Page 74 of Wicked Highland Wishes
Twenty
The dark rage sweeping through Lachlan matched the blackness of the night that surrounded him and his men. Around them, thirty men with no plaids to identify their allegiance lay dead. They had clearly been sent as decoys, but decoys to what? He looked through the moonlight to the seagate stairs, which were still well guarded. The castle had not been breached from the water, and—
God’s bones, he knew what had happened.
Fear coiled in his gut and had him turning and hurrying past Graham and Cameron, who gaped at him in unison.
“Lachlan!” Graham called from behind, but he did not stop. That coiled fear unleashed in a rush of heated poison that raced through his body. He had to ensure Bridgette was still safe.
He shouted orders as he ran. “Graham, check the Fairy Flag. Cameron, check the prisoners.” He took the seagate stairs three at a time and heard the pounding of many footsteps behind him at the same frantic pace.
He rounded the corner toward the courtyard and entered the castle, where he could hear the hum of women’s voices coming from behind the closed door of the great hall.
“Lachlan,” Rory Mac said, coming beside him. “What is it?”
“I dunnae ken for certain yet,” Lachlan answered, banging on the door. “Barclay, ’tis Lachlan.”
The thud of the door being unbarred made him feel better, but when the door opened and Alanna was the one to greet him, the moment of relief vanished. “Where’s Barclay?” he demanded as he stepped into the great hall to the exclamations of happiness and questions regarding loved ones’ safety. He held up a hand for silence, scanning the worried faces but not seeing Bridgette’s, Marion’s, or Barclay’s. He rounded on Alanna, who now stood beside Rory Mac with Moira on her hip.
“Where are Bridgette, Marion, and Barclay?” he demanded, his apprehension making his tone clipped.
“Barclay took them to the kitchens to retrieve Bridgette’s bow, but they never came back.”
The fear in Lachlan’s chest spread through his body, freezing every part of him until he felt as if his heart had stopped. The pulse of anger replaced its beat as he met Rory Mac’s concerned gaze.
“Treachery,” Rory Mac whispered, and Lachlan jerked his head in a nod, struggling to control the rage and terror clawing at him.
“Come,” he growled to Rory Mac.
“Stay here,” Rory Mac commanded of Alanna, who gave a quick nod.
Lachlan stalked through the corridor toward the kitchen, and as he went, men fell into step behind him and Rory Mac. He turned toward the stairs that led to the kitchen, and his breath seized in his lungs at the sight of the bodies on the ground. He raced forward, flipped over the man, and cursed at the sight of Barclay. He had a dagger in his head and was cold to the touch.
“Barclay the Betrayer,” Rory Mac snarled from where he stood above Lachlan.
“We dunnae ken that yet,” Lachlan automatically replied as he reached for Helena. He turned her over with care, expecting to find her dead, but was shocked to see the slightest rise and fall of her chest. He gasped. “Helena.” He gently shook her. Her eyes fluttered open, and she slowly focused on him as she took a breath that hissed with the wet sound of impending death.
“Where is Bridgette?” he asked.
“I love ye,” she murmured.
“Helena, where is she?” he demanded, fearful the woman would die before being able to tell him.
“Taken,” she replied. “Colin’s bride. Yer uncle has joined with my father. Together they plan to take—” She gasped not able to finish her sentence as pink spittle seeped out of her mouth.
Lachlan’s heart beat like a drum inside him as anger and fear battled to consume him. “Taken where?”
Helena’s eyes fluttered closed, and reason fled Lachlan. He shook her, and when she did not respond, he began to shake her more violently until Rory Mac gripped his arms.
“She’s dead, Lachlan. She kinnae tell ye more.”
Lachlan shook as he lowered her to the rushes and stood. He turned to face Rory Mac, and Cameron and Graham pushed their way through the men surrounding Lachlan. Graham came to stand in front of him and gave him a sympathetic look. No words of forgiveness had been uttered, but fighting together had demanded a temporary truce that seemed to still be in place. If only Graham would allow it to remain so.
“The Fairy Flag is gone,” Graham said, his tone grave.
A collective murmur of alarm rose up around Lachlan.
“Colin Campbell is gone, as well,” Cameron added.
