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Chapter 26
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The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 27
Gair ran his hand over the back of his neck and sat down near the fire. Their stack of peat and wood was nearly gone. They’d have to either get more or move on come morning. He had no idea where they could go. He still didn’t know where they were! He didn’t know if he was responsible for the safety of these lasses, though it seemed he was. How on earth could he look after them if he didn’t even know how to get home from here? Even the sky was no help, clouds hid the sun and would hide the stars all night. He couldn’t even tell which general direction to travel in. Well, away from the sea, but other than that... The silence was a gift to his aching head at first, but it soon began to feel awkward. He wanted to know whatever the lasses could tell him, but he didn’t want to let on how clueless he was. “M’Laird’s head pains him,” the lass said, “but I have no poultice to fix it for him. Grandmame will have some. Will we go there tomorrow?” Gair looked from the lass to Isobel. “Yer head
The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 28
Gair smiled, watching Izzy run her free hand over her hair. It was a nervous gesture he realized, one he’d seen her make before. He knew he had yet to remember everything from the past few days, but when Magdala had touched his back the pain had brought back memories of the lightning strike and more details of crossing the cove. He also knew that his first instinct when he had come to his senses beside the burning tree was to find Isobel and keep her safe. Though he didn't remember what she needed to be safe from.For some reason this angel was his, or she would be. He was relieved to know she was not his brother’s woman. He did not remember what their relationship was, but he knew what he wanted it to be. It wasn’t that yet he was sure, if it were she would not have minded him seeing her in just a chemise.“I’ve had my men prepare a tent for the two of you to have some privacy,” James said, nudging his knee, “newlyweds need their time alone, eh?” Gair blinked, barely managing to mask
The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 29
“How in the bloody hell did you lose a sleeping woman!”The Duke’s booming voice froze Izzy in her tracks and she crouched low behind the nearest bush. She couldn’t make out what the soldiers were answering. They’d been asleep when she’d crawled out of the tent and left her shelter. Everyone had. Between having slept the day away and the large number of men around she hadn’t been able to drift off, so when the guards had started to snore she’d slipped out and spent the night out in the bush. She just picked her way between their legs, grabbed up her bow and quiver, and walked out the entrance.She’d only waited until she could sneak away because she hadn’t wanted any of the men to follow her. It had never occurred to her that they would get in trouble when she was not in the tent come morning. Nobody had ever bothered to know where she was before. If her clansmen had ever noticed her gone, they certainly hadn’t searched for her. Well, they had after she’d been gone several months, bu
The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 30
"I can’t believe ye would just wander off like that,” the Duke said again around a mouthful of fish. Gair bristled. The man was more than happy to accept the food his wife caught, cleaned, and cooked, yet still felt the need to reprimand her. He had been berating her from the moment she’d shown herself. Every comment he’d spoken was meant to antagonize but stopped short of actually insulting her so Gair himself had no cause to retaliate. The pair of them had simply bit their tongues and waited for the man to steam off all his temper, but it was getting beyond tiresome. All of the group within earshot was attuned to the goings-on, waiting for someone to start a fight. “You wasted valuable time for the sake of a few fish when we had plenty of salted fare and bread to start the day. It was a complete waste of everyone’s time!” Gair glanced at Izzy and saw her eyes narrow, “well finding food to fill your belly wasn’t all I left for.”“What then?”“Ye do understand that I am nay really a
The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 31
Izzy held herself stiff in front of her husband, looking around in astonishment as they all trudged forward more quickly than she’d realized a group this size could travel. It seemed like only moments ago her husband had stumbled into the shelter with Siofra in his arms and told James the three of them needed to be hidden and they had to leave immediately. Without asking a single question, James had taken the child from Gair and started barking out orders to his men. They had efficiently broken camp and loaded everyone onto horses in a matter of minutes. Dressed as Stuart soldiers, complete with hats and curly-haired wigs, she and her husband were mounted on a large black horse. Siofra had been wrapped in a bedroll and tossed on the back of the horse beside them with Magdala and a Stuart soldier. On the other side of Magdala two more Stuart soldiers, a man and a lad, were dressed in her and Alasdair’s cast off closed and sharing a horse.She had never shared a horse with anyone befo
The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 32
Izzy glanced around at the group, happy to notice the time travelling had them spread out and mostly not paying attention. She put her hands over her husband's, hoping he would remain silent and allow her to lead them. She dug her heels into the horse and it picked up its pace, moving to the side as she guided it away from the group.“Bhean?”“Shh.” She felt him turn to look around them, then his hands relaxed under hers, letting her fully control the horse on her own. “They will notice us moving off,” he whispered to her when they were far enough away not to be overheard. “I would wager at least a pair of the men who rode behind were tasked with keeping us in sight. Probably a pair for each of us.”“A few is better than a hundred. My friends will not be there if such a large number of Stuarts approached. They have probably been watching us for a while now. I am hoping the dogs will come to me when I whistle, and that will tell them it is me and I believe all is well. If I weren’t in
