Highlander’s Frozen Heart by Shona Thompson
Chapter Twenty-One
The Highlands didn’t suit Caton. He didn’t like the weather, he didn’t like the cold that seemed to seep into his bones every time he strayed from the fire in his chambers, and he certainly didn’t like that the reason why he was there was because Adelleine had been so terribly, terribly rude to him.
Laird MacRestus had made the mistake of introducing himself to Caton when the two had met. Caton couldn’t help but wonder if the man was so naïve as to think that he wouldn’t seek revenge once he had stolen Adelleine right from his hands, or if he was simply careless, not once worrying about the ramifications of his actions.
Caton had followed them all the way to the Highlands, of course. The moment he had woken up that fateful day to find that Adelleine was gone, he gathered his men and promised her aunt that he would bring her back safe.
He had no intentions of doing so.
Adelleine had betrayed him, and Laird MacRestus had ridiculed him. Caton had had people killed for less, and so he knew that simply killing them wouldn’t satisfy him. He couldn’t simply send his men after them; no, he had to be personally involved in the punishment, in the revenge that he would take, and he would settle for nothing less.
News of the reward he decided to have for anyone who would bring him valuable information about Adelleine—or Adelleine herself, which would cost him more money, but save him the trouble—spread through the right circles like wildfire. Many visited Caton, all of them claiming that they knew where Adelleine was, and yet all of them ended up decapitated or defenestrated or deskinned, depending on how generous Caton felt every time. So, when another man made his way to him, kneeling in front of him and claiming that he did, in fact, know where Adelleine was, Caton didn’t get his hopes up.
“And who are you?” he asked the man, looking at his soiled clothes and the layer of dirt that covered his face with distaste.
Perhaps he would make it mandatory for any visitors to wash themselves before they appeared in front of him, he thought idly. Anything to stop him from having to put up with such a sight.
“Greer Drummond, m’lord,” the man said, as he stood from where he was kneeling, even though Caton didn’t remember telling him to do so, “I swear on me life, I saw the lass that yer lookin’ for.”
“Well, it’s a good thing that you swear on your life, because if what you tell me is nonsense, I’ll make sure that you follow the rest of the fools who came here to feed me lies and take my gold,” Caton said, “Where did you see her?”
“The MacRestus clan, m’lord,” Greer said, “Ye see, I . . . I make me livin’ by stealin’, aye? I steal from travellers, and one of the travellers that I saw one day was none other than the lass that yer lookin’ for. She was travellin’ with Laird MacRestus, and he and his men killed all me partners, so I thought to meself, I said Greer, go to the castle and ask for some work, and when the time is right, take what ye can and leave! So I went to the castle, m’lord, and wouldnae ye ken it, they had work for me. There was this feast, ye ken, where every laird from the surroundin’ lands attended, and they needed more hands, so I thought to meself, Greer—”
“Is there any version of this story where I don’t have to hear every single irrelevant piece of information that you have to give me?” Caton asked, “I don’t care what you did or how you got to the castle. All I care about is the woman.”
“Aye, aye, forgive me, m’lord,” Greer said, and then took a deep breath, only to continue his rambling, “And so I said to meself, Greer, this is yer chance, lad. But then I heard about ye searchin’ for the lass, and I decided to come here instead. For the reward, ye see. It’s much less dangerous, giving ye information, than stealin’ straight from the castle.”
Caton ended up listening to half of what Greer had said, since none of it mattered to him. He regarded the man with a bored gaze, yawning as he finished his sentence, and then he stood, approaching him slowly. Every step was punctuated by the sound of his boots slamming against the wooden floor, and by the time that he was only inches away from the other man, Greer had shrivelled into himself, trying to make himself appear as small as possible.
“Will you tell me what I need to know now?” Caton asked him, eyes narrowed, and his previous boredom replaced with anger, “Or do I need to listen to more of this? Is she in the castle, then? Is that what you’re saying?”
“Aye, m’lord,” Greer confirmed with a nod, his voice barely a whisper, “I saw her at the feast. I ken it was her, I heard them call her Adelleine, and she’s a Sassenach, much like yerself. I’m certain that it was her.”
Caton looked at the man in silence for a few moments before he gestured at his guards to come and take him. The moment that they had their hands on him, Greer began to thrash in their grips, trying to get himself free, but the guards held him tightly, immobilising him as much as they could.
“I told ye everythin’ that ye wanted to ken!” Greer exclaimed, “I told ye everythin’! Nay part of it was a lie!”
“Calm down,” Caton said, as he walked back to his chair by the fire, sitting down and stretching his legs, “I won’t have you killed. I’ll simply keep you as my prisoner until what you told me is verified. If you’re telling me the truth, then you have nothing to fear. You’ll have your gold as soon as I know that she is there.”
That seemed to appease Greer, and the man went with Caton’s guards quietly, without trying to fight them off. There were many things that Caton was, after all, but he always kept his promises. It would only make him appear bad if he promised a reward and then proceeded to have the man who brought him the information he needed killed. No one would work for him anymore.
It didn’t come as a surprise to learn that Adelleine was in that castle, after all. A part of Caton regretted not having gone there in the first place, demanding that Adelleine come with him, but then again, a sneak attack would be much easier, and much more likely to get him what he wanted. If he simply walked up to the castle gates, then Laird MacRestus was certain to have his head in the end.
The only problem was that he had no army. He had his men, of course, but they weren’t enough to fight an entire clan, and no matter how secret and sly he would keep his attack, he was certain that without an army, he would lose.
“Philip,” Caton called, gesturing at his right-hand man to come closer. Philip did so dutifully, standing by Caton’s chair. “What do we know about the MacRestus clan? Who are their enemies?”
