Alasdair nodded.
“Where will ye go, Morna? What will ye do if the spell over Jerry canna be broken?”
I loved Hamish. He was kind and good, and our shared magic helped us relate to one another in a way I would never relate to anyone else. But, my soul didn’t long for him.
“I will return with Hamish to Allen territory where I will learn total mastery of all the magic I possess. Afterwards, we will see. Hamish wants me to marry him. I doona know if I can give up on Jerry.”
Alasdair placed his hand on my back to lead me from the spell room. He knew what he had to do, and the moment the illusion of me was buried, he would seal the room.
“If ’tis Jerry ye are meant for, doona ever give up on him. Hamish’s love for ye is pure, lass. He wishes for ye to be happy, even if ’tis not with him. Come lass, I’ve arranged for a portrait to be painted of us all. I must have some way to look at ye after ye are gone. I only wish I’d done the same with Elspeth. We will have one last evening together then I will bid ye farewell.”
Tears I promised myself I wouldna cry fell as a desperate need to be near him filled me. I flung my arms around him once more.
“If there was any other way, I would never leave ye. Ye canna begin to know how much I love ye. There has never been a lass alive with a greater brother than mine.”
Kissing the top of my hair, Alasdair whispered, “I know exactly how much ye love me for ’tis only a fraction of how much I love ye. Ye may be gone from here, but my love will never leave ye. Ye will feel it inside ye every day of yer life.”
And I did. Until Alasdair took his last breath several decades later, he was with me every single day.
Chapter 45
Allen Territory
* * *
Jerry was gone when we returned to Allen territory. Hamish’s uncle met us at their border with the news.
“He’s been gone a fortnight. He escaped in the night. All that was left in his tent was this note.”
I took the note and opened it. Inside he’d scribbled the words, “I’ve gone to fight for ye. Please doona marry him.”
Hamish directed his horse nearer mine so he could read the words over my shoulder. “He’s gone to Grier, lass. We must go to him.”
I turned and looked into Hamish’s sad, accepting eyes.
“Would ye have ever stopped trying to break the spell? Why have ye helped me when ye doona truly want him to break it?”
I knew his answer even before he said—Hamish’s heart was too good.
“What I told Jerry that day was true. I am in love with ye, and love is selfless. I would have kept trying to break the spell until the day ye were ready to give up on him. I would’ve waited years had it taken that long. If ever the time had come when ye were ready, I would’ve gladly cherished ye as my wife. But, I’ve already lost, lass, and I know it. Let us go and get Jerry—the real Jerry—so ye can find happiness for the first time in far too many months.”
* * *
MacNeal Territory
* * *
Much to my surprise, Grier had remained in Henry’s service, feigning work as an herbal healer to hide her magic from him.
She knew we were coming. She met us outside as we approached her home.
“He’s not here. The spell is broken.”
Gone was the mirage of a young, beautiful woman. She looked to be a hundred years old—frightened, sad, and broken.
“Where’s he gone?”
“I thought ye were dead. I felt ye were dead. What sort of magic broke the bond between us?”
