Chapter 13
Afew days later, Willow was still fighting to convince herself that Keegan was just another man looking to gain something through her existence. And a few days later, it had still not proven effective.
Keegan was consistently cordial to her, even kind, and he had sought to protect her from the clan’s ire—particularly his brother—at every turn, even if he had not been available for much conversation at all.
It would have been far easier to hate the man had he been like her brother.
While Damon reared toward her with an unmistakable aggression, Willow could tell that his heart was not in it. Magnus was a different matter.
And it had always been that way.
Willow walked with Rodrick behind her to her chambers.
The path was familiar now, but it was also the only one she knew.
They returned to it each day after every meal, and Willow had explored every nook and cranny of the bed chamber.
Nothing of interest had been located, but it had given her something to do.
Something that she lacked now.
“Thank ye, Rodrick. I will see ye again at dinner.”
“Of course, me lady.” He turned and walked a ways down the hall, still keeping guard outside as she closed the door.
As she was shut inside once again, Willow walked to the table in the corner where she had taken up sitting and thinking to herself about what to do. Today was no different, except in that her memories of the past were clamoring to the front of her mind instead of an escape plan.
Magnus had hated Willow and Lilith since the moment of their birth, and she had a sneaking suspicion that it was because their mother had died in the act of bringing them into the world.
We were nae but bairns. What guilt could be placed on us?
But it didn’t matter. Magnus had made up his mind that the twins had killed his mother, and her father was distant, to say the least. He never scolded Magnus for his treatment of Willow and her sister, and he never lent a hand to aid them.
“Ye’re better off surviving on yer own skills now that waiting o’er long and being ill-prepared for a cold world,” he would say.
“Aye, I feel so much more prepared thanks to yer ‘help,’” Willow mumbled to herself.
Willow had been told when she was young that she had been the first of the twins to arrive, and from that moment on, though if only by a few minutes, Willow was the older sister.
And she would do anything to protect Lilith.
Keeping her sister happy and safe from Magnus’s gaze was of the utmost importance. It still was.
And so, Willow had grown accustomed to taking the brunt of his sour moods.
Her armor had become her ability to never let Magnus see how much his words affected her, how much he harmed her with each snide insult and remark.
It led to others seeing her as the singular light that shone within Castle MacCallum, and Willow would not let down the people who’d come to believe in her.
It had been the only reason for her agreeing to marry. That and she selfishly wished to live anywhere but where Magnus was. She had a plan to call for her sister once Lilith had settled in and not allowed her to return to his clutches once she arrived.
There seems to be a bit of a wrinkle in that plan. Considerin' I’m nay longer on me way to the weddin', and I have a mind to think the groom may have somethin' to say about that.
And, of course, Willow knew that Magnus was just as responsible for that interruption as Keegan. He had kidnapped the man’s sister, and turn around was indeed fair play to a Laird.
Willow sighed. She’d been struggling for days now, wondering if she should tell Keegan what she could about her brother. It wasn’t much, but knowing that he hated her would certainly change things regarding the exchange.
Though Willow had known nothing about Melissa when she left that day, it made much sense to her that Magnus would kidnap someone so dear to Keegan and the Brahannes. He was ruthless, and there were too many acres of their land that had been won with blood and violence.
Perhaps I should give just a hint at the information? But what if I am wrong? What if Magnus’s tactics are indeed as much a mystery to me as they are to anyone else?
It wasn’t interfering with Magnus’s plans that worried Willow so much, nor was it her own fate especially.
Magnus would do what he would do, and she could get by.
She always had. But if something were to happen to Lilith or her men—the clansmen who looked to her when her brother was on the warpath—because her information proved false or unreliable?
Willow could not stand the thought of that.
They were the slim comfort that existed for her in Castle MacCallum. She cared for the men who’d been stationed to guard her enough to go with Keegan willingly, and Willow felt the same about the innocent clansmen who lived in and around the castle.
And, of course, there was Lilith. That was the apparent cause of her distress. But what of the less obvious one—the one that not even Willow wished to admit was true?
“Ugh,” Willow sighed, “Ye are a mess.”
