Dangerous Highlander

“They’ve been hiding from Deirdre,” Cara said. “Deirdre uses their blood, the blood of all Druids actually, to become stronger as well as immortal.”

Fallon’s and Quinn’s gaze moved to the vial hanging around Cara’s neck. Lucan entwined his fingers with hers.

“You’re drough,” Quinn said into the silence.

“Nay,” Lucan said. “She is a descendent from Druids. A Druid, by nature, is a mie.”

Cara’s fingers tightened in his. “To become drough, Druids give a part of their blood in a ritual that lets the black magic in and thereby the evil. The ritual is supposed to be performed on a Druid’s eighteenth year.”

“Holy hell,” Quinn cursed. “Have you, Cara?”

She shook her head.

“But your mother was a drough,” Fallon said.

“It appears so.”

Lucan ran his thumb over the back of Cara’s hand. “Galen also informed us that a mie has the power to bind our god. We wanted to find other Warriors and a Druid. It appears we’ve found both.”

“I canna bind the god,” Cara said. “I know nothing of magic.”

“Galen said it came naturally.”

“Have you seen me do anything magical, Lucan?” she argued. “I’m not your Druid, but I will find you one.”

Fallon lifted the wine to his lips and took a long drink. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Let me see if I understand this. Cara is a Druid. Her mother was a drough, and Deirdre killed her.”

Lucan gave a nod.

“Deirdre is killing all the droughs for their magic.”

“We’ve no idea how old she is,” Lucan said. “With the growth of her magic, she’s able to become immortal.”

“Wonderful,” Quinn murmured.

Fallon scratched his chin. “Deirdre wants Cara, and I gather she’s something special because she has a Demon’s Kiss.”

“Aye. Deirdre would get the blood of Cara’s mother as well as her own.”

“Wait,” Quinn said. “If it was Deirdre that killed Cara’s parents, wouldn’t she have already gotten her mother’s blood?”

Lucan looked at Cara for an answer.

Cara took a deep breath. “I thought about that as we traveled back to the castle. I don’t think Deirdre needs the blood of a drough. I think she needs the blood in the Demon’s Kiss.”

“I agree,” Lucan said. “Innocent mie blood freely given in a black magic ritual that draws evil. I cannot imagine what kind of powers the blood in a Demon’s Kiss would hold.”

Quinn ran a hand through his hair. “This just gets better and better.”

“Does it matter that Cara hasn’t become a drough?” Fallon asked.

Lucan looked at Cara, who shrugged. “I don’t know,” Lucan said. “Galen said Deirdre was hunting all Druids, droughs and mies alike.”

“Is she killing the mies?”

Lucan threw up his hands. “I don’t know.”

“Galen would,” Cara said. “He was right, Lucan. We’re going to need him, and not just in the coming battle with Deirdre. He could have the answers to the questions we have.”

“And he may not,” Lucan argued.

Lucan wanted to believe Galen sided with them, but he had spent too many years being wary of everyone to trust so easily.

“We need to keep Cara away from Deirdre,” Fallon said.

Quinn nodded. “As well as any other Druid we can find.”

* * *

Cara rolled onto her back and yawned while she stretched her arms over her head. She hadn’t remembered coming to bed. The last thing she recalled was sitting with the brothers in the great hall as they spoke of strategies for the battle. It must have been Lucan who brought her to her chamber.

She glanced at the pillow next to her and frowned. After they had made love, she had expected him to come to her in between his turns keeping watch. It bothered her a great deal that he hadn’t. She should have told him she didn’t care that he was immortal and she wasn’t. She wanted to spend her time with him, however short that time was. Had he changed his mind? Regretted what they had done?

Her stomach clenched nervously. Or worse, did Lucan now believe she was a drough and want nothing to do with her? She wasn’t a drough, and she would prove it to him.

How?

She didn’t know. She didn’t even know anything of Druids and their sects, much less how to assure Lucan she wasn’t evil. But good or evil, Deirdre wanted her.

Galen said you could battle her.

Cara sat up and let the covers fall to her waist. It would take great magic to battle Deirdre. For a Druid who had studied magic all her life, it might seem like a simple idea, but for Cara, it was impossible.

She didn’t know the first thing about being a Druid or about magic. Battling Deirdre was out of the question.

And the tingling of your fingers?

Cara threw off the covers and pulled her nightgown over her head. She bathed with the bowl of cold water that had been left for her, then dressed for the day. When she walked to the great hall she found Fallon sharpening spears and other weapons.

“Good morn, Cara,” he said when he caught sight of her.

She paused on her way to the kitchen to say, “Good morn.” Once in the kitchen Cara rummaged around and found that someone, most likely Quinn, had taken several things from the village homes. She found flour and yeast to make bread.

It was while she was kneading the dough she glanced up to find Lucan standing in the doorway watching her.

“Did you sleep well?” he asked.

“Aye.”

He moved into the kitchen to stand across the table from her. His sea green eyes were warm as they raked over her body. “I remember coming in here as a lad and watching Cook make bread.”

Cara smiled. “I imagine she gave you a slice as soon as it came out of the oven.”

“Oh, aye. Even at such a young age women were susceptible to my charms.”

She paused. He was handsome, but when he smiled, he was devastating. “I love it when you smile.”

He walked around the table and pulled her against him. She tried to keep her hands that were full of flour away from him, but he didn’t seem to care.

“Ask me,” he demanded in a rough voice.

“Ask you what?”

“Ask me why I didna come to you last night.”

Cara looked away. She didn’t want him to know how much she had wanted his arms around her.

He gave her a little shake. “Ask me, Cara.”

“All right.” She forced her gaze to his. “Why didn’t you come to me last night?”

“Because I knew if I did I would take you again, and your body needs time to heal. It took everything I had not to go to you.”

Of all the reasons she imagined he would come up with, her welfare hadn’t been one of them. “You could