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‘I’m sorry that I could not discover why my father took you.’
‘No matter, I will eventually get to the bottom of it.’ He fell silent, deep in thought, remembering the fallen perhaps.
Kenna went over to him and put her hand on his arm. ‘I am so sorry about your clansmen.’
‘They are your clansmen now, Kenna, for you are a Campbell, from this day forth. You have a brand new life ahead of you now, one where you will be treated with kindness. I swear I will protect you, Kenna. You don’t have to be frightened or mistreated anymore. You are free.’
‘We are free.’
His face changed. There was sadness and longing in his eyes. ‘Come here,’ he said in a hard voice, and she went to him with her heart thumping. He put his hand around the back of her head and pulled her roughly to him, his mouth on hers, pulling her up against his hard chest. Conall’s kiss was so passionate, so perfect and yet so tender it made her chest tighten with longing for him, and tears run down her cheeks. She wanted to cry and laugh all at once.
They hung together out the moor as, all around them, the ghosts of the Campbells slept on, and Kenna realised that she may be free of her past, but a part of her would always belong to Conall and, as he’d said, the Campbells never let go of what was theirs.
Chapter Fifteen
A hard day’s ride later had them trotting through Dunslair’s huge gates. Kenna looked around her in awe as Conall swept a leg over the front of the horse and then plucked her off its back, placing her gently on the ground. By this time, people were crowding around.
‘Conall, where have you been?’
‘Are you hurt, Conall?’
‘Thank the Lord you are home safe.’
‘We’ve been worried sick. The whole clan is out looking for you.’
A rush of people and questions came at them, and Conall smiled and submitted to their hugs and back-slapping. All Kenna could do was stand there, feeling terribly out of place and confused. He had said his home was a bit grander than Sgathach Dun, but she had not expected this huge fortress. Its imposing walls towered all around them, and the lands they had ridden through to get here had been lush and fertile and vast, stretching as far as the eye could see. Conall’s clan must be very wealthy indeed, and suddenly, Kenna was acutely aware of her patched up bodice and unruly hair and dirty face.
‘Where is everyone?’ asked Conall.
‘Breaking their fast in the great hall.’
‘Ah, of course. I must let them know I am here. What a surprise it will be for them.’
He grabbed her hand.
‘Conall, I think I should stay here. I am not fit to be seen.’
‘To hell with that. I’m not letting you out of my sight. Besides, my family don’t care about such things, and they don’t worry about a bit of dirt, Kenna.’
As he dragged her along wood-panelled corridors and up a massive oak staircase to the top of the keep, Kenna thought, ‘These are exactly the kind of people who care about a bit of dirt.’
Conall burst into a huge hall and, with arms outstretched, he boomed, ‘I’m back,’ at the shocked faces of, what must be, the entire Campbell clan breaking their fast.
The hall hung in silence, and then there was a scrape of chairs at the high table, and a woman stood up and yelled, ‘Conall,’ in a choked voice. She was black-haired and startlingly pretty with a bloom to her cheeks, positively glowing. Kenna felt a wild stab of jealousy. As the woman rushed forward, Kenna noticed her belly was well rounded, and she held onto it as she ran and threw herself into Conall’s arms.
She started sobbing. ‘We thought you were dead. Oh, Conall, my foolish brother.’
‘Don’t fash yourself, Ilene. I am home safe.’
A big, blonde man came up beside her. He was handsome, although his face was marred by a scar down one side. Kenna tried not to stare. When Ilene detached herself for an instant, he pushed forwards and gave Conall a bear hug, then took hold of his face in a crushing grip.
‘Where in the hell have you been, you fool.’
‘A captive. It’s a long story, Murray, and not a pleasant one,’ Conall said with a quick glance at Kenna. ‘I’ll tell you later, but for now, I am home safe, and I am absolutely famished.’
‘And dirty,’ laughed the blonde man, pushing him to arm’s length. ‘Rory is out looking for you even now. God knows where he is, but I will go and send word you are back. He will be overjoyed.’
How wonderful it must be to have a family that welcomed you back in such a way, thought Kenna. They must love him very much. The blonde man glanced over at her as she stood awkwardly in the doorway, seemingly forgotten in Conall’s grand entrance, and then he strode over.
