Page 72 of Luthias

“Pay no mind to that dolt, lass.” Her new friend stepped in front of her, one of his big hands knotting into a fight-ready fist while the other curled around the hilt of the sword sheathed on his hip. “You’ll no’ put a hand on the lady, Camdyn.”

The jerk gave him an ugly smile and grabbed the hilt of his blade. “Shall I make that a lie for you, Chieftain?”

Oh, these two really didn’t like each other, Emery thought, genuinely alarmed now. What she really needed to do was find out how she could go back to the twenty-first century, not instigate a brawl between guys armed with claymores, daggers and God only knew what else.

“No fighting, gentlemen. It’s okay, I am a little tired, so I’ll head back to the chamber with the laird. I need to talk to him about things anyway.” She went to Luthias and tucked her arm through his. “Come on, let’s go before they start with the swords.”

The laird didn’t say anything until after he guided her through the highlanders and past Ameron and the other guard to go back up the stairs. “My thanks, Mistress Parker. You’ve a fair hand at managing contention.”

“No problem. Darach is very nice, by the way, but that Camdyn guy definitely has some issues.” When they reached the chamber she saw two young men in dark, embroidered robes waiting on either side of the door. Both of them looked at her as if she were dressed in a thong bikini and interested in a threesome. “Are these friends of yours, too?”

“Of a kind. No’ now, lads.” Luthias waved off the pair, who bowed and trudged away as if disappointed. “They shallnae harm you. They belong to the enclave of sages that serves the MacRoss.”

An enclave of sages. Right. Next he would tell her they had fairies working in the kitchens, and fire-breathing dragons in the dungeons.

Still, at this point, she thought, anything was possible. “What do the sages do?”

“Many things to help the clan and our vassals.” He opened the door and followed her inside.

As she watched he added some wood to the fire, and then sat down in one of the chairs by the hearth. She was glad he hadn’t perched on the bed, which would have been awkward, and went to sit on a little bench beside the fire so she could warm her hands.

“Who is the Carack?” Emery asked first.

“They’re a clan whose territory border ours on the east.” Luthias’s jaw tightened. “They mine the highlands for gold, silver and precious stones, and possess much wealth, but they’ve ever coveted our lands.”

“So they’re your rivals. Okay. Please tell everyone that I don’t work for them when you get a chance.” She pushed back her hair. “Oh, did you take my hair clip?”

“Aye, forgive me.” He took it out of a pouch on his belt and handed it to her. “I needed to convince my men that you come from another time.”

“I think they got that message loud and clear.” Emery took it and expertly twisted up her hair before clipping it back from her face. “So why did your sword bring me here?”

“Do you believe what I’ve told you, then?” Luthias asked.

“I don’t want to,” Emery told him frankly. “I know there are a couple of castles in New Hampshire, but none of them look like this. Since I don’t carry my passport around with me, I doubt you could have flown me to Scotland. I can spot a medieval reproduction a mile away, and all of this”––she gestured around her––“looks too much like the real thing. Even your clan reads fourteenth century Scots to me, what with the tough talk and squabbling. They probably lift great big round stones to prove how manly they are, right?”

The laird smiled a little. “Aye, so some do.”

“I’m definitely in Scotland in the Middle Ages, then.” She shifted a little on the bench, and remembered the etched stone chip in her pocket, which she took out and handed to him. “I found this when I woke up. Did you drop it on the bed?”

“No.” Luthias said, turning it over to study the symbol. “’Tis a love charm. I’ve no’ seen one of these for many years.”

“It’s definitely not for me, then,” she assured him, and frowned as he broke it in two. “Why did you do that?”

“I dinnae care for such things.” He pitched the pieces into the hearth. “Now we must fathom why you came to the clan.”

“We can talk about that on my next trip. It’s my first day at work, and I don’t think anyone is going to believe I traveled to the fourteenth century. So I need to go back and explain things. Somehow.” When he said nothing she felt her stomach drop. “I can go back to my time, right?”

Luthias leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “I’ve an old story to tell you, lass, about the Fire Sword that you brought here. ’Twill explain what you dinnae fathom, and why you’ve come to us.”

The man was never going to answer a yes or no question with one word, it seemed. “All right, let’s hear it.”

He told her about the Fae otherworld of Elphyne, and two immortal princes who had fallen in love with the beautiful daughter of their king.

“As prince of fire, Ross ever disliked Kaer, the prince of ice. ’Twas their nature. When they lost their hearts to the king’s daughter, Princess Avarel, their longing for her changed them from rivals to enemies,” Luthias said. “Over time unmeasured they gave countless boons to the king to win his favor, in hopes of winning the princess’s hand. Yet no matter what the princes did, Avarel didnae choose either of them. They soon came to ken that neither of them would wed her.”

“Smart girl.” Emery felt a reluctant admiration for his very creative storytelling. “What did they do?”

“Avarel’s indifference made the hatred Ross and Kaer felt for each other grow beyond reason.” A log popped in the hearth, and his unusual eyes reflected the burst of orange sparks. “When at last she declared she’d never wed, the two princes went to war. Their followers attacked each other, and many lost their lives. At last Ross and Kaer faced each other in one final duel, and summoned all their elemental powers so they might destroy the other. ’Twas that moment Princess Avarel put herself between them to stop the conflict. Yet ’twas too late, and their powers instead engulfed the princess, burning and freezing her. She died a terrible death.”