Page 130 of Outlaw Ever After

His heart sank.

She’d been right to worry about Seamus as his reinforcements collided with MacGregors. He’d hoped he’d gleaned something in the man. He’d been wrong, except weapons clashed . Shouts and swords flurried around him and a deep voice called, “Look lively, son!”

His war scythe was tossed to him by…Niall MacLeod ? Like a da to him all these years, he was still showing up to protect him yet again.

Caleb snatched the weapon out of the air and knocked away Kendrew’s dagger. Fought his way through the chaos of MacLeod men pushing back the Grant and MacGregor soldiers.

What were they doing here? Had they caught wind of this and come to confront Seamus?

He kicked MacGregor backward again, fending him off once more. He had to get to his songbird who was running into the madness, yanking her brother’s arm. Seamus pulled her back to the courtyard steps, yelling something at her.

“Seamus! Seamus! Call yer men off!” Peigi cried, making chase again.

Caleb flashed Peigi his grin and notched his chin. All will be weel, songbird . But he had to convince her to shield her eyes from this madness!

He dodged and shouldered aside the bodies. Snatched his woman into his arms and felt relief flood him as she gripped him, clung to him, and tangled her limbs around him…

So surreal.

He almost didn’t feel the slice as he slowed, as he staggered off step and felt his limbs loosening and slipping free from her.

He gazed at her watery eyes, where he’d always known he could die a happy man. The knife burned as it withdrew from his back.

Chapter Forty

Atrophied in time, the sting burned.

The chaos surrounding Caleb grew foggy. Peigi’s bewildered gaze widened as she glanced behind him. She was screaming again as Jossy and Aileana wrenched her from his hold and hauled her back only for her to run toward him again.

“Halt !” bellowed Seamus.

Blood was tangy on Caleb’s tongue. He was certain his nose was broken. His shoulder wound ached. The Grant’s men stopped in their tracks.

MacGregor’s men stopped in their tracks.

Yet he gazed at his beautiful woman. He could feel his life blood trickling down his back as her horrified gaze widened on him. Why couldn’t she have gone inside?

Niall had a bastard by the throat. Tormund? He held one with a fist, a blade to his neck with the other. James, the Devil MacDonald, Lady Aileana’s husband, straddled another on the ground, as if tying a calf.

Caleb didn’t feel his knees give out, but seconds later, he collapsed upon them as Tormund finally perked in his direction, his deadly smirk turning into a furrow of confusion.

Peigi had torn free. She was running to him again , screaming. Tormund, James, and Seamus were running toward him. His folk, gathered around the fray, were wailing. The guests of the castle, huddled in the courtyard, gasped and covered their eyes, as he fell forward and managed to roll onto his back.

Ah, relief. To lie still. So weak. His back stung as he lay flattened on the ground. He could sense a presence over him. Could hear the roar around him. Looked up as a blade was raised. Couldn’t feel his fingertips, so cold.

Stared into Kendrew’s eyes as the man began to thrust downward, straight for his heart, when rosewater warmth threw herself atop him. Enshrouded him. A barrier between them.

“Songbird, no,” he garbled, throwing his limp arm around her neck and head with the last of his exertion, feeling blood pump harder from his back as his muscles tensed.

Yet her grip around him only tightened as she cried, a lass who should never have known so much loss, “Make him stop, Seamus! I love him!”

The knife did not come and he felt adrift in a silent sea.

“The worst sort of danger, my songbird is…” he jested in her ear, for he didn’t hurt anymore, her body folded around him in a plume of velvets. His posy to her lay crushed nearby, trampled as his head lolled, haloed in…light. Torchlight? Or the veil thinned, beckoning him to the sidh?

She only sobbed and clenched her death grip as if to keep him in the mortal realm.

Sweet lass. Didn’t she ken there was no stopping the fickle fae determined to pull a soul through the veil?