The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 33
A soft whimper pulled Gair from his sleep. He blinked his eyes open and looked around the odd structure that Isobel’s friends called home. From the outside, it had looked like a pile of fallen brush wedged into the trees. From the inside, the frame seemed to be made of giant ribs with animal skins stretched between them and a layer of plush furs covered the ground. If they were ribs, they were from an animal far bigger than anything Gair had ever seen. It seemed impossible any animal could be this big, but at the same time, it did look as though they were sitting in the belly of a great beast. He’d have to look through the animal book when he got home and see if he could find a mention of an animal big enough for several men to stand inside of it.A hole in the top was directly over the fire, and the smoke escaped through that. The cavernous space was still hot, even though the fire had died to just coals and embers. At one end there was the door, where the soldiers were sleeping. At
The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 34
Two days later, Izzy had had all she could take of the grand old Duke of York. She stood by the horse she shared with her husband, adjusting her weapons and wishing she could shoot the man where he sat. She was sick of hearing about Protestants and Catholics and Anglicans. She was sick of hearing how to bring peace to Scotia, England, and Ireland. She didn’t care, so long as the fighting stayed away from her. Apparently, it hadn’t, which is why she and Gair were not heading back to Sinclair. Mostly, she was tired of being told to change who she was. “Honestly, Isobel,” James said, looking down his long nose at her from where he was perched atop his horse. “Trews, a sword, and a bow? They haven’t even any feminine adornment. Have you no shame? Your husband will have to hire a proper English tutor just to be sure his daughters will not be shunned when the time comes for them to wed.”“He does nay have to worry on that if I do nay bare him any children.” “You may dress a lad, but you
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The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Epilogue
“Are you sure about this Izzy-bee? Ye don’t have to. I could go first.”“I want to,” Izzy insisted. She stepped quickly forward and lowered her naked bottom slowly onto the padded seat. “I am the one likely to back out. It is only right that I first see if I can do this before I ask it of ye.”“I will stop whenever ye say.”“I know,” she took a deep breath, spread her legs wide, bent forwards, and fastened her own ankles. Gair didn’t miss the change in her breathing.“Maybe just yer feet this time?” She shook her head and leaned back in the seat, resting her wrists in the cuffs. Gair looked down at her. In the past, seeing a woman held open this way, willingly putting herself at his mercy, had excited him. Seeing his wife struggle so mightily with it was not appealing to him at all.Her chest rose and fell quickly with each breath. Every muscle seemed taught as a bow ready to fire. “Izzy, I -”“Please, Gair. I want to try.” She looked to her wrists, then her ankles, and licked her lip
The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 79
Gair watched the arrow leave Fann’s bow and heard it thunk into the oak high above them. The gasps and mutters from the men behind him told him that Fann had hit the mark as easily as his wife. Before he could comment, Johne’s voice came through the bush beside them. “Ye have come at last, old friend.”“There was narry a sign of ye when I came to lay claim to all ye had promised.”“Aye. I failed in that. But I did nay fail completely.”Gair smiled at Davina as she stepped out from behind a tree. She was nearly as silent as his wife. She tipped her head to one side, looking at Fann.“I donna remember ye,” she said softly. Gair saw Fann’s fist clench at his side and then relax. “I am nay surprised. Ye were quite wee when I left for London.”“And ye have come to marry me off now?”“Nay.”Giar saw anger and surprise both in Johne’s eyes. He seemed about to speak, but Fann spoke first.“I donna know the woman ye have become any more than ye know me. As yer kin, I could choose a man for y
The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 78
The icy water ran from her hair and clung to her wool tunic, but Izzy barely paid it any attention. She forced her nearly frozen fingers to uncurl themselves, then curl again around the rope to pull herself forward again. And again. The tunnel had always seemed longer and steeper in the cold. Izzy could hear the scurrying of rat feet on the rocks around her. There seemed to be more of them than usual, but their numbers usually increased in the winter. Hopefully they hadn’t started to gnaw at the rope yet this year. If it gave way, the plunge back into the icy water would not be pleasant. It could very easily attract the attention of some of the guards too. There were so many more of them standing out on the walls! Either the mercenaries really had taken over, or her father had noticed there was a threat.She found the torch and flint against the wall at the top of the slope, just where she always left them. Cursing the cold and damp, Izzy struggled with the flint, trying to spark the
The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 77
