To Tempt Highland Fate (The Mac Coinnach Brothers) (69 page)

             
“Your father will come for us, little one.  Then everything will be all right.” 
I hope
.  “He’s just a little lost, but he’ll come around.”

             
The sun had set, and the last of the light was filtering through the trees, casting long, deep shadows. Willa noticed a sack near the center of the clearing, and went to investigate.  Dirc must have left it for her, because it was full of food: bread, cheese, and fruit, and two full flasks of water. Three days worth, at least.  How long did he expect her to be here? 
Most likely, three days.

             
She ate an apple, then curled up in the darkness against one of the larger stones to try to sleep.  The sounds of the night filled her ears, from the far-off call of an owl, to the sighing of the wind through the tree tops.  It was beautiful, peaceful… and yet she felt as if a part of her was missing.  Drust.  The night would never be the same again without him beside her, his powerful body warming her, protecting her.  In such a short time, he had come to be the center of her whole world, and when they were apart, she only wanted to get back to him.  She could only hope that her time here would serve its purpose. 

             
But what if he was still angry?  What if he didn’t find her?  Didn’t even look?  What if he decided they were better off apart?  Her heart clenched.  Here, alone in the dark, her deepest fears began to surface.  Still, she must have eventually slept.

             
It was the early morning chirping of the birds that woke her.  Willa sat up and stretched, brushing the pieces of moss from her clothing.  Still alone.  Would he come for her today?  She began to pace the small circular glade, and when it began to feel as if the forest was closing in around her, she decided to venture a little further and maybe find a stream to wash in.  Walking purposefully towards a gap between two stones, she was stopped short by… something.

             
She gasped and stepped forward again, more slowly.  Again, something stopped her, as if there were an invisible wall…  Dirc!  He had locked her in here somehow!  Anger rose quickly to the forefront of her emotions. 
I never agreed to being locked in!  I would
never
have agreed! 
She quickly tested the entire perimeter of the circle, pushing against the invisible barrier with her hands.  There was no way out.  If something happened to Dirc and he never came back for her, she would die here! 
Damn
him. 

             
Willa felt the panic rising in her chest.  She hated to be trapped, helpless…
hated
it!  The circle seemed smaller with each round she made, and she could see the forest beckoning to her with freedom just on the other side of the magical wall.  She glanced furtively at the sack of food.  Enough for a few days, no more.  If I scream, will anyone be close enough to hear me?  She knew the answer was no.  She ran at the wall, shoving against it with all of her weight.  Nothing.  She sank to her knees in the grass, trying to calm her pounding heart. 
Breathe Willa… breathe…
 

              Drust sank to his knees and dropped his head down into his hands.  Willa was still missing.  No one had seen any sign of her.  He wanted to claw his heart out of his chest, it ached so badly.  If he didn’t find her, there would be no way for him to live.  He could never go on without her.  Every time he closed his eyes, he saw her face.  And then he saw her look of pure joy as she held a tiny baby to her breast. 
My child.
  The need to protect his child, his woman, began to claw at him almost as insistently as the need to breathe.  They were both so helpless without him, and he had all but walked away, all but denied both of them his power to keep them safe and… loved.

             
I never told her I loved her.
  He had just expected Willa to know his feelings… after all, he had taken her as his wife when he had vowed never to marry, he had brought her to his home… 

             
He had put a child in her belly and then cursed her for it.  If only he had her back, he would not only tell her how much he loved her, but he would care for her every moment, do everything in his power to make sure both she and the baby would be all right… maybe find the very best midwives in the land… a whole army of midwives.  And spell-casters too, anything and everything to make sure she was safe.

              Three days!  Three days Willa had been missing, and Drust was ready to do battle, no, to viciously kill whatever power had taken his wife from him.  If only he could swing his sword, plunge it deep into an enemy’s heart, and have her back.  And their child.  Aye, he knew she had wanted a child… had seen the look of disappointment on her face the first time he had told her he would never consent.  But fate had had other ideas, and if a child made his wife happy, she would have one.  But he hadn’t really changed his mind on the matter, only accepted what had come to pass.  And he was still going to live in constant fear until Willa was safely delivered of the babe.  And if she died… God help him the world would know his pain and rage. 

             
If only I had her back safe with me…

             
He was headed back out to search after a brief rest, distracted and feverish with worry, when Dirc suddenly appeared in front of him.  Whether he had been there all along, or actually
appeared
, one could never know.

