Highland Fires Read Online Free PDF Page B

precious little work done on the sword, so he decided to
make his way to the cliff and wait out the sunrise in the rain. As
he turned away from the window, something on the water caught his
attention. He leaned forward and peered through the rain to see
four large boats coming toward his isle.
    “Marcus,” he whispered as he closed the
shutters and hurried to his room to wake Ahryn.
    Only she wasn’t there.
    Lugus stared at the empty bed before he
walked to it and felt the covers. It was still warm, so she hadn’t
gone far. He ran back to his forge and grabbed his favorite sword
and several daggers as he raced from the back of the cottage. She
had told him she had come to the island with a boat of her own.
Since it wasn’t docked with his, she must have landed at the back
of the isle behind the cliff where the water was the most
dangerous.
    He lengthened his strides as he raced from
the cottage to the small, nearly hidden, path that led around the
cliff all the while placing the daggers and sword on his body. The
rain had already plastered his clothes to his body and his hair to
his face, but he never slowed.
    His foot slipped on the small rocks that
lined the isle as he worked his way around the cliff. The rocks bit
and cut into his hands as he walked around the tight corner. And
then he saw her.
    The wind hampered her ability to move as it
pulled and yanked at her thick, heavy skirts. But it was just the
advantage he needed to catch up with her.
    To his utter shock, he saw her trying in vain
to push her small skiff out into the turbulent waters. She was
trying to leave without Marcus finding her, which meant she must
have seen the boats just as he had. Since she hadn’t bothered to
tell him, he knew she was leaving to protect him.
    Which left him with one choice.
    “What are you doing?” he asked as he stopped
beside her.
    She jerked around, and the wind whipped her
hair into her eyes. She clawed at the long length and stared aghast
at him. “How did you know where I was?”
    “It’s my isle. Now answer me,” he demanded
over the rain and wind.
    She glanced away. “I saw them coming. There
is nothing more you can do for me. I had already decided to leave
this morning anyway. Marcus arriving earlier just spurred me to
move more quickly.”
    “Where do you think you will go?”
    She shrugged. “I have to find a gateway. I
can’t do that if Marcus has me chained to him.”
    Lugus looked over his shoulder. They had a
little time before Marcus and his men found the trail around the
cliff. He turned back to Ahryn. “We have to move quickly.”
    “We?” she asked, trying to hide the hope in
her eyes.
    “Aye, now come on.”
    He waded out into the water and then turned
to find her still pushing the skiff. “Ahryn,” he called.
    She raised her gaze to him. “Aren’t we using
the skiff?”
    “They’ll catch us. We need to go
undetected.”
    She looked at the turbulent sea and slowly
made her way to him. “I won’t make it with this heavy gown.”
    Lugus pulled a dagger from his waist and
reached for the neck of her gown. He heard her gasp as he sliced
open her gown and pulled it from her body. Without looking at her,
he turned and hid the ruined gown between two rocks before
sheathing the dagger. When he turned back around Ahryn was already
neck deep in the water.
    He dove into the water and quickly caught up
with her. The current was swift and strong, and Lugus knew they
would have to swim hard and fast to get to the shores of Scotland
without Marcus finding them.
    They were half way to the mainland when he
turned to look over his shoulder to check on Ahryn. She had gotten
farther and farther behind him, and he could see that she was fast
losing what little strength she had. With a curse, Lugus turned
around and swam to her. He had just reached her when she went under
the water.
    He dove under after her and brought her to
the surface. He held her back against his chest as he swam
backwards to the