“Thor, wake up. Wake up.”
Thor was certain he dreamed as Greer’s voice filled his mind. He rolled over and reached for her, disoriented when he wrapped his hand around an ankle instead. His brow furrowed as pain ricocheted through his head. He fought to open his eyes.
“Thor.” The voice belonged to a hand that shook his shoulder. He groaned as he rolled over. His eyes fluttered open to torchlight that made him wince. Strong arms that couldn’t belong to Greer’s voice yanked him onto his feet.
“Bluidy hell. Nay more meat pies for ye.”
“Hamish?”
“Aye, ye bluidy boulder. Can ye stand on yer own?”
“What—” Thor swayed backward as he raised his hand to his temple.
“St. Columba’s bones. Ye werenae kidding. He’s like propping up a mountain.”
“Wee Liam?”
“Aye.”
“Greer? Where’s ma wife?” Thor tried to turn, but two sets of hands held him in place.
“Wheest,mo dhuine.I’m here.”
“Yer mon? More likemo dhaimh.”
“Alec, dinna call ma husband an ox.” To Thor’s ear, Greer sounded truly offended on his behalf. But he couldn’t understand why any of them were there or how. “Thor, can ye walk? The tunnels willna make it easy to carry ye.”
“Is that how ye got in, wee one?” Thor’s senses were coming back to him.
“Aye. I can explain everything to ye, but we must hurry. We have a birlinn, but the tide’s going to change soon. We have to go.”
Thor reached for Greer and pulled her against his chest. She barely handed her torch to Alec in time not to burn Thor. Her arms encircled his neck as their mouths fused. The three brothers’ deep voices cleared more than once, but the couple ignored them until they were breathless.
“Can ye walk on yer own, Thor?” Greer slid her hand into his as she took the torch back from Alec.
“Aye. Ma head’s pounding, but I can think clearly now. Once we are in that birlinn, ye are going to explain to me what the bluidy hell ye were thinking, sneaking back into this keep. Then ma cousins are going to explain to me how they can be such eejits as to let ye come back here.”
“Hauld yer wheest. Yer cousins are brave, so dinna call them names. And ye ken why I came here. Dinna ye be the daft one. I love ye. There’s yer explanation. Now be quiet.” Greer pressed a hidden latch in the wall beside her former bed. The door sprang open, and she pushed it wide enough for the four enormous warriors to pass through. Wee Liam shut it once they were all in the tunnel. She held up her torch for the others’ sake. She could traverse the warren in the dark. She’d done it many times. No one spoke until they emerged into the same cave Thor once swam into.
At the mouth of the inlet, a birlinn bounced in the waves. Greer boarded far more gracefully than Thor, who more fell than stepped. Once Greer tossed the torch into the sea, he opened his arms to her again. She clung to him as much as he clung to her while Alec, Hamish, and Wee Liam set the boat on a course south to Dunbeath.
“How’d ye get here? I figured Uncle Tristan would have sent ye and ma cousins to Dunbeath.”
“He did, but when we crossed into Gunn territory, I insisted we meet up with yer uncle again. I kenned we could sail in and use the tunnels to get directly to ma chamber. Yer uncle and some men must have already gotten Dominic out of the dungeon because the other birlinn is already gone.”
“Dominic. I just wondered aboot him. I thought I would wind up in the dungeon with him. I’m glad Uncle Tristan went for him. I confess I wasna thinking aboot him when I came round.”
“That’s all right.”
“How’d ye ken where I would be?”
“Because I ken Matthew. He’s more spiteful than an auld crone. I kenned he would wish to punish ye, and the dungeon wouldnae be bad enough. He kenned forcing ye into ma chamber would be far worse.”
“Aye, but someone knocked me out while I fought to stay away. I hadnae woken yet. I didna ken where I was because I was out the entire time.”
“Good.” Greer’s whisper barely reached Thor’s ear.
“Wee one, I wish ye’d never gone back inside that place. I’m so sorry ye had to rescue me. I never wanted that.”
