The silence surrounded them then. He wanted to kiss her with every fiber of his being. He stepped back, breaking the spell, and bowed slightly to her.
“See safely to your chores this day, Brienne,” he said, turning to leave before he acted on his desires. At this point, he would have given anything just to be able to continue to talk with her.
“And you as well, my lord . . . when you remember what your tasks are.”
With a soft laugh, she walked off, leaving the shade of the forest and entering the open fields where men and women worked, preparing the fields for planting. His heart pounded as he realized that, if he carried out the king’s duty, he would oversee his own lands soon. By next spring, he would have fields to plant and a manor of his own. William headed back to the camp on the hill, not wishing to think on the rest of it. For now he would think only about the wonder in her vibrant amber eyes as he spoke of the sea.
Two mornings later, as he tracked a large group of mounted men riding along the road to Yester, he knew that the time when she would be in danger had just arrived. And when the leader of the riders stopped in front of where he stood hidden by the dense trees and brush and stared in his direction, William knew that Lord Hugh was back at Yester Castle.
Although he was careful about being out of sight of anyone down in the valley, the helmed man nodded at him, acknowledging his presence. Then heat filled him, and the warrior within pushed against its bounds, forcing William to fight to keep it controlled. He blew hard, like a winded horse, and clenched fists that even now grew larger, barely containing the growing power. The sound that echoed up the hills shocked him.
Laughter.
Deep, full laughter traveled through the air, mocking and challenging him at the same time. Struggling against the need to release whatever this power was that now lived inside of him, William practiced his meager control, knowing that the time was coming when he would not be successful in holding it back.
The time was coming . . . soon.
Hugh feltone of them with each passing mile. Opening up his senses as they crossed the last few miles between Gifford town and Yester Castle, he attempted to discern who his opponent was. To determine from which bloodline this enemy had come to face him and test his resolve to free his goddess. Though close, he was yet too far to tell.
Hugh smiled first, relishing the thought that his plans and those of his creator were under way and there would be no more delays. If one had arrived, others would come. Others who knew not the location of the circles. Others who knew of the prophecy. More of the bloodlines who had no idea of their powers or his.
But they would learn quickly that he would not be refused. He had perfected the ways to find a man’s weakness and use it to gain their compliance before he destroyed them. All he needed was to open one gateway, and then the goddess would be freed and could destroy the others.
One.
Surely two of these ignorant fools, untrained in the ways of the ancients, would bend to his will . . . and to hers. Once the gateway opened and the sacrifice made, they would be useless and he would see to their deaths. They, and anyone who stood in his way, would die be they serf or king.
Pulling his horse to a stop, he stared up at the hills that surrounded his lands and castle.Hewas there, up there, watching and waiting. The first of those who would challenge his faith and resolve. And most likely the first to fall and be crushed for resisting the will of the goddess.
He leaned his head back and laughed, loud, hard, and long.
The game had begun and he was its master.
ChapterEight
They landed on the east coast of Scotland, having journeyed by water from their island to the west. Once there, Marcus led them as he was led in his dreams, toward the lands of Lothian. Not a one in their group remained unaffected by the power of evil that drew them closer and closer.
But Aislinn suffered the most.
Terrible dreams filled her nights and even crossed into her days. She revealed only small bits of them to him and said nothing to the others. Struggling to find the rest of the prophecy, she made him promise not to wake her when the dreams made her cry out or struggle in her sleep.
It was not fair that such a young, fragile woman should bear the cost of her gift in this way, but believing and being faithful to the old gods’ ways had nothing to do with fairness. The old gods could be cruel, and this showed that aeons had not changed that part of them.
The only thing Marcus could do was hold her when she screamed in the night and guide her faltering steps during the days that followed. Which he did and would continue doing until he was physically and mentally unable. In the years since she’d come to him, he thought of her as the daughter he never had and, like any father who loved his child, he wished he could take her burden on his shoulders.
The gods would have none of that, so he eased the pace of their journey so she would not be too weak when the time came for her to carry out her part of the prophecy and ceremony.
As the seer, she would understand the words of the prophecy and direct them to the right place and the right descendants needed to safeguard the gateways. Aislinn would chant the words and prayers necessary to seal the barriers. She would recognize the signs and the right stones and would heighten the powers of the warriors of destiny so that they could carry out their task.
As they crossed the miles, every person in their group began to suffer, so Marcus knew they were approaching evil. He ordered them to set up an encampment in a covered, secluded place in the woods before they entered the valley that would lead to the beginning of their challenge.
Choosing two of his men, he set them to the task of searching ahead for signs of the two descendants they needed to find. If they could convince the first two warriors of their history and their quest, Marcus believed they could stop the evil one here.
“Marcus?”
He turned to find Aislinn behind him, looking even more haunted in the light of day than she had during the last long, sleepless night.
“You should be resting, Aislinn. You get so little sleep and our journey is long.”
