Lured to the Night (The Brotherhood 4)

He repeated the mantra over and over in his mind as his gaze locked with hers. The flash of recognition in her silvery-blue eyes convinced him she had managed to hear some of his words. With a sad sigh, she turned away from him.

“I have been thinking about the cure,” she said, and he could tell from the thread of confidence in her tone that she would drink the magical elixir. “Despite feeling some trepidation, I will drink the potion. After all, no one wants to subject themselves to unnecessary pain.” She cast Lachlan a sidelong glance. “I would give anything to live normally again. I would risk my life for a chance to lie amongst the heather and have the sun warm my skin, to eat fruit, beef stew, to drink anything but blood.”

A cold chill breezed over him. While taking the cure was said to be a harrowing experience, surely it posed no risk to her life. “I assume after the intense bouts of pain she will be well again?”

Leo glanced at Ivana before speaking. “I must be honest with you. Everyone reacts differently. When we had the ability to compel our friends to sleep, it helped them to cope with the pain. When I drank the elixir, I was not as fortunate. Thus far, those who have taken it have woken to find their body has healed.”

“But you cannot categorically say Isla will do the same,” Lachlan reaffirmed, attempting to keep his tone even.

Leo’s grim expression sent a bolt of fear shooting through Lachlan’s heart. “No. I cannot know for sure how she will react.”

Lachlan turned to face Isla. “I’ll repeat what I said earlier. Will you not reconsider? Can you not live as you have done these last few years? You have Douglas and Malmuirie to help you.”

Douglas nodded. “Aye, I’ll stay here as long as yer need me. There’s nae need to worry on that score.”

“And what will she do when you are gone?” Ivana asked. “Who will look after her a hundred years from now?”

“A hundred years?” Lachlan could not prevent the snigger bursting from his lips. “One sip of whisky and you’re speaking in riddles.”

Ivana focused her gaze on Isla. “I assume you know the affliction means you cannot die? Consider the feeling of loneliness that has consumed you these last few years and imagine an eternity of such misery.”

Isla nodded. “I have heard Nikolai’s ghostly whispers in my mind many times during the first year after he left. The instructions were so clear I would often glance back over my shoulder for fear he had returned.” She shrugged. “If I stay out of the sun, drink blood and ensure my head remains on my shoulders, I can live forever.”

“Forever.” Lachlan repeated the word in the hope he had misheard. “Everyone dies. There is no such thing as immortality.”

“Just as there is no such thing as drinking blood or having fangs that burst from a person’s gum.” Isla’s tone carried more than a hint of sarcasm. “After what I have experienced, I would never discount the impossible.”

“So ye plan to live here forever?” Douglas rubbed his bri

stly chin, undaunted by the revelation that she was immortal. “Well, I cannae die in peace knowing you’ll be living here all alone.”

“If you decide not to take the cure, you must understand that you cannot live here indefinitely,” Ivana said gravely. “People will question your youth and so you will need to move from place to place. A nomadic life can be an incredibly lonely existence.”

Isla’s gaze darted around the Great Hall, from floor to ceiling, from fireplace to dais. “But I cannot leave here,” she said with a gasp. “My father went to great lengths to ensure I would always have a comfortable home. Where would I go? How would I be able to keep my affliction a secret?”

Lachlan could tell by her harrowed expression that the thought pained her. She would do anything rather than lose her home, which meant taking the cure was now a certainty. He thought of offering to stay with her, but the reality was he would grow to be old and frail, and she would forever be a golden-haired beauty.

He reached across and placed a reassuring hand on her forearm. “Follow your heart.” He whispered the words, wishing someone would have once offered him similar advice.

Isla stared at his hand for a time before raising her head and releasing a heavy sigh. “As I said earlier, I will drink the potion. I do not see what other choice I have.” She glanced up at him, and he could see fear in her eyes. “Come sunrise, I will retire to my chamber with the cure and pray to the Lord for his compassion. In the meantime, I would like to spend a few hours doing all the things I would do if they were my last.”

There was only one thing Lachlan would do if faced with a similar situation. He would take the woman at his side in his arms and surrender to the potent lure of desire.

Chapter 9

“I would rather you didn’t venture out on your own tonight,” Lachlan said. He watched her as she tightened the laces on her sturdy brown boots. “Not after what happened in Fraser’s field.”

Isla smiled to herself. Was it his way of asking if he could accompany her? She rose from the crude wooden chair in the hall, pulled her red cape firmly across her chest and raised the hood. “With so many other thoughts occupying my mind I had almost forgotten about my problems with the villagers.”

In truth, she did not think the men had any intention of hurting her. They were good husbands and fathers, struggling to keep their larders stocked, desperate to keep their families warm come winter. But they would demand an explanation for her appearance at the farm. Of course, the meeting would take place during the daylight hours. She could not attend. Suspicions would grow and fester.

Lachlan straightened. “I will speak to Ramsey and Fraser in the morning. I’ll explain I saw the real culprit and vow to help them discover the truth.” His gaze drifted over her face before he surprised her by tucking a few loose strands of hair inside her hood. “It’s bitter out. I’d say once the cold penetrates it can be the death of you, but we both know that wouldn’t be the case.”

“You have taken it all rather well.” She tried to listen to his thoughts, but with him standing in such close proximity it took a tremendous effort to focus. “Most ladies dread the thought of a handsome man seeing them with a blemish. You have seen the ugly truth of what I have become, discovered things about me you could only envisage in your nightmares. Yet here you are,” she waved her hand across the impressive breadth of his chest, “acting as though nothing has changed.”

He swallowed, the prominent lump in his throat just visible above the collar of his shirt. “Did I hear correctly? Did you just refer to me as handsome?” A sinful smile touched the corners of his mouth. The glint in his eye reminded her of a time when they were younger, happy.

“Well, you are.” Her indifferent shrug masked her slight embarrassment. “I am only stating what I see.”