Page 24

“What are ye daeing here, Uncle?” Kevan repeated his question, this time with a more demanding tone.

Wallace sighed, and suddenly his expression grew heavy. “There is terrible news. Wyl haes gone mad. He tried tae kill me. He is the one who haes been stirring up trouble against ye. He even set the bandits loose against the villages. He haes been behind it all.”

“Why?” Kevan asked, frowning.

“Because he thinks he can lead the clan better than anyone else.”

Kevan clenched his jaw uneasily. “Perhaps he’s right. If they’re sae eager tae follow him, then maybe he is the best man. Clearly it is nae me.”

“What are ye talking about, lad? Of course it’s ye! I named ye laird for a reason.”

Kevan’s green eyes flickered with surprise. “But ye offered me no help! Ye…ye said that I haed tae earn my right tae be laird. Ye never offered me any support.”

“A laird shouldnae need support!” Wallace said harshly, before he calmed his words. “I thought that ye should try and make it by yerself, but I didnae realize there were other elements against ye. I should hae seen that for myself. Ye hae always been the rightful heir, lad, and I know John would hae wanted ye tae take his place. We need tae sort out Wyl and his conspirators sae that we can take our clan back. I am nae gaeing tae let him steal all I hae worked for,” Wallace growled.

“And how dae ye propose we dae that? We hae been trying tae avoid a war,” Niall said.

“Aye, well, ye can try yer best tae avoid a storm as well, but that doesnae mean ye are gaeing tae succeed. Wyl is intent on proving himself and plundering yer land. He has hired bandits and mercenaries tae add tae his army, but he doesnae hae the full support of the clan yet. He is gaeing tae attack, and we must defeat him. He’s gaeing tae tell them that ye were responsible for the attack on the carriage tae try and rescue Maura. When we engage him, I will run behind enemy lines and find the other loyal soldiers tae rally them against him. We’ll cut him off from two directions and make sure that there is no escape.”

The others glanced at each other. Niall seemed unsure.

“How can I be sure that this isnae a trap?” he asked.

Wallace pressed his lips together. “Dae ye think I wanted tae come here? I thought my only kin was dead. I haed lost my clan. I haed nothing, and I came here because ye were the only man I could trust. Niall, we hae sat opposite each other and negotiated with each other. Ye can tell a lot about a man from that. I know ye are a man of honor; that’s why I was able tae extract such a large dowry from ye. I come tae ye asking for help, that’s all. But it changes nothing. Wyl is gaeing tae attack either way.”

“And if we are victorious, what is gaeing tae happen then?” Maura asked. Wallace seemed surprised that she piped up, but he should have known better by now. There was a twinkle in his eye at her spirit.

“Well, things gae back tae the way they ought tae be.”

“That’s nae good enough. Ye hae tae start showing more support for Kevan and give him advice sae that he can be the best laird, and ye need tae be kinder tae me as well. I’m the only one who is gaeing tae keep yer bloodline going, and I wilnae be treated like some interloper. Ye are also gaeing tae fully step aside sae there is no uncertainty as tae who is laird.”

Maura’s words were sharp, and she held her gaze with the wry older man. It was highly improper for her to speak like this, and she was sure that Kevan would have some choice words for her about respect, but as far as Maura was concerned, these things needed to be said else they would be doomed to repeat the mistakes of the past. She couldn’t go back to the McGrory clan knowing that it was going to be the same as before.

“Aye, lass, ye hae yerself a bargain,” he said.

“There’s one more thing, but this is something that Kevan needs tae tell ye. He wilnae be leading the clan as ye did, but ye cannae be angry at him for it.”

Wallace cocked an eyebrow in Kevan’s direction. Kevan’s cheeks were rosy, and he offered a pinched smile to Maura, annoyed that she had put him in this predicament.

“She’s overstating the case a wee bit, Uncle. It’s just that John and I used tae talk often about the future of the clan and how we thought it should grow. I know ye hae yer way of daeing things that haes worked out for the best, but John thought...well, he thought that maybe there was a different way of daeing things, a way where we could use our position tae help people rather than always extracting favors. He thought we could be a wee bit kinder.”

Maura thought she could see tears in Wallace’s eyes at the mention of his son. “John always was tae kind for his own good. There is time tae talk about this in more detail later, but ye are the laird, and ye can lead it as ye see fit. I trust yer judgment. I grew up in a different time, a harder time. Aye, things are different now…”

He trailed away, his thoughts turning to the past when he had everything. It was Niall who broke the silence.

“Sae how dae we defend against the attack?” he asked. This seemed to bring Wallace back.

“If I know Wyl, he’ll want tae show his force and prove his worth. He is merely a common man who haes good wits, aye, I’ll give him that, but he always wants tae prove his worth. He’ll gae for a grand attack, rushing in like some great storm. I would arrange archers in the forest tae pick off as many of his men as possible and…”

Maura listened intently as the men discussed the war plans. War had always been an abstract concept for her, so she was impressed by how easily the subject came to the other men. As they shared ideas of tactics and strategy, her heart was clutched by a cold fear. It was so easy for them to talk about killing other men, as though taking a life was the most natural thing in the world. These were McGrory clansmen as well, at least some of them, men who Kevan and Wallace had spent their life around. But it seemed in war the enemy was just the enemy, and no mercy could be shown. After a time, she walked away, and her mother followed.

“What troubles ye, lass?” Moira asked.

Maura stifled a sob. “After all this time, war is still happening. I feel as though I failed.”

“Ye didnae fail,” Moira said softly. “Ye did what ye thought was best. Every decision ye made haes been made with the purest heart. Sometimes in life that’s all we can dae because we cannae control everything. No one knew about Wyl’s plots, sae we couldnae hae planned for that. Be content that ye did what ye thought was right and that ye were true tae yer heart. That’s all we can dae in this life. And as long as we can focus on that, we can always lay our heads tae rest at night.”

Maura thought on her mother’s words and nodded, hoping that slumber would come easy to her, but before she could sleep easy, there would be battle. All the men she loved would be rushing into conflict, swords brandished, putting their lives on the line. All it would take was one errant arrow or one swift slash of the sword, and the life would slip out of them, and all of her hopes and dreams would turn to ash. It was so easy for them to fight, but winning...that was something else entirely.