LOCH MORAR, SCOTLAND
The Past
I thought I was going to be sick. I could hear them and the them I was talking about was Gavin and the whore taking pleasure from one another. There was no mistaking those sounds.
Stuck outside since after supper, I leaned back against the door and tried to block out the awful sounds coming from the open window while Gavin and his dirty slut were doing God only knew what with each other.
Shutting my eyes, I kept waiting for the pain to come but I felt nothing.
I was numb.
Who knew, maybe it would come later.
I hoped not.
I hoped I stayed numb.
In fact, I hoped I would forget about it altogether but unfortunately, as my mind conjured images to match the sounds wafting out his window, I doubted that would be happening.
Now, with nothing but darkness surrounding me, I thought they were through but unfortunately, my torment was not at an end because I was once again forced to listen to that dirty whore with my man.
The only thing that kept me from losing what little restraint I had left was the absence of hearing Gavin calling out with his own orgasm.
I was so angry, and tired, and lonely, and desperate, and sick, and so many other things, that I couldn’t keep track of them all, nor did I think I really wanted to. And to top it all off, I had no way to get back inside even if I wanted to, which at present, I did not.
Instead, I let my head fall back against the wood, thumped it repeatedly as I mentally pulled out my party gear, and threw myself one hell of a pity party.
I thought about all the time I had spent with Gavin and even though I tried hard not too, I kept seeing him in the throes of passion with that skanky slut. It made me sick.
The sound of a twig snapping pulled my mind from my pity party and back to the present.
A few fireflies intermittently dotted the landscape with specks of light. Pressing back as far as I could, I patted the ground for a weapon. Of course, as usual, there wasn’t anything around, save for a rock that was more of a pebble. Not to mention, it would really do no good against an assailant or beast.
Not making a noise, I gripped my pebble tighter; hoping like hell whatever I heard in the darkness would go the other way.
Shivering from the cold or fear, I wasn’t sure which; I tried to keep my eyes open, to stay alert. But as more time passed, and with nothing coming out of the darkness to get me, I had a hard time staying awake.
♦
Long after the lass had gone silent, Clarion stepped out of his hiding place within the branches of the tree. Swiftly, he made his way across the yard to where he knew she was seated.
He was going to leave her there, but instead he found himself sitting down next to her. As she shivered at his side, he put his arm around her and pulled her close. Immediately, she snuggled closer to his warmth and laid her head against his chest. Settling his chin on top of her head, he wrapped his arms around her, and held her close.
The wind and the creatures of the night closed in on them both, whispering a sweet lullaby until Clarion too, drifted off to sleep.
♦
A high keening ringing of metal clashing against metal is what finally woke me the following morning. If you could call it morning, since the sun had yet to make an appearance. However, it was considerably lighter than when I had drifted off. Rubbing the crick in my neck, I stood up and although I was sore, I was glad I could see and that I was still in one piece.
I had my doubts that I would make it through the night without being dragged off by some foul creature. But surprisingly, other than being a bit sore, I had slept rather soundly and even though it was a brisk cool morning, I had not felt the cold at all.
Brushing off my skirts, I straightened back up and looked around the area. It didn’t seem nearly as daunting now as it had when it was dark, although remnants of early morning mist still clung to the Earth, giving off a slight eerie vibe.
A small rabbit swished its tale back and forth, as it happily hopped by and disappeared underneath the low hanging branches of a tree.
On the off chance the door was now unlocked, I grabbed the handle.
“Dang it.” The door was still locked tight. Stifling a yawn and rubbing my arms, I walked around the edge of the castle and made my way to the courtyard.
I gave the ‘death tree’ in the middle, a wide berth as another bout of clashing metal rang out.
Instead of going inside, I followed the sound and made my way past the low outer wall to the path that led to an open field where I knew the men trained.
The last time I was here, I had tried to come and watch the men, (mostly Gavin) on a regular basis. On the way down, I passed several wildflowers. Stopping, I pulled Gavin’s dagger from my boot, and cut the tough stems of (Queen Anne’s lace, Golden Rod and others, just like I would have done back home.
By this time, the sun was beginning to make an appearance and the reddish-orange hues of early morning light stretched out across the horizon. Holding the bundle of flowers, I leaned down and slid Gavin’s dagger back in my boot.
Another low wall lifted upward on either side of the path and once I walked through, the field where the men were training opened up before me. As it always did, my breath caught as I watched Gavin train with Callum and Muir simultaneously. Off to the left, Graham and Alec’s swords clashed but their training did not seem nearly as rigorous.
Without taking my eyes off the scene, I placed my hand on the wall, set my flowers down, and climbed up. Feet dangling, I watched the men, (mostly Gavin) as they trained and I tried to figure out what I would do now.
♦
Jillian threw the furs off the bed, searching for the dagger of the Grey Clan. Morag was insistent that she retrieve it before the next full moon but try as she might she was unable to find it anywhere.
After going downstairs and making a mess of the lower floor, she was now back inside Gavin’s chamber. Using the handle of a spoon, she tried to pry the lock open on his trunk, which was the only place she had not looked. A few times, it did enter her mind that the other girl may have taken it but discarded that thought almost immediately because she didn’t give her that much credit. She was an idiot as far as Jillian was concerned and besides, there was no way she would know the dagger held any power.
As for last night and her moment of weakness with Gavin, she tried not to think about it overmuch. In fact, each time he popped into her mind, and the way he had made her scream in pleasure, she replaced his face and actions with Broderick.
The more she did this, the more certain she was about leaving this place for good. She couldn’t help but wonder where Broderick was though, or if he even missed her. In the end, she decided she did not need either man. Once she found the dagger, she would go back to the cabin in the woods. And once Morag had the dagger, her own debt would be paid and then she could leave and make a new life for herself elsewhere.