Chapter 31

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

R aven regarded her brother across her wine goblet, inwardly marveling at how they had matured from the handsome, youthful young fellows of six years before to men with the air of hardened warriors and the scars to prove it. Both had been forged and tempered by adversity, she knew. She was sad to have missed so much of their company, but nevertheless felt very close to them. It moved her greatly to look across and recognize their close family ties reflected in the way they all resembled each other.

The brothers both had light-brown eyes and pitch-black locks, just as she did. Thinking of family ties made her think of Thorsten. She could hardly wait to tell them they were uncles, and she just knew they would be very excited by the idea.

She could not help noticing how Maxwell was now covered up to his neck and the sides of his face with swirling tattoos. She recalled how, years ago, he had sworn to have a new one after each victory in battle, and concluded with a hint of pride that he must have won very many of them.

"How dae things stand with ye and MacDonald at present," Arne wanted to know as the conversation turned to the seriousness of the situation they found themselves in, through no fault of their own.

"We're on the brink of a war with him," Maxwell explained. "Since Raven got away from him, he's been accusin' us of bein' in contact with her, wantin' us tae give her up."

"Aye, but we dinnae believe a word he says. We accused him of makin' up stories, sayin' Raven had escaped from Barra tae cover up the fact he'd murdered her. He was furious, and he's been makin' threats tae attack us if we dinnae comply and help find her. Of course, we told him tae go tae hell," Everard said.

"Ye cannae understand how surprised and happy we were tae get the letter from yer braither tellin' us she was safe with ye on Harris," Max told Arne earnestly. He reached over and gripped Arne's arm for a moment. "Thank ye fer savin' her from drownin' and takin' her in as well. We owe ye a lot."

"Why does MacDonald want Raven back so badly after she's made it clear she hates him?" Arne asked.

"Well, apart from wantin' revenge fer bein' made to look a fool, he wants her so he can ultimately get his hands on the MacNeil lairdship," Everard explained. "Ye can bet that after Raven's disappearance and supposed death, me and Max here will be next on his death list. With us out of the way, as Raven's lawful husband, he's in line tae take over the entire clan and all our assets."

"Of course, that makes sense," Arne replied with a thoughtful nod. "Nay wonder he's put so many resources intae gettin' her back. There's a lot at stake for him. So, now ye're on the brink of war with him, ye say?"

"Aye. We've discussed launchin' an attack on him before he attacks us. We havenae ruled that out, but I want more information about what his next move might be before we make a final decision," Everard replied, looking at Arne hopefully.

"But now ye're here, I'm hopin' ye might give us a better picture of how things stand with him. Since ye and Raven are close, we were hopin' that perhaps yer braither might agree tae help us defeat him once and for all. We badly need more trained fighting men and arms if we're tae have any chance of victory."

Arne said, "I've discussed that with him, and I believe he will. I'll send him a message later, tae fill him in, once we've discussed what might be done. Of course, I'll stay and give ye whatever help I can."

"Grand," Everard said with a smile." We have messengers on standby, and I have scouts out searchin' fer signs of McDonald's movements on the mainland.

"He tried tae kidnap me five days ago," Raven put in. "That's when me and Arne lost all out possessions." She proceeded to tell them the story of being tricked aboard the Lady Anne, breaking off to allow Arne to finish the tale of the rescue and how Bosco and the crew of the Kelpie Lass had kindly helped them and then taken them to safety.

"Christ! Ye're tellin' us ye had tae walk a whole four days just tae get here?" Maxwell exclaimed when they had finished. "Nay wonder ye looked so bedraggled when ye tried tae sneak intae the castle."

"We thought it would be better if were nae seen tae be here, in case MacDonald's men were spyin' on us," Raven told them, adding with a wry smile, "But that didnae exactly work out as planned." She paused for a moment before frowning and adding, "I'm so sorry fer putting' ye all in so much danger. I feel terrible."

"'Tis none of it yer fault, Raven," her elder brother told her firmly. "This is all down tae Faither's greed. He was nae much of a faither tae ye as it was, always takin' it out on ye for Ma's death, but weddin' ye tae that monster against all our wishes…" he trailed off, shaking his head, clearly appalled. "'Tis the pair of them and their scheming that's caused all this strife and heartache."

"Aye, Raven, ye must never blame yersel' fer any of it, nae fer one moment. Ye're the one that's suffered most because of this mess," Maxwell told her, patting her hand.

"Thank ye, that's very comfortin'," she told them, her heart warmed by their words. "It just feels like this has been goin' on fer a lifetime, and it'll never end until he's ruined me life completely. Years ago, when I was first wed tae Struan, I quickly found out what a cruel man he is. I wrote letters, lots of letters, tae Faither and ye boys, tellin' the truth about me miserable life on Barra as Lady MacDonald, askin' ye tae come and get me.

