Enchanted Lover (12 page)

“Aye, Milord. If you should change your mind I will
gladly come back.” She looked at him hopefully.

“'Tis finished between us. Dinna approach me again.”

“I'm sorry to hear that.” She turned abruptly and
hurried off to get her things.

Jared went up the east staircase and looked around.
Even if Glenna was telling the truth, the person she heard had plenty of time
to escape by now. He let out a disgusted sigh and went back to wait by the door
for Asilinn. His cousin looked up in askance when he approached.

“Liam, check outside,” Jared ordered.

***

Glenna reached her cottage with an armload of
belongings. She shoved open the door dropping most of her load in the center of
the floor. A dark shadow in the corner sprung to life and approached her.

“Well?” the dark lord asked.

“Laird Innes is going to think over the peace plan
and talk with Laird Jared again in a few days. Laird Innes was very angry over
Lady Asilinn. Mayhaps he wilna agree to the peace.”

“I dinna pay you to think, Glenna!” her benefactor
snapped angrily. “An attack on Laird Innes and his son should nix the peace
process.”

“But… Laird Innes has two hundred men at his
encampment.”

“Aye, but he and his son must get to their camp from
Dunbocan. Go to the men and tell them to meet me at Burnum Woods. Laird Innes
and his son will have to pass that way to go back. An attack on them should end
any speculation about Laird Jared's sincerity. You must get me some personal
item of his to drop along the trail, something to cast the blame his way.”

Glenna walked over to a small chest in the corner and
got out a small pin with the MacLean crest on it. “This should do nicely.” Her
lips curled in a satisfied smile. “When you are Laird of Dunbocan, I trust your
lordship wilna cast me aside like Laird Jared did.”

“Dinna fear, Glenna, you are too good at what you do
to be cast out by me. I'll be back after the raid. Your story, should you be
asked, will be I was here all night.”

“Aye, Milord,” she whispered.

Asilinn flew to her father's welcoming arms the
moment Jared disappeared from view. “Dinna worry lass,” he told her. “Ian and I
only came to check the layout of the castle. You must tell me where to find you
when we sneak back tonight. I'd like to see the look on his face when I steal
you from him like he stole you from me.”

Pushing away from his embrace, Asilinn looked into
his angry eyes. “Father, if you do all I've sacrificed to make peace between
our people has been for naught.”

“If you mean sleeping with the hoary beast, I dinna
fault you. The man is wise beyond your years. He has seduced you with his
honeyed tongue.”

Her mind flew to a vivid picture of Jared MacLean
letting her wobbly legs slide off his shoulders while he used his magical
tongue to create a firestorm of desire. Her father had no idea the truth of his
words. The very thought started a tingling between her thighs. “I… I…,” she
stammered.

“'Tis all lies child. He means to use you against us.
I just dinna know how.” Asilinn’s jaw grew taut under her father's scrutiny.
“What troubles you?”

“The Bruce seems to trust him.” She paused licking
her lips with the little spit she had left. “I have given all for the cause.”

“Dinna waste our precious time with this. I dinna
blame you for your ruined state. If his seed grows within you we have but
another weapon to use against him.”

“I know what happened to mother hardened your heart.
Is my body now little more than a tool to be used against your enemy?” Asilinn
paced across the chamber and turned to face her father again. “I am your seer,
your secret weapon with a gift to see into the future. Is that all I am to you?
I dinna think you care beyond this mad vengeance. You will look at me and see
me in your mind’s eye entwined with your enemy. I will be forever impure because
he has taken me.”

Angus arched his bushy eyebrows. “This is nonsense
girl. A toss in the sheets means much to women but little to men. I told you I
dinna fault you for going to his bed.”

“Our king ordered me to wed him and bed him or have
you forgotten?”

“Or so the dragon lord told you. And you believed
him? How do we know Robert the Bruce approved the Dragon of Dunbocan’s mission?
This may all be some foul plot of the MacLean’s own making.”

“Robert was here when I arrived. He bade me do my
duty in this marriage to unite the clans of Scotland.”

Her father looked startled. “Robert was here?”

“Aye, so, he attended the ceremony. It was he who led
me to the dragon and handed me over with instructions to submit.” Asilinn burst
into tears. “I dinna want to do it, Father. I swear.”

Her father came close and pulled her into his arms.
She sobbed into his shoulder. “Was the scoundrel was rough with you?”

“No,” Asilinn gasped. “He made my own body betray me
and I couldna deny him whatever he wished.”

“Bloody hell, dinna give me any more confessions. I
canna bear to hear you say you enjoyed it.” Her father took her by the
shoulders and held her away so he could look in her eyes. “What you say is
true, Asilinn. I have not been the loving father you knew as a child, not since
your mother…. But how can you lay with our enemy and tell me you dinna find it
repulsive?”

