Chapter 21

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

“ W atch her,” Magnus said. “Closely. Dinnae let her out of yer sight, lads.”

Ciara smiled to herself as Magnus’ pair of guards took up positions on either side of her, just out of arm’s reach, and watched her like hawks. Magnus himself walked just behind her and to her left as if he was concerned she carried a concealed blade and was preparing to use it against him.

“I suppose I should be flattered ye see me as such a threat,” she said over her shoulder.

“I believe in bein’ prepared fer anything,” he replied. “And ye’ve already proven tae be clever and resourceful, so I willnae be takin’ any chances.”

“It’s just a stroll through the village,” she said.

“Nothin’ is just anythin’ with ye.”

Ciara laughed softly. She had him rattled and back on his heels in a defensive posture. With him on her blind side and his guards at the ready, making a play for freedom would be difficult. Not impossible, but difficult. She would simply need to be patient. It wasn’t her strong suit, but patience was always the key to coming up with a good plan. And if she was going to escape, she would need as good a plan as she’d ever come up with before.

After breakfast, Magnus had wanted to lock Ciara back in his bedchamber for the day. She’d thrown a well-timed fit, demanding that she be allowed to stretch her legs, reasoning that if she was not a prisoner, as they had claimed, then she should be free to do so. It was Katherine who’d advocated on her behalf and eventually got her husband, Laird Domhnall to agree—so long as Magnus and his men accompanied her.

Katherine had been lovely. She seemed to be a genuinely kind soul, and Ciara had enjoyed speaking to her. Knowing she was the wife of the man who’d ordered her capture, she had been cautious with her words and details, of course, but Katherine didn’t seem all that interested in trying to pry information out of her as she was in simply getting to know her. She hadn’t lowered her guard, but Ciara had felt slightly more relaxed sitting with the Lady of Dunvegan than she had since the night she’d absconded from her father’s keep.

All through the morning meal and pleasant conversation with Katherine, though, Ciara found herself stealing glances at Magnus, watching him and the way he interacted with his siblings. They all laughed quite a bit—except for Magnus who rarely seemed to laugh at all. But they teased one another the way siblings did, and it wasn’t difficult for Ciara to see how close they all were, the bond between them. Even Magnus had seemed a little lighter and freer around his siblings.

It was nice to see that the MacLeod’s all seemed so… normal. They seemed like a nice family and not what she would have expected from a group of people who’d plotted her capture. They didn’t seem to wish her any ill intent. For the first time since Magnus had captured Ciara and brought her there, she wondered if she had been wrong about them, if perhaps, they weren’t seeking her execution, but rather, as they said, to learn the truth of the rumors they had been told about a spy in their lands. Which brought a question immediately to mind.

She turned to Magnus. “Where did ye hear the rumor about a spy runnin’ around tryin’ tae undermine yer clan?”

“Kai is our clan’s chief scout. The information was passed tae him. Why dae ye ask?”

“Just curious,” she replied. “It just seems tae me that somebody fed ye me description with the hope that I’d be captured.”

“Tae what end, eh?”

“Maybe so they’d ken right where I was so they could come fer me.”

Magnus looked away as if the thought had already occurred to him. Before he could say anything though, a group of children burst onto the narrow lane and mobbed him. They all called his name and for the first time since she’d known him, Ciara saw a genuine smile spread across his face. He knelt down and spoke quietly with the children, making sure he tousled the hair and said a few words to each and every one of them. After that, he pulled sweets from a pouch beneath his cloak and handed them out to the kids.

“Does he dae that often?” Ciara asked one of the guards.

“Aye. Always brings food and sweets tae the people of the village. Says it’s his duty tae care for the people his family rules. All the MacLeods feel that way, always have. The family does all they can tae make sure the people are fed. Especially when the winters hit and food tends tae be scarce,” the guard replied.

It was such a stark contrast to her own father, who seemed to hold the people of his clan in utter disdain. After her mother had passed away, her father stopped providing care for them. The people were hungry. Sick. But he’d never raised a finger to help any of them, not even the children. It did her heart good to see that some people in power actually used it for some good. That they tried to help better the lives of the people they ruled.

And the gentleness and compassion Magnus showed while interacting with the children of the clan was as surprising as it was heartening to see. Up to that morning’s meal with his family and now watching him with the children, she wasn’t sure he possessed the ability to feel or to care about other people. He seemed a man slavishly devoted to duty, to following the orders given to him by his laird to the letter. It was something Ciara respected, that sense of duty. But she also found it a bit sad.

“Is it true that ye’re a spy?” the guard asked her.

A mischievous smile touched Ciara’s lips. “What dae ye think?”

The guard opened his mouth to reply but closed it again without responding, perhaps thinking his question impertinent. As the mob of children broke up, he stepped back to his original position as Magnus returned to his just behind and to Ciara’s left. His expression turned stony once more, the warmth and affection that had painted his face in the presence of the children gone like the sun’s warmth on a winter day.

“Have ye stretched yer legs enough? Are ye ready tae go back?” Magnus asked.

She favored him with a small smile. “Nae yet. I’d like tae walk through the village a little while longer if that’s all right.”

His expression softened and he gave her a nod but said nothing more. She walked on with her procession in tow. Everybody they passed greeted Magnus warmly, just as they had the day he’d marched her to Dunvegan. Ciara could see the curious glances cast her way, but she was given polite nods and words of greeting as well. If anybody saw her as the enemy, they didn’t seem to make that known. Perhaps it was the lack of bonds around her wrists this time.

The village was nicely kept and well ordered. The people seemed happy and to take pride in their homes and the small shops that lined the street. And why wouldn’t they? To have a laird who seemed to care about them as much as the MacLeod’s seemed to, it made sense to Ciara they would have that sense of pride and loyalty. It was something she didn’t see in the people back home. And that was why her father needed to ally with a monster like Fairfax to retain his hold on power.

“It’s peaceful here,” she noted.

Magnus nodded. “It is.”

“The people seem happy.”

“I believe they are.”

“And they seem tae be fond of ye.”

“There are good people here.”

They walked on for a while longer and Ciara thought about everything that had happened and what she’d learned that day. It had been an interesting and different look at Magnus and his family than she’d expected. Sitting with them during the morning meal also made her envious that she had never grown up with that sort of family bond. And not for the first time, it made her wish she’d had siblings of her own.

Growing up an only child—and one who was despised by her father and then ignored after her mother died—had been a lonely existence. That feeling of loneliness and isolation only seemed amplified in the presence of the MacLeods and the devotion they inspired among their clan.