CHAPTER SIXTEEN #3
Frasier nodded brusquely as he hurried past them. He had meant it when he said he had grave matters on his mind. He would find Father Oliphant and demand he perform an exorcism, immediately.
AIDAN LAY ON HIS BACK ON THE thin blanket that served as a pallet. The floor was frigidly cold beneath the wool, and wet. He didn’t care. His Fate was clear now.
The dungeons were as dark as they were dank, and rats blinked at him from the shadows. Lying on the wet blanket, he stared up at the leaking ceiling, droplets of water splattering on his forehead. He was trapped in space and time, but it did not matter. He intended to go on to his death.
He still had his powers. He had tested them on one of the guards, hurling him into a faraway wall.
For this he had been hit over the head with the back of a sword and he’d almost lost consciousness.
Now his head hurt, but he didn’t care. He would not use his powers to break down the door, kill the guards and run away. There was no point.
Nothing mattered now except that he die in order to free Brianna from the devil’s grasp. He had meant his words to her earlier. There would be peace in death’s embrace. It had been so long; he was so tired. He looked forward to it.
He tried not to think about Ian. It was impossible.
He could no longer deny that from the moment his father had become the giant on the battlefield, Aidan had been clinging to a thread of hope.
That thread was broken now. But maybe he would meet his son in the next life.
And he would trust Brianna to set his son’s spirit free when he was gone.
He closed his eyes against a drop of the falling water.
He thought about Brianna, who had the sweetest smile he had ever seen, especially when she directed that smile at him, her eyes mirroring her love and her faith.
He felt himself smile. His heart hurt him now.
Somehow, in spite of all the terrible crimes he’d committed, he had come to care for her deeply.
He missed her. He wished to hold her; to make love to her one more time.
It was such a foolish yearning, but he could not convince himself to wish otherwise.
Once he was gone, his brother or someone else would send her to her time.
She would find someone else to love there, someone ordinary and good.
He felt harsh laughter arise. She would never be with an ordinary man.
She was far too extraordinary. She deserved someone as holy as a Master.
Maybe the man she worked for, Nick, would be the one.
He had white powers, even though he tried very hard to hide them.
Bolts began to groan as they were lifted from the dungeon door. Aidan sat up, not terribly surprised. He felt Malcolm and Royce outside, their white power huge and hot. They were very angry, and he knew why. He steeled himself against them.
The dungeon door was pushed slowly open, wood scraping over stone. Malcolm stepped in, his face hard and grim, followed by Royce. Aidan got to his feet. Both men were unarmed.
Malcolm embraced him, bearlike. “Why will ye nay turn yer armies back from Inverness?” he exclaimed.
Aidan met his ragged gaze. His brother was already grieving for him.
In that moment, with his death so close, Aidan was gladdened that Malcolm had come. Royce’s face was set differently from Malcolm’s. It was saddened, telling Aidan that he still had a care for him, but it was filled with resignation, as well. Aidan knew he understood.
Royce said softly, “He has decided to die.”
But Malcolm did not understand; he was not resigned. He cursed. “There’s no reason to die! Yer comin’ back to us. An’ what about Brianna, whom ye love?”
Aidan tensed. “Ye speak like a fool,” he said. He would never analyze or identify his deepest feelings for Brianna, and even if he did, he would not confess them to anyone. “I am tired o’ this life.’ He looked directly at Royce.
Royce stiffened as their gazes locked. A long time ago, Royce had uttered those exact words, and he had meant them. On his deathbed, he had asked Aidan to let him go. Aidan had done just that.
Slowly, Royce nodded in silent comprehension.
“What mad conspiracy is this?” Malcolm cried. “Ye willna die. Ye must leap from this time, this place.”
“I canna leap. I have been trapped,” Aidan said.
“I’ll take ye from here,” Malcolm cried.
Aidan seized his arm. “I have my other powers. If I wished, I could flee this place. I dinna wish to do so. I will stay.”
Malcolm stared, eyes wide with horror.
“I canna live much longer with my grief,” Aidan said, and his tone had turned hoarse.
He added, “Ian is gone. He is dead, but nay buried. I canna grieve anymore! What if Moray should use and destroy Brianna? I canna withstand more pain, Malcolm. Moray hunts her only to hurt me. He will have no reason to hunt her after tomorrow.”
“So ye think to stay an’ die?” Malcolm exclaimed harshly. He had turned white.
“Aye, I think to stay…an’ tomorrow ye will let me die.”