Branded by a Warrior (27 page)

“How long have you known that Broderick?”

Sighing loudly, he leaned his head back in the chair and looked up at the high arched ceilings, “The night you fell ill both Kendrix and
I sampled it. We both drank far more than you did,
and it didn’t bother us at all. We are much larger than you, thus our bodies could handle the poison easily. It is clear that you
were the intended target, not I
.
”

“Why would you risk your life Broderick? You both could have died!”

“There have been other missives Elisabeth, but none addressed to you. I believe that he has someone installed within our walls, relaying information to him. He knew far too much detail to have guessed,” encircling her tighter,
“
I am truly sorry that I did not share this information with you lass. I believed
I was protecting you, have patience with me my love. I am new at being a husband. I will risk my life for you any chance I get, like you; I do not take me
vow
s lightly. I promised to protect you and keep you safe, you are my life now Elisabeth
.
”

They had gotten so far tonight, she felt incredibly close to him. They had talked of their past, and their families before, but tonight their bond seemed to solidify.

Encircling his jaw with her small hands she tenderly kissed his lips, running her hands into his soft dark hair as they melted into each other.

Breaking their kiss, Elisabeth took a deep breath as she summoned the courage to tell Broderick what had been on her mind all day, closing her eyes briefly she could feel her heartbeat quicken.

Looking up
,
she bit her lip as she stared into his emerald green eyes, “Years ago
I had to push aside the thought of becoming a mother. I chose my sword over a husband, a decision that did not come without consequence. I never looked back, I couldn’t. For years I waged war alongside my brother, yet when I saw a wee bairn in his mother’s arms, my heart would break, time after time. Something inside me never wanted to give up on the idea of having children, internally I could feel my warrior side clash with my maternal side
.
” The roll of heavy emotion swept over her, with it
, it
brought a fresh glimmer of tears. The years of heartbreak came rolling back to her as she continued to explain to Broderick. “When my family was murdered, I vowed to avenge them, and my clan. Everything here has happened so quickly, it wasn’t u
ntil today when you mentioned children
that it occurred to me that having a family was our future. The reason I never married, why I still had my virginity at three and twe
nty was I knew being with child
would prevent me from riding with Duncan. He would have never budged, just as I know you will not either. Having your child would prevent me from riding at your side when the warriors travel south, how can I honor a vow to my
family and honor my vows to you?”

Broderick sat with her upon his lap, the fire glowing in front of them, he watched as she poured out her heart, raw emotion apparent in her voice. Heavy tears ran down her beautiful face as she confessed her worries to him
.
Running his hand up her small back he squeezed her tightly into his chest, he understood.

“Do you think you are with child now?”

“I dinnae f
eel any different, I’m assured b
y Rhona I would notice a change in my body
.
”

“Kincaid will pay for what he did, as will his warriors. Be it your sword, or mine, he will die
. I understand your need for revenge; I understand your desire to deliver that revenge personally. You are correct, I would not want you to ride when you are with child, but neither
can we prevent God’s will
.
”

“What if I become with child before we go south?” she asked, her voice trembled.

“Then I deliver your revenge, I am an extension of you now El
isabeth. If you carry the next L
aird of MacMillan in your belly, I will ride with the warriors to swiftly deliver revenge on your behalf”

Closing her eyes, she knew he was right, but it still hurt.

“Elisabeth, if your parents were here, and your brother, what would they say? Would they tell you that you must risk your life, and the life of a wee babe in your stomach
should you be pregnant
? Or would they tell you that your
life
and the
life
of your babe are far more important that if you are there when Kincaid dies?”

Although his words were not harsh, they were blunt, and honest. He had a damn good point, and she knew it. Her family would always want her to pick life, to not live in the past and embrace the future. She could almost hear Duncan’s very words when Broderick spoke.

“They would tell me to chose life, always life
.
”

“Aye they would lass, we do not know what the future holds for us, and we cannot predict the future. You may very well not be with child in a few short months, and you will ride at my side, where you belong. If by chance you do
become with child before we descend upon Kincaid’s lands
, you will ride in my heart when I go south
.
”

Reaching up she kissed his jaw as she melted into his arms, with him, he abolished her fears, and he calmed her senses. He was her perfect mate, her balance.

The following week went quickly for Elisabeth, mornings were filled with drills and sword work in the bailey, and afternoons were spent with Isobel and her new bow. The evenings were filled with
overseeing the castle, as was her new role. After dinner she and Broderick usually escaped to the north tower so he could work with her personally in the privacy of his
study
. Since she had opened up to him, their relationship had grown immensely. Each night after they bathed together, they made love until their bodies collapsed in sated joy.
Her heart had settled with the knowledge that if she indeed did become with child before they waged war, her husband would deliver swift justice to Kincaid and his men on her behalf. Although, it was not a
perfect solution, she had made peace with it. Broderick had been right, her parents and brother would want her safe, they would want her to have a family, and they would not want her putting life on hold in order to seek vengeance.

