Entrusted to a Highlander: Highland Promise Trilogy Book Two Read online

  Entrusted to a Highlander

  Highland Promise Trilogy Book Two

  Donna Fletcher

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  About the Author

  Also by Donna Fletcher

  Also by Donna Fletcher

  Entrusted To A Highlander

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this publication may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever, including but not limited to being stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without permission of the author.

  This is a book of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright September 2020 by Donna Fletcher

  * * *

  Cover art

  Kim Killion Group

  * * *

  Visit Donna’s Web site

  www.donnafletcher.com

  http://www.facebook.com/donna.fletcher.author

  Created with Vellum

  Chapter 1

  Purity let out a scream that echoed through the forest and had the birds fleeing the treetops as she threw herself at the large dog she had raised from a pup these last five years, shielding him from the arrow meant to kill him but instead grazed her upper arm.

  “Stay, Princess,” she ordered the growling animal, struggling to free herself from Purity’s hold and defend her with her life. If it were one man, she would release her, but three had come upon them suddenly while she foraged in the woods and, though Princess was large, she was no match for the men with swords and bow and arrows. At least not until… “Wait for King,” she whispered to the dog.

  Purity stood, keeping a growling Princess behind her. “What do you want?”

  “You!” The largest of the three men, thick in the chest and arms—not so his legs—pointed at her. “You’ll fetch a decent price.”

  The skinny man with the bow and arrow scrunched his brow as he turned to the large man. “But we already—”

  “Haud yer wheesht, Quiver!” the big man ordered sharply.

  Already… what? Purity wondered over the unfinished remark. What had Quiver meant to say that had the big man ordering him to hold his tongue? And what had brought the men so deep into the woods? This area saw few travelers.

  With a sharp snap of his head, Quiver turned away from the man, mumbling beneath his breath.

  “We need to rid ourselves of the dog, Reid,” the other man said, impatience stinging his words.

  Fear continued to grow in Purity, prickling her skin. The thought of possibly losing Princess tore at her heart but also angered her and sparked her courage.

  “I’ll not be going with you and I suggest you, eejits, leave before death takes hold of you,” Purity warned.

  Quiver’s head appeared as if it swiveled on his shoulders as he looked around to see if death itself had materialized and was there waiting for them.

  “Quiver’s the only idiot here,” the man said with a grin.

  “You’re right about that, Owen,” Reid said with a laugh.

  Purity hated that they took delight in what they intended. It meant they were an ignorant and heartless lot, unperturbed by others’ sufferings. Pleas and threats would make no difference to them. She knew well these type of men, having seen the destruction they could cause. They made one mistake, though, they had thought her easy prey since she was a woman alone.

  “I won’t be going with you,” Purity informed them again, quite strongly this time.

  Quiver was the only one who didn’t laugh. He was still too busy glancing around for death. The two fools might think him an idiot, but he had been wise enough not to dismiss her threat.

  “You are more foolish than I thought. It will be easy to defeat you,” Purity said.

  Reid and Owen laughed again, but Quiver stepped back away from the two.

  “Quiver will take your dog down with one shot of his arrow,” Reid said.

  Purity glared at the man. “Not before she tears your throat out.”

  Reid’s hand went to his throat as if he could feel the dog’s fangs ripping into his flesh. “Quiver would get him first,” he argued.

  Purity laughed. “I would think twice on that since I believe Quiver got his name for a reason.” She pointed at the man. “He quivers when frightened, not a good trait for a marksman.”

  Reid and Owen didn’t even turn to look at Quiver, though the annoyed looks they exchanged proved Purity’s observation.

  “Quiver will do what needs being done and there is still Owen and me. There is no way you can best us.”

  Purity smiled with confidence. “Not on my own.”

  “She has help,” Quiver said and took several anxious steps away from them, his eyes continuing to dart nervously around.

  “Do not be a fool. She puts doubts in your head,” Reid snapped.

  Quiver gasped. “She learned magic from that witch that once lived here. They say her magic still roams these woods and is the reason no one dares travel this way.”

  “The man, Quiver, is wiser than he appears,” Purity said, seeing that Quiver appeared ready to flee, and hoping to encourage him, then that would leave only two men to contend with.

  “Quiver is a fool who knows nothing and obeys orders,” Reid said with a curt tongue. “And I will argue with you no more. Quiver, see to the dog once we get hold of the woman.”

  Purity was quick with her words, though they were not the truth. “The dog belongs to the witch. She will not take kindly to him being harmed.”

