A Very Highland Holiday - Kathryn Le Veque Page 0,167

Sarah was right that an entire clan should not have to suffer for the misdeeds of their conniving and selfish leaders.

That was not the type of man he was, to make innocents suffer.

“We should eat before it gets cold,” he said, needing to think a lot more before he spoke again.

They ate in silence as his mind ruminated on one plan after another. A number of scenarios played out, but not one seemed more perfect over the other. They could infiltrate the walls and abduct Edward and Ellyson, execute them in the woods. The Shaw clan could appeal to the rest of Clan Chattan, the cooperative confederate between the twelve clans to which the Shaws were a member. He could call upon the other rebel leaders who he’d fought with at Culloden. But the thing was other clans might not want to be involved. The Campbells were massive in size and power. He had to find a way to hit them where it hurt. Which he’d already started by abducting Sarah.

When he’d finished eating, she began to gather their things on the tray, but he stilled her hand. “I’ll get it,” he offered and took the tray himself to place it outside the door.

“Thank ye,” she called out to him.

He stood by the door, his fingers resting on the handle. “Ye’re welcome.”

Thane felt the heat of her presence before he saw her from the side of his eye, standing by his side. Her fingers brushed his. Tiny flames danced on the skin of his knuckles.

“I’m truly verra verra sorry for your loss, Thane.”

He turned to face her, seeing the tears, how much she too was heartbroken, in eyes that were the color of peat. “And I’m verra sorry for yours.”

“We have all lost so much in this rebellion,” she whispered.

“Shh…” He held his finger to his lips and nodded his head at the empty corridor. “Never know who’s listening.”

Sarah bit her lip, peering out into the empty corridor. When she leaned back, her arm brushed his, and they both stared down at the spot. “How about we check out the Chamber of Sorrow?” she suggested in a welcome change of subject.

“No’ certain that’s a very festive thing to do on Christmas morning, but I’m willing to try if ye like.”

Sarah shrugged, grimacing slightly. “Better to see what we are fighting for than to sit here wallowing in our grief.”

“Excellent point.”

Thane took her hand in his, her small, warm fingers sliding comfortably against his. Their palms flattened against one another. He gritted his teeth at the contact and how it sent tiny shivers racing down his spine. As much as touching her excited him, he was also keenly aware of how easy it was to be with her. Thane would have thought it torture, but instead, he was quite calm around her.

Sarah stopped suddenly. “Perhaps ye should leave your weapons here?” Her gaze was on his belt, where a pistol was holstered on one side and a dagger on the other.

“Why would I do that?”

She shrugged. “For the safety of others?”

Thane chuckled at her humor. “I like the way ye think.”

Sarah grinned, that impish dimple flashing at him, and he found himself mesmerized for a moment, his gaze tracing the outline of her lips. She looked nothing like her younger brothers. Acted nothing like them, either.

“How are ye possibly related to Edward and Ellyson?” he mused, stopping them in the center of the corridor and glancing down at her.

“They are my brothers,” she answered quite literally. “Though Jon and I share a different mother.”

“Was their mother unkind?”

Sarah frowned, the crease between her brow tiny, and he had the sudden urge to kiss her there.

“She was not particularly unkind to me,” she said. “Ignored me mostly. I didna know her well. She died birthing Ellyson. The midwife, after the birth of Edward, warned that she should wait several years, allowing her body to heal after such a traumatic birthing, but she didna wait a month. Not even enough time to be clean in the eyes of the church. I remember her getting my da deep in his cups and having her way with him. She must have conceived that night. Edward and Ellyson are so close in age, less than a year, they could almost be twins.”

Thane could not imagine Sarah pulling a trick like that. She just didn’t seem the type. “I wonder at her urgency.”

Sarah released a long sigh and tugged at his hand, resuming their walk toward the Chamber