Chapter 11

11

Bain had spent most of the night trying to think of ways to talk with Alison again about the future they could have together. He was aware his cousin was technically still wed to her and though it may be unseemly in some people’s eyes, he knew he was a better fit not only for her but to lead the clan into the future as needed.

He had avoided talking with his father, choosing to forgo their usual evening discussion under the guise of making plans to present him with at a later date. Truthfully, he was angry. Bain did not get rejected, not by women. He knew what they saw when they looked at him, and he made sure they knew the type of man he was. Alison had not seemed like a wilting flower, but he hadn’t expected her to sidestep him so easily with hardly a nod to his confession. Truthful or not, he deserved more than a change of subject, and he would press that point the next time they spoke. Perhaps he had been too genteel, too passive in his approach. Perhaps a more forceful discussion was needed to make her see reason.

A knock on the door of his bedchamber shook Bain from his thoughts and he called out to the person, welcoming them in. When the door opened, it revealed Declan, his most trusted guard and the one he had tasked with watching over Alison in the shadows. She needn’t know she was being observed and Bain knew that doing so himself wouldn’t lend well to getting her over to his side. He needed to behave with more tact until he could make his final move.

“I come with news.”

Bain waved him over, nodding when Declan shut the door firmly behind him. That was one reason Bain appreciated the older guard. He was discreet and to the point. There was no talking around the issues or taking forever to meander around the problem at hand. “Sit,” Bain said, gesturing to the chair beside him. Declan took it, shifting around once he was seated.

“I spoke with multiple maids who informed me that Alison awoke last night and made her way to Liam’s bed chamber.”

Bain narrowed his eyes. That was not news he was expecting. Never in the three years since their wedding had the two of them spent time in one another’s bed chambers. “And when did she return to her own?”

Declan shook his head and leaned forward. “That’s just it. She didn’t. She spent the night there and from what I’ve been told, is still there even now.”

Bain fought the desire to slam his hand on the table and instead stood up and walked to the hearth. The fire burning matched the anger and rage in his chest at the thought of Alison spending the night with Liam. That was not part of the plan. He couldn’t allow them to reconcile. That would throw everything off balance when they needed her broken and bent to his side. The plan was relying on Liam having nothing and no one in his corner. Not even his wife. He turned to where Declan still sat awaiting orders.

“How many know of this?”

“Everyone on staff, sire.” Bain nodded as a plan started to form in his mind. He might be able to turn this around for his own benefit.

“And Liam?”

“He left early in the morn, but no one had seen which way he’d gone when I asked,” Declan replied. “I thought perhaps he made his way to the stables to ride out as he does.”

Bain nodded. “That’s fine. As long as he’s out while father and I meet with the elders. I willnae have him mucking aboot and ruining our plans. There’s too much riding on this.” He ground his teeth at the thought of taking a back seat as before. Bain may not have been born for this, but he wasn’t going to concede to his cousin without a fight. “Go. We have work tae dae.”

Declan stood from the chair. He gave Bain a stiff nod before exiting the chambers. The sounds of the castle filtered back in through the open door and Bain thought about going to find Alison himself. Their walk in the garden days ago had seemed to soften her to his affections. Being invited into her chambers was proof of that. But there had been nothing since to signify the changing of her attentions. If not for how much it vexed him, Bain could almost be impressed by her loyalty. It was a handsome trait for a wife to have for her husband. But he needed it broken and molded to him alone.

With a grunt, he pushed off the hearth footsteps purposefully loud on the floor to announce his presence. He knew he was a little late for the meeting, but his father would have to pardon him this one time. Though he had been keeping his father abreast on his challenges with Alison, he knew this bit of information was best kept to himself. He needed to come up with a plan of attack before he divulged a setback of this magnitude. Bain fixed a wide smile on his face as he pushed open the doors to the great hall, but it fell when he noticed the conversations were well underway without him.

His father sat at the helm as he always did, but looking closely, Bain could see the strain around his eyes. He wondered why until he heard Liam’s voice. Bain glanced to the side and narrowed his eyes when he saw Liam in deep discussion with one of the elders. Unlike last time, they were engrossed with others looking on and adding commentary. Now, Bain did grind his teeth, face contorting with barely contained rage. Before he could take a step towards Liam, Laird Cormac spoke up.

