Highlander’s Frozen Heart by Shona Thompson

Chapter Twenty-Two

“Andrew,” Fin called, as he ran up to the other man, who was brushing his horse with more care than Fin would have ever cared to put into his own.

Andrew was a large man, towering over Fin and everyone else in Caton’s employment, but as far as Fin knew, he was mostly a gentle giant. Then again, he did follow Caton’s orders rather blindly, but Fin could hardly blame him for that.

Andrew wasn’t the brightest in their little group.

“Oh, hello, Fin,” Andrew said with a smile, “How are you?”

“Fine, fine,” Fin said, waving a hand dismissively, “Listen, I need you to do a favour for me. Do you think you can do that?”

“Sure, Fin,” Andrew said, “What do you need?”

“See . . . I have this girl that I’m seeing,” Fin said, “But she lives in the next village, and I can’t see her too often, not with the baron making me do all the work.”

“Is she pretty?” Andrew asked.

“Very much so,” Fin said. “So, I wanted to ask you to deliver this message to the MacForfin clan,” he said, as he took the letter than Philip had given him to deliver out of his pocket, handing it to Andrew, “so I can go and see her. I’ll tell everyone that we’re going to the MacForfin clan together, because it’s dangerous to travel all alone, alright? All you have to do is take it to Laird MacForfin, and then meet me before you come back here. Do you think you can do that?”

“Sure,” Andrew said with a small shrug, as he put the letter in his pocket, “It’s no problem for me, Fin. If anything, it’ll be nice to leave this place for a few days. The baron has been in a sour mood, and, well . . . I’m the one he takes it out on.”

Fin sighed, a hand coming up to pat Andrew’s shoulder. He felt bad for the other man, because he knew, indeed, just how terribly Caton treated him, especially when he was in one of his infamous moods.

“I’m ready to go when you are,” Fin informed him, and soon, the two of them left the small village where Caton had decided to stay while they would be in the Highlands, Andrew heading to the MacForfin clan, while Fin headed towards the MacRestus clan.

He had lied to Andrew. There was no woman in the neighbouring village, there was no secret relationship between him and a pretty local girl, but Fin couldn’t have possibly told Andrew the real reason why he couldn’t take the message to Laird MacForfin.

The moment he had realised that the baron’s plan was to hurt Adelleine, he had decided that he needed to intervene. He needed to go to her and warn her about the danger, hoping that Laird MacRestus could do something to put an end to it.

So, Fin rode for two days without stopping for anything other than rest and food, and soon, he was standing in front of the gates of the MacRestus clan castle.

The guards let him inside, but then Fin waited, and waited, and then waited some more. It seemed to him as though no one was taking him seriously, all the guards thinking that he was simply lying, though he didn’t know what their reasoning could possibly be, and in the end, the man that walked through the door of the room where he had been sitting was certainly not the laird.

Fin had never seen the laird, but he had seen others, and the man in front of him was not one.

“Who are you?” Fin said, “I asked to speak to the laird.”

“Who are ye?” the man retorted, “Ye willnae speak to the laird unless I deem it necessary. I am Hendry MacGowan, ye’ll be speakin’ to me about whatever it is that ye want.”

Fin sighed, a hand coming up to brush through his hair. He didn’t want to speak to anyone but the laird and Adelleine, as he didn’t know if he could trust anyone else, but he doubted he would get to the man unless he first convinced the one in front of him that he was telling the truth.

“Fine,” Fin said, “My name is Fin Gresham. I’m Adelleine’s cousin, and she can confirm my identity. I work for Baron Caton, and he sent me to send a message to the MacForfin clan, but I came here instead, to warn you.”

“The MacForfin clan?” Hendry asked, and Fin could tell by the look on the man’s face that someone was finally taking him seriously, “And Caton? Ye came all the way from England to send a message to the MacForfins?”

