“Och, son, nothing is as powerful as love, and many have risked far more for it.” My father's knowing gaze went from Aspen to me. “You might have thought you understood it with Storm, but I sense you have a far better understanding now.”
“’Tis safe to say I do,” I replied without pause, frowning at my mother. “So what happened after that?”
“The MacLeod laird broke the pact, refusing to hand her over, and the two clans went from stout allies to mortal enemies, resulting in a clan war that lasted years and cost both sides dearly, often targeting each other’s offspring until they struck a tentative deal,” she revealed. “One I thought lost to the generations, but clearly it hasn’t been, and Laird Dugal Sutherland means to see it through.”
“And what was this deal?” I asked, my tone low with warning that no Sutherland dare go near my mate.
“’Twas apparently one their sage, or better said,sorcerer, cultivated, and the Sutherlands, impossibly enough, agreed to, but then their dragon sorcerer was incredibly powerful,” Mother replied. “For the sake of their clans and their future survival, he counseled the Sutherland laird to strike a new pact.” My mother went to Aspen and held out her hand. “Might I see your tattoo again, as I suspect it has changed, aye?”
“It has,” Aspen said slowly, frowning from me to my mother as she pulled up her sleeve. “Why? What does it have to do with a clan legend?”
“’Tis said when the time comes to fulfill the new pact, markings will appear on both the current Sutherland laird and the MacLeod destined to see the sorcerer’s pact through.” Her voice dropped an octave, and her gaze grew sad when she traced her fingers over Aspen’s new tattoo. “’Twould be a winged sword with a gem in the center.”
“A tattoo that formed when she touched me, her fated mate, for the first time,” I growled, shaking my head. “And what precisely did the sorcerer’s new pact entail? What did he foresee?”
“Born of a dragon and the sorcerer’s distant ancestor, the female who wore the mark would be powerful,” she said softly, “and destined for the current Sutherland laird if the same tattoo appeared on him. ‘Tis said she would be found among the MacLeods, and ‘twould mean the start of the new pact, lest a clan war begin anew, and the next generations on both sides be wiped out once more. ‘Twould be a means to right old wrongs done to the Sutherlands by the first MacLeod laird and begin a new era of peace and prosperity betwixt the two clans.”
“Nay.” I kept shaking my head, doing my best to rein in my emotions, but I could feel my inner beast writhing just beneath the surface. “I willnae allow it.” I looked at Aspen with reassurance. “You have my word, lass.”
“Are you sure the pact claims she’s meant for the Sutherland laird?” Kenneth wondered. “Because last I knew, he already has a wife.”
My father shrugged. “’Tis what we have been told, but I cannae say with any certainty. Something tells me the king will let us know soon enough.”
“So, just one woman?” Aspen narrowed her eyes at my mother. “Presumablyme, was enough to do all that? Really? When the original pact involved four witches?” She glanced from me back to my mother. “Seems strange, given I have three sisters who have all been told about a MacLeod destined for them. As I’m sure you realize, that totals four witches, just like the original pact.”
“As ironic and strange as it sounds,” my mother agreed, “’twas but one woman promised to one man this time.”
“One woman who is verra likely fated mates with the current MacLeod dragon laird,” Kenneth pointed out, seeing things from his typical wizardly perspective. “To break their bond would mean Aspen and Broderick not coming into the full power of fated mates, which could be substantial indeed.”
“So the new pact was a failsafe to keep the MacLeods from growing more powerful than the Sutherlands someday?” Lucas deduced.
“That and ‘twould bring the sorcerer’s bloodline back to the Sutherland’s, without a doubt, making them powerful in ways we dinnae ken given Aspen is both witch and dragon,” my father said, joining us. He looked at me in warning. “More so, ‘twould make their bairns powerful in ways we dinnae ken.”
“Yet the MacLeods and Sutherlands have battled on and off for generations without provoking a clan war,” Lucas reminded. “So we’re to believe now that Aspen’s tattoo has appeared, if we dinnae hand her over, ‘twill lead to war?”
“Which would make our king very unhappy, indeed,” my mother said softly. “The Sutherlands and MacLeods are among his fiercest, most loyal clans and needed in our never-ending skirmishes with the English.” She gave me a pointed look. “The last thing he needs is our clans at war with each other when we should be assisting him.”
Raking a hand through my hair, I scowled and swore under my breath again, trying to think clearly and logically, but it wasn’t easy with my inner dragon so riled.
“Then we need to calm your dragon down,” Aspen said softly, following my thoughts with more ease now, it seemed, her gentle voice soothing on my raw nerves. “So we can think clearly and logically.”
She looked at the others, comfortable enough to take charge when I struggled to do so that I knew she was supposed to be mine, not another's. Took charge when she had to be more than a little nervous, if not downright frightened, at what this might mean.
“I encourage everyone to get some rest and think on it because the more angles we look at this from, the better.” Clearly a good leader in her own right, Aspen glanced from person to person. “In the vein of transparency, so you have your facts up front, here are things that may or may not be important. As you know, I have three sisters. Storm reached out to them via letters, and all were counseled to move to the New Hampshire colonial and are under the impression they are destined for a MacLeod. All have visions of the tree they were named after, often appearing to them during important moments in their lives. All are half-witch, half-dragon, and all are gifted.” She shook her head. “And based on what I’ve seen over the years, I certainly wouldn’t consider myself the most powerful.”
“Whowouldyou call the most powerful?” my mother wondered.
“Honestly, it’s hard to know, but I’m leaning toward my oldest sister, Elowyn, or Ellie as we call her,” she replied. “One of the last things of note that I’m still trying to make sense of is the different color dresses my father, who was half dragon, asked us to wear tohis funeral. Mine was red, just like the colors that appeared in my tattoo, so I can’t help but wonder if they’re connected somehow.”
“No doubt they are,” my mother murmured, nodding once at Aspen with approval and reassurance, undoubtedly impressed by how she was handling things thus far. “Everything you shared will be food for thought. Might we find a solutionbefore too much trouble comes knocking at our door.” She gave the others a stern look and gestured that they leave with her. “We will see you two in the morn.”
After they left, Aspen continued to make herself clear in ways that would likely not make things easier going forward. Rather, they were bound to make things far more excruciating.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
–Aspen–
TONIGHT HAD BEEN a lot, from nearly jumping to my death when I thought I fought off a dragon to the thrill of being with Broderick, whether chatting or kissing.
