Page 1 of Highlander the Conqueror

CHAPTER1

Afamiliar noise roused Sky from her light slumber. As she slowly emerged from a fitful sleep, a sense of puzzlement enveloped her. Had she truly heard something, or had she imagined it? Or had it been nothing more than a remnant of a dream she failed to recall? The cloth hood secured over her head, so it could not be removed, coupled with the oppressive darkness of the cell, prevented her from discerning whether it was day or night. She had lost all grasp of time, uncertain of how many days had elapsed since her arrival or the duration since her sisters, Leora and Elsie, had managed to escape.

Struggling against the heaviness of her limbs, Sky attempted to stand. The shackles on her wrists and the chains connecting them to a cold, unyielding metal ring embedded in the stone wall seemed to gain weight with each passing day. The memories of her sister Leora’s warning echoed in her mind.Pace often so that your legs are fit enough to run out of here when either I or Elsie return to rescue you.

She had lost hope without her sisters there to encourage her and had not continued to do as Leora advised so she could keep her legs strong. She attempted to stand but her feet protested, tingling from numbness. She had sat too long. She moved her feet back and forth to force feeling back into them. Then she braced her hand against the stone wall and struggled to get to her feet, but her legs would have none of it. She collapsed back on the floor with each try. How long had it been since she had initiated a deliberate pace within the cramped confines of her cell? Each intentional step she had taken had become a small act of rebellion, a defiance against the physical and mental constraints imposed upon her. The cell’s size had been a mystery, revealed to her only by the exploratory reach of her hands, as the hood had been thrust over her head upon her arrival at Dundren Abbey. She discovered that, even in her shackled state, a stretch of her hand could graze the four enclosing walls.

Occasionally, a sliver of light penetrated the otherwise impenetrable darkness, streaming through a narrow opening in the stone wall. The thin beam offered a fleeting connection to the outside world, ushering in a breath of fresh, chilled air. The spring nights stubbornly clung to the vestiges of winter, a reminder of the unpredictable Highland weather that could defy seasonal expectations.

Would she ever see the beauty of the forest again and visit with the animals? That she even questioned such a thing felt like a surrender to her dire circumstances. She needed to remain strong and believe that rescue would come soon. Her thoughts shifted to her sisters. She missed them. Elsie, the oldest, had escaped first with promises to return as soon as she could to free Leora and her. After what seemed like endless time had gone by but probably had barely been a few days, Leora grew worried that something had happened to Elsie that prevented her from returning with help. Leora’s deep concern had her planning her own escape, though she was upset she could not take Sky with her. The shackles and chains made that impossible. Sky had encouraged her to go even though the thought of being alone, her sisters not there offering comfort and support, frightened her terribly.

She had no qualms that either sister would abandon her. Since she could recall, they always protected her, defended her, and prevented anyone from harming her due to her affliction. Lately, she worried that their escapes had failed and something terrible had happened to them.

Her head shot up when she thought she heard shouts. The monks were either arguing again or another poor soul had been left at Dundren Abbey in hopes that the monks could cure the person’s madness. If a person did not suffer from madness when brought here, they did so after being here for a brief time. She could not imagine spending years here locked away, never to feel the frosty winter air nip at her face, feel the spring rain kiss her cheeks, or revel in the intoxicating scent of the forest any time of the year.

It had been a shock to her and her sisters upon arriving here to find out they were to be prisoners locked away in cells. Her da would have never sent his daughters here if he knew of the horrors suffered. So why had he sent them there? Her only thought that made sense was that he did not know what he was sending them into.

She had prayed often for her sisters’ safety and that one of them or both would soon return and free her. She had been growing more frightened with every passing day that something may have happened to them. She missed her family, her da, her home, and she missed her mum more every day since her passing five years ago. Her family did not see her and judge her because of her affliction as others did. With family, she was safe. She did not feel safe here. She felt terrified.

Her heart ached terribly, and she tried to conjure the scent of the forest, a place that always brought peace to her heart and mind. With spring soon to take hold, the forest would have a subtle yet persistent scent that chased away the decay of winter and welcomed the onset of new birth. And the morning dew would kiss the leaves and grass with freshness. She breathed heavily as if she could truly smell the welcoming scent.

Then there were the forest animals. She had discovered when she was a young bairn that she had a remarkable bond with animals and birds, an infinity of sorts with nature’s creatures. The squirrels and rabbits would come feed from her hand. The red tail deer would join her and nibble at the berries at the same bush as she did. Birds would perch on her shoulder and twitter as if talking with her. She made endless friends with cats and dogs and there was not a horse that was not calm around her. The animals did not judge her as people did, and she loved spending time with them.

She hated being away from all that was familiar and safe to her.

A single tear rolled down her cheek. She desperately wanted to go home, the memories tearing at her heart.

Angry shouts startled her out of her musings and fear mixed with a smattering of hope ran through her. Hope that her sisters had come for her with men from their clan demanding her release or fearful the abbey could be under attack. But from whom?

“Move your arse, monk!”

Upon hearing the harsh command, Sky scurried along on her bottom to tuck herself into a shadowy corner as if the darkness could shield her. Stumbling footfalls followed the shout. Was the monk being pushed or were the rushing footfalls hurrying to obey the demand?

“You have no right to take her.”

Sky recognized Brother Emanual’s voice. Though no one referred to him as Abbott, Sky had heard enough to know that he presently filled the Abbott position. He was a man of sizeable girth, not one who would stumble easily if pushed or if rushed. That meant the man commanding him had to be of a sizeable girth himself and he was here for a woman. She and Edith, an older woman, were the only two women here.

What Sky heard next sent a shivering fright through her.

“She is bewitched. You are not safe around her. She must be kept locked away.”

Fright could be heard in the monk’s sudden gasp and the sound of crumbling stone told her that he had been smashed against the stone wall outside her cell.

“Do as I command, or I will rip your tongue out of your mouth.”

Fear roiled her stomach and she tucked herself tighter into the dark corner, fearful of what awaited her at the hands of the man threatening the monk.

The door crashed open, and she was not surprised to hear stumbling footfalls. She surmised Brother Emanual had been shoved into the cell. When a flash of light bright enough to penetrate the black hood covering her head followed in behind the monk, she hurried her eyes closed against the flicking brightness of what could only be a flaming torch. Her eyes had been in the dark too long. She feared the damage to her sight if she suddenly gazed upon a bright light.

“Sky!” the powerful voice inquired.

She jumped at the command in the man’s voice expecting her to show herself. Fright kept her braced tight against the stone wall as if her prison could suddenly offer her protection, and she kept silent.

“Answer me, woman!” the man called out impatiently.

He would see her soon enough huddled in the dark corner, but fear froze her.

“I will not harm you,” he said.

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