* * *
So, Arabella found herself walking along the path around the keep with an irritated Caelan. Their walk was interrupted when the guards called out that riders approached. Caelan did not even wait to find out who rode to the gates.
Whoever it was could not be a good thing for him.
Within minutes, the gates were closed, guards lined the walls and she was dragged back to her chambers. Caelan dropped all pretence then, calling out for the priest as he pulled her up the stairs and shoved her inside a small chamber.
‘Ready yourself, Lady Arabella. We marry as soon as the priest comes.’
‘I will not consent. The priest will not hear those words from me.’
‘Oh, aye, he will.’ The smile he gave her then made her skin crawl. She wanted to back away but there was little room to do so in that chamber. He had a plan and would use whatever force he needed, she knew that now.
He pulled the door closed and Arabella heard him drop the bar to lock her in. She pulled on it and pushed against it but it would not give way. She cried out and called for help but no one came. Then, a short while later, he opened the door and strode back in, carrying a small bottle.
‘This is a wondrous potion. A few drops and you will say whatever you are told to say,’ he explained, pulling the cork free and tilting the bottle to show her.
Then he set the bottle on a shelf on the wall and grabbed for her. No matter how much she struggled, he soon had her subdued, pushed against the wall with his hand holding her throat tightly so she could not move her head.
‘Only a couple of drops now, or you will fall unconscious,’ he warned as he held the bottle over her mouth. She clenched her lips tight so he could not pour it in.
‘Do not fight this,’ he said, pressing his knee into her back and tightening his grasp on her throat until she gasped against the pain.
The bitter taste landed on her tongue and she tried to spit it out. He covered her mouth and pinched her nose until she struggled to pull in a breath, forcing her to swallow the potion. It burned its way down her throat into her stomach. Then, he released her and tossed her to the floor.
‘The priest awaits us below. Come now,’ he said.
Her stomach rolled and her head spun. She wanted to ignore his words, but her body did not follow her wishes. He took her hand and pulled her up to stand.
‘What did you give me?’ she asked as he wrapped his arm around her waist and helped her walk. The chambers passed in a haze as did the people. Her mouth felt dry then.
‘The same thing I gave Brodie. It makes you pliable and obedient. You will do as I say,’ he whispered in her ear.
‘I will...’ She could not think very clearly. One thing did strike her. He had given this to Brodie. ‘Brodie would not kill,’ she forced out.
‘Nay, he had too much and slept. So I did the rest. He remembered nothing and I still managed to have him blamed for it.’ He laughed then and it washed over her, making her sick.
Everything blurred then in her mind and in her memory. She tried to pull away but he held her close, his breaths coming hard and fast against her neck. Then she could swear that Brodie suddenly appeared there in the hall before them.
And her father.
And more men climbing out of the walls. She laughed at that.
Brodie called out to her then.Bella, he yelled to her and she wanted to reach out for him or say his name. Then he began moving and did not stop until he stood in front of them. The others followed him, sliding and slipping forward it seemed to her, from one place to another.
Caelan pushed her in front of himself and she saw the fierce look on Brodie’s face. On a face covered in bruises and cuts. But she knew it meant he loved her. Brodie could not say the words, but he showed them on his face. And in his eyes.
Words were shouted and men fought and she heard swords striking swords. She reached out for Brodie, to ease the pain he held within himself. And the guilt. But mostly she just wanted to love him.
The stones in the walls stopped pushing men out but the noise seemed to grow. Soon, the hall was filled with warriors of all sorts. Even in the confusion she recognised some of them for a moment or two though their names would not come to her.
The man, the voice behind her grew louder, screaming curses and promising retribution before he pushed her, flinging her from him. With nothing but air beneath her, Arabella flew off the high dais and then her own screams filled the space around her. First she first rose and then fell and fell and fell towards the stone floor below her.
Until Brodie’s strong arms surrounded her.
‘I have you, love,’ Brodie whispered then. ‘I have you.’
He would keep her safe. He would protect her. He would love her. So, she held on to him and fell the rest of the way into his embrace.