  Quiver backed farther away.

  “You’re useless,” Reid spat. “My wife—your sister—warned me not to take you with me. For once I should have listened to her.”

  Purity thought King would have returned by now, though he’d been annoyed with her when he had walked off this morning. He could be temperamental and when irritated he’d go for a wander, ignoring Purity and Princess. However, her scream should have brought him here by now. A sudden catch to her chest had her fearing something had happened to him.

  Her decision was a quick one. She had to send Princess to get King. “Find, King,” she ordered in a whisper and the big dog took off, disappearing into the woods.

  “Well that problem was solved easily enough,” Owen said with a laugh.

  “Not likely, if she sends the animal for help,” Quiver said.

  The skinny man wasn’t as foolish as the other two men believed, but there was little time to think on that. The men would make their move soon enough and she would have to survive until help found its way to her.

  Owen stepped toward her.

  “Don’t hurt her or
we’ll get less for her,” Reid warned.

  “A few scrapes or bruises will heal well enough before we reach our destination,” Owen said.

  Purity retrieved her dagger from her boot in a flash. “Mine might, but yours won’t.”

  Reid stepped forward with a confident grin. “You think you can defend yourself against the two of us?”

  “Maybe not, but in the end, I’ll leave you with wounds that won’t soon heal,” Purity threatened, and that stopped both men.

  “What was that?” Quiver asked with a nervous jump.

  Reid and Owen remained quiet and listened.

  “I didn’t hear anything,” Owen said, annoyed.

  “Either did I,” Reid agreed.

  “I tell you I heard something,” Quiver insisted, his eyes darting rapidly around.

  “You’re a coward, Quiver,” Owen said. “The woman is obviously one of those fools who thinks animals are worth caring about.”

  “And you, Owen, are a fine example of why that is,” Purity said. “A dog is more trustworthy than the likes of you.”

  Owen’s face raged red and he lunged at Purity. She stood her ground, knowing his temper ruled, leaving her the upper hand. When he got close enough, she lashed out with her dagger and he stumbled back to avoid the blade.

  Reid’s laughter infuriated Owen all the more. “Let me show you how to corral a woman.”

  His size and bulk alone would make it difficult for Purity to defend against. She had to keep her distance or chance him taking her dagger off her and possibly using it on her.

  “Now lass, just calm yourself and you won’t be harmed,” Reid cajoled as he approached her. “There’s no way you’ll escape the three of us, so make it easy on yourself.”

  The thought of being taken captive and removed from her beloved woods and King and Princess frightened and infuriated her. This was her home and she had no intention of leaving it. She’d die here if she had to, but she would never leave here.

  “It’s a dead body you’ll be carrying, if you think to take me from my home,” she warned.

  “Now, lass, why be like that?” Reid continued to cajole as he kept approaching her slowly. “Do what’s best and surrender.”

  Purity glared at him. “NEVER!”

  Purity realized what the two men intended and feared she wouldn’t be able to move fast enough, and she was right. The two men lunged at her and while she managed to keep Owen at a distance with her dagger, Reid came up fast behind her and his hand clamped down like an iron shackle on her arm, squeezing and twisting it so hard she was forced to drop the dagger. She didn’t let that stop her though from lashing out at him; punching, kicking, doing all she could to free herself.

  Reid didn’t disappoint. He was exactly as Purity believed him to be, an uncaring, heartless soul. He raised his hand and swung with full force at her face. Her head snapped to the side, the horrific sting stunning her for a few moments.

  “LET HER GO NOW!”

  The venomous, intense command sent a shiver through Reid even before he turned and what he saw sent an icy chill clear down to his bones.

  A Northman stood, dwarfing the substantial sapling oak beside him. He wore the hides and furs known to the fierce Northmen tribes across the North Sea and he carried several weapons that could do great harm with a single blow from a skilled hand.

  “This doesn’t concern you,” Reid called out.

  “I say it does. LET HER GO!” the Northman reiterated with a stinging command any fool would not ignore.

  “She belongs to us,” Reid said with brash bravado.

  “I think not,” the Northman said. “And make me repeat myself and you’ll find your head split in two.”

  Purity shivered at the thought, and Reid stupidly ignored the warning.

  Reid yanked Purity along with him as he stepped forward and she caught herself from stumbling. “She’s ours and she’ll be going with us.”

  Purity didn’t even see the Northman reach for his axe. It simply landed deep in the middle of Reid’s skull as if slicing him in two. He stumbled back, his arm falling off Purity, and stared at her in disbelief before he fell to the ground dead.

