and cleared her throat. “Right. Let’s clean up these er . . . clear this . . .” She stared at each one of the bloodied bodies in turn and then looked up at me, her eyes luminous with tears. I reached out and tugged her sleeve, drawing her tight to my chest. I knew what she was feeling; these men may have pledged themselves to evil, but they were her people. It was the sort of thing that left a permanent mark on one’s soul.
“I killed them,” Vee choked out. “Men that used to be my guards.”
My own throat tightened as her sobs shook my chest. I buried my face in her hair, wishing I could cry along with her.
“Laird, look.” Murray bent over the first soldier Vee had killed, a pair of empty boots in his hands. The body had disappeared; only the clothes remained.
I turned to the other guards. “Vee, you should see this.”
She peeked up from my chest, just as the body closest to us turned from a putrid violet to black, and then shriveled like a raisin before my eyes. Within seconds, the cadaver vanished completely. Creatures, indeed.
Kenna walked up beside us and took Vee’s hand. “They were no longer human.”
“Aye,” Alasdair said as he approached. “These men where long dead, Yer Majesty.”
“I’m not sure if that makes me feel better or worse.” Veronica sniffed and brushed away her tears. “If Addie has this kind of power, what more is she capable of?”
I had to agree. The witch was growing stronger by the day. Our kingdom was falling apart from the inside, and this time, I wasn’t confident we could save it.
CHAPTER 28
Duncan
Growing up, I was always bigger than the other lads, even Fergus. People assumed that because of my size I was brave. The MacCrae brothers were unstoppable, at least that’s what our kinsmen believed. And in Jamie’s case, it was true.
Whenever I faced an exploit that terrified me, like scaling the castle turret or repelling from a cliff, Jamie would say in a low voice meant only for my ear, “You’re no’ scairt. You’re Prince Duncan MacCrae.”
I would reply, “The valiant . . .”
To which, he would add, “The daring . . .”
And I would conclude, “The fearless . . .”
And then he would give me a shove toward whatever it was that was giving me pause and I would go and do it.
We stood at the base of a cliff, contemplating the obstacle separating us from the others—an almost vertical rock face. The ring’s guidance had unmistakably led to Armpit Cave. When Jamie and I had discovered the cavern as lads, we thought we were the only ones on earth who’d set foot in it. Apparently, it wasn’t only our secret.
Without warning Jamie shoved me in Mackenna’s direction and I collided with her, our feet tangling so that we needed to cling to each other to stay upright.
Mackenna’s fingers dug into my shoulders as she struggled to regain her balance on the uneven terrain. “Duncan, what the heck?”
“Sorry,” I mumbled as I braced us. Looking over my shoulder, I shot my brother a glare meant to wipe the smirk off his face. “I must’ve tripped.”
Balance restored, I continued to cling to the girl who possessed my heart. I stared into her stormy gray eyes as her brow lifted. “Well,” she drawled. And for the briefest of moments, I thought she’d discerned my true intent. “Aren’t you going to let me go?”
It was a literal question, but I continued to stand there holding her and gawking like a fool. When her brows ratcheted up even more, I released my grip. But as to the question of letting her go, I was afraid that was impossible. I could sooner let myself go than her. But perhaps, as my brother had tactfully pointed out, I’d been wrong about my approach.
Mackenna shielded her eyes against the setting sun and pointed to the fissure in the rock eighteen meters above us. “That’s like, sixty feet. How do we get up there? Any ideas?”
Jamie stepped up from behind. “I’ve one.” He lifted his fingers to his mouth and whistled—short, long, short, short; our training signal for allies approaching.
After what felt like hours, but was likely only a minute or two, a rope began to snake its way down the cliff. As we watched it being lowered, Queen Veronica chuckled appreciatively. “Where’d the rope come from?”
Jamie and I exchanged grins. “Many of the caves in these mountains are stocked