“Because McIlvain left a message for me—or whomever followed after him—only a few fortnights ago. If he was alive then, this body cannae be him. These bones have been down here longer than ye or I have been alive.”
“And mayhap much longer,” she whispered. But not a minute later, she was asking, “What was the message?”
He hummed questioningly as he examined another possibility. Ugh, nay. ‘twas another finger bone.
“The message McIlvain left for ye, or whomever, what did it say?”
Mayhap ‘twas because of his distraction, but Kenneth answered without thinking. “Beware the Oliphants.”
‘Twas not until she sucked in a breath that he realized what he’d said aloud and cursed himself quietly. He’d managed to go his whole career as a Hunter without sharing secrets and here he was blabbering to a lass in the dark? Brodie would be ashamed, or would laugh at him—one of the two.
“So the message is why ye suspected my father—us—of doing something evil to McIlvain!”
“I never said—”
“Ye dinnae have to!” The excitement in her voice was palpable. “Ye were asking all those questions about my parents kenning the man, and ‘twas clear ye thought he might’ve been hidden here at Oliphant Castle. His message made ye think we’d hidden him away, aye? That he had some reason to fear us!”
Beware the Oliphants.
Kenneth couldn’t deny her interpretation. In fact, he was impressed—nay, proud—she’d figured it out so quickly. But he wasn’t certain what he could say to her.
“Who is he, Kenneth?” she asked quietly. “Who is McIlvain, and why would ye assume he’s gotten himself into something dangerous?”
Ah!He was fairly certain this was the flint. He lifted it in front of his face—not that it helped—and examined all its edges with his fingers to make certain he wasn’t holding a bit of a body, as he thought about her question.
When he’d first seen Leanna, bathing at that waterfall, he hadn’t believed she was real. Falling in love at first sight was something which happened in folksongs and minstrel’s tales, not in real life. Aye?
But in the few short days he’d known her, he realized she was everything he was hoping to find in a wife: beautiful, aye, but witty and fun and fun-loving as well. She would make his life a joy, and he was already looking forward to showing her McClure Keep. He was looking forward to her making it a home.
When she’d shyly proposed marriage, he’d laughed. Not because he didn’t want to marry her, but because he’d assumed it was another one of her jokes. Her pique immediately after didn’t fill him with shame as it ought to have done, but with satisfaction, knowing she wanted the same thing he did.
Besides, that kiss seemed to have soothed her temper, hadn’t it?
And that kiss had proved how eminently compatible they really were.
So why not tell her the truth? The truth about who he was, and why he was here? If they were going to be married—
And if Kenneth had anything to say about it, they would most definitely be married, Love at First Sight or not.
“I found the flint, lass. I’m going to try to light the wick again, aye? Hold the candle out, the way ye did afore.”
He struck the flint with his dagger a few times, and the sparks were like flashes of lightning in the night; too bright for his eyes, which had become accustomed to the darkness.
But he saw her leaning forward, saw where the candle was, saw where he needed to direct the spark in order to catch the wick.
“Who is he, Kenneth?” she whispered again.
The third spark caught the wick, and the candle flared to life. They both winced, but when he was able to focus on her, staring hard at him on the other side of the flame, he saw she wasn’t forgetting her question.
“Who is he?” This time the words were sharper, and he suspected she’d already half-figured out this mystery.
“A Hunter.” He sighed. “McIlvain is a Hunter, just like me.”
‘Twas clear she didn’t understand the implications, judging from the way her adorable eyebrows tugged downward. But she held the candle steady, her gaze on him instead of the bones scattered around them.
He clarified. “We’re both the King’s men. He was on a mission from His Majesty, and when he disappeared, I was sent after him.”
She’d sucked in a breath at the word “King,” and her eyes grew wide. But when he was done speaking, those same eyes narrowed.