Asilinn swallowed hard. “I have given all. I must
believe he wants peace or I shall surely perish from the shame of what I have
done.”

“He and his killed your mother and brothers!” Her
father paced the floor in front of her.

“Our king has asked us to make peace. Will you deny
the Bruce with your refusal to entertain the possibility Laird Jared is
sincere?”

Her father's face clouded with a dark scowl. “Women
know nothing of politics. Is this the payment I get for all these years of
loving you? You turn on me after less than a week with the Dragon Lord of Dunbocan Castle. I canna fathom it.” His eyes narrowed. “Is it because of your gift? Have
you had a vision proclaiming the truth of his words?”

Asilinn shook her head. “I had only one vision of
Jared and it proved to be fact. God has not granted me another peek into the
future.” There was no use to tell her father of her other morbid dream. It
would only make him worry more.

“Does Laird Jared know of your gift?”

“No, I havena told him.”

“Dinna confide in him, Asilinn. I've heard rumors
among the people of black magic and witchcraft. Some say secret ceremonies are
held in Burnum Woods. If any knew you had dreams that foretell the future they
might accuse you of these foul acts.”

“I think I am safe enough under Laird Jared’s
protection.”

Her father snorted. “Dinna be fooled by him. Laird
Jared MacLean did not come to be one of the most powerful men in the Highlands at such a young age by being soft. He is a ruthless man and he uses you for his
own dark purpose.”

“What think you, Ian?” Asilinn looked at her brother.

Ian came close and gave her a warm hug. “I dinna
know, Asilinn, but be assured I hold you no less dear because of what you were
forced to do. You had no choice. I know that as does father whether he admits
it or not. I believe the MacLean has had the power to defeat us for several
years now but has failed to deal the final blow. I think we should test his resolve
somehow.”

Angus hit the table with his fist. “I'll test his
resolve when I steal my daughter back!”

“Father, if there is the possibility Asilinn carries
his child he'll never let her go,” Ian said. “If you steal her from him he'll
surely hunt us down and kill us all.”

“And you would have your sister stay in his clutches
for fear of what he will do if we take her?”

“No. I am just telling you how it will be. But how
can we free her? This castle is an impenetrable fortress. It has twice the
fortifications of Cairngorm.”

Angus sank wearily into one of the chairs. “Few
things have confounded me more in my entire life than the problem facing me
now.” He reached out and grabbed Asilinn's hand. “We canna storm these walls to
free you. Is there a way out from the inside?”

“Possibly….” Could she find Skye and learn the way
out through the passage—unlikely, but was she brave enough to try it alone? “I
fear it would make the situation worse.”

“What do you wish me to do? How can I ride off and
leave you here? It could take months to convince the council to give up the war
and I dinna know if that's what I wish to do. If you dinna come with us now, it
could be a long time before another opportunity presents itself. The MacLean’s
men will not allow us to ride to his door as they did today. Let us come back
for you tonight.”

“Even you have said there is no easy way in.” She
drew a deep breath. “I dinna wish to stay, but if I am to be free I must find a
way out myself. Stay at your encampment for three days. If I can, I’ll come to
you. If not at the end of three days you must return to Cairngorm and try to
make the peace the MacLean has thrust upon us.”

“It is too dangerous. Let us look for a chink in his
armor.”

“No, if I canna get out myself you must leave me
here.”

“He’ll punish you if he catches you trying to
escape,” Ian warned.

“No more than he punished me this morning when I told
him I had fulfilled my vows by allowing him one night with me.”

“What did he do?”

“He took me again to prove I was his.”

“Bloody bastard,” Ian muttered.

Her father’s brow furrowed. “I thought you said he
dinna rape you.”

“He did not.” Her lip was trembling and she bit it
hard to fight back the tears.

Her father’s face darkened like the sky before an
approaching thunderstorm. “You let him take you at will?”

“I will not risk my mother’s fate. When I cooperate,
he doesna harm me.”

“You cooperate to escape rape? What did you see girl?
You were just a child.”

Asilinn faced her father. “Dinna speak of it!"
She crossed herself. “Let mother's memory rest in peace.”

Her father looked ashen. It was a long time before he
spoke then he nodded his ascent. “Have a care, Asilinn. I dinna want you dead.
You may underestimate the MacLean’s wrath if he catches you at this.”

Perhaps she thought but she would try to escape the
dragon—the dragon with roving hands of fire that took her body out of her
control and bent it to his will. “Three days. Give me three days. Leave without
me if I canna come.”

“You’re sure?”

“I dinna think Jared will do anything to me he has
not already done. Robert the Bruce would not approve.”

