Page 59 of Highlander’s Evil Side

Chapter Twenty-Five

Fraser

Fraser urged his horse faster. He heard Scott’s horse’s hooves striking the path not far behind him. The sun had just risen, highlighting the dew glimmering on the blades of grass. Dark clouds hung low in the distance, threatening rain in the near future.

Two days had passed since the wedding was announced. Two days he had waited for an attack, for his bride to go missing, yet nothing had happened. The waiting was torturous, and Fraser could no longer sit idly by and do nothing. He needed to speak with the laird elders and had arranged to meet at an abandoned cottage at the MacClery borders. Fraser knew the cottage well. It was a place he had been with his father a time or two, when the elder laird wanted to speak in secret without the prying and curious gazes of the castle walls.

It should be safe, he assumed.

Lately, it was difficult for Fraser to put his faith in anyone. The only people he could trust were Scott, Kenneth, Gavin, and Beitris. Kenneth and Gavin were left at the castle. Taking more than Scott would look too suspicious, and Fraser wanted trustworthy guards ensuring Beitris’s safety while she prepared for their wedding day.

Rain drizzled from the sky, but Fraser could see the cottage not far away. Horses stood outside, grazing on grass. Crimson drapes concealed the windows, hiding whoever was inside.

“Are ye sure about this?” Fraser heard Scott shout from behind.

Fraser didn’t say anything. He urged his horse faster, needing to get there as soon as possible. The door to the cottage opened as they approached, and out stepped three laird elders, their worn and weary faces gazing up at him.

“About time,” grumbled one, Laird Hamilton, while rubbing his balding head. “Yer father never made us wait so long.”

“Ah, quiet ye,” said Laird Kennedy while smacking Laird Hamilton’s back. “He didn’t make ye wait long.”

Laird Douglas regarded Fraser quietly while leaning against the doorway with his arms crossed. He tugged at his greying red beard while Fraser dismounted. Scott glanced between the men, his hand hovering above his hilt.

“Have ye come alone?” Scott asked.

Laird Hamilton turned on his heel. “Aye, we came alone, laddie.”

Fraser followed them inside, feeling nervous as that ill-forsaken thought entered his mind once more. He didn’t know how to ask, knowing just saying the words would earn him looks filled with contempt. These were men his father had grown up with. They were men his father had worked hard to form alliances with. This question alone could destroy everything Fraser’s father worked hard for.

Was it really something he should ask?

Fraser had been asking himself that question for the past two days, and he knew if he didn’t discover the truth now, it would haunt him for the rest of his days. He watched the lairds take their seats at the table, their eyes fastened to him. Fraser remained standing while Scott moved to the corner, his fingers pushing the drapes to the side to peek outside.

“What is it, lad?” Laird Kennedy asked.

“Aye, lad, spit it out,” said Laird Hamilton. “We’re too old to be waiting all day.”

Fraser held his hands behind his back. He stood tall, refusing to give in to his nervousness. These men had known him since he was young. They would see him as a man this day.

“Foul things have been afoot at Dunnegan Castle,” started Fraser. “There is a man haunting my lands, destroying villages, and attacking my name. Many believe he shares my face.”

“And so ye have called us to hunt him down and slit his throat?” Laird Hamilton asked, sounding appalled.

“Nae, not at all,” said Fraser. “I have a question, yet I do not know how to ask it. It’s a horrid thing to ask, knowing the truth could destroy my father’s reputation, let alone my mother’s.”

“Then maybe it’s best not to ask it,” said Laird Hamilton sternly.

“But what if the answer is helpful?” Laird Kennedy said, his voice incredulous.

Laird Douglas leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms and saying nothing.

“I suppose, rather than asking, I would like to present a story, a possibility.” Fraser grimaced, trying to force his words from his mouth, yet they remained trapped within him. He cleared his throat and tried once more, speaking loud and clear, “I have heard of the ability to birth two babes within one night. ‘Tis not common, however possible.”

“Aye, it’s possible,” said Laird Kennedy, his gaze narrowing. “What’s yer point, lad?”

“He wishes to know if there is a possibility this man attacking his good name is a relation of his,” said Laird Douglas, earning the widening stares of Laird Hamilton and Kennedy. “A twin. A brother.”

Laird Hamilton gasped. “Why I- yer father- he would never!” Laird Hamilton slammed his fists onto the table, his gaze lit with anger while he sputtered. “Yer father was a good man. He would never rid himself of a child. He would never—”