"But Struan confiscated them all and read them. He'd go into a rage, seein' what I'd written, and force me tae write letters sayin' how happy I was with him. He read the letters ye sent tae me as well, only the ones he thought were safe fer me tae read.

"Faither never wrote tae me. And Struan never let me come home fer a visit either. He always found some excuse as tae why we couldnae travel. If I argued with him, which was almost all the time, he locked me in me chambers fer days on end. It was easy fer him cover things up," Raven finished explaining.

"The bastard. That's how he strung us along fer so many years, although Faither would nae have taken any notice of yer letters anyway, Raven. He had what he wanted and didnae care about anythin' else," Maxwell said bitterly. Sad though the thought made her, she knew he was right. A quick glance at Arne's face on hearing how Straun had treated her told her how angry it made him.

"D'ye have any thoughts on how tae free Raven from his hold permanently?" he asked.

While the three men discussed the possibilities of an attack or of making some kind of agreement to force Struan to release her from his hold, Raven listened quietly. Then she voiced the thought that had occurred to her more and more lately, which she had been keeping to herself for the time being. "He'll never agree tae that, and I dinnae want any bloodshed on me behalf. Nay, there's only one way that he'll ever give up, and that's if he thinks I'm dead."

They all three looked at her as if mystified. She nodded vigorously. "'Tis the only way, I tell ye. I have tae go back tae Barra, and then I must escape again, but this time, I'll make it look as if I died in the attempt. That's the only thing that will free me from his grasp once and fer all."

Arne shook his head immediately. "That's nae happenin'," he told her firmly. "'Tis far too dangerous fer ye tae go back there. He could kill ye. Nay, we have tae come up with a better plan than that."

"Arne's right. We've only just got ye back safe, Raven, we'll nae put ye right back intae his hands again," Everard said.

"I agree, 'tis far too dangerous," Maxwell put in. "The best way tae free ye would be if he dies."

Knowing she was right, she tried to argue with them, to convince them that it was worth her braving the dangers of giving herself up to her husband in the short-tern for the long-term gain of her liberty. But however hard she tried, they refused to listen and went on with discussing their own ideas.

Then something happened that instilled fresh terror in her. The dinner was nearing its end when several guards suddenly came rushing in and headed to the laird's stable, alarm clearly visible on their faces.

"What is it?" Everard asked, wiping his mouth on his napkin, looking up at the men. One of them whispered in his ear. "All right, we'll be there directly. Go and inform the captain what's happened and tell him tae lock down the castle tae search fer the culprit," he ordered, getting up from the table.

"What's goin' on?" Maxwell asked, also rising, his tone reflecting the misgivings Raven was already feeling.

"A guard on patrol's been found killed, with an arrow tae his chest. And there's a note. Come on, let's go see."

The four of them rose, but Arne pushed Raven back down. "Stay here. It may be dangerous, and ye willnae wish tae see the dead man's body," he told her.

But she insisted. "I'm comin' with ye whether ye like it or nae!"

He either decided it was no time to argue or that it was better to keep her in his sight because he said no more to stop her as she followed him and her brothers outside the keep, to where a few soldiers were standing around a figure slumped on the ground near the guardhouse.

She gasped to see the man was dead, an arrow sticking out from his chest. It had pierced right through his mail coat. One of the men standing over the body handed Everard a rolled parchment. "It was stuck on the arrow, melaird," he explained.

Everard unrolled the parchment and read it before handing it to Maxwell to look at.

"'Tis from MacDonald," he told Raven and Arne, his jaw tightening. "He says he kens Raven is here, and that if we dinnae hand her over, he's gonnae destroy us."

Raven took in the words, her stomach tying itself in knots. She was terrified by the threat and how fast Struan's men had learned she was there. Clearly, he had spies and people to do his bidding everywhere! He could even be lurking somewhere near himself. Any feeling of security she'd had at being at her brother's castle fled.

Naturally, the incident overshadowed the rest of the evening. The men's talk was all of when they might expect an attack by Struan and how best to defend against it. Weary of it and nursing her fears, she left them and restored to her room to think.

She was lying alone in her bed, thinking how she wished Arne was beside her so she could discuss with him her feelings about the new and horrifying development, when she heard the door of her chamber open and close softly. She knew instantly from the large shape outlined against the faint lamplight coming from the hallway that it was him. Relief flooded through her.

"Hello, I've been waitin' fer ye. What took ye so long?" she whispered as he came over to the bed. She sat up and drew back the covers as he took off his robe and climbed in next to her, immediately enfolding her in her arms.