“Ah, my boy. We wondered where you had dawdled off to. Perhaps off charming the one you wish to one day court.” A few of the others chuckled but Bain knew the question for what it was. His father wanted to know about Alison.

“No, father,” he denied, walking over to the free chair and sitting. “I was taking counsel with one of the guards. I wanted to make sure I kept up with any news beyond our lands’ boundaries.” Nods accompanied Bain’s words and he smiled. Having the trust of the clan elders was tantamount to having them follow his lead.

“Have there been threats against our outer regions?” Liam asked, drawing attention. Bain grit his teeth before shaking his head.

“Nae, but it is good to be sure.” When Liam hummed consideringly, Bain continued. “What? Do you not agree?”

Liam lifted his cup looking down into it as if the liquid contained wisdom that he planned to impart. “Nae, I do agree. It’s important for those on our fringes to know that we willnae abandon them should skirmishes occur. I just wonder if rather than the guards coming to us, we should make a show by going to them.”

The murmurs of agreement from the elders made Bain want to flip the table. The few times Liam came to these meetings, he was either drunk with too much nonsense to say or suffering the effects of a night of drinking and keeping unerringly quiet. This sober Liam with his quick comments and smile that seemed to capture the elders’ attention was not good for business. Bain needed to see him humbled and broken down to the most basic part of himself, and Bain knew his father felt the same. Liam could not be seen as a viable candidate for the lairdship. Not anymore. And that point needed to be hammered in until no one ever questioned it.

“The elders have been doing things this way fer years,” Bain countered. “I dinnae think changing their ways is necessary.” He expected Liam to be angry, to rant or rave about Bain pushing back on his words, but instead, Liam’s smile grew. It was disconcerting and Bain didn’t like it at all. Why was he so serene, so different than his usual self? This was not the Liam he was used to dealing with and Bain didn’t like when things changed on him so unexpectedly.

“It’s understandable to want to continue as we have been, but I think with time comes the need to reevaluate how things are handled.” Liam’s voice took on an almost melodic tone as he surveyed each of the people around the table. “I’m sure things are looking much different than years past. Elder Flannigan was just telling me how the route to?—”

“There’s no reason to upend tradition simply because you will it.” Bain cut Liam off, his voice echoing loudly in the hall. He curled his hand into a fist when even his bellowed words didn’t change the expression on Liam’s face. Who was this strange person before him?

“Tradition is indeed important, but not as important as ensuring the clan remains strong and secure. If that requires change, then so be it. Or would you have things remain stagnant for your own ease?”

The question took Bain by surprise, and he narrowed his eyes when he saw some of the elders nodding. How had he lost control of the situation? When he glanced at his father, Laird Cormac was quiet, but Bain could see the tension in his mouth. This was not going the way Bain had planned. Liam wasn’t supposed to be in this meeting sober and making logical conclusions. He was supposed to be drunk and surrounded by women who weren’t his wife. He was supposed to be broken and left simply as a reminder of the madness of his father until he faded into the background of the clan.

“Are you challenging me about the future of the clan?” Bain bellowed, unable to rein in his anger. This was not the morning he had planned, but allowing Liam to lead such discussions was not part of the plan and could not remain unchallenged.

Liam cocked his head to the side looking at Bain without an ounce of worry. “Perhaps I am.”

Bain snorted. “You must still be on the drink to think this will end in anything but you on the ground.”

“Is that so?” Liam countered. He opened his hands looking unworried at the direction the conversation was going. “From where I’m sitting, it appears the only one having issues here is you. But if you’d like to test things, perhaps we should take it outside where servant and maid are less likely to be caught up in the fray.”

Bain stood up, his chair falling back and clattering to the floor. “Aye. Then get up and test me, cousin. Fer your honor and proof you can lead the clan better than tradition dictates.”

Liam stood from his chair almost serenely, and it needled at Bain that he was so unbothered. “After you.”

Bain wanted to come around the table and knock him down a few pegs, but now that the challenge had been thrown out there, he knew it had to be fulfilled as dictated. With a final gnashing of his teeth, he turned and headed for the door. He would show Liam how wrong he was for Alison and for the clan.