Chapter 29
They moved through the trees on foot, Magnus leading the way with practiced silence. Ada followed close behind, her steps quiet as usual.
The smoke grew stronger as they climbed the ridge. Voices carried on the wind—low, indistinct. Too many for a simple merchant camp.
Magnus crouched behind a large boulder near the ridge's crest, Ada settling beside him. From there, they could see down into the hollow below.
A camp. Small but organized. Five or six tents arranged in a loose circle, a fire burning in the center. Armed men moved between them—at least a dozen that Magnus could count, maybe more hidden in the tents.
This was no merchant caravan.
"Magnus," Ada breathed, her hand clutching his arm. "Look. There."
Magnus followed her gaze to the fire. Two men stood in its light, their faces clearly visible.
The first was Donnan. There was no mistaking him—sandy hair, broad shoulders, that easy stance that suggested confidence bordering on arrogance.
The second man was older, taller, with dark hair going gray at the temples. He wore a cloak marked with a crest that caught the firelight—green and gold, a stag's head prominent.
MacTavish colors. Ada's family crest.
Magnus felt Ada go rigid beside him. Her breathing quickened, shallow and rapid.
"That's him," she whispered, so quietly he almost didn't hear. "That's me faither."
Magnus's blood went cold. Conall MacTavish. There. On Barra. With armed men and Donnan—who'd been inside the keep since Ada's arrival, watching, reporting, planning.
Everything clicked into place with terrible clarity.
The poisoned well. The fire. The attack on Ada. The man caught today trying to poison another well.
All of it orchestrated by Conall, using Donnan as his eyes and hands inside Magnus's walls. Magnus had suspected Donnan from the beginning but knowing that Ada’s own father was trying to ruin her marriage? That he had not expected.
"We need tae go," Magnus said, his voice barely audible. "Now. Before they see us."
But Ada wasn't moving. She stared down at the camp, her face pale in the dim light, her eyes wide with shock and something that looked like grief.
"He's been here the whole time," she whispered. "All those attacks. All those people who got sick. People who could have died." Her voice cracked. "And he did it. Me own faither."
"Ada." Magnus gripped her shoulders, turned her to face him. "I ken this is hard. But we cannae stay here. If they see us we’ll be dead."
"He tried tae have me kidnapped." Ada's eyes met his, bright with unshed tears. "His own daughter. He was willin' tae let those men hurt me, maybe kill me, just tae get tae ye."
"I ken." Magnus pulled her close, pressed a kiss to her forehead. "But right now, we need tae move. We need tae get back tae the keep."
A twig snapped somewhere to their left.
Magnus froze. Ada went completely still in his arms.
"Did ye hear somethin'?" A voice, close. Too close. One of the camp's sentries.
"Probably just a deer." Another voice, further away. "These woods are full of them."
"Check it anyway. The laird said to be careful."
Footsteps. Coming closer.
Magnus's hand moved to the knife at his belt. His other arm tightened around Ada, ready to push her behind him if necessary.
The footsteps came closer.
Then stopped.
"Nay. Naethin' here. Just shadows."
"Told ye. Come on, let's get back tae the fire before we freeze our arses off."
The footsteps retreated. Magnus waited until they'd faded completely before releasing the breath he'd been holding.
"We go. Now." He kept his voice barely above a whisper. "Slowly. Quietly. Dinnae make a sound."
Ada nodded, her face pale but determined.
They moved back through the trees, each step careful, deliberate. Magnus's heart hammered against his ribs, his every sense on high alert for more sentries, for any sign they'd been spotted.
It took an eternity to reach their horses. Magnus helped Ada mount, then swung onto his own stallion. Only when they were a safe distance from the camp did he allow himself to breathe properly.
"Are ye all right?" he asked, keeping his voice low despite the distance.
Ada's hands trembled on the reins. "I dinnae ken. I saw him. Me faither and Donnan together. Plannin’." She stopped, swallowed hard. "Plannin’ whatever it is they’ll dae next."