  Princess came charging out the woods then, King riding on her back. The large cat launched himself at Owen, his paws spread wide, and his sharp claws caught the man across his face nearly tearing his eyeball from his head.

  Princess went for Quiver, but the man turned and ran, screaming, “I mean you no harm. I mean you no harm.”

  Owen fumbled for his sword at his side, blood pouring down his face. The Northman didn’t hesitate, he ran his sword through the man and Owen’s mouth dropped open in shock as he dropped to the ground dead.

  The Northmen wiped his bloody sword clean on Owen’s garment and returned it to his sheath. He then went to Reid and retrieved his axe, cleaning the weapon on the dead man before slipping it into the loop on his belt.

  Purity remained a distance from him, Princess taking a protective stance in front of her. King, the cat she had raised since he’d been a kitten, paced and hissed in front of Princess, warning the Northman to keep his distance. She felt safer with King and Princess there. They were highly protective of her and were quick to alert her to danger or protect her when necessary, as Princess had done today. And she was sure that King’s little morning tantrum that had kept him away would result in him remaining closer to her than usual since he had failed to be there when she needed him. Like now, warning the Northman to keep his distance.

  Purity couldn’t say the man didn’t frighten her, his appearance alone did that. His foreign attire made him appear the savage the Northmen were known to be and, though lean, he was all hard muscle from the look of his bare arms and what she could see of his chest. She thought it odd he wore his hair cropped short. She had thought all Northmen wore their hair long—a sign of strength. His dark eyes were as intense as his voice.

  He turned to her. “Did they harm you?”

  The bare touch of gentleness in his voice sparked something familiar and she shook her head as she stared at his features. He possessed more than just fine features. He was handsome beyond measure and that stirred a memory. She had known only one man as handsome as he. His frequent smile had tempted, his words had flattered, his cajoling nature had drawn endless women to him.

  She saw the resemblance then and her breath caught. It was the absence of his smile, his eyes devoid of any feelings, the lack of any regret in having taken a life or two that had her failing to recognize the man standing in front of her. The man who she loved for far too many years now. The man who didn’t feel the same about her and never would. The man she had once begged to wed her. And when he spoke, he confirmed it.

  “I am Arran of the Clan MacKinnon, and I have come in search of my sister, Raven.”

  Chapter 2

  Purity made sure to keep her left hand hidden from Arran. If he saw it, he was sure to recognize her, and she didn’t want that. She’d been born missing her thumb and pinky, leaving her hand to resemble a claw. She had suffered horribly through the years because of it, no one wanting to befriend her and some insisting she bore the mark of the devil. Arran’s sister Raven was not one of them. She called Purity a friend, not so Arran. Not that he was ever mean to her.

  He had asked her once if she’d ever been kissed and when she had told him no, he asked if she’d like to be. She had wanted no pity kiss from him even though she had wondered what it would feel like. She had no worry he would recognize her, since he probably hadn’t given a single thought to her in his time away. Except for her hand, of course, he would surely recognize her once he spotted it. Otherwise, he had barely paid heed to her years ago, and she had changed much. The love of her new home—the forest—had done that for her.

  “I can describe Raven when last I saw her. She was near to turning ten and five years, but with five years having past, I can’t say what she looks like now,” Arran said. “She has hair the color of a raven, black. It was long an
d wavy, though often in disarray. Her blues eyes were striking, her complexion pale, her features lovely, but again that was five years ago. By chance has she passed this way?”

  Purity had given her word to hold her tongue when it came to Raven and she would keep it, but she would not let Arran suffer because of it. She wasn’t prone to lies, though through the years she had learned that lies slipped easily from peoples’ tongues, sometimes out of necessity and sometimes purely for one’s own benefit. Still, she avoided lying when possible and offered a partial truth to him.

  “There was a woman who could fit that description who passed this way with a group, but that was some time ago,” she said.

  “Not recently though?”

  If he was disappointed, he didn’t show it, nor did she hear it in his voice.

  “Aye, not recently,” Purity confirmed and said no more on it, though was quick to offer her gratitude for his help. “I am grateful you appeared when you did. You saved me from a terrible fate and I much appreciate your kindness.” She wanted him to take his leave as quickly as possible, but it would be unkind of her not to offer food or drink for what he had done for her. “Please let me offer you some sustenance before you continue on your journey.”

  He looked about to decline, a relief to Purity, when he seemed to change his mind.

  “My thanks, that would be of great help,” he said.