It is the only thing I can offer him. He has given me so much already.
She dozed off at some point while nursing her thoughts, but the blissful sleep did not last for long. She jerked awake as the suffocating scent of smoke and ash filled her lungs.
The vibrant red flames licked up the walls and the floor of the cabin, closing in towards the bed as they burned every other item in its wake. Lily’s lungs constricted tight till she coughed again, wheezing as breath escaped her.
Coughing, she lurched from the bed, her nerves already alert and her mind filled with panic. “Niamh!” she yelled. “There’s a fire… Someone set the cabin on fire!”
22
“Niamh! Lily!” Killian roared at the top of his lungs when he arrived at the scene.
A part of the cabin’s thatched roof collapsed to the ground, splattering sparks of fire and stopping Killian and his men from getting closer to it.
Killian heard a scream and recognized the voice as Lily’s. He felt his heart pound against his ribcage. His panic clawed its way fast inside him, seizing every rational thought and air, making it difficult to breathe.
“They are trapped inside!” Killian yelled and moved towards the cabin again, but Fletcher stopped him by grabbing his wrist. “Let me go! My sister and Lily are trapped in there.”
“I cannae let ye risk yer life, m’laird,” Fletcher insisted as Killian struggled against him. “Ye’re the laird, and ye must survive to rule yer people.”
“I willnae repeat myself, Fletcher.” Killian broke free from Fletcher’s grasp and raced for the cabin with all his might.
The fire consumed the outer part, and he could not get in from the doorway. He ran to the window, grabbed a log from the ground, and tried to break the glass with it.
The window burst open before he got the chance, and Lily pushed Niamh out first before she jumped, throwing herself to the ground and rolling away with speed.
A loud eruption followed, and the cabin gave way, caving in on itself in a splatter of ash and wood.
“Niamh,” Killian called as he rushed to his sister.
Niamh coughed and struggled to breathe as he helped her sit up.
Lily managed to sit up too, and she was panting. Her dress was torn, and her face was blackened with soot and ash. Her eyes flew to his, and he saw the terror in them. Tears pooled in their blue depths, and his heart ached just to see her like that.
“What happened?” Niamh asked when she finally caught her breath. Killian shifted his gaze to her and examined her face andbody to make sure she was not injured anywhere. “Who started the fire?”
A crowd of villagers had gathered around the burning cabin now. Killian saw Fletcher help Lily to her feet when he looked back at her, and relief flooded him.
“I didnae see who started the fire,” he told Niamh. “But they started it from the fields somewhere and left a trail of oil so it burned down this path to the cabin.”
One of his men came with a pail and dropped it on the ground. “I found this hidden in the shrubs there,” he said, pointing to the thick gathering of short trees to their left. “The culprit must have left it there when he ran.”
“Search the area for anything suspicious,” Killian ordered. “If ye find anyone hidin’ in there, bring them to me.”
After his men dispersed, Fletcher and Lily joined Killian and Niamh where they stood.
Fletcher bowed his head. “I am sorry for stoppin’ ye, m’laird. It is my instinct to protect ye first.”
“Nae when my sister is in danger, Fletcher,” Killian scolded. “Or Lily… I would give my life to save these two every single time. Ye should ken this.”
Niamh tightened her grip on his hand, while Lily’s eyes softened. Killian rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand, closed his eyes, and inhaled deeply.
Soot and smoke mingled with his breath before he opened his eyes again. “It isnae safe for either of ye here. We must return to the keep at once.”
Lily did not argue with him this time, so he ordered Fletcher to get their horses, and then he released Niamh for a few seconds so he could speak to Lily.
“Are ye hurt anywhere?” Killian asked.
“I am all right,” Lily said and sniffed a little. “I was scared for a moment when I woke up and saw the cabin was on fire. Do you think the culprit was trying to kill me or Niamh? Or was he trying to scare us?”