She spoke to herself quietly, looking down at her hands as she fiddled with the frayed edges of the shawl draped around her shoulders.
“And ye need to make up yer mind about it, Willow. Go on.”
She stood from the table, pacing around the room as she spoke to herself, which was typical when she was left with only herself to talk to when Magnus was in one of his moods and forbade her from leaving her room.
“Do ye tell Keegan what ye ken about yer brother? What would be done if what ye say isnae a help or, at worst, a detriment?”
Willow considered objectively this time.
“Would the laird harm ye? Nay, I daenae believe so much could be said. The man has been protectin' me since me arrival at the castle. He has been an honorable man—which couldnae be said about Magnus—and he is doing all this out of a love for his sister.”
Nodding to herself, Willow walked to her bed and sat down on the edge. It was settled. Tomorrow, which would still be three days before the exchange, she would approach the laird to discuss what she knew of Magnus.
“Laird Brahanne, may I have a word with ye in private? I wish to discuss somethin' of import to the upcomin' exchange.”
Willow’s entire body trembled, and she hoped it was not visible.
The nerves affecting her were great, and she did her level best to secure herself and meet Keegan’s stare.
Rodrick had accompanied her to the laird’s study upon her request, but he had not been informed of the reason.
As such, he was just as surprised as the laird by her words.
She glanced at him from the corner of her eye, and Willow could see the shock play out of the young man’s features.
“I dinnae ken this is why ye wished to speak with him. Graces, me lady, ye could have at least provided me with a clue.”
Nearly laughing at the general air of Rodrick, let alone his colorful comments, Willow turned toward him slightly and bowed her head momentarily.
“Apologies, Rodrick. I thought it important to make haste.”
“Well, now, that is quite clear.” Rodrick shook his head, but a grin was still pinned to his face.
Keegan’s brows rose as he considered her, and then they were quickly down again, furrowed over his fetching eyes. Willow shook herself, willing her mind to focus on the matter at hand.
“About the exchange?” he asked, and Willow nodded.
Silence filled the room, and Willow waited as if she were perched on the edge of a blade.
“And this couldnae wait until the mornin' of?”
Shaking her head, Willow swallowed down the growing need to flee the study. “Nay, Laird Brahanne. I daenae think that would provide adequate time to work off what I would like to say.”
“Perhaps ye should hear her out, me laird. She is the sister of the laird.”
Keegan narrowed his eyes at Rodrick, glaring with a sense of humor behind it. “I am aware, Rodrick.”
Again, that quiet crept in, and Willow thought she might perish on the spot were it to continue for much longer.
“Hmm, verra well. I have a moment. Rodrick, please wait outside the door.”
Willow sagged with relief, and the man-at-arms bowed, making his way to the exit and delivering a moment of privacy between her and the laird. It had been a few days since they’d been shut in together at all, let alone in the room that held so many a memory. Still, that wasn’t important right now.
The nerves came back as she realized that now the task of explaining all this to the laird lay before her, and Willow pulled from that internal well of strength that she had cultivated over the years. If she could stand up to her brother, she could speak to this much more noble man.
“I thank ye, Laird Brahanne. But,” she sighed, dropping her head before meeting Keegan’s eyes again, “I must ask first that ye agree to do nay harm to me people on that day. I daenae wish to see them injured or killed because of what I am about to tell ye.”
Keegan stared at her, that furrow to his brow deepening.
The meeting between the clans was meant to be just that—a meeting.
There wasn’t to be any bloodshed as long as the exchange proceeded as expected—even if she already knew that would not be the case—so Willow had believed this would be a simple thing to ensure.
At least now, before she opened her mouth and spilled the truth.
Keegan would uphold his word, but it wouldn’t be a promise he felt comfortable making once he learned of Magnus’s likely ambush.
Still, she was not the laird, nor did she have experience with battle or warfare tactics. She was only doing what she thought was best, what could protect her sister and people.
“The exchange is meant to proceed peacefully. I daenae see a reason for me to harm yer clan unless I’m workin' to defend meself. Will that suit yer needs?”