Page 16 of Surrendering to her Highland Captor
Sorcha hated Lachlan’s reasonable thinking, but relented all the same. At the very least, returning to the castle meant she would be able to pack better for the long journey Sorcha knew awaited her.
The snow muffled their retreat to Kincaid Castle, giving the world a false sense of peace and calm. Sorcha knew better. Sheknew that outside the stone walls and the forest, past the lake the castle sat next too was a world of danger, ready to eat Taryn alive.
“I ken ye probably hate me right now,” Lachlan said to both Sorcha and Aila once they were inside his study, sitting by the warm fire. “But I truly believe that this is the best plan of action.”
It felt unfair for Sorcha to be warming her fingers and toes indoors with a steaming cup of tea while Taryn was stuck outside with strangers.
“I ken things have been quiet these past few months, but with the spring quickly approaching, I cannae put it past the English to be sending more men here in the north. If ye were to rush south, ye might be caught by their army with nay one to help ye. I cannae risk that. Taryn would nae want ye to risk that.”
“And if we were to take some of the men with us, that would leave the castle vulnerable,” Aila said as if she were already defeated.
“What does vulnerable mean?”
Elsie’s curious question was the only signal the adults had that the child had been listening in on their conversation. Sorcha twisted in her chair, already dreading what she knew was coming. Aila paused and thought about how best to answer the girl, but it was Lachlan who spoke.
“It means open or undefended. It is nae always a bad thing. It can be good to be vulnerable with yer friends or family when ye need to have someone else to rely on. But in this case, we are talking about the castle and that would nae be good.”
Elsie nodded, thinking through the explanation as though she were trying to settle it in her mind. Sorcha watched as the girl’s expression shifted from thoughtfulness back to open curiosity.
“Where is Taryn? She promised me berries at breakfast this morning if I went to bed without complaint. I did, ye can ask Mary!”
“Have ye seen Taryn? We cannae—” Christopher stopped mid-sentence once he took in the pensive expression of the adults. “What is it? What has happened?”
“What do ye mean?” Arran asked, rushing into the room last. “Has something happened?”
Sorcha sighed, knowing there was no avoiding what was next. She was responsible for the mess, having allowed Taryn to go on a patrol alone. She needed to be the one to tell them what had happened.
“I think ye all should sit down,” she answered slowly.
Aila and Lachlan exchanged a glance, and then he silently gestured to do the talking, but Sorcha shook her head. She would own her mistake. The children settled onto the deep green sofa, none of their legs quite reaching the floor, though Christopher’s were the closest.
“There is nay easy way to say this, so I am going to talk to ye, as if ye were all grown. Do ye think ye can handle that?”
The three nodded quickly, relishing the idea of being considered adults as only children can. They didn’t understand the full weight of maturity and Sorcha knew that what she was about to say would cut into their already tainted childhoods.
“It is Taryn. There are some verra bad men who have been after her for a long time. We think that last night, they somehow managed to catch her while she was out in the woods.”
Elsie immediately burst into tears. Christopher and Arran didn’t look too far behind her.
“This is all my fault,” the girl cried.
“How could this be yer fault?” Aila asked with a gentle chide as she knelt by Elsie’s feet.
Elsie hiccuped, too overcome with emotion to answer for a moment. When she finally caught her breath, the answer she gave struck the adults to their core.
“I asked for some more berries. Taryn told me that there were none in the kitchen, but I begged. She promised that she would get me some if I went to bed without complaint. They caught her because of me; because I wanted the berries.”
“Och, nay,” Aila told her, scooping the girl up and placing her on her lap with a hug. “This is nae yer fault. We cannae control the ways people try to hurt us. The only person to blame for this is those who took her from us.”
Elsie looked as if she believed Aila’s words as much as Sorcha did. And the longer that Sorcha watched Aila, the more she knew that Aila didn’t believe herself.
Taryn was a sister to them both, a mother figure for these three orphans. She was dear to everyone she knew. Her disappearance made Sorcha feel as if the entire world were out of rhythm, tilted and off kilter. Before Sorcha knew what was happening, she felt hot tears sliding down her cheeks, her chest tight and heaving. That was all it took to send the boys over the edge, both of them giving into tears of their own. Sorcha knelt on the floor in front of them and wrapped one arm around them each.
“This is my fault,” Sorcha whispered. “I am so sorry. I promise I will find her and bring her back.”
“This is nay yer fault,” Lachlan said firmly. “I need everyone to take a deep breath and listen to me.”
Gone was the understanding, easy going new husband that had been out in the woods looking for his wife’s friend. In his place stood a formidable Laird whose orders were not to be argued with. Sorcha sniffed, as did the other children. She wiped at her eyes, clearing them just in time to see that Aila was doingthe same thing. When everyone’s tears had stopped and the room had calmed with a blanket of grief, Lachlan spoke again.
