Chapter Eighteen
Although Cam had only been at the Ludus Caledonia a short while, leaving it felt oddly bittersweet.
He’d come to The Cal with absolutely nothing—no self-confidence, no friends, and no future.
But he was leaving with all those things and more.
He stood in his cottage, packing items he’d accumulated over the past couple of months and thinking on the life he was about to embark on.
It hardly seemed real. He was just tying up the last of his possessions with a hemp binding when the door to his cottage opened.
“You are leaving us?” Galan said as he entered. “How is that possible? You have been here even less time than I.”
Cam smiled at the man, his one real friend. “I’m going back tae my village,” he said. “Well, not exactly my village, but near it. I’m going tae help a clan in need.”
Galan was bruised after his bout the day before, his left eye black and his lips swollen, but his injuries didn’t diminish the smile on his face.
“I have heard,” he said, but his smile quickly faded.
“But what about the men you wanted to exact revenge upon for your grandfather’s murder, Cam?
That was why you were here, to learn to fight so that you could punish them. And now you are leaving so soon?”
Cam looked at Galan, wondering if he should tell him the truth—that he was going to destroy the clan responsible for his grandfather’s death from within. They thought that they’d bought a man to defend them, but they’d really bought their own destruction.
Even if it was the clan of the woman he loved.
In looking at Galan, he realized he couldn’t tell the man any of that. He couldn’t risk letting Galan in on his plans. At the Ludus Caledonia, everything was honor bound, and Cam had accepted an honorable offer of fealty even if he had accepted it with an ulterior motive.
Cam wouldn’t touch Galan with the stain of dishonor that he’d assumed himself. He respected Galan, and everyone else at The Cal, too much to confess that his reasons for accepting the Keith offer were subversive.
Wicked.
“It feels right,” he finally said. “The clan that offered for me is from the Highlands. That is where I’m from and where I will return. But I willna forget ye, Galan de Lara. Ye were a friend when I needed one.”
Galan’s smile returned as he reached out, taking Cam’s big hand. “I will miss you, Highlander,” he said. “Or, should I call you The Lion of Caledonia? That is all anyone can speak of today. You nearly destroyed The Beast.”
Cam lifted his eyebrows as if he, too, was surprised at his victory. “It was out of sheer terror,” he said. “But the techniques Milo has been teaching us helped. Milo is a good teacher.”
Galan nodded. “He is,” he said, letting go of Cam’s hand.
“I will not keep you any longer, for I know you must depart, but I wanted to wish you well. I am not sure where I will be in the future, but you can always send a missive to Trelystan Castle on the Welsh Marches. They will know where to find me.”
Cam was feeling sadness at leaving Galan. “I’ll be in a village called Auchnacree, so if ye ever have need of me, send word. I will come.”
Galan smiled, patted Cam on the cheek, and left the cottage. Cam grabbed his meager belongings and followed him out into a cold morning that had clouded over. It was December, after all, and the weather had been mild up until now.
Leaving the village, Cam walked over to the great walls of Caelian Hill where Isadora and her family were gathering with their horses.
Cam could see Isadora’s red hair in the distance.
He could also see Axel standing there along with Clegg, who had a servant standing behind him with a large, tentlike apparatus, holding it over Clegg to shield him from the elements.
They were joined by a third man leading a big, brown horse who, upon closer inspection, was Wendell.
Cam was curious why Wendell should be present when he’d not seen the man since he’d been removed from his troop, but his attention shifted when Isadora came around her horse, smiling at him as he approached.
“Da wants tae leave as soon as possible,” she said, pointing to the clouds above. “He fears the weather willna hold.”
Cam glanced up. “’Tis possible,” he said. “The weather has been remarkable since I arrived here. I suppose it couldna hold out forever.”
Isadora’s smile grew. “I am glad ye impressed my father,” she said, for his ears only. “I dinna have the chance tae tell ye yesterday when he made the offer tae ye. It was quite a day. I was proud of ye, sweetheart.”
Cam simply nodded, loving the sweet sentiment out of her mouth but unable to show it. “It was indeed a day of days,” he said. “I am glad I survived it, tae be truthful. Speaking of surviving, it seems that yer attacker was found. There were rumors of it.”
Isadora’s smile faded as she realized what he was talking about.
“I heard this morning,” she admitted, glancing at her brothers before continuing.
“Ewan and Ossian were talking tae one of the guards this morning. The guard mentioned a murder and my brothers are anxious tae leave, fearful there are murderers on the loose.”
Cam could see her eyes glimmering with amusement about her brothers, and presumably warriors for their clan, fearful of a murderer.
He then looked over at the two brothers, who were looking at him quite unhappily.
Remembering that the men were advocates of The Beast, Cam suspected he would receive some animosity from them, but it was of little matter.
He hated them as much as they hated him.
Soon enough, they would pay for that hatred.
They would all pay.
Turning from the displeased brothers, Cam went to bid farewell to Clegg, who was speaking with Niall. When they saw Cam approach, Clegg was the first to speak.
“Laird Keith says that you should arrive at their village in a few days if the weather remains decent,” Clegg said. “While I do not normally see men off who leave The Cal, I will make an exception in your case because I want to tell you something.”
