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18

It had been about a week since the celebration, and the mood in the clan had changed dramatically. Everyone was in good spirits, and those who had arrived with Niall now had shelter. No longer were they clustered in wagons. They had been seen by the healer, and their condition had improved greatly. No longer were they plagued with sallow faces and gaunt bodies. No longer were their stomachs hollow and aching. The fevers had broken, and she had seen Laira running around, playing with her child. Thankfully her friend Hamish had recovered as well, and he was doing a good job at welcoming the newcomers too. They applied their skills where they could, and it was clear that just because they had been living in the wild didn’t mean they knew nothing of civilized life. In fact, they were adept in some things that the people of the original clan were not aware of, and much knowledge was shared. Living in the wild had forced them to become adaptable, and they had developed new techniques in certain areas that made life easier and were quickly adopted by those who had been used to doing things a certain way all their lives.

Tovie had been meeting with the elders as well, and they had begun to implement her plans. There was an envoy scheduled to leave the following day to go and visit some nearby settlements. Gifts were going to be presented to them as though the Wallace clan was announcing to the world that they had changed. There were moments when Tovie felt a little guilty. All this had come about because a man had died. While she had no love for Fraser, it did seem cruel to be celebrating all of this as none of it would have happened if he had not been killed, although when she thought of what her life would have been like had he survived, she shuddered, and she decided not to think about the matter too much. If she got tangled in thinking about what could have been, then she would never be able to enjoy the life she was presented with. Sometimes it was better to accept things as they were rather than thinking about how they could be different.

Before she left, however, there was an important matter that she wanted to take care of. On the outskirts of the clan there was a farm, and on this farm lived a woman called Deena. Deena had been pregnant for a number of months, and now her body had reached the point where it was ready to give birth. Since it was going to be the first baby born under the new unification of the clan, it seemed like a momentous occasion, and Tovie wanted to be the first person to welcome it into the world. She was also intrigued about what might await her in her future as well, although the prospect of children was a subject that she had not broached with Niall just yet.

She was walking with a healer, Nyla, toward the farm.

“It’s a bad omen tae be born under a storm,” Nyla said, casting a wary glance to the heavens. Dark clouds shifted above ominously as though a malevolent force had taken control of the sky.

“I hope it passes soon. I dinnae want my trip tae be delayed,” Tovie said. Sometimes the storms could last for days, and she was eager to visit the other villages.

They reached the farm as a rumble of thunder rolled above them, following a flash of lightning that had shone moments before. The wind was rising and the two women sprinted toward the farm, eager to get into shelter before the storm came pouring down. Tovie glanced at the animals in the fields and pitied them for having to suffer the elements. They reached the farm, and Deena’s husband, Mort, welcomed them, showing them into the house.

“She’s taken tae sleeping downstairs because it haes been tae hard tae keep walking up and down,” he said, glancing at the steep staircase that ascended to the upper level of the house.

They went through to the room, and the healer opened her medicine pack. She asked Deena how she was feeling, and Deena said that she was aching and just about ready for the child to be born. Her words were punctuated with a crack of thunder that bellowed even louder than the last.

“I dinnae like the sound of that,” Mort murmured.

The healer ignored him and mixed a potion that she said would help the baby come into the world. Deena drank it and then arched her head back.

“I’m gaeing tae check on the animals,” Mort said after another rumble of thunder. Tovie couldn’t understand how he could leave at a moment like this, but aside from a shaking of the head, she didn’t think anything of it.

The healer took Deena’s hand and told her to squeeze it whenever she felt any pain. Tovie counted the moments in her head and sensed that the time in between each squeeze was growing short. The windows were lit up by lightning as the wind began to howl, slamming against the house as though it was trying to blow the place down. The window shutters rattled, and the doors creaked. Another flash, and then a crash of thunder. Tovie went to the window and looked up. It was as though the sky was cracking. Flashes of light rippled behind the crowds, festering before they lanced down on the earth. The trees were bending, and aside from when the lightning struck, the world was pitch black. Darkness covered them like a shroud, and it seemed as though Tovie was going to be stuck on the farm until the storm passed. She would have preferred to be in the castle. Its thick and sturdy walls would never be penetrated by rain.

“Try nae tae think about the storm. It will only agitate ye and the baby. The best thing ye can dae is try and be relaxed,” Nyla said in a soothing voice, although it wasn’t the easiest instruction to follow.

