Chapter 15

15

T hat afternoon, the dynamics between Isobel and Alasdair changed again. To her surprise, Hans pulled her away from speaking to Elene and Bessetta before they sat in the great hall to eat and told Isobel she would sit next to Alasdair at the head table.

Isobel thought he might still be perturbed with her because she had bitten Cleary.

Bessetta smiled brightly. “It’s about time my brother came to his senses.”

Elene smiled just as cheerfully. “Enjoy your meal and everything else.”

Isobel swore her face had to be bright red with embarrassment. But then she wondered if Alasdair had not been pleased that she had spoken to Cleary and Baine at the meal this morn. Or mayhap it was because of the interest the two brothers had shown in her.

She and Bessetta walked to the head table, and Isobel sat beside Alasdair. “Did you want me to sit by you so you can keep me out of mischief?”

She smiled at him, hoping the lasses who desired a mating with the wolf would believe they had no chance. She didn’t believe she had made enough of an impression on him that he would want to mate her. But she wasn’t above playing the game.

“Aye.”

“You know some of the women who are interested in vying for your attention will be envious that I’m sitting beside you and that they dinna have the pleasure.”

He laughed. “If I had been interested in any of them in return, they would be sitting here with me instead.”

His words surprised her. She had thought he was trying to keep her from causing any further trouble with the newly turned wolves.

“Lorne says you’re doing a great job guarding the keep.”

“It’s easy. No one is sneaking toward the castle to fight you.” She was glad about that.

“Most likely, if anyone tried it, they would come at dark, though we never leave anything to chance. If we didna post guards during the day, that’s when someone would attack. But we also have wolf patrols at night. We can still see at night when my enemies are disadvantaged, and our wolves can keep a lower profile.”

“I agree. Lorne didna mention that he would put me on that duty.” She figured he just hadn’t gotten around to it.

Maybe he scheduled guards to do it longer so they wouldn’t have sleep issues as much as they would have with switching back and forth from day to night duty. She’d had difficulty with that with the Icelandic clan before.

“He asked me if I wanted to have you serve as a wolf on guard duty at night, but I said no. I want you to be at the croft at night, and you and Conall can keep your family and the crofters safe should you encounter trouble.”

“Thank you.” She appreciated that Alasdair would want her to keep her family safe at night.

It was probably true that if they had trouble, the enemy would arrive when everyone was sleeping. She was glad his telling Lorne not to put her on wolf guard duty wasn’t because he wanted her watched while she pulled guard duty or because he thought she couldn’t fight as well as his Scottish warriors.

But his comment that she would continue to stay with the crofters meant he wasn’t interested in taking her as a mate, or she would be staying at the keep instead. She felt a modicum of disappointment because of that.

“How many enemies do you have?” The clan her family had joined had been powerful, so they didn’t fight with other clans very often.

“Too many to count. Does that make you want to leave and find someplace that is less—dangerous?” He drank from his tankard of ale.

She laughed. “I’m sure we ended up in the best place we could have since you are wolves also. And we will be eager to help your cause, but also most of your pack seem to have no animosity for us, which is always a concern.”

“Other than the lassies who are glaring daggers at you.”

She smiled. That she could deal with. “Why do you have so many enemies?”

“Others want what we have. ‘Tis easier to steal from others than to put in the hard work to build it yourself.”

“The castle.” Land, power. She understood that.

“Aye. We have allied with clans who are enemies to others, and so we have made enemies of those. But you canna survive without making alliances. Because of what we have and how prosperous we are, I have had several offers to wed lasses.”

“Did you ally with Hamilton?”

“Aye.”

“And his daughter?”

Alasdair smiled. “There was no need to marry her to ally with her da.”

Isobel raised a brow as she lifted her tankard of mead to her lips. “What about the offer of marrying other chiefs’ daughters? None suited? Or are you still pondering a new alliance or an old one?” She was disappointed that he might end up with someone else that he already had his sights set on.

“They are no’ wolves, so I’m no’ interested. The woman I will mate will have to be a royal wolf. One who can have my royal bairns.” Alasdair drained his mug.

“Oh,” she said.

