The Recruit (51 page)

Helen laughed. “You needed your sleep. From what I hear from Magnus, you all had a
long night. I don’t think my husband has recovered yet. It will be some time before
he wants to go through that again.”

Kenneth wasn’t looking forward to the battle of wills between his sister and MacKay
when she became pregnant. Helen was enjoying her position in the Guard, and Kenneth
didn’t see her relinquishing it without a fight.

Mary watched the interplay between the siblings with a wistful expression on her face.
He knew she was thinking of Janet. He was going to have a talk with Bruce about that
very soon. If he knew anything about her sister, Kenneth intended to find out. Mary
deserved an answer.

“How are you feeling?” he asked.

Their eyes held. “Much better.” She held out the babe. “Would you like to hold him?”

Kenneth hoped the horror didn’t show too plainly on his face. But when all the women
in the chamber started to laugh, he knew it had.

Helen was still chuckling when she reached for the baby. “Here, I’ll take him. You
two will want some privacy. And once my brother gets over his irrational fear”—he
didn’t bother denying it—“I suspect I won’t get a chance to hold
him very often.” Helen turned to him. “Have you decided on a name?”

Kenneth looked to Mary. “I thought William would be nice,” she said. “In honor of
your brother.”

His chest swelled, touched by the gesture to a brother who would have no sons of his
own. He could see that Helen was as well. He nodded, remembering another William,
too.

Helen left the room, taking baby William and the other ladies with her.

Kenneth felt himself strangely at a loss for words. He sat down on the edge of her
bed and took her hand in his. “I’m sorry, Mary. I’m sorry for getting you into this.
I know you didn’t want to come here—”

“But I did,” she interrupted. “You were right. It was time to come home.”

“I should have given you a choice.”

“Aye,” she agreed. “But I can see why you did not at first.”

“I was scared of losing you,” he said, trying to explain what kept him from telling
her.

She nodded. “I can understand that, too. When I heard you were to be arrested—” She
stopped, her face paling. “I knew nothing else mattered as long as you were safe.
I was so scared that they’d taken you. What happened?”

He gave her a short explanation, piecing together what he knew as well as what Sir
Adam had told him. “I knew that I had to reach you before they took you into the castle.
It’s not impenetrable, but it would have taken time and been much more dangerous to
get you out.”

“You convinced Sir Adam to help you?”

“It wasn’t too difficult. He wanted to help.”

“He said something strange before he left. He asked for my forgiveness.”

Kenneth watched her eyes widen with surprise, and then fill with tears, as he told
her the part Sir Adam had played in what had happened the last time she’d tried to
escape.

“I don’t believe it,” she said. “He betrayed me?”

“He didn’t think he was betraying you, he thought he was protecting you. The English
were too close. He thought they’d catch up to you and you would be imprisoned. He
made a deal with the English soldiers, giving them Lady Christina’s men in exchange
for the promise that you would be kept safe. But when the MacRuairis defeated the
soldiers, everything went wrong. He tried to prevent you and your sister from being
trampled on the bridge by destroying it, but then your servant fell and your sister
ended up where she shouldn’t have been. He blamed himself for what happened to her,
even though he couldn’t have known she would turn back.”

Mary appeared stunned. “No wonder he became upset every time I asked him to help me
find her.” Her brows drew together. “That sound at the bridge last night—the boom
and crack of lightning—it was just like that night with my sister. What was it?”

“Black powder. My foster brother William Gordon, Sir Adam’s nephew, had knowledge
of it as well. As do I, although not at the level of theirs. I was looking for the
recipe in those journals when you found me in the baby’s room. I didn’t find anything,
but I suspected after what you told me about that night that Sir Adam had similar
knowledge. I knew that it would help our chances of getting away, and he agreed to
give me what I needed to see you free.” He smiled. “I wish I’d been able to carry
more of it; it would come in handy the next few months.”

Suddenly, Mary seemed to recall something. “If you’ll hand me my bag, I think you
will find that won’t be necessary.”

Puzzled, he handed it to her. She pulled out a folded piece of parchment and gave
it to him. He scanned the page, his eyes widening when he saw the recipe he’d been
searching for. “He gave this to you?”

She nodded. “To give to you.”

He shook his head in amazement. Without realizing it, his wife had just handed him
a place in the Guard.

Nay, he realized. He’d done that on his own—even without the powder. He’d brought
Mary and Atholl back to Scotland. He’d uncovered key information about the castles
for the upcoming war. Not to mention single-handedly defeating nearly a score of English
soldiers. He’d proved himself more than equal to the task. He’d proved himself one
of the best.

He’d achieved what he wanted—more than he wanted—so why wasn’t he happy?

Because looking at his wife, he knew that none of it mattered if he didn’t have her
by his side. Kenneth had been fighting his whole life, but winning her was the only
fight that counted.

He took her small hand in his, looking deep into her big, blue eyes. “Can you forgive
me, Mary? I know I hurt you. I should have told you sooner, but I was scared to lose
you. I love you. Just give me a chance to prove it.”

Mary had never seen him like this. The cocky, too-handsome-for-his-own-good knight
looked worried and unsure of himself. Didn’t he know he’d proved himself many times
over in the past few days? Not just during the long, horrible hours on the ship where
he’d gotten her through some of the most difficult and terrifying hours of her life,
but by giving himself up for her, seeing her and her son to safety, coming for her,
protecting her.

She shook her head. “No.”

His face fell. “No, you won’t give me a chance?”

Her mouth curved at his crestfallen expression. “No, you don’t need to prove yourself
to me. I believe you. I believe
in
you. How can I not, after what we just went through? There is no other man I would
have by my side.”