"I thought I'd better wait a while before sneakin' over here, but I missed ye too much tae be without ye, and I ken ye'd want tae ken what we've been talkin' about," he told.

They kissed tenderly and snuggled up close. "I'm so scared, Arne. With all this talk of attacks, I dread tae think what 'tis all goin' tae mean in the end. People are gonnae die if it comes tae that. I'm so scared I'll never be free of him if I cannae convince him I'm dead," Raven told him, clinging to him, glad of his reassuring presence.

Arne stroked her had soothingly as she lay against his chest. "Ye're nae the only one that's scared," he admitted. "But trust me, me and yer braithers will find a way tae free ye without ye puttin' yersel' in such danger. I'll nae let him hurt ye again, I swear."

Deeply moved by his attempt to comfort her but still fearful, Raven looked into his silvery-blue eyes and stroked his face lovingly. "Thank ye, me darlin', 'tis very comfortin'," she whispered, her lips finding his.

But even as she kissed him, deep in her heart, she knew she was right, and that if there was any chance of getting away permanently from Struan and avoiding bloodshed, she would have to take matters into her own hands.

The following morning, though she woke up alone, Arne appeared in her chambers while she was putting the finishing touches to her appearance for the day. They embraced and kissed in greeting, though they had spent the night making love and sleeping in each other's arms.

"Yer braithers want us tae attend the council meetin' after breakfast," he told her. "They're gonnae be discussin' what's tae be done in more detail. Are ye ready tae come down fer somethin' tae eat and tae go tae the meetin' with me?"

Raven thought about it and quickly came to a decision. She saw no point in sitting in on the meeting when she was certain her own plan—the one she was convinced was the only way forward—would not even be considered. Though she wanted to be with Arne, she shook her head. "Nay. Go on without me. I think I'll go fer a walk and try and clear me head a bit while ye're at the meetin'. Ye can tell me all about it later. But I'll come and have breakfast with ye first."

They went down to the great hall and breakfasted with Everard and Maxwell. "We didnae get round tae talkin' about it last night, but what's all this about us bein' uncles now, Sister? Is it true ye have a bairn between ye?" Maxwell asked them, his face animated.

Raven smiled, her heart bursting with pride and joy to be able to tell them all about Thorsten. She could see Arne felt the same, and they smiled at each other and held hands under the table as they talked about their love for their son and how much they missed him. Watching Arne's pleasure light up his features as he spoke about Thorsten left her feeling overwhelmed with love for him.

"I cannae wait tae meet the wee fella," Maxwell told them, grinning widely. "I'm thrilled tae have me sister home safe and tae find out I'm really an uncle tae boot. 'Tis the best thing ever!"

"Aye, and the same goes fer me too," Everard chimed in cheerfully. "I bet he's a right sturdy wee man. I hope that when all this is sorted out, we can meet him."

"I hope so too," Raven said, looking at Arne questioningly. He smiled at her and nodded. She was elated when he said, "I'm sure that can be arranged."

When they were done with breakfast, she kissed Arne as they were about to go their separate ways.

"I thought I'd take a walk intae the village and see if I can find ye some more clothes tae wear," she told him, nonchalantly, although she had decided to go there in the hope that the castle was being watched by Struan's men and that someone would approach her, seeing her alone. She still believed that the only solution was to go back to Barra and convince her husband that she had died escaping yet again.

He looked alarmed and tuned to Everard. "I'm nae happy about her goin' out of the castle. It is too dangerous."

"Aye, I agree," her brother said.

"Please Everard. Ye ken the village will be safe in daylight, and the market will be bustling with peoples. Ye can send whoever ye like tae protect me and I will be careful. I need tae get out and away from all these dreadful thoughts. I promise ye I will nae be gone long," Raven begged.

Everard was silent for a moment. Then he nodded slowly. "All right, I'll assign some men tae guard ye, Raven. We cannae take any chances with yer safety. We have tae assume that MacDonald has his spies watchin' the castle. He'll likely find out ye're here before long."

Arne did not look at all convinced but it was Everard's responsibility so he could not insist any further, lest he seem disrespectful towards his host.

"Very well," Raven replied, grateful and filled with guilt at the same time.

"Here, ye'll need some money," Arne said. He pulled some coins out of his pocket and gave them too her. Everard and Maxwell did the same.

When she came out of her chambers a short while later, dressed to go out, she found three guards waiting for her in the hallway. She nodded at them in thanks. They followed her at a polite distance as she left the castle and made her way in the chilly spring sunshine along the busy road to the village, which was only ten minutes' walk away.