Page 31 of In Bed with a Highland Beast

And now Callum was working with them to hurt even more people, many of whom could be people he loved. No one in the Highlands was safe from them.

“I understand,” Lucia said, her voice soft and low now, lacking all the rage that had tinted it earlier. “I’m sorry.”

Lucia was one of the few people who hadn’t tried to tell him it wasn’t his fault he couldn’t save them or offer him advice or reassure him it would pass, and for that, Alaric was grateful. Her simple words were more comforting than anything else could have been, as was their companionable silence as they sat there together. They didn’t need to exchange any more words. They both knew what the other was going through and that was more than enough.

Eventually, they both fell asleep like that and when Alaric opened his eyes the next morning, he came face to face with Douglas, who was crouching over him and Lucia. Startled, Alaric jumped back, waking Lucia in the process, who screamed when she spotted Douglas so close.

“Good mornin’!” Douglas said, surprisingly cheerful. “Did ye sleep well?”

Alaric glanced at Lucia from the corner of his eye, wondering what it was that Douglas could possibly want from them. “Aye,” he said carefully. “Until ye came an’ stood over us. What dae ye want?”

“Some respect wouldnae harm ye,” Douglas spat as he stood to his full height, Alaric quickly following him so they were eye to eye. “We have an actual plan tae discuss. Ye cannae sleep all day.”

Alaric thought that was hardly fair, since it wasn’t that late. The sun had risen in the horizon, but most of the men were still waking up, shuffling about the camp in search of food and ale. Still, he bit his tongue and only nodded.

“We’re comin’,” he assured Douglas. “Dinnae fash.”

For a long moment, Douglas lingered, his gaze flitting between Alaric and Lucia. Then, he turned on his heel and left, and Alaric shared a look with Lucia, knowing she was wondering the same thing.

What was that? What does he truly want?

As the men gathered around the newly kindled fire, Alaric and Lucia joined them, all of them standing in an irregular semi-circle. The last to join them was Callum, who strolled out of his tent and came to stand before them, hands on his hips.

“There is a villager an’ his family who owe me dues,” he said. “They havenae paid us in months an’ they claim they dinnae have the gold. I say we go an’ see if they’re tellin’ the truth.”

Cheers erupted from the men around Alaric, but he couldn’t bring himself to join in, even as Lucia did. She could play her part well; he couldn’t.

“That’s right,” said Callum. “An’ if there is nae gold, then there’s grain an’ ale an’ women. Maybe we can bring some more lasses intae our ranks, hmm?”

As he spoke, he looked at Lucia with a leer and Alaric took a step closer to her instinctively, his hand coming to rest on the small of her back. He didn’t like that look at all, even if it was nothing but a way to provoke the two of them.

But why would he dae such a thing? He has already accepted us in the group.

“Here is how it’ll go,” said Douglas as he stepped forward, taking over from Callum. “Alaric an’ Lucia will go there, pretendin’ tae be travellers lookin’ fer shelter. They’re already bruised an’ bloody, so chances are, they’ll take pity on them. Once inside, they’ll make sure there are nay weapons in the house an’ then we’ll follow.”

“All o’ us?” one of the men asked, surprised.

With a sigh, Douglas pinched the bridge of his nose. “Nay, o’ course it willnae be all o’ us. Why would we all need tae go there? It’s only a farmer an’ his family. Ye will all receive yer orders in detail. Any other questions?”

Alaric didn’t like the sound of this plan. Something seemed off to him, though he couldn’t quite tell what it was. Lucia, too, seemed tense next to him, as though she was already expecting trouble.

They shared a quick glance, one that was enough to communicate their concerns to each other. They were both thinking the same thing, Alaric knew. Could it be that Callum had figured out they had taken the letters?

But then why would they go to such great lengths to kill them? Surely, if they wanted to, they could kill them right then and there and get it over with, without hiding behind the ruse of an attack. Alaric couldn’t see how such a deception could be useful.

Unless they are afraid o’ us.

The odds were against him and Lucia, but that didn’t mean that they couldn’t deal plenty of damage before they were killed. If Callum feared that he would lose too many men trying to murder them, then perhaps he would be willing to go to great lengths in order to trick them.

But they couldn’t refuse the assignment. This was all only speculation from Alaric’s part and if he was wrong—and there was a good chance he was—then they would only be makingthemselves appear suspicious. They had no choice but to follow Callum’s orders and go through with it.

We will be careful. I will warn Lucia an’ we will be both be ready.

As they prepared for the travel to the cottage, gathering their things and saddling the horses, Alaric couldn’t shake the feeling that all eyes were on them.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

The cottage was dark and quiet, though it did not seem abandoned. The cottage stood at the edge of the town and it was quiet there, no one but Alaric, Lucia, and the Ravencloaks around; no passersby, no townspeople to disturb them or to bear witness. Alaric exchanged a quick, suspicious glance with Lucia, both of them lingering by the door.

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