His entire body seemed to relax. “Do you mean that?”

She nodded. Mary knew she could face the challenges
ahead of her on her own, but she didn’t want to do that. She wanted to face them with
someone else. She wanted to share her life with him.

Her mouth twitched. “But I will hold you to your vow to discuss your plans with me.
If you are involved in anything dangerous in the future, please let me know.”

She’d meant it as a jest, but his face shadowed. “Aye, well, about that.”

She sat up a little higher in the bed. “Don’t tell me there’s something else?”

He winced. “I took a vow of silence before I met you.”

She frowned, her nose wrinkling. “Does this have something to do with Bruce’s phantoms?”

He looked at her in surprise. “How did you guess?”

She stared at him. Could he really not know? “You mean besides the fact that they
are supposed to have virtually inhuman strength and skill, and I’ve seen you fight?
There’s also the fact that you are all uncommonly tall and built like siege engines.
But most important, I saw you with them. Even in pain, I could see that you were one
of them.”

He looked stunned. “You could?”

It was obvious, apparently except to him. She nodded. “I must admit I was surprised
to see that you are so close to your brother-in-law, given your clan history.”

“MacKay?” He shook his head. “We hate each other.”

She arched a brow. Men were so blind sometimes. “You act like brothers to me.”

He frowned, as if he’d never considered it. She refrained from laughing and rolling
her eyes. “Why did he call you Recruit?”

“That’s what I am. I’ve been trying to win a place on the team since I met you last
summer at Dunstaffnage.”

He told her why the loss that day had meant so much to him. “I let my temper get to
me,” he explained, “and MacKay took advantage of it. Instead of winning a place
outright on the team, I’ve been fighting ever since to earn my place.”

Mary felt a pang, understanding probably more than he intended. It was always like
that for him. Having to fight his way on. Having to prove himself. That was why winning
was so important to him. “And have you?”

“Yes, I think I finally have.”

“I’m happy for you.”

He tipped her chin. “It’s what I thought I always wanted. But it isn’t. You and our
son are the most important things in the world to me. I know what you’ve been through.
I won’t put you through this, if you don’t think you can handle it. I won’t lie to
you—being part of the Guard is extremely dangerous. Not just for me. You could be
in danger if my part in it is ever discovered. If you don’t want to be a part of it,
I’ll understand.”

“What are you saying?”

“I’ll tell Bruce I can’t do it, if you want me to. There are other ways I can fight
for him.”

Mary was stunned. She knew how much this meant to him. After a lifetime of proving
himself, he’d finally done so, earning his way into the most vaunted team of warriors
in Christendom, and now he would walk away from it for her? “You would do that for
me?”

“I would do anything for you.”

Her heart swelled until she thought it would burst. Tears glistened in her eyes. He
would never know what that offer had meant to her. Just as she knew she could never
ask it of him. “I don’t know, I think I should like being married to a real-life hero.”
She smiled. “Besides, I don’t think you want to see your brother-in-law get all the
glory, do you?”

A wide grin spread across his face. “Hell no! He’s bloody unbearable as it is.”

“Then you must keep him in his place.”

He reached down and cupped her face in his warm hand. “I love you.”

The look of tenderness in his eyes brought a fresh lump of emotion to her throat.
Tears filled her eyes. “And I love you.”

He kissed her. Gently. Reverently. A soft brush of the lips that sent her heart slamming
against her ribs. Too soon, he lifted his head and smiled. “I should let you get some
rest.”

She shook her head. “Don’t go. I’m not tired.” She’d just gotten him back; she didn’t
want him to leave again.

He seemed to understand. “Scoot over.”

He moved onto the bed beside her, leaning against the headboard, so that she could
snuggle against him. She sighed with contentment, resting her cheek against his steel-hard
chest and feeling the protective strength of his big arms wrapped around her.

Warm and content, happier than she thought possible, she fell asleep. And for the
first time in a long time, she let herself dream. For dreams did come true. She would
never make do again.

Epilogue
 

Mary kissed her son on his downy-soft head and handed him to his nurse. He protested
with a tiny whinge, but then settled into the woman’s arms contentedly. “Good night,
sweeting,” she said, as the old woman took him away for his nap.

Her sister-in-law turned from her place by the window overlooking the yard. “I doubt
he shall get any sleep with that racket going on down there.”

Mary sighed. “Who’s winning this time?”

Helen squinted into the bright sunshine. “I think your husband.”

“What does that make it?”

Helen shrugged. “I lost count. Maybe five to five?”

“When do you think they’ll stop?” Helen looked at her, and Mary laughed. “All right,
you’re right. They won’t stop.” She shook her head. “You would think they would have
had enough fighting the past couple of months.”

“Ah, but that is easy,” Helen said with a grin. “That’s against the English. This
is fighting to prove who’s the best Highlander.”

Mary came to join her by the window. “I think you better fetch your bag, Angel. It
looks like you have a few bruises and cuts to tend.”

Helen’s mouth pursed. “I don’t know why I bother; they’ll just do it all over again
tomorrow.”

If they were here tomorrow. Mary knew that her husband’s brief, three-day respite
from war could be over at any time. Edward had marched on Scotland nearly two months
ago, and Bruce and the Highland Guard had been ready. Kenneth’s instincts had proved
correct. Edinburgh Castle had been an attempted diversion by the English. The troops
had followed the same path Clifford and his men had taken that fateful scouting trip.
Thanks to her husband, Bruce’s men were waiting for them. The English had been hit
hard and often on his progress north. Edward was currently taking shelter at Renfrew
Castle southwest of Glasgow, but Bruce hoped to have the demoralized English king
back in Berwick soon, licking his wounds.