Besides the few
rude experiences
with Siobhan, life was becoming a beautiful reality for her. She had made many new friends with women her age over the week, she had
saw the warriors snap to attention when she walked past. Broderick never hovered while they drilled; he allowed her space and respect. Many times this week she could she him smile when she bested his men, one after another. There was no one who could best her arrows, not even Broderick.
She had taken great pride in proving herself to her husband and his men, even though none had asked for her to do so. She felt she
needed
them to see her skill first hand; it had certainly helped quickly gain the warriors respect.

Broderick had taken her on frequent rides as weather permitted through the week, when time allowed. They had found a harmonious balance between being husband and wife, Laird and Warrior Queen.

Her afternoon sessions with Isobel were a delight; soon enough several other children had joined the sessions asking to be taught. With their parent’s permission she went from teaching Isobel, to teaching
children age
five to twelve
.
Before she knew it she had amassed a group of vivacious children all wanting to learn.
It had been frustrating,
humorous, and rewarding all at the same time. Soon enough Kendrix and Broderick came to h
elp herd all the children while
Elisabeth taught.
The three held afternoon sessions for the MacMillan Clan children together in the bailey now on a daily basis.
Seeing Isobel’s feelings hurt at having to share her aunt, Elisabeth promised Isobel an hour of private lessons behind the stables.

Over the week
s
as she spent time with the children, and Isobel, the thought of having children didn’t make her panic. She knew she would be a mother soon enough, the thought of carrying Broderick’s children made her glow with excitement. She knew he would be a wonderful father, the thought of seeing Broderick holding their bairn made her heart burst with happiness.
Her hatred and vengeance never disappeared, but she knew she could not hold onto it forever. Soon enough Kincaid would be dealt with, a
nd after that she had a life full
of Broderick and their future children to look forward to.

Elisabeth’s favorite part of the day was her private lesson with Isobel;
little Isobel was a natural, just like she had been
as a child
. The bow Broderick had made for Isobel was a perfect fit. It hadn’t taken Isobel long to excel under her
tutelage.

Earlier this morning Elisabeth had flown through the drills with
the MacMillan warriors as usual. A
fterward,
the
fa
mily had met in the kitchen where
Rhona had prepared another hearty meal to get them through the cold winter day
.
While eating together, Broderick had been called to the front gate; an urgent messenger had arrived and required his immediate attention.
He excused himself and left Kendrix, Elisabeth and Isobel in the kitchen with Rhona as he saw to his dut
y
.

By the time they had finished their meal, Broderick still had not returned to the cozy kitchen.
S
ilently
Elisabeth
wondered what had taken her husband away for so long, it was very unlike him. She had assumed he would return after he gathered the message from his guards.

Walking hand in hand with Isobel to the stables, she prayed everything was okay. Focusing on the lesson at hand, she was excited to teach Isobel’s lesson today, she was going to teach her a very dangerous shot, yet very important. Rounding the stables, they walked over to their training area that was always vacant and quiet, perfect for teaching her little niece in private.

“Isobel, I want to show you something my brother taught me at a very early age, much like you. For such a wee lass, you have amazing skill my love, I am very proud of you! Come sit next to me, I want to tell you the story so you understand why this is important to learn,” nodding to the wooden bench, she sat down and watched Isobel scramble up next to her.

Smiling down at the blonde angel, she told the story just like Duncan had, “Years ago there was a
mighty
hunter who found himself out of arrows in the midst of a formidable enemy, far behind him, his loyal squire stood with one
lone arrow in his quiver.
They had trained many
years;
t
he shot was perfected over time. The
squire raised his bow and gave the call of a hawk, alerting the hunter.
The trusty squire pulled back his string sending the arrow
flying towards the hunters back. As the enemy came down in his final blow, the hunter spun around and snatched the soaring arrow out of the air and slayed the enemy in one swift motion
!
”

“I cannae
slay a beast Aunt
!” Isobel looked concerned.
Chuckling at her, Elisabeth explained, “Nae my love, I do not want you to slay the beast, I want you to be able to shoot an arrow towards me so
I may slay the beast
!
” Elisabeth watched as Isobel shook her head and furrowed her brows.

“What if I hurt you?”

“I will teach you Isobel, there is no rush to learn this my pet, I learned with my brother slowly before we mastered it. We use blunted arrows without tips to prevent injury, you have incredible accuracy with your targets love, it will nae take you long to learn
.
” Standing up, Elisabeth grabbed Isobel’s hand and pulled her onto her feet, “Come on, let me show you
.
”
She smiled warmly at the young lass, giving her confidence in her reassurance of her extraordinary skills.

