Page 27 of Kidnapped By her Highland Enemy
“Aye,” Oliver grimaced. “It is nae good.”
Again, Lucas grunted. “And it will get worse if we do find that the King is behind all this. I havenae doubt that the capital will make us look as if we were the instigators instead of him and his scheming subordinates will look like saints.”
“And then we’ll have more problems on our hands,” Oliver said stiffly. “How long do ye ken this tense peace between the clans will stay?”
“I cannae tell,” Lucas replied as they cleared a vale and spotted the house. “Hopefully long enough that we can find these persons and make them confess this was a directive to send more war and division among us.”
A few thoughts began to prick at Lucas’s mind about how to go about that and he wondered if it made sense to even try to find the perpetrators. If they had any lick of sense, from the moment word spread that there was more division between the two, they would have run, knowing their mission had been accomplished.
No, to tackle this we need to go to the source, we need to go to the capital and the King.
Gently, he dismounted and took his horse to a nearby tree to tether. A bucket with water was there and the horse readily drank while Lucas left for the house.
He stomped his boots on the stoop then knocked rapidly, and before he could knock again, Ian pulled the latch away and tugged the door open. From the grave look on Ian’s face, Lucas’s mood worsened. Stopping short, he grated, “What happened?”
“Miss Heather is gone,” Ian said, his jaw firm with worry and fear of recrimination. “It is me fault, sir, I shouldnae have been so gullible in trusting her.” Curtly, Ian reiterated the events that lead to Heather slipping away and when he was done, added, “Miss Maisie said that she is heading to the clan and that when she gets there, she will tell her faither our location or as close to it as she can decipher. We will need to—”
“Leave,” Lucas said somberly while rubbing his face. “I ken.”
Over Ian’s shoulder, he spotted Maisie coming to the doorway of the room and leaning on the wall with her arms wrapped aroundher middle. She looked dearly troubled, and his first instinct was to go and comfort her, but he had to deal with Ian first.
“Daenae worry about it, lad,” Lucas said. “I was planning to leave here anyhow.”
Ian’s shoulders fell with relief, and he nodded once. “Just tell me when and I’ll start the preparation.”
“Aye,” Lucas nodded then side-stepped him and went to Maisie, gently resting both hands on her shoulders. Grasping her firmly, he waited a moment for her to meet his eyes. “Let’s go upstairs, hm?”
He knew it was prudent to start packing their things and heading out but he had to see to Maisie. When she nodded, he gently rested a hand on the small of her back and they mounted the stairs with her ahead of him.
Inside her room, Lucas did away with the cloak he had worn to the marketplaces and folded it over a chair. While she settled on the edge of the bed, he took a stool. “Ye kent she is going to yer faither.”
“Undoubtedly,” she said while gripping the edges of the bed. “She has nae love for yer clan, an’ I am certain she will tell me faither how to find this place the moment she gets to him. I’m sorry, Lucas. I ken this is more trouble than ye bargained for.”
“It is,” he reached for her hand. “I never bargained for it, aye, but this isnae different from any other war campaign I’ve been in. Many a time we had to abandon a situation and find another way to go about ensuring we would win the battle. Aye, we are leaving tonight but that isnae what is bothering me so badly.”
Her delicate browns met in the middle, “Then what is?”
Succinctly, Lucas told her about the brewing trouble at their homes and while Maisie did not look shocked, she went pallid with worry. Her eyes were dark and flitted along the line of boards under their feet. “We need to go to the capital. If the King is truly behind this, that is the only way we can resolve it.”
“Me thoughts as well,” Lucas said.
“And if the King isnae behind it,” she added. “He might come to our help and find who is behind this duplicity.”
“The capital is either hostile ground or neutral one,” Lucas agreed.
“If it is hostile?” Maisie asked. “How will we leave?”
“He willnae touch us,” Lucas promised. “Despite our clans’ differences, he will nae attack us. We’re his strongholds in the highlands and those in his court are aware of it.”
“But what comes after?” Maisie asked pointedly
“Daenae worry about that now,” Lucas said comfortingly, putting warm assurance and confidence in his tone to soothe her. “Naything will happen to ye, I promise.”
Her lips parted and a long sigh left them, her cool breath skittering over his cheek. Maisie flattened her hands on his chest, her fingertips felt the heat of his skin through the fabric of his shirt as she aimed for his mouth.
Lucas met her halfway, his secret worry receding the moment she touched him. He kissed her slowly, allowing her to move against him as he closed his arms around her. His hand cradled the back of her head as he tilted his own to the side so their mouths fit perfectly together.
She pressed up against him, her soft body fitting with his completely as his mouth moved against hers, unleashing a rush of sensation that thrilled him all the way through. When he lifted his head, she was breathless, her eyes wide with want.
