The Betrayal - By Ruth Langan Page 0,49
Then, seeing that she’d been spotted, she lifted her head and fixed Kylia with a stern look. “What game do you play with me, witch?”
“Game?” Kylia sat up straighter.
“Culver told me that my nephew requests my presence at his table, because you asked it of him. Why would you do such a thing?”
“You are as much mother as aunt to Grant and Dougal. It would pain them to be separated from you.”
“Why should that matter to you?”
“You are a woman who loved a man deeply. You, more than anyone, ought to understand that anything that causes pain to Grant, pains me as well.”
“You dare to pretend to care about my nephew the way I cared about my beloved Ranald?”
“There is no pretense, Lady Hazlet. I love your nephew.”
“You dare to confuse lust with love? Everyone knows that witches aren’t capable of love. Except perhaps with their own kind.”
As Hazlet started to sweep past, Kylia got to her feet and stood in her way. “There is something I must tell you.”
“I have no interest in anything you might want to say.”
Kylia’s voice lowered with feeling. “When first I arrived here, I was visited with a dream. In it I saw your brother and his friend on the field of battle. I watched them die, and heard their dying words.” She saw the veiled head come up, and though she couldn’t see Hazlet’s eyes, she heard her suck in a breath.
Gathering her courage, she spoke quickly, before the woman could run. “Stirling and Ranald fought with great courage, but they were badly outnumbered.”
“You could have learned that from anyone here at the castle. It was well known that my brother was headstrong. Even though he knew the Highlanders’ strength was no match for the invaders, he used his charm to persuade his army to meet them on the field of battle. It was my brother’s pride that caused the death of all those fine men, and the man I loved.”
“Though you cast blame, Ranald never did. As he lay in Stirling’s arms, breathing his last, he spoke only of you.”
Hazlet went very still.
“Ranald begged your brother to watch out for you. He expressed fear that you would withdraw from the world. ‘In fear and shame,’ he said. And then his last words were that he loved you more than life itself.”
If Kylia had expected her words to comfort the older woman, she was astounded when, instead of gratitude, Hazlet flew into a black, blinding rage.
“Witchcraft.” The insult was torn from her lips while she lifted her hands to her ears, to block any further words Kylia might try to speak. “All of this is evil witchcraft, descended upon me by the devil himself.”
“I thought…”
“You thought to trick me. To win my confidence, and then to betray me to the others. But I know your kind. Evil, evil witch.” Hazlet pointed a finger at the wolf pup that, having heard her shouts, chewed nervously at the hem of Kylia’s gown. “You belong together. Both creatures of the wild.”
Lifting her skirts, Hazlet turned and began to run toward the castle, leaving Kylia to stare after her in amazement.
What had just happened here? What had caused this blazing anger?
As she went over in her mind what she’d said and done, Kylia could think of no reason for Hazlet’s fury. She had simply affirmed that the man Hazlet loved above all others had returned that love, and had asked his best friend to watch out for her.
Lest she withdraw in shame and fear.
What did Hazlet have to fear after the death of her lover, except loneliness?
What would shame her, except her brother’s headstrong actions that had taken him and his men into a battle they couldn’t win? Yet Grant and Dougal felt nothing but pride at their father’s courage.
How could the love of a good man, who returned that love, bring a woman shame and fear?
Kylia sank down onto the stone bench, hearing in her mind her grandmother’s wise words. Sometimes the answers to our questions are right before our eyes. All we need do is see things in a different light.
As she lifted Wee Lad onto her lap and began to soothe him, she pondered. What was she missing? Who held the key to Hazlet’s grief and anger? And was this somehow connected to the reason she had accompanied Grant to his world?
Chapter Sixteen
The evening meal in the great hall was once again attended by dozens of men, this time without their ladies. In what