“You think our king will protect you in some perverse
way, though this whole mess was partly his making.”

“Aye, so, three days,” she whispered. Asilinn took
Ian’s hand and gave it a squeeze.

“I'll take my leave.” Her father stood abruptly and
looked at her, disappointment evident in his face. “Ian and I should come to
rescue you. I should not be letting you attempt this alone.”

“If I am caught he will not harm me. If you are
caught trying to take me, you may both die. I will not have your blood on my
hands.” Asilinn wished she was as sure as she pretended to be about the
consequences of her possible capture, but one thing was sure. The Dragon Lord
of Dunbocan would kill her father or her brother if they came into his castle
after her and she could not permit that.

Letting out a sigh of resignation, her father grabbed
her hand and kissed it. “Three days. Tell your husband I have agreed to leave
in peace and speak with the High Council about his peace plan. In the meantime,
do not reveal your gift to the Laird of Dunbocan."

“I will try, but he sometimes seems to know my
deepest thoughts—I cannot fathom how.”

“Do you know why they call him the Dragon Lord of Dunbocan Castle?” her father interrupted.

Asilinn took a deep breath and shook her head.

“He has all the strength and shrewd powers of the
legendary dragons of old.”

Asilinn did not doubt it but she put on a brave front
for her father and brother. “That is a myth made up in fear.”

“Regardless, he is a much more dangerous man than you
think, fierce in battle, and able to manipulate many to his will. Keep your
gift a secret until we are sure of his motives.”

An uncomfortable knot formed in Asilinn's stomach.
“I'll do as you ask.”

“There is something else you must do. This second
request will be much more difficult but perhaps it will make Laird Jared show
his true color. Tell your husband you dinna wish to make a child with him until
this issue is resolved. Find him a whore to appease his lust until the peace is
set.”

“It could be too late.” Asilinn clutched her flat
stomach.

“Mayhaps, but 'tis unlikely you conceived so soon.”

Asilinn flushed. How many times did it take for a
man’s seed to take root? The vivid memories assailed her now with a new guilt
attached. Twice she had given herself over to him. And God help her she took
pleasure in it. She was reckless and wanton—she was surely a fallen woman. Her
father's voice continued in a drone around her ears.

“Would you chance bearing his offspring in the midst
of warring clans? The child would belong to neither side each hating him for
the part of him that was the other. Is that what you wish for your child? It is
not what I want for my grandchild. If Laird Jared's desire for peace is strong
enough, he'll agree. I've offered much by deciding to leave in peace and talk
to the council.”

“He thinks our child would unite the clans.”

“Test him with this request. The day the peace is set
you can join with him with my blessing. In spite of what has transpired, I
admire the man. Indeed, I may have chosen him for you myself were he not a
MacLean.” Her father kissed her softly on the cheek.

“Our encampment is over the bridge and just beyond
the woods. One of our men will be watching the bridge at all times waiting to
assist you. You need only get that far alone.” Her father stroked her
tear-stained cheek with his hand. “I am truly sorry, Asilinn, for all the times
I have failed you. Dinna risk your life to come back to us. If you canna break
free, I'll return within a month. Tell that to your Dragon Lord of Dunbocan.”

Ian gave her a brief hug and kiss. He wrapped his arm
around her shoulders as they walked to the door. When he let go of Asilinn, a
shiver went straight to her heart. Would she ever see either of them again?

Jared spun around as they walked out into the hallway
together. Asilinn saw Liam come back into the hall and give Jared a negative
nod. Jared frowned and faced her father.

“My daughter will tell you of my plans.” Giving Jared
a cold appraisal, Angus continued. “If any harm comes to Asilinn while she is
in your care there will not be any place you can hide from me.”

“If any harm comes to Asilinn, I would have already
been killed trying to prevent it,” Jared answered evenly.

“I'm glad to hear that,” Angus responded with a grin.

Asilinn gave her father and brother a last hug and
they left the castle. She watched until they were out of sight and turned to
look at her husband.

Jared's crisp, white shirt enhanced his chiseled
features and thick, dark hair. His eyes seemed to glow like the eyes of the
dragon her father had spoken about. What would he do if he caught her trying to
escape?

Jared took her hand and pulled her along behind him.
“Let's go to the tower. I would hear you father’s plans.”

As they climbed the stairs together, her father's
words were still ringing in her ears.

When they reached their room, Jared pulled two chairs
closer to the fire and offered her one. He seemed to sense she needed her space
and sat waiting for her to start talking.

“In a few days he will leave your lands and go to the
council with a complete accounting of what has transpired. He is noncommittal
about whether or not he will support the peace, but I believe the idea
interests him.”