Deena nodded, though. Her breathing had deepened, and she was sitting with her legs parted. Tovie had no idea where Mort was. She walked to the door and looked down to the front of the house, but he was nowhere to be seen. She was about to leave and look for him when Nyla called her back, saying that she needed help. She placed Deena’s hand into Tovie’s and moved in between the woman’s legs.

“I think the baby haes decided tae arrive,” Deena said, although her words were lost in the vicious thunder. Tovie watched the pain twist upon Deena’s face. Her cheeks reddened, and sweat trickled below her eyes and across her forehead. She screamed as the lightning flashed and was caught in a paroxysm of pain. Tovie wondered why anyone would ever put themselves through something like this. Deena almost crushed her hand. Where was Mort? Fear lanced through Tovie’s heart at the thought of going through this herself, and she was beginning to have second thoughts about whether she was truly capable of it or not.

Deena looked up at her, her eyes wild and manic, her words staggered as she struggled to breathe properly, but she seemed to have an urgent message for Tovie.

“We’re…naming him…Fraser…in memory—” She was unable to finish the thought entirely as she cried out in pain.

Tovie forced a smile, knowing it was too late to tell Deena the truth about her late husband. The clan did not know what a brutal person he had been. They had only seen the face he chose to show to the world, the face that had charmed Tovie in the first place. Niall was the only one who knew, and this secret would bind her and Niall together.

“I’m sure he would be proud,” Tovie said.

Lightning crackled outside, and the thunder was a loud boom that shook their hearts. Suddenly Mort ran back in. His clothes were askew, his hair tousled.

“We hae tae gae! The lightning is all over us! The wind is gaeing tae—” He was interrupted by a huge wrenching sound, as though something was being ripped from the earth. In a way, it was true. The house shook as a great impact slammed into it. Tovie lost her footing. She and Nyla instinctively covered Deena in case anything should fall upon her. She left Deena and went to investigate what had happened, and when she stepped out of the room, her eyes widened in shock. A huge gash had been cut in the house as a tree had fallen into the roof. The stairs were a wreck, the house smashed, and it was still creaking as though it was yet to be destroyed.

“Ye need tae get that baby out now, or Deena is nae gaeing tae make it!” Tovie cried.

Nyla was sweating as well now. With the gaping hole in the house, the wind rose and swirled through. Deena was crying, worried for herself and her baby. Mort had fallen to her side and was trying to reassure her, but there was an anxious look on his face as well. It became so dark that Tovie could only see them when the lightning illuminated their faces. She was only given brief instances of horror. Another lightning fork lanced down, and this time it caught the tree. Tovie looked back and saw the grim sight of flames spreading along the tree, dripping down into the house itself. Smoke began to rise and drift down. This was not how it was supposed to be. The first baby born to the unified clan was not supposed to die in a fire!

“Nyla!” Tovie cried.

The baby seemed to respond as Nyla coaxed it out of Deena’s body. Tovie watched the miracle take place. The baby’s screech matched up perfectly with the thunder. His small, writhing body seemed to change position every time the lighting illuminated him. Despite the horror of the surroundings in which he was born, Tovie could see the beauty of the moment and understood why the pain was so worthwhile.

But she only had a moment to enjoy the feeling.

Behind her, there was a great screech as the tree began to fall down the stairs. It was as though an avalanche of fire was coming toward them. Heat burned, and the wind that whipped through the house only served to bring it into a frenzy.

“Ye need tae get her out of here now!” Tovie cried.

The stairs crumbled, and a long branch of the tree slid down, bringing flames with it. Tovie acted quickly and dove out, overturning a table to act as a shield. The thick wood stopped the branch from blocking the way out, but it would only last for so long. Smoke rose in a thick mist, and it choked the breath from her throat. She could feel the table buckling against her, the burning heat pressing into her back. She cried out again and saw shadows moving in front of her. Mort carried Deena while Nyla helped the baby.

“I’ll come back for ye!” Nyla said.

Tovie knew she could not move. If she did, the table would buckle under the strain and the flames would engulf the family. Sweat popped around Tovie’s temples, and she gasped as she braced the pain. She looked up and saw the family leave, their exit illuminated by the lighting. As soon as she knew they were safe, Tovie was ready to push off and sprint away, hoping that she would be able to outrun the flames, but before she could do that and before Nyla could return, more of the house buckled, and something crashed in front of Tovie, blocking her exit. She was surrounded by fire and smoke, and it was getting more difficult to breathe with every moment that passed. All she wanted was to see Niall again…