Page 54 of In Bed with a Highland Beast

Her brother had been a good man, despite what others thought. He would have disapproved of her plans; of everything she had done to get revenge.

A knock on the door pulled Lucia out of her thoughts. At first, she was certain it had to be a maid or perhaps even a soldier, but when the door opened, it was none other than Alaric, standing there, lingering near the door as though he was reluctant to come any farther into the room. Upon seeing him, Lucia’s heart thundered in her chest, beating erratically as it never had before. This was no excitement, though; she knew excitement well, as she had come to familiarize herself with it in the time she had spent by Alaric’s side. This was closer to dread, to the kind of feeling she got whenever a blade came too close to her throat or a punch she hadn’t expected to land found its target on her painfully.

She held no hope in her heart for her and Alaric. Everything had already collapsed around her and now he had come to deliver his final judgement.

“I have given it much thought,” Alaric said, his voice soft and gentle, but at the same time unwavering. Here it was, Lucia thought. This was everything she had feared from the moment she had begun to fall for him. “An’ I cannae dae this, Lucia. I cannae. Love isnae enough tae fix this.”

O’ course. I kent this was comin’.

But even though she knew it, it still hurt. Alaric’s words were like a dagger to her heart, so painful that she was glad she wasalready seated. Had she been standing, she didn’t know if her legs would have held her, as even now, the world went dark at the edges for a moment, her grief and panic getting the better of her.

She had nothing left. She had no family, no life, and the man she loved now despised her.

Nay… nay, it isnae true. I still have one thing left.

Revenge.

As long as she had this goal, to avenge Ronan, then she could still keep going and would not rest. What would come after was a mystery even to her. All that mattered for now was that she still had a goal; she still had something to achieve and she was going to throw her entire self to the task.

After all, why should she hold herself back now? Alaric had been the one to insist she shouldn’t kill Callum and that he had to be tried for his crimes. Alaric had been the one to insist she shouldn’t stain her hands with blood, but her hands had already been stained a long time ago. What did one more death matter? What difference would one more victim make?

Callum didn’t deserve anything but a painful death, and now that Lucia was free from the shackles of her love for Alaric, she could finally deliver her own justice.

All it took was a deep breath for her to compose herself. She had been through so much pain in her life—great and small, from the kind of minor inconvenience that came with her way of life to the unbearable, unbridled grief of losing the last of her family. She could endure this, too. She had to endure it if she was going to get what she wanted.

“Very well,” she said. There was no point in fighting Alaric’s decision. He had made up his mind and any arguments would only deepen the chasm between them. “I understand. I will leave the castle, then.”

“Nay,” said Alaric hastily, shaking his head. “Nay, ye cannae leave yet. It isnae safe. But as soon as we deal with the Ravencloaks…”

He didn’t need to finish his sentence for Lucia to know what he was trying to tell her. As soon as the Ravencloaks were gone, she had to be gone as well.

Little did Alaric know she would be gone much sooner.

Sneaking out of the castle was an easy task, much easier than Lucia would have thought. No one bothered her as she walked through the courtyard and made her way to the back of the castle, where the walls were not as heavily guarded, even now after the attack. On her first day there, she had made a point of finding every hiding spot and every route out of the castle, so now she knew exactly where to head—near the kitchens, wherethere was a small, barricaded door. Once there, she made sure to remain hidden in the shadows, plastering herself against the walls so that she would remain unseen by any guards that patrolled the area. She didn’t know if any of them would try to stop her, but she didn’t want to find out. If they did or if they notified Alaric, then she would never be able to sneak out and track down Callum, as was her plan.

Suddenly, footsteps sounded close to her and Lucia swiftly slid into the shadows, in a small nook near the kitchen doors. She waited with bated breath as two guards walked by, surveying the area, and she prayed to God that they wouldn’t notice her. It was only when they walked past her, disappearing into the near distance, that she finally relaxed. With them gone, she continued on her way and soon found the small door, picking the lock open and slipping outside.

She had nothing with her but her tools, her sword, and the clothes on her back. Callum couldn’t be far. After the attack, he would remain close to the castle, and Lucia was determined to find him, even if it would take her all night.

With no torch to illuminate her path, Lucia only had the moonlight as her guide. The night was dark, though, and the deeper she went into the woods, the scarcer the light became, making her trek through the trees and the roots that peeked over the ground, a treacherous one. Several times, she lost her footing, slipping on the damp ground or having her foot catch on one of those roots, and each time she barely had the coordination to keep herself from falling. Still, she persevered, refusing to let it stop her. Nothing would put an end to her plan now. She had a goal and she was determined to see it through.

After a long while of searching, so long that Lucia could only think that dawn was close to breaking, she caught a glimpse of a fire burning deeper in the woods. It was cold there, and the entire time, she had been holding her cloak tightly around her shoulders, trying to battle some of the chill, but now there was nothing on her mind but the fact that she had found the Ravencloaks. They were deep in the woods, hidden from sight, but there was no doubt in her mind it was them. Who else could it be there, waiting in the middle of the night?

Any discomfort she had felt, exhaustion, thirst and cold, no longer mattered. Her hand tightened around her sword and she slowly made her way towards the light of the fire only to find a large camp there, in the clearing that stood in her path. Several men were still awake or had already woken up for the day, all of them clad in the dark cloaks of the Ravencloaks.

There ye are. I’ve found ye.

Callum was right there, in their midst. He sat near the fire, a smug, self-satisfied smile on his lips, and Lucia’s fury burned bright like those flames. She knew she couldn’t approach stealthily. There was nowhere to hide and the entire camp was crawling with Ravencloaks. Someone was bound to see her. The only thing she could count on was the possibility that Callum wanted to fight her himself, since he had already expressed his desire to kill her and Alaric with his own two hands. If she announced her presence, if she challenged him, then perhaps she could defeat him without anyone else interfering.

As long as Callum wasn’t a coward who would refuse to fight her.

Taking a decisive step forward, Lucia revealed herself at the edge of the camp. It took a few moments for someone to notice her, but once a few of the men did, they drew their swords instantly, stepping forward and catching the attention of everyone else at the same time.

“I’m nae here tae fight any o’ ye, save fer Callum Fraser,” she said, standing her ground. “If ye wish tae be in me way, so be it. I will strike ye all down until I get tae him.”

Laughter echoed around the clearing and Lucia’s gaze slid to Callum, who was the one laughing. He stood, making his way towards her as he motioned to his men to stand down. They did so reluctantly, a few of them taking some steps back while others remained close, clearly wondering if retreating was the right thing to do. Callum, though, seemed entirely unfazed by her presence. Perhaps he had even been expecting her, Lucia thought, ridiculous as that sounded.

“Well, ye’re just like yer brother, are ye nae?” Callum asked with a heavy sigh. “So stubborn. Even Laird MacGregor’s men cannae find us, but ye did.”

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