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W
ake up, ye hear? Wake up now!" Deirdre lightly slapped Caitlin's cheek but there was no response. She had thought the woman would surely have come to by now. Whatever had she done? She never intended to kill her—not just yet. She just wanted to scare Alex a bit and make him take notice of her. She had her own abilities and he just needed to become aware of them. The latest ones, she knew, had come from the old woman, and in her sane moments she knew these powers came from an unholy place. Her mother had warned her about that old woman, but she'd use whatever means she could to trap her man.
"He's mine, ye hear? Mine!"
Deirdre stood and walked to the opening of her hiding place. She had chosen this place carefully and knew she could come and go without anyone seeing her. This place was known to only one other person, Nezzie.
"Here, take these berries," she'd said. "It'll make the woman sleep. Then, when ye get the chance to be with the man, have him drink a bit of this potion. It'll bring him to ye bedside, that I promise ye. But ye may have to disguise it in his whiskey, or cider. It's right vile tasting. But it'll work. If ye need more, come here at night. And be sure to let me know when ye have the flame-haired woman. I can help ye with her."
Deirdre's plan was to hurry home with her horse and cart and go about her daily routine as if nothing had occurred. Her mother would never even know she had been gone most of the night. In fact, she probably expected Deirdre to be late coming from the ceremony and the celebration afterward.
Of course, Deirdre knew Alex would eventually come and ply her with questions. She would deny she knew anything about Caitlin's whereabouts. No one had seen her leave with the woman, so there was no way he could prove she had anything to do with her disappearance. She would keep the woman addled for a few days, then eventually she'd have to permanently do away with her. That was the part she hadn't quite figured out just yet.
She had committed a number of fairly cruel deeds, even to her own mother, but she had never killed anyone. But her hatred for this healer grew more every day, and the idea was getting more and more attractive. Then, while Alex was deep in grief, she would work her way into his good graces. She would show him that he needed her, just as she needed him.
Aye, I like that plan.
She covered Caitlin with a blanket and made sure her hands were tied. It didn't look like the girl would awaken any time soon, and tomorrow she'd come back and make her drink just a little more of the devil berry concoction. She wouldn't be much of a problem, not as small as she was. Why, lifting her was like lifting a child.
"That'll keep ye tonight. This cave isn't warm, but ye'll not freeze to death. Tomorrow I'll decide what to do with ye, ye wretched girl. Did you think I'd just let ye take my Alex? Not in this lifetime. Nae."
She grabbed her wrap and left the cave, pulling the thick brush over the opening. She'd be home shortly in her own warm bed, while that tiny lass would shiver in this cold cave.
~ * ~
MILLIE AND MIDGE WERE in their quarters, neither of them sleeping. Millie's memory of her past life flooded her brain. Life with Lord Warwick was an unbearable existence but with the help of the MacKinnons and Caitlin she had escaped it. She had to believe Caitlin, too, would escape her captor, whoever it was. Millie was beside herself. Caitlin had come to her aid on a cold, dark, night and here she was, cozy, warm and safe as could be. But she knew she could do nothing more than continue her prayers. Why would Deirdre, do such a thing? Some wedding night this had turned out to be.
There must be more to the story than I know. I had thought once we got here to the Highlands all those problems would be behind us. Looks like I was wrong about that. Still, Caitlin has more help here than she would have had anywhere. And you and I are safe, little one.
She was wearing the rug out with her pacing. Unable to stay still, she put on a warm robe, wrapped Midge in a snuggly blanket and went to the kitchen. This had become a place of refuge for her. She'd never been needed for anything in her life, but here, on this farm, she was needed and had already proved her worth. Hector had taught her how to cook a myriad of dishes, and she had learned to make others on her own. Cooking suited her.
Early on, the only thing she thought she might have wanted to do was to teach. The one pleasant thing about her childhood had been the special tutoring that had been provided. She was good at math, science and history, and spoke English, French, and Gaelic as well. She had approached her father about going to the local village and teaching the children as most of them never had the first bit of education. But he had refused to even entertain the idea. She was a Lady, and Ladies did not mingle with the lower classes, and certainly didn't teach them. So that was the end of that. Now, however, as she rumbled about putting on a pot of tea, the thought of teaching returned to her mind.
Maybe I couldn't do it then, but I could now. Maybe I'll see what Jack thinks of the idea. Realizing she no longer had to fear her father, or her husband, was still new to her. She had lived a lifetime with one or the other, and being free to live her life as she chose was a new experience. One that she liked a lot.