"Hey." Magnus moved his horse closer, reached out to cover her hand with his. "Look at me."
Ada's eyes found his, swimming with tears.
"This isnae yer fault," Magnus said firmly. "Whatever he's plannin', whatever he's done, none of it is on ye. Ye hear me?"
"But he's me faither. Me blood."
"Blood daesnae make family, Ada. Loyalty daes. Love daes. Choice daes." Magnus squeezed her hand. "And ye've chosen me. Chosen me people. That makes Barra yer family more than yer faither could ever be."
A tear spilled over, tracked down Ada's cheek. "He's goin' tae attack, isnae he? That camp, those men—they're nae just watchin'. They're preparin' fer war."
"Aye. Probably." Magnus's jaw clenched. "But now we ken and we can prepare. Send word tae the other jarls, fortify our defenses." He brought her hand to his lips, pressed a kiss to her knuckles. "We'll beat him, Ada. I promise ye that."
"What if ye cannae? What if he—" Her voice broke. "What if I lose ye?"
"Ye willnae lose me." Magnus's voice was fierce. "I've survived battles, raids, betrayals. I'm nae lettin' some schemin' Highland laird take me down. Especially nae when I've finally got somethin' worth fightin' fer."
Ada managed a watery smile. "Me?"
"Ye." Magnus leaned across the space between their horses, cupped her face gently. "I love ye, Ada Haraldson. And I'll be damned if I let yer faither take ye from me."
He kissed her then, soft and sweet and full of promise. When he pulled back, some of the fear had left Ada's eyes.
"I love ye too," she whispered. "And I'm sorry. Fer all of this. Fer bringin' this danger tae yer door."
"Dinnae apologize fer things that arenae yer fault." Magnus straightened in his saddle. "Now come on. We need tae get back tae the keep. I have plans tae make."
They rode in silence, both lost in their own thoughts. Magnus's mind was already racing ahead, calculating distances, troop numbers, potential strategies.
Conall had maybe fifteen men in that camp. But there could be more scattered throughout the area. And with Donnan inside the keep, feeding information—
Magnus would need to deal with Donnan first. Quietly. Before the man could warn Conall that they'd been discovered.
Then send riders to the other jarls. Erik, Harald, Ragnar, Ivar. They'd come. They had to come. The Pact bound them together, made them brothers in all but blood.
And if Conall attacked one of them, he attacked all of them.
They reached the keep as full darkness settled over the island. Magnus helped Ada dismount, kept his arm around her waist as they walked toward the entrance.
"Magnus," Ada said quietly. "What are ye goin' tae dae?"
"What I have tae." His voice was grim. "I'm goin' tae protect what's mine. Me keep, me people." He looked down at her. "Me wife."
"And me faither?"
Magnus was quiet for a moment. Then, "If he comes at us, if he attacks—I'll dae what needs tae be done. But Ada, I need ye tae understand. If it comes tae that, if it comes tae him or me—"
"I choose ye." Ada's voice was fierce. "I'll always choose ye. He stopped bein' me faither the moment he tried tae use me as a weapon against ye."
Magnus pulled her close, pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "I'm sorry it has tae be this way."
"I'm nae." Ada looked up at him. "Because if he hadnae done what he did, if I hadnae been sent here, I never would have found ye. And that—" Her voice caught. "That would have been the real tragedy."
Magnus held her for a long moment, breathing in her scent, memorizing the feel of her in his arms. Because he knew what was coming. Knew that the peace they'd found that evening beside that spring was borrowed time.
War was coming to Barra. And before it was over, blood would be spilled.
He just had to make sure it wasn't Ada's. Or his own.
"Come on," he said finally. "Let's get ye inside. We have a lot to discuss. And nae much time tae dae it."
They walked into the keep together, side by side. Partners. Allies.
Husband and wife.
And whatever came next, they'd face it the same way. Together.