The Ghost Greyson, Maeve (reading an ebook .txt) 📖

set upon ye?” asked Alexander, a large man with hair blacker than Satan’s waistcoat.

“Are either of ye hurt?” asked a second man, who had to be a brother since he and the chief shared such a striking resemblance.

Pulling Brenna to his side, Magnus held up a hand and shook his head. “Ease yerselves, my fine brothers. All is well. It’s naught but a wee misunderstanding.”

“How wee?” Alexander asked.

“’Tis my fault,” Brenna spoke up. “I thought Magnus set upon by redcoats and told Evander as much when I sent him to the keep. I didna discover until I returned to fight them that the man was a friend of yer clan.”

“I thought the same, lass,” Magnus said.

The chieftain winced, then scrubbed a hand across his mouth. “Lord Crestshire?”

“Aye,” she said.

“It is both my pride and pleasure to introduce ye to my lady love, Brenna Maxwell,” Magnus said as he gently pulled her closer. “It is all right, mo chridhe,” he whispered. “Chin up, my brave one, so they can meet ye proper.”

Inhaling deeply, she lifted her head and faced the men staring down at her from their fully armed warhorses.

The chief blessed her with a genuine smile and a noble nod. “I am Alexander MacCoinnich, chieftain to Clan MacCoinnich, and it is my true honor to meet ye, m’lady.” A warm chuckle escaped him. “I am more than a little glad our brother Magnus, here, has finally found someone willing to watch over him.”

“None of us thought that would ever happen, I grant ye that,” said the man who looked so much like Alexander. “And I am Graham MacCoinnich.” He tilted his head toward the chieftain. “Brother to this one, here, and clan war chief.”

Her cheeks still burning, Brenna made a shallow curtsey. “Again, I am sorry. I didna mean to cause such alarm.” She felt like a fool.

“Ye had no way of knowing,” Alexander reassured. His gaze traveled across the several men they had brought with them. “And it did us good.” His expression hardened. “With Lord Crestshire leaving Fort William, we no longer have an ally among the English. ’Tis best we be prepared for the worst.” Settling his scowl on Magnus, he asked, “Did ye speak with him and learn of what I speak?”

“Aye.” Magnus resettled his stance and stood taller. “But it didna surprise me. We were lucky to have a sympathetic ear at Fort William for as long as we did.”

Agreement rumbled through the gathering of men.

Alexander motioned back toward the direction from which they had come. “Back to the keep, men.” As the group milled around to head out, he looked back and smiled at Brenna and Magnus. “We shall see the two of ye at Tor Ruadh. Catriona will be delighted to have such a fine reason for a grand feast. Dinna tarry, aye?”

“We will be right along,” Magnus promised.

Watching the fearless guard ride away, Brenna shook her head. “Word will spread, and the entire clan will think me a careless fool.”

“They willna think such.” Magnus kissed her hand and tugged for her to follow. “If anything, they’ll think ye the perfect addition to the clan since nearly every MacCoinnich wife wouldha done the same were she to find herself in yer place.”

Chapter Eight

“Auntie! Auntie!”

“Thank the Almighty,” Brenna whispered.

Keigan’s shrill cry reached her over and over as they passed through the final stone arch of the protective barbican with its series of iron gates and entered the main bailey. The crowd’s stares stung like biting midges, but with her dear lad charging toward her, she ignored them all and focused on him.

“Help me down, aye?” She patted Magnus’s arm, eager to gather her precious child into a fierce hug.

“Down ye go, mo chridhe.” He swung her to the ground as though she weighed less than a cloud, then dismounted and took his place beside her.

Keigan hit her at full speed, clutching her tighter than bark on a tree. “I was afeared, Auntie! Sore afeared the Sassenachs had gotten ye both.”

She gathered him up and hugged him as tight as he clung to her. “It is all right, my dearest one,” she shushed, pressing kisses to his cheek. “We are safe here. Safe as can be.”

“I feared for the both of ye. Feared I would be all alone,” he repeated in a hiccupping whisper. Keigan rarely cried. Whenever he did, his emotions came from so deep within, hiccups always followed. “I dinna want to be alone, Auntie. Not ever.”

As much as she had dreaded meeting Magnus’s clan, it struck her how right he had been to bring them here. With this new extended family, Keigan would never find himself alone if anything should ever happen to her. Aye, this decision had scared the living daylights out of her. Still did. But it was good. Holding Keigan close, she turned to Magnus. His pained expression showed how much he hurt for the lad. It also told her he watched with rapt attention to see what she would tell the child. Crouching down, she pried the boy loose and stood him in front of her. With a swipe of her thumb, she brushed aside his tears, then pulled a square of linen from her sleeve and held it to his nose. “Blow.”

Keigan complied.

“Now, look me in the eyes, dear one. Look at me, so I know ye understand what I am about to say. Understand it without a doubt, aye?”

After a deep shuddering sniff, the boy nodded, then jerked with the force of another hiccup.

“Yer da brought ye here so ye would never be alone.” She gently squeezed his hands and smiled. “Clan MacCoinnich is yer family now, too.” With a nod toward the men, women, and children gathered around them, she forced herself to speak with a conviction she didn’t yet feel. “Ye have cousins, aunties, and uncles by the droves now. None of these folks would ever leave ye out in the cold. And as soon as they get to