Cam was attentive. “Aye, m’laird?”
Clegg motioned to Axel, who produced a beautiful greatsword with a distinctive cross hilt. It was bigger than the weapons Cam had trained with, an elegant weapon meant for battle. Axel held it up to show it to him before tucking it into a heavy sheath and handing it over to him.
Cam was astonished by what was presumably a gift. He looked at Clegg, shocked. “I… I dunna know what tae say, m’laird,” he said. “It is beautiful. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“Of course you haven’t,” Clegg said. “It is a sword made for a great knight and even if you are not a knight, you have the potential to become one of the greatest warriors in the Highlands. I believe that or I would not say it. I will give you this weapon under one condition.”
“What is that, m’laird?”
“That you bring it back to me when you return to finish your training. Go to the Highlands and do great things, but come back to us when you are finished. Let us train you fully and you, in turn, can help train others. Will you do this?”
It occurred to Cam that Clegg was offering him a position. “Ye… ye want me tae be a trainer?”
“We call them doctores. You have a good manner with men, though I do not think you realize it. You are patient beyond measure, and that is an excellent quality. Will you return?”
Cam had to think on that, deeply. He was off to destroy men who trusted him. He was off to seek his vengeance. Would he be worthy of returning to the Ludus Caledonia when it was all over?
He wondered.
But one thing was for certain—he owed The Cal everything. When everything in his life had been taken away, the Ludus Caledonia had given him back the one thing he’d lost—
Hope.
“I will,” he said after a moment. “If ye’ll have me, I’ll return.”
Clegg nodded firmly. “Good,” he said. Then, he pointed to the brown horse that Wendell was still holding. “That is your mount. Every warrior needs a mount. That is Aeos, one of my personal horses. When you return, you will bring him back to me.”
Cam had never owned a fine horse before. He’d spent his life working with them, but he’d never owned such a fine beast. He went to the animal, running a trained hand up his front legs, looking at the lines of his frame.
“He’s magnificent, m’laird,” he said. “I’ll take great care of him. Better than I will care for myself.”
Clegg nodded, having said what he needed to say, and turned for the keep.
He was a man of business above all and this was a business matter to him.
He’d released a warrior who showed great promise for a tremendous sum of money, so it had essentially been a deal he couldn’t refuse.
But he felt strongly he wanted that warrior returned to him when he’d finished his task for his new liege.
As Clegg headed back into the fortress, Axel took the sword from Cam and strapped it onto the saddle.
“You have the tools of your trade, Lion,” he said. “A great horse, a great weapon. Now you must do your duty for your new liege. Though you’ve not had the training we had hoped, I believe you are good enough. But do not forget us. We will look for your return when this is over.”
Cam was feeling overwhelmed by the generosity of Clegg and Axel. “I will return,” he assured him. “Ye have my word.”
Axel flashed him a smile and was gone, leaving Cam standing with the horse and with Wendell, who was standing off to the side. When their eyes met, Wendell stepped forward.
“You have changed quite a bit from that battered whelp at The Sticky Wick,” he said. “I was not sure you had it in you.”
Cam met his gaze steadily. “I know.”
Wendell’s dark eyes glimmered, perhaps with a bit of mirth.
“I am aware of what you think of me,” he said.
“But when I heard you were leaving us, I wanted to tell you something. I was not hard on you because I disliked you or had some imaginary grudge against you. I was hard on you because you were holding back. I could see it. We could all see it. Every time I pushed you down or hit you, you had this flash of rage that you suppressed. Am I wrong?”
Cam shook his head. “Nay,” he said honestly. “Ye could see it because it was there.”
“I wanted you to release it. It took some time, but eventually you did. I saw what you did to The Beast and that is exactly what I knew you were capable of.”
Cam could feel his hardness against the man fracturing. “Then why did ye not say so?” he said. “I thought ye hated me because ye made an example of me more than the others.”
Wendell grinned. “If I told you what I expected from you, it would not have made a difference,” he said. “I was trying to draw the lion out, the one that lurks inside of you. I cannot invite him out. I have to draw him out for him to reach his potential. I am sorry you did not understand that.”
Cam was feeling rather foolish. “I do now,” he said. “Forgive me for thinking poorly of ye.”
Wendell handed him the reins. “As you go to your new duties, draw upon that lion. He is a fearsome thing.”
With that, he headed off toward the Fields of Mars and a novicius troop that was undoubtedly awaiting him.
Perhaps he wasn’t such a bad trainer after all.
Cam had to admit that he was sorry to leave The Cal now, but that couldn’t be helped. Turning to look at Isadora and her family, he could see that they were all mounted on their shaggy ponies, waiting for him to say his farewells.
Deftly, he leapt up onto the saddle of his new mount, getting a feel for the big horse beneath him. Much as Cam had felt that he was starting a new life when he’d first come to the Ludus Caledonia, now he felt very much as if he were starting another new life.
He was about to embark on something he’d been planning for, working for, hoping for. The moment was upon him. Vengeance for his grandfather had come.
But so had his love for a brave, true young woman with red hair and a toothy smile.
Cam was a man torn.