Entrusted to a Highlander (Highland Promise Trilogy 2)

She sighed, the endless questions causing more grief than her father’s death. She also didn’t like that she and her husband had not made love or been the least bit intimate this last week. She’d either been sound asleep when he came to bed or he’d fall asleep as soon as he got beneath the blanket. She didn’t like it. She missed, terribly, the intimacy they shared, the way they kissed throughout the day, the way his hand would wrap around hers, closing firmly to let her know he was there with her, always with her. The simple gesture reminded her of how much he loved her.

She felt a bit guilty for thinking that way. Her husband had not only the duties of the clan to contend with but the three deaths as well. Her father’s murder had upset the clan, not all cared for the old chieftain but there was no argument that he always provided well for the clan and for that they’d been grateful. The concern was more that if the chieftain could be murdered who was safe among the clan.

The pounding of horse’s hooves drew her attention and she watched as Royden came into view, dismounting with haste and tossing his reins to a young lad who had been given the chore of seeing to the care of visitors’ horses. He rushed up the steps and hurried inside.

Something was amiss and with the way the days and nights had been going, she doubted her husband would have time to share the news with her. Or perhaps he purposely kept it from her thinking she had enough to handle with her father’s death.

She recalled the stories Raven used to tell her about sneaking around and listening in when her father and brothers talked in the solar. She waved to Quiver. “Would you look after Princess and King? There is something I must see to.”

Quiver smiled, always eager to keep watch over the two. She left them happily following along after Quiver, knowing he would take them to the kitchen for treats.

Purity left her cloak on a peg by the door and hurried through the Great Hall. She approached the area by her husband’s solar cautiously and quietly, seeing the door set slightly ajar. She heard Royden and her husband’s voice and she crept ever so slowly around the door, positioning herself in the shadows next to it in case anyone barged out unexpectedly.

“It’s a huge buildup of warriors,” Royden said. “I tell you he’s planning something.”

“And you’re sure of this news?” Arran asked.

“I’ve made sure to keep watch on Clan Learmonth. After seeing the advantage the area holds, I knew it couldn’t be ignored.”

“The views,” Arran said, recalling to memory of visiting the place with his father.

“It’s astounding how far you can see in the distance. Nothing can approach that keep without being seen from a distance. It will never suffer a surprise attack,” Royden said enviously.

“Yet troops amass there,” Arran said. “Wolf released us, at a price, and our warriors he had taken captive. Why do that, then turn around and attack us again? I don’t think he’s that foolish.”

“Then why amass his warriors?” Royden asked.

Purity mouthed the same word her husband spoke.

“Brynjar,” Arran said. “The man never goes anywhere unprepared. Wolf is taking no chances.”

Silence followed for a moment and Purity knew Royden was giving Arran’s words thought.

“But Brynjar has few men. There is no way he can attack anyone and expect to claim victory,” Royden said.

“Maybe it isn’t victory he’s looking for,” Arran suggested. “Maybe he only wants his anger and power made known.”

“He killed two men and now the chieftain. Isn’t that enough for him?”

“That is what has been troubling me,” Arran complained. “Why hasn’t he claimed those kills? Brynjar purposely has boasted about everything he has done. He wants tales told about him. He wants his name to instill fear in people. So why hasn’t he claimed these kills?”

“I hadn’t thought of that,” Royden said.

I have, thought Purity.

“It’s a thought that has nagged at me and Purity has suggested the same. I dismissed it, but it won’t leave my thoughts. What if we’re looking at the wrong person for these murders?”

“If not Brynjar, then who?” Royden asked.

Purity was not good at hiding or sneaking. She was a grown woman not a child listening in on adult conversation. She rounded the solar door and entered the room. “Someone who wants something that he feels belongs to him.”

“I thought the mention of your name might stop you from lurking outside the door,” Arran said with a quirk of a smile.

Purity turned a scowl on him. “You did not know I was there.”

“Your footfalls are light, I will give you that, but my ears are alert to all sounds even the slightest ones,” Arran said and chuckled. “Of course, it did help that your lovely fresh scent drifted in through the open door.”