Page 35 of Taken By her Highland Enemy

Chapter Eighteen

Eamon’s eyes sparkled with excitement. “The man carries his wealth with him wherever he travels. It is his badge of honor. He and each of his men carry a portion of it upon themselves. Money, gold, and more besides. Once Cutler is defeated, then ye may have some of the wealth. We can split it between all of us. Ye may ask the lass. She knows of her father’s worth.”

“Aye, is that so?” His eyes returned to Isabelle, and to Eamon’s relief, they were not eyes of lust but merely of curiosity.

Isabelle nodded. “Yes, sir. It is his way to prove that he cannot be defeated. There is more wealth than many can imagine, for he was paid handsomely by the king for his services.”

MacManus frowned. “It feels right, lad, tae steal from an unscrupulous English soldier, but it doesnae feel right tae steal from the King. If he finds out what we have done, then we will lose our heads for certain. Not after Culloden and what I had tae do tae keep my land and my clan intact.”

Eamon’s shoulders sank. He was out of ideas. He looked at Isabelle helplessly. She stared back, but her eyes were unreadable. What was he to do? Sean was wounded upstairs, and the rest of the men here were unlikely to help him fight. He would have to come up with some sort of agreement with Cutler. Even the thought of it left a bad taste in his mouth.

“I understand, Laird,” Eamon said in response, his voice betraying his disappointment.

“But ye may use my walls as protection, lad, for as long as ye need. But if the man bursts in, it shall be ye on the front line. And if there is any wealth that has nae been given tae the man directly from the King, I shall take that as yer recompense.”

Eamon felt a flicker of hope. “Agreed.” He stood and motioned to Isabelle to follow him. “Thank ye, Laird. I hope it will be over in but an instant.”

The two of them rushed up the stairs through the castle to Sean’s room. “We need tae see out over the hills tae see if yer father rides near.” He clasped onto her hand and pulled her quietly out onto the battlements. The wind was whipping around them, and Isabelle’s hair was flung into disarray. They stared down at the valley. The dark trees stood to the west, and Eamon could see nothing for an instant as his mind focused on the green hills below. He hoped that Cutler did not yet head towards the forest and the village but would wait to fight them here at the clan walls.

Then, Isabelle said, “There! He rides along the walls!” She clung tightly to Eamon’s arm, and if the moment had been different, Eamon’s heart would have swelled with love and affection. But now it was time to act.

“We go and speak tae him, lass. We find a solution!” He was about to leave the battlements when he saw the group of men separating, running around the walls of the village, lining themselves up. Isabelle gasped.

“Eamon, we must hurry. They will send fire arrows into the village to burn it down if they cannot get inside. I will have to give myself up. I know that I will!” Tears began to spring from her eyes, and Eamon clutched her face with his hands.

“Nae, lass. Dinnae say such things. We must find some other way!” They entered the small room to see Sean sitting awake and Arya sitting beside him. “Brother, how do ye fare?”

Sean grumbled, “A lot better now that an arrow is nae digging intae my leg. What goes on below?”

“He has eaten some,” Arya added helpfully.

“We have come tae the MacManus’ for aid. Cutler’s men have arrived, and they are splitting up, ready tae fire intae the village tae burn it down. We have tae go and meet him, tae think of a way out of this. The MacManus’ have given us their walls for protection, but they dinnae want tae use their men for aid.” Sean was solemn as he brought himself to his feet.

“I will go tae meet him. I am glad he has nae set himself onward tae the village. I will make the agreement.”

Eamon rushed to his brother’s side. “Sean, no! It is I who came tae protect ye! And ye are injured!”

Sean shook off Eamon’s embrace. “I am the leader of this clan. Mine and your men’s lives are at stake and the lives of the MacManus clan. I cannae let them die for me. Nae when they have naught tae do with what happened. I cannae let Cutler ride tae the village tae get my family. Perhaps he will be satisfied with just me.”

He limped towards the door. Eamon’s eyes scanned the room, and he opened a side cabinet to pull out clothes for Isabelle. “Here, put these on. Wearing them will at least give ye some time so that yer father does nae guess ye are inside.”

Isabelle held up the clothes reluctantly. “But he cannot even see me, Eamon. What is the purpose of this?”

“We have nae time, Isabelle. If he breaches these walls, he needs tae think that ye are just one of the men! It is important. Please do it!” Eamon fled the room.

* * *

Isabelle started trembling with fear as she dressed in the clothes. He will know. As soon as he sees me, he will know! She wanted to burst into tears, but she tried to savor her last few moments with Eamon while he thought she was just Isabelle, not a woman who’d betrayed him. Eamon left the room, and she agreed to meet him below with Arya. “He will know, Arya. He will curse me once he sees who I truly am!” Tears were in her eyes, ready to fall as Arya assisted her to dress. She cooed and soothed.

“Mistress, the man is in love with you. One can see it from a mile away. He will not leave you once he sees who you are. There will be a time when he will be angry, for certain, but he will understand. You need to trust in him.”

Arya’s soft words calmed Isabelle for a moment. Did Eamon truly love her? Could he ever, once he knew that it had been her plan all along to be kidnapped and to fall into his world? If he did love her, then all their problems would be solved, once her father was taken care of. She could stay with him in Scotland and be happy forever. For a moment, hope flickered in the distance, and Isabelle was happy. But then the two women heard yelling from down below, and the cold memory of what was at hand flooded into their minds.

Arya said, “Let us go, Mistress. Perhaps we can think of something to help the Scots.”

Isabelle thanked her friend. “I do not know what I would do without you, Arya. You have been both friend and guide.” She squeezed Arya’s hand, and the two of them rushed down the steps out into the yard in front of the castle. Men were gathered around the walls as she could hear her father’s voice low and rumbling, making its demands.

“My men have you surrounded. We will burn this area down and kill all within it unless you surrender The Wanderer and The Scots to me. If you do not, you are obstructing the course of His Majesty’s justice! As we are here to avenge the death of his nephew!” The words coursed through the MacManus stronghold and Isabelle had the sense that they were bouncing from the walls and back again.

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