Elisabeth walked over t
o the targets and lifted one up resting it upon another c
reating a target as tall as a human. Pointing to her shoulder height, “Aim here Isobel, the shot isn’t powerful as the person has to catch the arrow in flight, concentrate on your speed and aim, block out everything around you. I had a few arrows blunted just for this exercise
.
” Walking back over to Isobel, Elisabeth pulled several blunted arrows from her quiver and handed them to Isobel as she looked down to instruct her.

Pulling out her own arrow, Elisabeth showed Isobel exactly what she wanted her to do, “Exhale before you let your string go, take aim and shoot
.
” Standing before Isobel, she notched her arrow and pulled her string back.
“As the shooter must be true to aim, one must have complete faith in the
person standing yonder my love, the shot will only work if the two
trust
each other, there is no room for error when in battle.” Exhaling Elisabeth
looked down the line at the target and released her string sending the arrow directly to the spot she wanted Isobel to aim for.
It landed directly in the middle of the target with a thick thud.

“Your turn Isobel, do not rush, controlled movements
my dear, ye shall do just splendid
.” S
tepping out of the way, she motioned for her niece to stand where she had been. Watching her prodigy get into her stance and pull
an arrow from her small quiver. S
he observed
with a watchful eye as
Isobel d
id
just as reques
ted. Graceful, slow movements
she notched her arrow and took aim.
Releasing her string,
Isobel’s arrow hit a few han
d
s lower than Elisabeth’s arrow.

B
ehind them, they heard clapping, followed by Broderick’s deep voice. “Well done Isobel! Your lovely Aunt Elisabeth is a fine teacher I see, your technique is
outstanding
for your age my dear!” He had been watching them from behind the stables for a while
now;
he
had come in search of Elisabeth. H
e needed to talk to her. He couldn’t resist watching in
secret as his
radiant
wife taught his niece, the sight was endearing to him. He was far enough away he couldn’t hear their words
, but he could spot a lesson being taught.

Seeing Isobel turn at the sound of his voice, he opened his arms and knelt down as was normal, awaiting her to run into his arms for a hug.

“Uncle Broderick!”
She smiled, running towards him with her arms open.

Catching the lass as she crashed into his chest, he chuckled as he picked her up and walked her back over to her teacher.

“Aunt Elisabeth is teaching me something her brother taught her, one day I’ll be able to shoot an arrow at her and have her catch it! Do you think that is possible Uncle Broderick?”

Looking over at Elisabeth
and then back to Isobel, “Aye my dear, it tis possible indeed. Duncan Drummond and myself perfected it years ago, I’m sure he taught your Aunt Elisabeth exactly how to execute the move, would you like to see?”

“Oh yes! Can you show me?” Isobel pleaded, clapping her hands as he sat her back down.

“Elisabeth, would you do the honor of shooting at me so our sweet little niece
knows
it can
indeed
be done?”

In all the time she had been at Broderick’s castle, never once had he asked her to prove herself, to test her skills on him, or demonstrate her mastery of anything. Shooting an arrow at her husband made her nervous, not that she would miss her shot, but that he might falter and miss the catch. She ha
d always practiced with Duncan
since she was a child. She had never attempted this trick with anyone else.

Shaking off the worry, she refused to let Isobel see her concern, “Aye, please walk down by the target
.
”
She motioned for her husband with a flourished hand.
Pulling a blunted arrow from her quiver, she notched her bow as Broderick took his position
at the end of the stable.

“Use a normal arrow Elisabeth
.
”

“Nae
!
”
her reply immediate and stern, she locked eyes with Broderick and saw him simply smile warmly at her.

“Elisabeth, I trust you, use a normal arrow
my
love. Aim at my chest
,
” he co
untered with growing amusement as he winked at her.

Watching him set his feet, he stood at the end of the stable facing her and Isobel, his eyes were focused on her as she dropped the blunted arrow at her feet and reached back into her quiver to draw an arrow.

Blocking out the world around her, she notched her arrow and brought the bow up, pulling back her string past her ear she exhaled as she took aim at Broderick’s broad chest.
Seeing him nod, she released the string, sending
the arrow
soaring
towards
his unprotected
chest.
L
ike lightning
,
he sn
atched the arrow out of the air and smiled devilishly
back at her in his triumph.

Beside her Isobel squealed in delight
as she
ran down to join her victorious uncle.

Throwing her bow over her shoulder,
she allowed her heart to clam down as she slung the bow
dia
gonal across her breast.
Looking up she
saw Broderick and Isobel walking back to her.

“Great shot Elisabeth, Duncan taught you well
!
”

“Thank you,”
she whispered looking into her husband’s eyes. T
urning her gaze back to the delighted child, “see, it can be done my pet
.
”
She smiled down at Isobel who was glowing with excitement.