             
“Out of my way.”

             
Dirc did not budge.  “Be nice, Drust Mac Coinnach.”

             
Drust was reaching out to shove him aside when suspicion began to dawn.

             
“Why?  Do ye ken something?  About my wife?”

             
“I may…”

             
Drust grabbed him by the arm, hard.  “What do ye ken?  Where is she?  Tell me, old man.”

             
Dirc glared at Drust’s hand, still wrapped around his bicep.  “Och, ye devil, that’ll leave a bruise!”

             
Drust slowly loosened his grip, waiting, holding his breath.

             
“What I was going to tell ye, man, before ye attacked me, was how ye
might
find yer wife.”

             
“Tell me”, Drust all but growled.

             
“Well”, Dirc began, but then glanced pointedly at his arm.  Drust begrudgingly released him.  “Well, ye and Willa are mated, in the Olde Way, aye?  So there is a bond between ye, a bond that grows stronger with every day, and with every time ye, well… ye ken…  Anyway, through this bond, ye may be able to find her, if she’s no’ too far.  Much like ye and yer brothers can hear each other’s thoughts at times.”

             
Hope welled inside of Drust for the first time in days.  He grabbed Dirc’s arm again.

             
“How?”

             
“Simple.  Ye open yer mind to hers, feel what she’s feeling, and then follow where it leads ye.  The connection between ye is like a thread, and it will feel stronger the closer ye are.”

              Drust stared at the old sorcerer for just a moment before brushing past him and heading for the stables.  Dirc brushed his hands together with satisfaction. 

             
“Another task nearly complete.”  He shook his head and sighed.  “I just hope the lass forgives me.”

             
Bren came up behind him, watching as Drust rode out of the castle gates as if fires of Hell were nipping at his heels.  He folded his arms across his chest, and frowned slightly, as if contemplating the odds that any of this could go well.

              Drust pulled his horse to a stop just within the forest to the west of the castle.  With a little prayer to all that was good in the world, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath, picturing Willa’s lovely face in his mind.  At first, there was nothing, but then… a small sense of
something
.  He concentrated harder. 
There!
… he could feel her, just as Dirc had said, almost like a thread between them.  He reached out further, and the feeling grew stronger. 
Fear?
  She was afraid!  He could sense it like a knife stabbing him in the gut. 

             
Have to find her.  Can’t live without her…

             
He let the feeling pull at him until he knew which way to go.  Dirc was right, he had had the power to find her all along. 

             
God, please dinna let me be too late!

             
He rode hard, well, as hard as he could through the varying patches of meadow and forest.  Where could she be?  Was she lost? Hurt?  Och, when he found her she was never leaving his side again, even if he had to tie her there!

             
She’s
everything to me…

              It was the afternoon of the third day, and Willa’s panic had begun to subside in favor of hoping today would be the day Drust came for her. 
Dirc said three days…

             
She paced around the circle yet again.  These three days alone had given her plenty of time to think, and she had made peace with the prospect of raising the child of a man who did not wish to be a father, just in case.  She loved Drust, flaws and all.  Loved him fiercely.  A part of her hoped all of her dreams could still come true, but she wasn’t going to let a little doubt get in the way of her happiness.  Because she had so much more happiness now than she had ever had before.  She would hold on to that as tightly as she could. 

             
Lost in her thoughts, it took a moment before Willa realized she was hearing the sound of hoof beats approaching.  Her heart jumped into her throat.  Drust?  Was he coming for her?  Or was it only Dirc, come to release her from her prison because his plan had failed?  Or was it someone else altogether?  She ducked behind a stone and peeked around the edge, watching.  As the rider came into view, she melted against the smooth rock in relief. 
Drust.

             
“Willa!  Where are you?  Willa!”

             
She stood on shaky legs.  “I’m here!”

             
He was flying off the back of the horse before it had even stopped.  “God, Willa!”

             
He ran for her.

             
Willa shouted for him to stop.  “There’s a wall, Drust.  Be careful!” 

             
She put her hands up against the invisible barrier to show him before he ran headlong into it.

             
He put his hands against hers and she could feel their heat.  She shuddered, both in joy in being found, and anticipation of touching him again.

             
“Can you get me out of here?”

             
Drust ran his hand over the barrier, and it shimmered. 

             
“Aye.  It’s only a simple containment spell.  How did ye… ?  Never mind.  It can wait till later.  Go to the center and get down low.  Put yer arms over yer head.”