Then, Midge, we should give more thought to that idea.
She placed the child in the small crib Jack had brought inside. All the MacKinnon bairns had used it, and it could work for one more. That way Millie could cook and keep an eye on her, too. Of course, Midge never stayed in a crib very long. Someone always came by and picked her up and she had napped on several shoulders. Everyone was taken with a bairn in residence and Midge never complained about any attention they wanted to give her.
Da and Andrew were headed to get a dram when they heard noise coming from the kitchen.
"Ah, lass, did we wake ye?" Da asked.
"No, Daniel. We were both wide-awake so I thought to make a pot of tea. Don't think any of us are going to get any sleep until the men get home — with Caitlin."
"Right ye be, lass. Sleep has a way of escaping us when our minds are so full of worry we can't let it rest. Yep, a spot of tea would be the thing."
Da was so pleased for his sons, Jack and Alex, finding such fine women. He wasn't so sure about Hector, however, as the lad had never had a serious relationship. Not one that Da knew about anyway. Of all the brothers, Hector kept things more to himself.
Daniel and Andrew pulled up a chair, poured a cup and began to tell Millie stories of the lads in their younger years. Both the old ones had memories like an elephant—well, about the old days, that is—what happened yesterday often escaped them.
~ * ~
RIDING HARD AND FAST with Willie out front, the brothers were past exhaustion but Willie looked as if he could run forever. Pulling his reins, Alex called for a short break as even Zeus was beginning to show fatigue.
"Let's stop here for just a few minutes. Let the horses have a breather. And let's compare our thoughts. I've been thinking and I know ye have too."
The four of them squatted, but Ian shortly had to stretch his leg out full. There were just a few things he found uncomfortable with his new foot, and squatting was one of them.
"If memory serves me correctly, I believe there's a sulphur spring over on the McLeod property. Old McLeod was always complaining about the smell of the waterfall, that one deep in the forest. Remember where we would go on a hot day and plunge off the waterfall into the pool at the bottom? Course we never told Mam about it, as she'd have hanged us by our toes if she ever knew it. I think Da knew, but he kept it to himself."
That brought a smile to Jack's face, as he did remember going down that waterfall. He'd been so scared he could hardly stand it. But if Alex could do it, then so could he. And of course Hector was game. By the time Ian arrived, though, they were too old for such games and Alex didn't think they ever took him there.
"Waterfall? Where? I don't know anything about a waterfall in this area." Ian wished he had been born sooner. Listening to his brothers, it seemed he may have missed out on a lot of fun.
"It's pretty far back in the glen, " Hector said, then looked at Jack, who nodded.
"Yeah, he's right about that. I'm not sure we can find it in the dark, Alex."
"What? Of course we'll find it. There's got to be a path. We'll find it lads." Alex stood and began stomping about, trying his best to relieve his raging fear and anxiety.
"I just thought maybe we should come in the daylight, when we can make better progress. It's so black out here we could get lost ourselves if we're not careful." Hector tried to negotiate a plan that made sense to him.
"Then go on if ye must. But I'll not stop until I find her, ye hear?" Alex mounted and Willie leapt in front, leading the way once again.
The other three brothers exchanged looks of contriteness, and then were right behind him. They'd not let Alex down. Tired or not, they'd stay with him.
It couldn't be too far from daylight, surely, thought Alex. He was tired too, but Caitlin was more than life to him. She was everything. He'd find her or die trying.
Willie came to a screeching halt, lifted his great head, sniffed the air and made a sharp turn to the left, going down a steep bank. The men followed and the horses snorted and blew loudly as they struggled to maintain their balance on the terrain.
"Easy, Willie, slowly fella. We're trying to keep up."
Alex leaned back in the saddle, trying to keep his own balance. It was a rough path certainly.
Abruptly, Willie stood still, then raised his hackles and made another hair-raising call to his ancestors. His howl was so loud and mournful the brothers felt it shiver through their bones. They were all off their horses leading them, and now found themselves trudging through thick brush as Willie crawled underneath, moving more quickly than they could.
"He's onto something," Jack said.
He would follow the wolf wherever he led him. He'd seen this one in action before and he knew he was one fierce protector. If Willie got there before they did, whoever had taken Caitlin was in more trouble than they had ever bargained for. The only worse thing would be for Alex to get there first. He just might be even more dangerous than the wolf.