“No, sir,” Fin said, “The Baron is here, in the Highlands . . . it only took me two days to reach the castle from where he’s staying now. I came to warn you, because I care for Adelleine, and I know that the baron will hurt her. He is asking the MacForfin clan for help, to give him enough men to take the entire castle. He wants to see your laird and Adelleine dead.”

Hendry had gone pale, just as pale as Fin had been when he had first found out about the baron’s intentions. Fin could see the man’s hands shake, just a little, almost imperceptibly, and he couldn’t help but feel bad about the fact that he had been the one to deliver such bad news to him.

“I’ll find the laird and Adelleine,” Hendry said, “I think it’s best if ye tell them about this yerself, dinnae ye think?”

“Yes, sir,” Fin agreed, and then he watched as the other man left the room, his footsteps sounding frantic as he walked away.

Fin let go of a breath that he hadn’t even known he was holding. A weight had lifted off his chest, as someone had finally listened to him. Surely, the laird would know what to do, Fin thought, and the MacRestus clan would manage to fight off the MacForfins.

Then again, if that didn’t happen, Fin could at least take Adelleine back to England. She would be safe there, at least for a while, and then once Caton returned to his home, he would simply have to hide her, along with the rest of his family.

It didn’t sound like a life that he wanted to lead, but it was better than knowing Caton would kill everyone he loved. Even though Fin hadn’t seen Adelleine in years, he couldn’t help but feel as though he had an obligation towards her, as well as towards Jacob, even though the man wasn’t around anymore. In fact, Jacob’s death only served to heighten Fin’s sense of responsibility towards Adelleine.

When the door opened once more, Fin saw Hendry again, but this time he was followed by a man and Adelleine. Fin jumped out of his seat, rushing to Adelleine and pulling her into a hug, and once her shock wore off, she did the same, wrapping her own arms around him.

“Fin!” she exclaimed, right into his ear, “Hendry told me that you were here, but I could hardly believe it! It’s been so long.”

“It has,” Fin agreed, as he pulled back from Adelleine, “I had to come here, Adelleine, I had to warn you—”

Fin was interrupted by Hendry clearing his throat with a polite cough. The man gestured at the fourth person in the room, the one that Fin could only assume was the laird.

“Yer in the presence of a laird,” Hendry reminded him, “Ye may wish to introduce yerself.”

“Forgive me, my lord,” Fin said, giving Magnus a small bow, “My name is Fin Gresham. I assume Hendry has told you why I’m here.”

“Aye, he has,” Magnus said, “Verra troubling news, indeed. Yer sayin’ that Caton is askin’ for the help of the MacForfin clan?”

“Yes, that’s right,” Fin said, “He wants to come after you.”

“Of course he does,” Magnus said with a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose with his fingers, “But I dinnae see how he could possibly ken about me clan and the MacForfin clan. It’s nae a secret, but I dinnae think anyone outside of the Highlands even cares about such matters. How would he ken that Seamus MacForfin is an enemy of ours?”

“I don’t know, my lord,” Fin admitted. To him, it seemed that the baron knew several things that no one else seemed to know, though Fin could only suspect one person who could possibly give him all the information that he needed. “If I had to guess, I’d say that Philip Dalton is the one who informs him about such matters. Philip has spies everywhere, it would seem. He knows about everything that happens on this side of the pond.”

Fin watched as Magnus and Adelleine glanced at each other. It was a strange glance, he thought, one that was more familiar than what he would have expected. There was doubt there, as well, as though the two of them didn’t quite believe him.

“And how do we ken that this isnae some sort of ruse?” Magnus asked, “Ye told Hendry here that the baron sent ye to deliver a message to the MacForfins, but ye sent someone else. How do I ken that yer tellin’ me the truth, and this isnae a part of the baron’s plan? How long have ye been workin’ for him?”

“For years, my lord,” Fin admitted, “But if you can trust Adelleine, then you should trust me, too. She has known him for just as long as I have, and simply because I work for him, it doesn’t mean that I have any sympathy or any fondness for the man. He is a monster. I know what he does to people, I have seen it with my own two eyes. I have seen what he does to those that he deems inferior or to those who don’t do his bidding.”

