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I wanted to read my book again, but we were already here in needing-to-know.

Lizbeth collapsed her head down on the bed with a whimper.

I leaned beside her almost nose to nose. “You’re doing great. You’re going to meet your new baby soon. Does that sound good?”

“Aye I want the bloody bairn out of me now, Kaitlyn.”

“That sounds good, let’s do that. I’m going to look and see what’s happening, okay?” A drone hovered lower outside, buzzing and worrying us with its insistent noisiness.

I reached for my flashlight, pulled up the hem of her shift, and shined the light between her legs. I didn’t really know what I was seeing. It was dark and freaking weird looking, but it looked like a solid curve was pressing against her skin, bulging out.

She tensed and raised up again. Madame Greer held her shoulder and made soothing sounds as Lizbeth groaned and whimpered and it was happening — a baby’s head was pushing down and out. I dropped the flashlight to the towels, quickly pulled on a pair of latex gloves, and got my hands there in time for the whole head to emerge.

“The head is out, oh my god, it’s—” I cradled the head and pushed the towels up to create a pillow for the landing, Lizbeth rested for a moment and pushed again and the baby slid, slippery as fuck, right through my hands to the towels. “Oh my god, it’s a baby, Lizbeth. A baby!”

She said, “I should hope so, Kaitlyn, I have been birthin’ for too many hours for it tae nae be a bairn.”

I laughed one of those laughs that was really on the verge of hysteria. I pulled a clean towel from my pile and with my hands still shaking I wrapped it around the baby who started to move a bit. I passed the baby up through Lizbeth’s legs to her front and helped her turn around so she was sitting on the towels leaning against the bed. Her baby on her stomach.

I beamed at them. “So that was easy.”

Madame Greer batted me with a handkerchief she kept in her apron. Lizbeth laughed. We sat for a moment watching the baby as it pinked up and made some mewling sounds.

37 - MAGNUS

Idodged his blade. “Sean, ye daena want tae kill me. I daena want tae kill ye. Please, let us talk it through.”

“If ye are dead and delivered they have said they would leave our family alone. They would let us keep the weapons and I would be favored by the king.”

His sword swept down and I met it, blade tae blade. I argued, “We can defeat them. You daena need tae take their side. How can ye, Brother, you have never raised a blade tae me, how can ye take the side of a stranger tae us?”

His eyes looked a deep betrayal.

I said, “You canna trust them. Ye can trust me, Sean. Ye can trust Lizbeth. We are your family. We will⁠—”

“Ye are only my brother by half.” His sword swung from the right, aimed toward my side. I dodged it but twas too close for someone who wasna tryin’ tae kill me.

Quentin’s voice came from behind me as I stumbled. “You got this, Boss?”

“Aye.” I dinna take my eyes from Sean.

Sean said, “Ye daena have this, Young Magnus, I will kill ye tae protect my family.”

“Why? Tis nae body left tae protect. They have all left ye. The weapons, these men, they are destroyin’ our family, nae me.”

“Tis nae yer family. Yer father is nae a Campbell. He werna even Scottish. Ye haena been raised among us. We will be better off without yer side of the family.”

My fury was rising. I prowled to his right. “I ken tis hard tae use your brain when ye have been used tae Lizbeth thinkin’ for ye, but if ye winna listen tae her on this you will have tae try tae think for yourself — ye are speakin’ as Mairead spoke tae me just yesterday. Are ye proud tae be takin’ after our dear mother, Sean?”

Sean growled and bore down on me, his sword arcing down, left and right. I blocked and backed up across the courtyard.

“Who dost ye trust more, me or Commander Davis?”

Sean said, “I daena trust ye, ye brought them here.”

I swung back hard, our blades crashed, then our arms locked together face to face. “If I brought them here, let me take them away. My kingdom is nae lost. I will fight for it. I will remove these men from our lands. I need ye tae fight with me, Sean. We can do it together.”

He shoved me off, but then Quentin was right behind him, a moment later Sean was convulsin’ and then he crumpled tae the ground.