Gair stared into the fire. He’d kept on the road to Campbell, but his eyes had been searching the bush for any sign of Izzy or her dogs. He knew it had been hopeless, even if she’d come this way she would not have stayed near the road. He tensed as Fann took a seat beside him and refused the flask of ale.“Most men,” Fann said, “would be glad for a wife they favour and a clan to rule. Why is it you are not?”“Have you been there?”“No. I should have been, but when I heard the Laird was not the one who had invited me to visit I left. Mercenaries are not usually welcome unless they are invited.”“It is not a clan I can rule. The men are everything I despise.”“Why?”“They are all lazy drunkards who rape and beat their women and children.”“When the women see that Izzy expects better from you, and gets it, the women of Sinclair will expect better too. Young men who wish to wed will have to do better to get their attention. Your reputation for putting rapists in the stocks naked won’t hur
The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 76
Once again, the smaller pup broke his stay. The runt was cute and liked to snuggle, but he was not very smart. The larger one looked back and forth between Izzy and his litter mate, then yipped and bounded out from the cover of the trees. There was nothing she could do for them this time. The mercenaries were too close, if she made any noise at all they would find her. Once they saw how well-fed those animals were, they’d be combing the bush for their owner and the pups would help them. Her only option was to make for the water.Suddenly a hand grasped her arm and Izzy found herself standing with her friend Johne in front of her. He scowled at her, “Ye daft lass! Now that yer full grown ye can nay pass so well for a lad.” He slammed a hat on her head and pushed her ahead of him out of the bush. “Yer nose is too fine for a lad this tall and yer legs! I wish those trews were baggy ones. Just keep yer chin down and say naught or ye’ll get us both killed.” His whistle pierced the air and
The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 75
It had been three days since Gair had arrived home to find Izzy’s note. He had no idea what to make of her prolonged absence. At first, he’d thought she was off hunting. He was ticked that she’d snuck out without the guard, but not really all that surprised. Leaving would have been a way to rebel against her forced confinement. She was not prone to staying put just because a man told her to. If anything, she would do the opposite just on principle.Paddy had been furious the guards had let her escape. He had ordered them to track her at once, but the rain had washed away any trace. He had looked himself as well, checking the areas he thought she might have gone for shelter, but none looked recently used. Gair folded up the paper and worked it into the seam of his tunic so he could take it with him. It was foolish he knew. But Izzy didn’t keep trinkets or embroidered kerchiefs. This was all he had of hers that he could carry with him. He scowled at himself. That had been careless of h
The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 74
As the cold rain drizzled down around the tiny home, Izzy sat by the fire with her dogs and watched her husband prowl the room like a caged beast. He was not accustomed to such small quarters. She remembered having the same restless feeling he seemed to be experiencing the first time she took to the tunnels for an extended time. There had been a lot of changes in the last few weeks. They’d enjoyed much time in each other's arms and it was nice to do so without interruption. There were no more meals atop the tower, though they still often ate under the stars. They had hunted until dark many nights at first. That was stopping now too as the air got colder and the rain more frequent. The colder and rainier it got the more moody and restless Gair became. She wasn’t scared of him exactly, but seeing him so agitated wasn’t comfortable either. She looked to the corner where the play stocks were tucked up against the walls and just barely peaking out from under a pile of furs. She shivered a
The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 73
Izzy skipped along the trail with the two pups yipping at her heels. With her swaying hips and bouncing curls, there was no doubt she was a lass. She looked a wee lass in her excitement. He had never seen her so happy. It saddened him to think that it was leaving his home that made her so light-hearted. She turned to catch his eye and he couldn’t help but grin back at her. She laughed as the pups bumped her knees to get her to continue down the trail. Gair sighed as they dipped out of sight.He could understand her contentment, to be in their own space would be nice, but he couldn’t help but feel he was losing some part of himself, leaving it behind in his childhood home. He scowled for a moment. Izzy had already done that. And as the only child, she was heir to all of Sinclair. He followed along the trail as it dipped down over the edge of the cliffs and looked at the cottage. It was tiny, but it would be warm and cozy. He and Izzy would have plenty of peace, quiet, and time alone.
The Invisible Bride (By the King's Command book 4) Chapter 72
Gair looked towards the river and smiled as he saw the group on their way back. Izzy and Ellie seemed such unlikely friends. At first glance, they seemed opposites in so many ways, but they were fast friends nonetheless. Izzy still was not certain that he didn’t fancy his childhood friend more than her, but in reality, what drew him to Ellie as a child, Izzy had simply magnified and carried with her into adulthood. “I had an interesting chat with James today,” Dair said as he leaned back against the tower wall beside his brother. “The proxy marriage was even more mixed up than we thought.”Gair scowled. “How is that possible?”“Apparently, the original plan was for me to wed Mairead, Paddy to have Lia, just as we thought. But you were to wed Ellie and Fann was to be the one on Sinclair with Izzy. He changed his mind at some point on that one, James wasn’t sure when or why, but that had been the original plan.” Gair looked at his brother, then back out at his wife. “Given his reputati
