“But the laird—”
“The laird wasnae in his right mind when he gave that order,” Maggie cut in. “He was weighed down by grief and worry. If ye wish to see yer laird again, ye will let the MacFinnan spellweaver go.”
The man swallowed thickly, looking from Maggie to Rose and back again. He nodded, releasing her stirrup and stepping back.
Maggie looked up at Rose. “Bring him back to us,” she said hoarsely. “Bringbothof ye back to us. We need ye.”
Rose nodded tightly. “I’ll do everything in my power,” she said, knowing it wouldn’t be enough.
“Then may the gods go with ye,” Maggie said.
“And may Christ protect ye,” Beatrice added, making the sign of the cross.
Rose nodded to the two women. Then, before she could lose her courage, she set her heels to Snip’s flanks.
“Yah!”
She sent the mare galloping out of the gates. Her hair streaming out behind her, she crouched low over the horse’s withers, urging all the speed she could from the mare. Urgency bit at her heels. Gripping the reins tighter, she bared her teeth in a savage snarl. She would get there in time. She would save him. She was a MacFinnan spellweaver.
It was time to discover what that really meant.
*
Cailean stood onthe beach, the abandoned village of Hemkirk behind him, gazing out at the waves. There was no evidence of the stormlights now and the bay looked serene, peaceful. Nobody would believe that something so evil lurked beneath the waves.
And yet Cailean knew it was there.
He could feel it. Something… off in the caress of the breeze and the whisper of the waves, like a faint carrion stink almost beyond the range of his senses. Now that he knew it was there, it was impossible to miss, and he wondered why he hadn’t spotted it before.
Because you didn’t have Rose MacFinnan at your side before, he told himself.
He jerked his thoughts away from her. He couldn’t afford to think about her, not now. Not if he wanted to find the courage to do what he’d come here to do.
Slowly, methodically, almost making a ritual of it, he stripped off his weapons, his boots, his plaid, until he was left in just the linen shirt that fell to mid-thigh. He dropped his clothes onto the damp sand, knowing he’d never need them again. Bending, he retrieved his dagger, took it from its sheath, and clamped it between his teeth. It was the only thing he was going to need.
Then, clenching his fists and screwing up his courage, he strode down to the water’s edge and waded in. The water was cold enough to steal his breath, but he didn’t falter as he walked first to waist-high,then chest-high, until finally he felt his feet go out from under him and he began to swim.
To his left was the headland where Rose had almost thrown herself into the water. He kept parallel to this as he swam with sure, powerful strokes out towards the spot where she’d heard the god’s voice speaking to her.
Now that he was moving, all his doubts, all his fear vanished, to be replaced by a cold, hard determination. Everyone had their fate after all, and this was his. He’d always known he might have to give his life for his clan. He had thought that would be in battle against raiders or at sea fighting pirates, but the how didn’t matter. He was the laird. This was what he was born for.
He reached the rough location of where Rose had seen the stormlights and stopped, treading water and looking around. A few seals bobbed nearby, watching him curiously with their dog-like faces, and a few gulls screamed at him, unhappy with his intrusion. Other than that, all seemed normal.
Except it didn’tfeelnormal.
That sense of wrongness had increased and now he could feel it brushing against his skin like an ink stain blighting the waves.
Who are you?
The voice flowered in his head with enough force to make him gasp. He almost dropped the knife but clamped his teeth down at the last minute.
I’m Cailean MacNeil, he thought back.And I’m here to stop you.
There was silence for a long time but that sense of wrongness intensified and now Cailean could feel it pulsing through his body like heat from a bonfire. It felt like… anger. Fury.
You are one of them, the voice said.The betrayers. The ones who took my love from me.
I took nothing, Cailean replied.And yet you have taken much from me. My people. My friends. You will not have my daughter.
