Warrior of Ice

It was your fault that Christopher died, came the voice of her conscience. She closed her eyes, wanting so badly to push back the grief. But against her will, she saw her brother’s lifeless body in her vision, her heart still hurting for the loss.

She’d been a young girl, only four years old. Christopher was twelve and was home from his fostering, visiting for Yuletide. She’d idolised him and had followed him around everywhere, wanting so badly to be near him. Her brother had an easy smile and he’d never seemed to mind her attention. Sometimes he would swing her up on his shoulders, letting her feel as tall as a grown woman.

Sweet Jesu, she had loved him.

But one morning, she had run through the courtyard, eager to bid him farewell before he went off hunting with their father. She hadn’t paid any heed to where she was going, and Christopher’s horse had reared up without warning, throwing him off. Her brother’s head had struck a stone, and he had never awakened again.

The bitter guilt had remained with her all these years, for it had been her fault.

Taryn took a tentative step inside the stable and was relieved to see that all of the animals remained still and quiet with only an occasional nicker. Killian stood on the far end, resting both palms against a stall. Tension lined his shoulders, and she suddenly questioned her decision to follow him.

‘You were supposed to stay with Carice,’ he told her.

In his voice, she sensed the caged frustration. But even so, she wanted to understand what had happened in the Great Chamber. ‘Why did the chieftain refuse to let you speak?’

He didn’t turn around, and his knuckles tightened against the wood. ‘Brian wishes that I had never been born. He’s hated me since I took my first breath.’

‘Why? What threat could you possibly pose to him?’

He faced her, and in his grey eyes, she saw a man of ice. There was no pain, no emotion at all. Only a frozen mask of indifference.

‘I’m a bastard, Lady Taryn. I was not born a member of the tribe, and I’m not worth even the dirt beneath his feet. Why would he speak to me?’ Killian studied her with a mocking smile. ‘Brian wants naught to do with me. He wanted me hidden from everyone, like a secret meant to be forgotten.’ He spread out his hands, gesturing towards the stable. ‘Look around you, Lady Taryn. This is my home. I sleep here, among the horses and dogs.’

She didn’t like that at all. A man’s worth had nothing to do with his birthright.

‘You are not to blame for your mother’s choices.’

‘A choice?’ He looked incredulous at her words. ‘My mother had no choice at all. She was with child when she fled the High King. Brian took her in, but we were both treated as fuidir.’ He shrugged as if it meant nothing. Still, it bothered Taryn to see a man so mistreated, merely from circumstances of birth.

‘Why did she leave the High King?’

He sent her a disbelieving glance. ‘It’s more likely that she never wanted to be with a man like him. She wouldn’t speak of Rory, though everyone knows I am his son.’

‘Does he know about you? That is, did you ever go to see him?’ Though it was quite a distance to Tara, she couldn’t imagine that he’d remained here.

‘No. Brian told him about me, but Rory cared nothing about my existence. I had no desire to meet him, based on my mother’s experience.’

She suspected there was more that he hadn’t revealed. In his eyes, she saw the hard resentment of a man who hated his life. Most of the fuidir she’d encountered were not as proud as this man. But Killian seemed unwilling to accept a fate such as this, and she could not blame him.

‘If this is not the life you want, you could leave,’ she suggested.

He said nothing, and she realised that she did have something to offer this man. A home where he would not be treated as a slave. ‘If you free my father, you could come and live among our people at Ossoria. You would have a place with us.’

The doubt upon his face made it clear that he did not believe her. ‘I intend to see my sister to safety. That is the only reason I am escorting you to Tara—to help her escape. After that, I will go my own way.’

She wasn’t ready to give up so soon. Not when there was a chance he could save her father’s life.

Yet, there was so much bitterness locked away in Killian, it was festering deep inside. Despite the High King’s reputation, there was a blood bond between them, of father and son. There might be a way for him to gain Rory’s favour.

‘And after Carice is safe? What then?’ she pressed. ‘Will you return here and live among men who treat you like the dirt they walk upon?’

Rage flashed in his eyes and she knew she had struck upon his weakness—pride. This was a man who had the demeanour of a king, though he was trapped in the life of a slave.

‘My decisions are my own.’ He took a step towards her, letting his height intimidate her. But she refused to back down—not when she believed he had the power to save her father. This man had single-handedly fought back against the chieftain’s strongest men, proving that he could overcome the odds. When she looked upon his face, she saw a man of determination, a man of courage.

He reached down and caught her wrist. ‘Don’t think I’m unaware of what you’re doing, a chara. You want me to speak on your father’s behalf to King Rory and ask my father to free Devlin.’ He sent her a sidelong look. ‘As if a bastard son has any influence at all.’ She tried to pull her hand back, but he gripped it tight. ‘I’ll not be risking my life for his.’

He wouldn’t want that, no. But there was something else that might sway him.

Taryn reached beneath her skirt to a pouch she’d tied beneath it. From the pouch, she withdrew a silver coin. She held it up and said, ‘If you do go your own path, you will need to build your own wealth. You could start with this.’

She pressed the silver into his palm, but he caught her hand and held it. The small piece of metal warmed beneath their joined hands, but there was more than a simple touch. ‘This is what my word is worth,’ she continued. ‘If you rescue my father, I can give you a chest of silver so heavy, you cannot lift it. You could buy anything you want.’

Killian’s steel eyes smouldered with fury, and he looked as if her offer had wounded his pride. Taryn’s skin tightened, her body flushing at his intense stare. She tried to look away, but every part of her was strangely attuned to him. Her body had grown sensitive, and the coldness of his face caught her breath.

Like a fallen angel, his features were darkly handsome. Though he didn’t bruise her skin with his grip, he was letting her know who was in command. And it wasn’t her.

‘I’ve never met anyone of noble blood whose word could be trusted.’ He pressed the coin back into her hand, as if to say he wanted nothing she could give.

His words infuriated her. She had done nothing to warrant such distrust, and it was insulting. ‘You don’t even know me, Killian MacDubh. I am a woman who keeps her promises.’

‘Are you?’ he asked softly. ‘The first words you spoke were lies and deceptions. Why should I believe you?’

Her face flushed at the memory of how she’d told the soldiers she was Carice. From the shielded expression on his face, she realised that Killian was a man who trusted no one, save himself. No matter what vows she made, he would not believe them.

‘Then perhaps I won’t help your sister after all,’ she countered. ‘I’ll confess to the soldiers who I really am, and your father can take her to Tara to be wedded to the High King. I’ll find other soldiers to save my father.’

She started to move away, but he caught her waist, trapping her against the wooden horse stall. ‘Don’t.’

His hard body was pressed against hers, and she was completely at his mercy. Though he was likely meaning to intimidate her, instead, it felt like an embrace. Her body softened against his hardness, and she found herself spellbound by his iron eyes. The fierceness of his expression was of a warrior bent upon gaining her surrender. He kept her wrists pinned with his hands against the wall. But instead of feeling trapped, her traitorous mind imagined what it would be like to be claimed by this man.

She suspected that Killian would only take what he wanted, never giving anything of himself. And though it should have frightened her, she wondered if there was any warmth at all behind his heart of ice.

‘You will do nothing to harm Carice. Not ever.’ Though his words were spoken softly, the threat was not lost upon her. ‘Not in word or in deed.’

Taryn stared back at him, facing him without fear. ‘I will do whatever I must to free my father. We can be allies and help one another...or we can be enemies. The choice is yours.’

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