“I have no intention of turning a woman, nor of dealing with the fallout with her family when she canna see them when she wants, or they wish to see her, and she is having trouble with her shifting. Nor do I want to have offspring who are not from royal lines. Life would be so much harder for them because they would have shifting difficulties also as they grew up.”

“Aye. I agree. I had talked to the children about never shifting in front of humans, ever. And when running as wolves with Conall or me, they were never to show themselves to humans. If they ever came across one, they were never to bite him or her.”

He frowned at her.

“With me, to protect them, it’s a different story.”

He sighed. “You have given them sage advice. We tell our young ones the same.”

“But we are all royals, so we can shift at will. I have told you my story—how my father, mother, uncle, and aunt died and how we were living among people who were not of our clan. What about you? How did you become clan chief? Did your da rule the clan before that?”

“My parents died young in a skirmish with other clans. My uncle, my da’s brother, never had a mate or offspring. He oversaw a pack of ten. During a battle with another clan, he was killed. I was older and had been helping him run the pack as if I were his son for some time.”

“I’m so sorry for your losses. But I can see why your pack would want you to lead them,” she said.

He smiled at her. “I immediately ended up taking over the pack and expanding it as soon as I could. We needed more wolf numbers, but we had to ensure they were wolves that would go along with my rule, or we would have just had infighting and chaos.”

“Like when I decided to bite Cleary and Baine without your approval.”

Alasdair ate another bite of his trout. “You remind me of me—in a good way. Sometimes impetuous but fair-minded and protective of kin.”

They discussed his plans for his people, including increasing the number of wolves, finishing the wall, and expanding the castle. She wanted to be part of it all.

She swore the meal lasted much longer than it normally did, and she figured she was the reason for it, though no one was eager to get back to work, so it might have been a good thing. Except the women who didn’t like her were still eyeing her with animosity.

When they finished eating the meal, Alasdair and Isobel walked outside of the keep together, both bound to do their duty. But she felt lighthearted, eager to see him tonight at the loch. She couldn’t wait.

After the meal, he had to speak with his brothers about business while Isobel went up to the wall walk to pull her last guard duty before she had dinner and returned to the croft.

To her surprise, the dark-haired Mege came up the stairs to see her on the wall walk. She probably had never been up there before for any reason.

“You are naught but a wild Viking—dangerous to our people. Dinna think your kind will mate our pack leader. Everyone canna believe you would attack and turn Scotsmen. You are unstable.”

“If ‘tis something Alasdair and I both need to do, we’ll do it.” Isobel had no intention of pretending it might not happen. “As to attacking and turning a Scotsman, if he is harming one of my young cousins, I would do anything in my power to protect them. If she had been your kin, would you no’ have acted on her behalf?”

Ignoring Isobel’s question, Mege scoffed. “Accidents do happen out here.”

Isobel raised a brow. “And you think if I should ‘accidentally’ suffer an accident, his lairdship wouldna realize someone had done it on purpose to injure or kill me to keep me from mating him?”

Mege shrugged. “People are injured or killed all the time. Just so you know.”

“Thank you for the warning. I canna imagine you would do the deed, though. Would you put one of your kin up to it? Or some other? It would be a shame, should that happen, if he gets caught at it and is punished for the misdeed instead of the one who came up with the idea. Though he would still be punished for committing the wrong.”

“You think you’re so clever.”

“Aye. I am. When you have to work as hard as I did to stay alive and to ensure my kin did also, you have to be prepared for anything.” Despite having to deal with a few disgruntled pack members, Isobel had been so glad that Alasdair had taken her and her kin into his pack.

Everyone liked them, showing no animosity for them being Icelanders even after turning the brothers, but now this? She couldn’t believe she’d stirred up so much attention among some eligible maids because the laird had shown some interest in her.

Mege finally said, “You willna sit at the head table with him this eve.”

As if Mege could decide such a thing! “Why is that? If Alasdair wishes me to, I will. If he doesna, then I willna. So mayhap you are right. We will know for sure this very eve, will we no’?”

Mege scoffed, then turned on her heel, hurried down the stairs to the inner bailey, and headed inside the keep.