"Listen. Ye hear that? That's got to be the waterfall."
"Jesus, do ye smell that awful stench?" Hector never had cared much for the smell of sulphur, even though he knew it had practical uses for military purposes. Soldiers would soak cloths in various substances, including sulphur, which could be toxic. They would bombard the enemy with these airborne weapons and smoke would fill the air, usually destroying everything in its path.
"I don't remember it smelling so bad when we were here in our younger years." Jack didn't much like the odor either. But Willie kept going, and they followed the best they could.
As the sun began to peek over the mountain, with just a sliver of pink light on the horizon, Willie crawled out of the thick brambles and began to bark incessantly, running back and forth before some tall brush until Alex got there.
"Hold on, fella. We're right here. Let's see what ye found."
Alex didn't see anything, but now with the day just dawning he looked about, and listened. "That's water. Hear it? And it's real close."
Jack walked a few feet around to the right side of the brush they had struggled so hard to get through. "Alex, here's the waterfall. Right here. Man, it looks taller than I remember. This thing is really high."
Alex rushed over and took a look for himself. There was the waterfall, and Jack was right—it really did seem larger than what he remembered.
"Jack, I don't think that's the same waterfall. Ye know, I believe there must be a smaller one somewhere close by. We were daring, sure, but even we wouldn't have been so stupid as to leap from that."
He went to the place Willie had refused to leave. The wolf's hackles were standing tall and, he began a deep-voiced growl that Alex knew meant trouble for someone.
"Easy, Willie. Easy now."
Alex carefully looked about. The light had gradually crept over the mountain — dawn had broken. Alex thought for a moment, then nodded to Jack. "There. Those tall bushes. Ye think they look a bit taller than the others? And look at the edges. Those brown ones, they're dead, like they've been cut a while ago."
"Aye, I think yer right. Let's see."
Jack and Hector began to pull at the tall brush limbs. With a bit of tugging by four strong arms, the limbs tumbled forward and they had to step back quickly before they toppled on them.
"Come on, this is an opening. I think it's a cave." Alex rushed forward ready to get in as quickly as he could. "Hold on, Alex. It'll be darker than hades in there. We won't be able to see anything." Jack really disliked this creepy place.
Ian stepped forward and with a nod of his head and a flick of his wrist, he handed Alex a lighted torch. It smelled of tar and black smoke rose from it. "Here, this will help ye see where yer going."
Alex stared at his young brother and one look from him told Jack and Hector to let it pass. They didn't need to understand right now. They just needed to find Caitlin.
Before Alex could squeeze through the opening, however, Willie shot through the hole and they could hear his bark as it trailed off.
"Jesus, that's a tight squeeze." Jack wasn't sure he was going to be able to maneuver his large frame through the opening. Hector watched as his big brother turned sideways in order to make himself a bit smaller. Finally, grunting and muttering a few choice words, he followed Alex who was much thinner than he.
"Hurry. Alex's leaving us. No telling what he might find." Hector grumbled under his breath and with greater ease than Jack, managed to squeeze through.
Ian stayed behind with the horses and was glad to do so. He sensed the evil that was close by. "I'll wait here and stay on guard." He needed Wabi's instruction to know how to deal with this kind of evil.
The other three continued slowly. "Jesus, what is this place? I didn't know we had any caves in this area. What do you think?" Jack asked.
Hector shook his head — he had no idea. He wasn't especially fond of caves, or any other close spaces as far as that went. He recalled being really glad when they left Caitlin's cave when Ian was in her care. It was clean and she had made it comfortable, but still, it was just too confining for his taste. Just now he thought he caught a glimpse of something slithering across the floor, but it disappeared quickly. He decided it might be better to keep that knowledge to himself as Jack was mortally afraid of snakes.
Alex continued to move and still had not caught up with Willie, but could tell he was gaining on him. Then, Willie stopped barking. Alex could still hear him, but now it was not a bark — it had now become a whimper. That got Alex's own hackles on end and he dashed forward, taking another left turn, holding the torch as high as he could.
Rounding the corner, he all but fell over Willie who was stretched out, his paws resting on a body lying on the floor. The body was as still as any Alex had ever seen, and he waited a second before daring to touch it.
"Oh, Holy Jesus. Don't let her be dead. Don't let her be dead," Alex whispered.