“Well . . . the MacForfin clan comes to mind,” Philip said, “They are the only ones, as far as I know, who consider the MacRestus clan their enemies. Seamus MacForfin, the laird of the clan, killed Laird MacRestus’ brother a while back. As far as I know, he is still looking to take the MacRestus clan down.”
“Philip . . . how do you know all that?” Caton asked with a small frown.
“I have my sources, my lord,” Philip assured him, “Would you like me to contact the MacForfin clan?”
Caton considered his options for a moment. He could either try and capture Laird MacRestus and Adelleine on his own, and not have to worry about someone like Laird MacForfin and his men ruining his plans, either by accident or on purpose, but that would mean that he would be risking not only the lives of his men, whom he had found after months and months of searching and whom he trusted completely, but also his own life.
Or he could swallow his pride and his worries, and contact the MacForfin clan to ask for help. After all, he wasn’t interested in any titles, land, or gold. He was only interested in capturing, torturing, and killing the people who had wronged him.
“Yes, I think you should,” Caton said with a nod, “I think Seamus MacForfin and I have a lot to discuss.”
“Right away, my lord,” Philip said, and after giving Caton a bow, he was gone.
There was little that Caton could do then, other than wait for Philip to return to him with news from the MacForfin clan. Whatever their answer would be, though, there was one thing that he knew for certain: Adelleine and Laird MacRestus would be at his mercy soon.
There were few things in life that Caton had ever wanted more than his revenge, and it was a shame that he had to kill Adelleine, pretty as she was. Perhaps he could marry one of her cousins instead, he thought, someone who looked like her but had a sweeter disposition; someone who wouldn’t run away from him. He knew that Victoria Gresham would be happy either way, as she would get the money that she wanted from him in the end.
If anything, she’d be thrilled to have one of her daughters, instead of her niece, marry a baron. And Caton would make sure to compensate her for it, of course, as he had grown to like the woman. She had the kind of ambition that he appreciated in other people.
He wondered whether Victoria would keep her mouth shut about him, though, once she found out how Caton treated the women that he wanted. He wondered whether her motherly instincts would take over, whether she would try to save her daughters from him, or whether her ambition would be enough for her to turn a blind eye.
Either way, Caton wasn’t a sentimental man. If Victoria proved to be a problem, he would simply get rid of her. There were several Gresham women to choose from, and if some of them happened to expire, then Caton would simply move on to the next one.
There was a knock on his door, and as if on cue, none other than Fin Gresham walked in, Victoria’s only son. Caton had given him work, food, and shelter early on, and he had remained in his employment ever since, but he could only imagine how he would react at the news that Caton would marry one of his sisters instead.
So far, he had stayed tight-lipped, saying nothing about his cousin and Caton’s previous plans to marry her, even though Caton himself was certain that the boy knew everything about his tastes regarding women. Perhaps, like his mother, he would care more about his sisters, though, than he did for Adelleine.
“My lord . . . Philip is sending me to the MacForfin clan,” Fin said, “He . . . he talked about Adelleine, and he said . . . well, I don’t know if it’s true, but—”
“It’s true,” Caton assured him. He would be lying if he said that he didn’t get some satisfaction at the way Fin’s skin went pallid, fear gripping him. “Your cousin betrayed me. She left with another man. What am I to do, sit back and allow her and her paramour to humiliate me like that? I’m sure you understand, Fin, that it is a matter of honour. If your cousin hadn’t behaved so terribly, if she hadn’t betrayed me in such a horrible way, then nothing would have happened to her. But now . . . now she is responsible for her fate, wouldn’t you say so?”
Fin was quiet, eyes darting around the room as though he, too, feared for his own safety. Perhaps he should fear, Caton thought. It all depended on his reply.
“But my lord . . . please, consider being lenient with her,” Fin said, “I beg you. I know that what she did was wrong, terribly wrong, but to punish her so cruelly—”
“Are you saying that I am cruel, Fin?” Caton asked, “Me? Am I not the one who saved your family from debt? Am I not the one who took you under my wing when you most needed me? Am I not the one who has been helping your mother and sisters to survive?”
“Of course, my lord,” Fin said, quickly averting his gaze, “That is true, you have done many good, charitable things for my family. You have been very kind to us all.”
“And what did I ask in return?” Caton said, “I only asked for Adelleine to be my wife. She would have a good life with me. She would never need anything, she would never have to ask for anything. And yet, she betrayed me. Would you not want revenge if you were in my position?”
Fin didn’t reply. He stayed silent for a long time, but that wasn’t good enough for Caton, so he stood, approaching him slowly and walking around him in a circle, before stopping right in front of his face.
“Wouldn’t you do the same, Fin?” he repeated, placing his hands on Fin’s shoulders, “Wouldn’t you?”
“Yes, my lord.”
Caton smiled at Fin, giving his shoulders a gentle slap, before he backed away from him. Fin couldn’t have given him a different answer even if he wanted to, but that knowledge only served to bring a smile to Caton’s face.
He enjoyed knowing that no one could oppose him, that no one would dare to do so.
“Good,” Caton said, “So, you have no problem doing as you were told, correct? You will ride to the MacForfin clan, and you will give them the message.”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Now leave.”
Fin left without another word, his head hanging low and his gaze glued to the floor. Caton didn’t know why Philip had chosen Fin for the job, since he knew that he was related to Adelleine, but he assumed that it had something to do with the fact that Philip was just as cruel as he was, if not more, at times. That was what Caton had admired in him in the first place, how he made those beneath him shake with fear.
Caton threw another log in the fire, cursing the humidity and the cold in the room. Soon, though, he would return to his home. Soon, he would have Adelleine’s and Magnus’ heads.
