Page 51 of The Beast of the Highlands
She could not believe that, after all she had been through with Flynn, she was surrendering so easily. But all she had to do was think about Laurel, and her mother, and Leighton… and the decision was already made. She would not put her happiness above their lives. It was not in her nature to be selfish, and to give her love for their survival seemed a small price to pay.
“Natters!” Keira shouted, followed by the sound of the door unlocking.
The downtrodden soldier shuffled in: his eyes rimmed with red as though he had been crying.
“Aye, Lady Keira?” he said sullenly.
“Take Miss Montgomery to Flynn. Have her horse saddled and ready to depart once she is finished speakin’ with him, and make sure she leaves,” Keira instructed. “Ye’ll report back to me when it’s done.”
Natters grimaced. “Aye, Lady Keira.”
“Ye may go.” Keira folded her arms across her chest, evidently satisfied that she was the victor. “And remember, if ye breathe a word, or divert from yer promise, it willnae be ye who suffers.”
Autumn did not dignify the warning with a response. Instead, she let her thoughts rage for her.
As if you would allow me to forget…
Not that it changed anything. Keira had won, and there was nothing Autumn could do about it. And though she knew she would be saving many people, the loss she already felt threatened to crush her. In truth, she did not know how she was going to get through this last encounter with Flynn without crumbling to pieces.
31
Flynn looked over the ruins of the abandoned chapel with satisfaction. He had never known this place in its completion, for it had been destroyed decades before his birth, but it would serve splendidly in place of a whole chapel. The priest had already confirmed that it would not affect the legitimacy of the marriage.
He was just lighting the last candles and adding the last garlands of wildflowers to the remaining rafters, to make it prettier for his bride, when he heard horses approaching.
Squinting at the evening darkness, his heart jolted as he recognized Seashell.
What is me bride doin’ here? It isnae time! The priest willnae be here for a few hours yet.
As the horses came to a halt in front of the chapel, he saw that Natters was escorting his beloved. Neither of them looked very pleased, which put something of a dampener on his efforts.
“Natters, I told ye nae to tell her about this place until ten o’clock!” Flynn chastised, as the two figures walked toward him. “It isnae finished. Can ye still nae read the time?”
Natters shrugged. “She asked me where ye were. She’s got bad news for ye.” He turned and walked back to the horses, which was not like him at all.
“Lass?” Flynn closed the gap between them and cupped her face in his hands.
Her beautiful eyes met his, though they looked terribly sad. “We cannot marry tonight, my love. I have received word from my family—my father is unwell, and I must go to him.” Her arms slipped around his neck. “He has locked himself away in the cottage by the lake and will not listen to reason. I am sorry, my dear.”
“Och, there’ll be time enough when ye get back,” Flynn assured, hiding his disappointment.
She nodded slowly. “I do not know when that will be, but I will send a message to you when I have learned more of his ailment. I am sorry to leave Leighton without a tutor for a time, and I am sorry to have to leave so abruptly. But it cannot be helped.”
“Aye… I suppose it cannae.” Flynn’s heart tightened. He had never thought a day would come where she would leave, and he would not know when she might return. And though he could not pinpoint why, he felt a twist in his belly that echoed the sensation of grief.
Am I losin’ ye, lass?
He did not dare to ask her outright, but there was something different about her demeanor; a distance in her gaze that had not been there before. And yet, she was clinging to him as if she could not get close enough.
“Natters will escort me, so you need not fear for my safety,” she said softly.
That isnae all I’m fearin’, at present.
“Is there somethin’ amiss, lass?” Flynn searched her face for an answer. “Ye daenae seem to be in yer right mind.”
Autumn smiled. “I am concerned about my father, that is all.”
“Are ye sure?”