“And yet ye’ll risk yer life to warn us?” Magnus asked, “Ye could have his favour if ye did what he asked ye to do. Perhaps ye have even brought him to me gates.”

Fin’s eyes narrowed at that. He knew that the laird was only being cautious, but he didn’t appreciate being spoken to as though he was being deceitful.

“I don’t appreciate you implying that I would do such a thing, my lord,” Fin said, “Forgive me if I am overstepping any boundaries by saying so, but you are saying that I am a liar and a cheater. I care for Adelleine. She’s my cousin . . . she’s practically my sister. We grew up together, and I owe it not only to her, but to her brother, too, to protect her. He isn’t here to protect her himself, you see . . . he perished from disease. And since he’s not here, I will protect her with my life if that is what it takes.”

Fin’s words seemed to have an effect on Magnus, and the man seemed to deflate right in front of Fin’s eyes.

“Jacob?” Magnus asked, “Ye’d do that for him?”

“He was like a brother to me. We were a family,” Fin pointed out, but then he frowned when he realised that Magnus seemed to know his cousin’s name, “You know him?”

“Aye . . . he was like a brother to me, too,” Magnus said, “Weel . . . I must speak to me men. Ye and Adelleine, I’m sure ye have much to talk about. I shall come and find ye once a decision has been made.”

“A decision?” Fin all but scoffed at the Laird, “A decision? There’s only one decision that you can make, my lord, if I may be so bold. There is only one thing that you can do if you wish for this to be over.”

“Och?” Magnus asked, clearly not impressed by the way that Fin was speaking to him, “And what would that be?”

“Fight.”

Fin knew that the MacRestus clan stood no other chance. Negotiations wouldn’t be possible, not when Caton was involved, as the man was out for blood, and he wouldn’t stop until he had it. Diplomacy was no option whenever Caton was involved.

Besides, from what he had heard from Philip, the MacForfin clan would be more than happy to assist Caton in his quest. They seemed to want nothing more than to take over Magnus’ clan, and Caton, sneaky as he was when it came to planning attacks, would get them what they wanted.

“Nay, we think we’ll just stand here and watch,” Hendry said with a roll of his eyes, before he and the laird left the room without another word, closing the door behind them with more force than strictly necessary.

“Forgive them,” Adelleine said, as she approached Fin and sat down next to him.

For the first time ever since he had been taken to that room, Fin noticed that it was impressively decorated, with heavy, dark furniture and gilt details. Even the baron couldn’t wish for such riches.

“They are certainly very . . . Scottish,” Fin said, “As I said, Adelleine, this is a matter of life and death. I don’t think that they understand that. There is nothing for them to talk about. There is nothing for them to consider. They must move fast and strike before the baron does. And they must trust me.”

“You can’t blame them for not trusting you quite yet,” Adelleine pointed out, “They don’t know you. Fin, I . . . I don’t know you. We haven’t seen each other for so long, and all this time, you’ve been with the baron. Don’t think for a second that I don’t know the kind of influence that he has on people.”

Fin looked at Adelleine, his eyes wide with surprise at her words. He wasn’t expecting her to say something like that, but at least he could see from the sudden change in her expression that she regretted it immediately.

“This is not to say that I don’t trust you,” Adelleine added quickly, “I trust you, of course I do. I just . . . I think you should give Magnus and Hendry some more time to trust you, too. And you’ll see that they’ll lose that demeanour of theirs soon, once they start trusting you.”

Fin hoped that Adelleine was correct, as he knew that they were running out of time. Besides, he was risking his own skin by being there, while the very people that he was trying to save were reluctant to believe him.

“Well . . . how about we take a walk around the castle?” Adelleine asked, “We have so much to talk about.”

Fin smiled, despite himself, and then he stood, offering his arm to Adelleine.

She just reminded him so much of Jacob.