Putting the torch aside, he brought his hands together just beneath his chin — as close to a prayer as he had come in a while — then reached over and lifted the blanket that covered her face. And there she was, as lovely as he remembered. She looked so peaceful, as if she were just taking a nap.
"No. No. Not my Caitlin."
Alex lifted her and held her close. Her limp body draped over his arm like a ragdoll. She never moved a muscle — and he knew she was gone.
"Ah, Caitlin. Oh, mo chridhe, ye can't be gone!"
The word agony was insufficient for his feelings. He'd never experienced emotions such as these, ones that took control of his very being. His mind was vacant — his heart shattered. Holding her close was all he was able to manage. And he'd never let her go.
"Is it Caitlin? Alex?" Jack called out as he finally caught up with him.
One look at his brother's face told Jack the worst had happened. Caitlin was no longer with them. If that was the case, then neither was Alex.
"Alex, we gotta get her home now, brother. Let's get her home." Jack stepped closer and tried to pry her body away from Alex. "Ye need to let her go, Alex. I'll take her."
Alex stared up at his brother with hollow, sorrow-filled eyes that said more than any words could have.
"No. I'll carry her. She's mine. All mine."
The Highlander stood, easily lifting her small, lifeless body. Jack stepped closer and saw Caitlin's face. He, too, thought how peaceful she looked. And how young to have left this earth. Too young.
How will he ever get through this?
Hector said nothing but watched as Alex held Caitlin close. There was no point in saying any words; Alex wouldn't hear them. So he kept silent and led the way out of the cave, carrying the torch aloft to light the way, hoping nothing slithered by his feet.
"Let's put ye on the horse and I'll hand her to ye. Or if ye want, I'll hold her. She's not heavy and I can manage her if ye need me to."
"No. I'll hold her. Let's take her home now."
Alex handed her over to Jack, mounted Zeus, and leaned to take her. Willie had never left her side and whimpered so loudly Alex could hardly bear it. The wolf, too, felt the same loss. Alex was certain of that.
"Alex, are ye sure ye want to hold her?"
"Yes. I'm verra sure, Jack. Hand her to me."
Such a stoic response was not uncharacteristic, but it spoke volumes to Jack. Alex was already crawling inside a shell that he'd never come out of. They had not only lost Caitlin today, Alex was gone too.
"Aye. Here she is."
Jack gingerly lifted her and Alex pulled her close, feeling how warm she still was, and how right she felt next to him. How could this be? This was just so wrong. They belonged together. Of that he was certain.
Willie began prancing, as if walking on hot coals, when Jack handed her to Alex.
"It's all right, Willie. We're taking her home. Come on boy." Jack touched the wolf on his head and was surprised when the beast showed his fangs and let out a growl that Jack had not been on the receiving end of before. "Willie, boy, it's ok. We'll take her home now."
Alex repositioned himself in the saddle and reached for the reins. Suddenly, he felt Caitlin's body begin to slip from his arms. "Help me, Jack. I'm losing her!" He couldn't believe he was having trouble holding her tiny body, but he was.
Then, one loud, quick groan — OOHHH! —and a voice splintered the silence.
"Oh, Holy Rusephus! Alex? What are you doing? This is not very comfortable. I'd rather have my own horse. And why have you tied my hands together?"
Caitlin turned in his arms and looked about. "What are you all doing? It's cold out here!" She could not imagine what they all doing out in the cold, holding a torch. And whose idea had it been to tie her hands?
Alex was laughing and crying at the same time. "Oh, lass, ye didn't die! Thanks be to the Creator! Yer still alive!" He held her so tightly she could hardly get her breath.
Jack and Hector stared at the two of them — one laughing and crying, the other complaining about her accommodations.
"Alex? You haven't answered my question. What are we all doing out here in the cold? Can't we go home? And for heavens sake, untie me!" Willie reached his paws up and began to lick her hands. His mistress still lived.
Ian had stood by watching, scanning the entire area. Where was the X? He saw nothing that resembled the image he had seen. But one element that had been revealed in the vision was definitely here, even now — the evil he had sensed. It was still close by and he could feel it in his bones. He'd never felt this before and for a moment was tempted to strike out at it. But not just yet. He wasn't ready yet.
He was ever so glad to see Caitlin giving orders like always and Alex's face come back to life. From death to life . . . all within a few seconds. Was that the way when one died he wondered? From life to death . . . then back to life? Was that what happened to Mam? There was much he needed to discuss with Uncle Wabi.