Page 9 of Highlander’s Sweet Poison

“I am not here to hurt anyone,” he told her quietly.

Moving stiffly, she plopped a bowl of cooked oats on the table and nodded. “Sit. We at least need to speak about what happens next.”

What happened next was that she pack so they could leave as soon as possible. The sooner he was done with this business, the better, but as he sat down, he had a feeling it wasn’t going to go that easily. “What exactly do ye want to talk about?” he asked warily.

“I was not expected to have to leave anytime soon, and there are a few things I would like to finish before we go. I have several herbs that are close to harvesting, and others that are drying. One of the boys in the village still requires at least two more days of treatment for a cough that I would like to see him through.”

Graeme grunted. “And why are ye seeing to him and not Agnes?”

“Agnes is a wonderful midwife and much better at sutures and open wounds, but she has sent others to me who require internal medicine, and before ye ask, ‘tis not magic. ‘Tis just nature. I would like to show her a few things before I go. Three to four days, Graeme. ‘Tis all I am asking since we both know that the chances I will return are slim.”

Three to four days. Part of him wanted to believe that she was looking for another opportunity to run, but he knew that if there were a child involved, she would put them first.

“I must ask Theo for permission to be here that long,” he said, even though they both knew he would grant it. Plus, it would give him a chance to ask why Theo hadn’t thought to offer the woman sanctuary.

“And if he says yes?”

“Then aye, ye may have yer extension, but dinnae think I will grant ye the freedom to run.”

Jillian rolled her eyes. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”

The shadow came out of nowhere, and Graeme barely had a chance to dodge the fist that was aiming straight for his face. It glanced off his cheek, and even though Graeme knew that it was Theo, his instincts still kicked in, and he grabbed Theo’s head to pull him to the ground.

The MacDougal laird kicked at his knees, knocking him off balance, and they both tumbled to the ground.

They were near his training quarters, and guards were milling from place to place, but although they stopped to see what was happening, no one jumped in to rescue him. Theo and Graeme both had their swords sheathed, so there was no reason for the guards to protect him. It was a brawl and nothing else.

A brawl that Theo started. Wasn’t Graeme supposed to be the angry one?

He landed on top of Theo, but a fist to his ribs made him roll off and push back to his feet. Theo sprang up as well but not before Graeme smashed his nose in. Blood spurted, and Theo reacted by charging at him, head first.

“Bloody hell, get it together!” Oliver roared as he tried to intervene. Graeme was distracted for a second, but a second was all Theo needed before his fist plowed into his nose. “Laird, beg yer pardon, but that is enough!”

Theo and Graeme both growled, but with blood running down their chins, they stopped. It was no wonder that Oliver was upset. They were attracting an audience, and it wasn’t just the guards. A few children were watching as well.

“Theo,” Graeme growled, “do ye have something that ye want to say to me?”

Oliver cleared his throat again. “What say we get ye two cleaned up, and then ye can explain why ye, two lairds who are supposed to be in a peace treaty together, are fighting in front of the guards?”

Scowling at each other, they followed him back to the barracks, where Oliver made them sit down. After throwing them a rag and indicating that they were to clean themselves up, he swiveled a chair around and stared at them. “Broken?”

Graeme gingerly tested his nose and shook his head. Theo did the same. “Better not be. Gemma will murder me if I break my nose fighting with ye.”

“Why are ye fighting with me? My hands are tied. I gave ye plenty of time to get here and grant Jillian sanctuary,” Graeme complained. “Instead, I catch her trying to escape on her own in the dead of night. Do ye have any idea what might have happened to her out there?”

All three of them knew exactly what might have happened, and they all took a minute to absorb the impact. Oliver, who was so desperately in love with Elizabeth, had nearly lost his mind when they couldn’t find them.

“She’s a different person now,” he sighed. “Flinches whenever a man touches her. Always looking around and expecting another attack.”

“Gemma has nightmares.” Theo gritted his teeth. “I wish I could bring Thomas back so I could kill him again. Graeme, I did offer Jillian sanctuary. She turned it down. She was afraid of what might happen to the peace treaty.”

Graeme bared his teeth. “Like I would start a war over her,” he hissed.

“Nay, but yer council carries weight in yer clan. They may have yer men take up arms without yer consent.”

“Then I will cut them down myself. No one orders my men but for me.” Sighing, he closed his eyes and leaned back against the wall, his head gently knocking on the wood. “This was not supposed to happen. I was to leave Jillian here and forget all about her.”

“There was a time when ye were furious that she was here because ye also thought she murdered her husband.” Theo angled his head. “They say she is a witch, aye?”