Page 77 of Abducted By the Highlander

But now she gave a slow nod. “I did not,” she confirmed. “And over the years I have pondered this. And I’ve come to believe it’s because ye and Hugh were not on Eigg when ye needed to decide which path yer fate lay.”

She caught Hugh’s unwavering gaze, and she understood. Both Isolde and Freyja had wed on the Small Isles and although they loved their husbands, at the time their marriages had been something they could not avoid. But she and Hugh had been bound by no such constraints. Their future had hung in the balance until the very end, and even then, it hadn’t been certain whether they would return to Eigg or remain in the Highlands.

A shiver inched through her as she realized her uneasy suspicions had always been right. For while Hugh had offered to return to her beloved isle, it was she who had decided they belonged in Argyll.

“’Tis terrible.” Freyja’s lip trembled, and Amma nodded.

“Aye. It is. But if I’d had only one granddaughter, I would never have sought that alliance for Isolde, no matter how many dreams or visions plagued me. And many in this solar would have perished alongside us today.”

Shock slithered through Roisin and as one she, Isolde, and Freyja slowly looked around the solar. It was true. Patric and Clyde would never have left Eigg, and nor would Amma’s loyal warriors.

Grear would have perished, too.

“Blessed Eir.” Freyja’s voice was hushed. “Laoise and her lasses. And her sisters and their bairns, too.”

“And none of our bairns would be here.” Roisin’s voice shook, and Hugh came to her and wrapped his arms around her. As if in response her babe kicked, reminding her of the bairns who had not yet been born, but whose heritage also came from Eigg.

“I always thought the Deep Knowing meant our bloodline could not leave the Isle.” Isolde released a deep sigh, and William took her in his arms.

“I thought our bloodline would die if we left the Isle.” Freyja groaned and pressed her hand against her stomach. Alasdair was instantly by her side, and she rested her head against his shoulder. “What a foolish notion. I cannot fathom how I kept believing it, even after all the babes were born.”

Roisin had never believed in the Deep Knowing the way Amma and her sisters had but now was hardly the time to share that. It wasn’t as if it could change anything.

“The bloodline of the Isle must prevail beyond quietus.” Amma quietly repeated the Deep Knowing, and it took on an entirely different meaning from the one they had always been taught. “If the daughters of the Isle hadn’t left, the bloodline of Eigg herself would have perished. But her bloodline will prevail because the three of ye forged a new life here and took many from the Isle with ye.”

“And our Pict queen foremother will never be forgotten for as long as we share her story.” Roisin threaded her fingers through Hugh’s. “And one day her bloodline will return to her Isle.”

Only the comforting crackle of the fire broke the silence that fell, and Roisin leaned back against Hugh, suddenly feeling exhausted.

And then Freyja cleared her throat. “Well, I wasn’t going to say anything yet, but I think maybe I should. It appears there will be yet another bairn born next year who will carry the bloodline of the isle in their veins.”

Roisin’s exhaustion vanished and she and Isolde hugged their sister.

“We suspected as much,” Isolde said.

“’Tis happy news to take into the new year,” Roisin added.

“As long as this babe does not turn out to be another set of twins.” Freyja gave a weak smile, and Alasdair gently lifted her chin and kissed her. She leaned against him and eyed her sisters. “I confess it would be nice to have a daughter to share the Deep Knowing with. Even though,” she hesitated. “It’s not a secret anymore. It didn’t even mean what we thought it did.”

“We must always remember the Deep Knowing.” Roisin took Freyja’s hand. “But now we can share it with our sons as well as our daughters. It is their legacy, too.”

“Even if we did misunderstand her edict for nine hundred years.” Isolde shook her head. “But Roisin’s right. We can’t let her memory fade into the past.”

After a few moments Roisin released her sister’s hand and turned to Hugh. He smiled at her, his blue eyes as mesmeric as the day they’d first met and pulled her close.

“Are ye all right, mo ghràdh?” His voice was low, for her ears only, and warmth flooded through her. She could not imagine her life without this man by her side and thanked God and the ancient immortals every day that Amma had sent her to Argyll so unexpectedly.

“I am,” she whispered. “And I always will be, with ye in my life.”

The End