A Hellion for the Highlander

“Cicilia!” a firm voice called from a little down the hall, and she turned her smoke-filled gaze to see Alexander framed in the doorway of Jamie’s bedroom. He had one twin in each arm, and his dark hair was covered in ash. He was pale and shaking and looked like he might pass out at any moment.

I’ve never seen anythin’ so beautiful in me life.

She crawled toward him, dragging herself to her feet when she was near. “Are they all right?” she yelled over the roaring fire.

“Terrified, but fine,” Alexander assured her. He passed Annys to her to carry on her back so he could get a firmer hold on Jamie. “Stairs.”

Cicilia nodded, and they turned…just in time to see the banister of the stairs snap under the heat and collapse, blocking their only way out.

“Window!” Cicilia coughed.

Alexander took her hand with the one not holding Jamie protectively close and pulled her into the boy’s room. Out the window, Cicilia could see the pigpen for the childrens’ as-of-yet unnamed new pet. There was a pile of hay there, but they were two floors up.

“It will nae break our fall!” she told him, terrified. She didn’t mind a few broken bones, but the children!

Alexander grimaced. “The fire’s worse,” he said. He carefully placed the curled up Jamie on the floor at Cicilia’s feet. Before she could say anything else, he had vaulted himself over the windowsill.

She ran to gaze over and saw him land. It was a good landing, but not a gentle one, even though he landed perfectly in the hay. She saw the odd angle to his shoulder and the way his leg stuttered as he stood. “Alexander!” she called.

“Pass them down! I’ll catch them!” Alexander yelled back.

Ye’re mad!

There was nobody, nobody in the world that she could fully trust her siblings with, and now he expected her to toss them out of a burning building and trust him to catch them?

And yet she could feel the heat at both the adjoining door and the one where they’d entered. They were cornered by the flames, and she did not have time.

Fine. I’ll trust ye, Alexander.

Annys was terrified as Cicilia carried her to the window, but the good thing was that she was too scared to even struggle. Cicilia swallowed, offering prayers to whatever god or gods would listen, and let her go.

The girl screamed on the way down, and Cicilia closed her eyes, panic eating at her heart. Had she just killed her own sister?

Annys!

“I have her, Cicilia!” Alexander’s voice called up, and Cicilia’s lungs started to let in air again. She peeked her head over the sill to see Alexander sitting an uninjured Annys on the ground. “Jamie now!”

“Aye!” Cicilia said.

She turned to pick him up, but Jamie was sobbing. “I dinnae want to, Cil. I dinnae want to!”

Desperately, Cicilia pleaded with him. “Pl

ease, Jamie. We dinnae have a choice.”

“But what if I get hurt? What if Alexander doesn’ae catch me? I could die!” Jamie protested.

It hurt Cicilia’s heart to hear him talking like this. He was too young to be dwelling on death. But they were running out of time, and smoke was starting to pour through the cracks in the door. She knelt down to his level. “Listen to me, Jamie. Do ye trust me?” she asked.

“Aye,” Jamie said. “But—”

“Be a brave boy, like Daddy, all right?” Cicilia pleaded. “For me?”

Jamie swallowed, wiping at his eyes. “All right. Will Alexander catch me?”

“Jamie!” Alexander’s voice called up. “I’m waitin’!”

“All right,” Jamie said again, more bravely this time. “I trust ye. An’ I trust Alexander.”