Isobel always watched her back, so if someone was out to get her, she would guard against trouble, as long as no one put her kin in danger because of her.

Then she began watching for any sign of anyone approaching the castle, but she suspected nothing would happen out there—not until night if anything was to happen. Now, though, she was more uneasy about herself concerning Mege and her family or her friends.

Once relieved of her duty, she headed downstairs to see if she was sitting with Elene to have the evening meal, or with Alasdair, which would irritate Mege even more. Mege caught her eye and was glaring at her as if she thought Isobel would heed her words and tell Alasdair she wouldn’t sit with him if he asked her to.

Alasdair smiled at her, wordlessly telling Isobel where he wanted her to sit. Bessetta came to the table where Isobel and Elene had been sitting together and said, “My brother wants you to join him at the head table.”

They saw Cleary and Baine head to the table where Isobel and Conall had sat with them earlier.

Isobel was surprised both Alasdair’s sister and his brother would speak with her. Maybe Hans wasn’t going to tell her to sit with Alasdair.

When Hans joined her, he said, “Unless Alasdair says otherwise, he wants you to sit with him at the head table.”

“I told you so,” Bessetta said.

Conall smiled at her as if he knew this would happen also. However, Isobel was never sure because clan chiefs often changed their minds about such things.

“I’m glad to.” Isobel smiled at Elene and then went with Hans and Bessetta to the head table, dying to give Mege a look, saying she was sitting with the laird, so what was she going to do about it? But Isobel figured the woman was angry enough already and instead pretended she didn’t care how Mege viewed this.

Cleary and Baine hesitated to sit by Conall and Elene, watching Isobel escape their company.

When Isobel sat next to Alasdair, he said, “I’m glad you decided to join me.”

“I couldna presume you wanted me to sit beside you for further meals.”

“Well, I do. Rory said Mege went to talk to you on the wall walk earlier today when you were pulling your second guard duty.”

“She did.”

“No one can get away with much without someone noticing something.”

“You are having me guarded?” she asked, surprised but pleased that he would think of her safety like that if he had.

Alasdair smiled. “My brothers are watching out for you, it seems. They said that they’ve heard from several that Mege has been spreading rumors about you being dangerous to the pack. So Rory wanted to make sure she wasna threatening you.”

“She was, but I can take care of myself.” Even though Isobel felt that way, she wasn’t going to pretend Mege hadn’t threatened her because if she followed through with it, someone in the clan would die for it.

Maybe Isobel, or the person who came after her. She was sure Mege wouldn’t have the courage or the ability to try and kill Isobel herself. Though Mege would be the instigator and she and her kin would be banished if any harm came to Isobel, she figured. She owed it to the pack leader to tell him what was going on.

“No one threatens anyone who is under my protection.”

She raised a brow.

Alasdair cleared his throat. “Aye, I apologize for Cleary and Baine accosting Libby and that I hadna followed through with turning them as I had planned.”

She was surprised he finally apologized. “It doesna mean Mege will carry through with her threat?—”

“That was?”

“I could meet with an accident.”

Alasdair cast a stern look in Mege’s direction. She had been watching Alasdair and Isobel but quickly looked at her meal.

“I dinna want to involve your family in this. I will be careful to watch my back,” Isobel said, though she worried about her family should Mege, her kin, or friends take it out on them.

“Aye, you will. But I canna have anyone in my clan harm you either. I will discuss this with Mege and her family to set them straight if anyone thinks to do anything.”

“Thank you. She told me that I wasna to sit with you at the high table.”

He choked on his ale. “She told Cleary and Baine to sit beside you at the earlier meal, hoping that you would have words and create more problems for yourself.”

“Oh, well, it didna turn out how Mege planned then.” Isobel was glad he didn’t act as though it wasn’t important, just in case Mege followed through with her threat.

“So tonight, I’ll be at the loch.” He raised a brow to wait for her response.

She smiled. “I’ll be there to guard you.”

The intrigued expression on his face said he didn’t want her to be there so that she could guard him. If Mege knew where they would both be tonight, she would probably want to kill them herself!