, that would like sentencing him to death."
"Aye, and he deserves it too for betrayin' me as his laird. Or do ye nae understand that he sent men to have me murdered," Killian hissed.
"Nae sent assassins to kill ye," Alan said in a condescending tone that rattled Killian. "Ye have nay proof."
"Fraser, go fetch the would-be assassin. Bring him here and have him tell everyone what he told us," Killian ordered. Fraser nodded and took off. Killian paced the length of the room, eyeing the traitors before him.
"I daenae see why ye’re insistin' that there are people after ye," Alan said as he turned to the other councilmen.
"How many times have we gone through this before?
How many plots have there been now? Ten?
Fifteen? And yet, ye're still standin' Killian.
I think maybe ye have become paranoid again.
Where is Leah? She seems to have a golden touch to get ye to calm down. "
"Leave her out this," Killian growled. The last thing he wanted was to get Leah involved in the clan politics.
"I would, but she is the only one who seems to be able to talk any sense into ye," Alan said as Fraser came rushing back into the room. The panic on his face unsettled Killian.
"Speak," Killian ordered.
"He's gone," Fraser managed to get out through gulps of air. "The prisoner, he's gone."
"What do ye mean he's gone? Where did he go? Who let him out?" Killian demanded.
"Are ye sure ye put someone in there to begin with?" Alan questioned as he turned to Killian with a sympathetic grin plastered on his face.
"Daenae talk to me as if I am the one mad," Killian said as he surged for Alan. "He was in there, someone let him out. I want the grounds searched."
"Ye’re nae goin' to find anyone," Alan said as he placed a hand on Killian's shoulder. "Because ye have to realize there may nae have been anyone there to begin with."
"A man tried to kill me at the ceilidh. Mason tried to kidnap Leah," Killian explained as Alan's laughter filled the room.
"Are ye listenin' to yerself?" Alan asked. "Do ye hear what ye’re sayin'? Mason is practically a cripple. He has nay strength to hoist anyone over his shoulder, let alone Leah. Maybe ye need to come to terms with the fact that ye’re nae fit to rule the clan."
"I ken what I ken," Killian said. "And I wasnae the only one to have seen him. Fraser was there, tell them."
"Aye, let's get the man of arms involved when we all ken that Fraser would do anythin' for ye, even lie," Alan said.
"This is mutiny," Killian said as he rubbed his temples.
"We're nae on the high seas," Alan said to the council. "Perhaps ye should go have Elsie fix ye a tonic and let us handle the Mason matter alone."
"Mason is nae to be released. He tried to kill me.
I will stand guard in front of his cell if that is the only thin' that stops ye from lettin' him out," Killian said as he arched an eyebrow.
The room grew fuzzy around the edges, and Killian's head started to swim.
It was as if he'd been on a whiskey binge.
Stumbling to the door, Killian had but one thought: Get out. He pushed onward, unable to hear or understand what was being said. All he knew was that he desperately needed fresh air.
As he pushed through the side door, the clean air swirled around him.
Killian tried to grasp what had just happened, but there was only one thing absolutely certain: Leah had to go.
It no longer mattered how he felt about her.
She would constantly be in danger if she remained, either as a pawn for his enemies to use or as a tool to get him to do what they wanted.
"Ye're lookin' a bit under the weather there," Elsie said, her voice light and airy. Killian turned to find her strolling through the garden with her basket swinging over her arm. "Ye all right?"
"Nay," Killian answered, pressing his fingers to his temples. "Me head hurts and I feel weak."
Elsie scrambled through her basket of herbs and pulled a long straw-looking plant out. "Here, chew on this a moment. It's duckweed; it'll help with the throbbin' behind the eyes."
Killian took the herb and chewed it. The tangy bitterness was overwhelming, but it cleared the fog from his head.
"Yer eyes are lookin' a bit yellowish. Did ye eat somethin' or maybe drink somethin' ye shouldnae have?" Elsie asked as she studied Killian's face.
"Nay," Killian said as he tilted his head.
A thought formed at the edge of his mind that danced and skipped around an idea he couldn't quite place.
"Leah mentioned she was a bit woozy after Mason had offered her a flask…
Elsie, is there an herb or some concoction that could make a person dizzy just by smell? "
"Aye, poppy will do that to ye. And with a strong enough whiff, ye could knock out a person. I remember workin' with it last year and it knocked me out for several days."
Killian glanced at the castle. "I remember that."
His breath hitched as he spotted Leah standing in the window of her room, gazing out to the horizon.
Killian wondered if she was thinking of her journey home or if she was longing to stay.
As much as he wanted to go to her, he couldn't. There was a nagging in the pit of his being that wouldn't cease.
How Mason got his hands on enough poppy to knock out Leah disturbed him, but more so the fact that the effects of such a plant almost knocked him out. But who had been messing with the plant? All the council members were in that room, but none of them seemed to have the same issues.
"Ye look troubled, is there any thin' I can do for ye, me laird?" Elsie said as her voice pulled Killian from his thoughts.
"Nay," Killian answered as he started to question not only himself but the world around him.
"Ye ken, if ye daenae want to be effected by the Poppy, ye can counter it with lavender and citrus. An orange peel and a sprig of lavender in oil should do the trick. Just rub a bit on under yer nose and ye'll nae have to worry about the pollen of the poppy."
Killian's eyes widened. "Citrus and lavender ye say? Make me a batch, will ye?"
Next time, I will be prepared.