TWO HOURS LATER, Kade and Samantha arrived, followed shortly by Connall and Pepper. Angus and Fiona were already there, partaking of the vast spread of food pilfered from the kitchen. Payton hugged her new sisters and welcomed them into the giant great room overlooking the loch.
“This place is amazing,” Pepper said. “Connall and Brodie obviously used the same designer.”
Payton smiled. “I know. Their great rooms are similar. I think this’ll be my favorite place in the house.”
“Ours is certainly my favorite.”
“Did you ride over here?” Payton asked.
Despite Brodie’s aversion to horses, he still maintained a fully-equipped stable. Mostly for Connall who often rode to Brodie’s whenever visiting. Connall also used Brodie’s stable when there was overflow at his training and breeding facility.
“Yep.” Pepper glanced at Connall, who frowned. “Con’s not overly happy, since I’m almost due, but Jonesy needs the exercise and I feel great.”
Jonesy was the beloved Arabian Pepper had raised since birth and Connall had organized to be shipped over from Georgia. Her horse was more than just a pet to her, and she spent most of her spare time with him.
“I wonder why,” Samantha piped in. “Riding must be difficult at this point.”
“Please,” Pepper retorted. “Women have babies all the time and ride up until their delivery day. I promised Con I’d ride until it was uncomfortable and then he would take over. It’s all good.” She closed her eyes briefly, then shook her head toward her mate. Connall raised an eyebrow in response. “Excuse me for a second,” Pepper said. “Someone needs a verbal spanking.” She stood and made her way to Connall, dragging him from the room.
“Oooh, Con’s in trouble,” Sam said in a sing-song voice as she flopped onto one of the overstuffed sofas by the window. Fiona took a seat by the fireplace, and Payton sat in one of the chairs facing Sam, sliding her feet under her bottom.
“How are you, Pay?” Fiona asked. “After… ah… everything.”
Be careful how you answer that, sweetheart, Brodie said, projecting some of their more active moments from the night before, causing her to lose her breath.
Payton felt her face heat. “Amazing.”
You’re blushing, love.
Payton glanced at Brodie, who appeared to be deep in conversation with Kade. How he was sending the sexy images to her without reacting, she didn’t know. Well, I wouldn’t be if you’d stop thinking naughty thoughts.
Just a promise of what I’m going to do to you later.
Brodie!
He looked at her then, winked, and turned back to Kade.
“Pay?” Fiona shifted in her seat. “You okay?”
“Yes,” she said. “Brodie’s just being cheeky.”
“Oh, I hate it when Kade does that,” Sam complained. “He’ll get me when we’re at some official event and I just know my face is crimson. He “said” something to me that should never be repeated when we met the queen last month. I choked on my wine, started coughing, and just about passed out. He’s lucky he was able to ‘heal’ me from the other side of the room, or I would have spit it all over one of the foreign dignitaries.”
Before Payton could respond, Kade approached with a plate laden with food, and handed it to Samantha. “You need to eat, love.”
“Oh, right. I keep forgetting.” Sam took the plate and smiled. “Thank you.”
Samantha and Pepper had both been human before they were bound and often forgot the need to eat every hour or two, as their metabolisms had tripled when their bodies had gone through the conversion. Kade kissed Samantha quickly and rejoined Brodie. Connall returned, but didn’t appear to have been spanked, verbally or otherwise.
Pepper walked back to where she’d been sitting, swiping a piece of cheese off Sam’s plate as she passed by. “Thank you,” she said, and flopped into another one of the chairs.
“You’re welcome,” Sam said, and daintily bit into a piece of ham. “Did you discipline your man?”
“I tried.” Pepper snorted. “Didn’t quite go as planned.”
“He kissed you and you melted, right?” Sam observed.
“Yep.” Pepper groaned and then giggled. “Jerk.”
Payton grinned. “I wonder how long that will last, the ability for them to distract us.”
“You’d know more than us, Pay,” Samantha said. “You’ve known Brodie a lot longer than we’ve known Kade and Connall. How long can you stay mad at Brodie?”
She shrugged. “I managed five years.”
“You did not,” Pepper exclaimed.
“No. Not really.” Payton sighed. “I did try, though.”
“Not very hard,” Samantha pointed out.
I’m sorry, love.
No. I am, Brodie. I shouldn’t have said anything. Payton shook her head. It was insensitive.
“It was true,” he said aloud.
She hadn’t even heard him approach. Connall, Angus, and Kade were already sitting down, and more food had been set out for everyone.
Payton smiled up at Brodie, and he reached out his hand. “May I join you?” he asked.
She nodded and stood. Before they could sit down again, Abela and Heather arrived. The men rose to their feet and Abela froze.
“It’s all right,” Brodie said. “You’re safe here.”
Heather grasped their mother’s hand and smiled at her. “Trust him, Mum.”
Abela curtsied, as did Heather, but still didn’t move into the room.
Both Kade and Connall gave Brodie questioning glances, but he didn’t respond. Instead, he waved his hand for the ladies to join them and indicated the sofa beside his chair. “Come. We have to talk before the mökun móttöku. We won’t get a chance otherwise.”
Heather led Abela to the sofa and pulled her down next to her. The men sat down, Brodie settling Payton next to him in the chair. It was a snug fit, but neither of them complained. He leaned forward, his arms on his knees.
“What’s going on, Brodie?” Kade asked.
“We have discovered something that might put a wee hiccup in a few things,” Brodie said.
Way to ease in, love, Payton projected.
“This is Heather,” Brodie nodded to his sister. “She’s my sister.”
“What?” Fiona gasped. “We thought—”
“I know what you thought,” Brodie said and then nodded to his mother. “And Abela is my mother.”
“What?” Connall asked in confusion.
“What the hell are you talking about?” Kade snapped.
Abela’s expression became one of raw panic.
“Kade.” Sam laid her hand on Kade’s thigh and he calmed, while Brodie reached over and squeezed his mother’s hand.
“It’s all right,” Brodie said.
Kade narrowed his eyes. “You better start—”
“Why don’t you explain, Brodie,” Connall said, interrupting Kade’s warning. “Help us understand what’s going on.”
“Will you, Abela?” Brodie asked. “We were interrupted the other night, and I know there’s more than what you’ve told us so far.”
Abela glanced at Heather and then at Brodie, her fear still written in the tightness of her features.
“No harm will come to you,” Samantha said. “You have the protection of the crown. Isn’t that right, Kade?”
He raised an eyebrow at his mate, but then nodded. “Aye. No harm will come to you. Á orði mínu. (Upon my word.)
“Go ahead, Mum,” Heather encouraged.
Abela took a deep breath. “In 1414, I turned twenty-five, but I had no idea how that fact would mark my future. I lived in a small town just outside of Reykjavík. One day, when we traveled to the city to sell our wool, I met a dashing young man whom I fell in love with. What I didn’t know at the time was that he was a king and I was his true mate.”
“Our father I assume?” Kade asked.
Abela nodded. “You were with him, sire. You were such a beautiful little boy and so charming.”
“He still is,” Samantha said with a smile.
“I was with him when you met?” Kade repeated.
“Yes. Your papa said you were his nephew, and I was lured into believing he was a kind, benevolent man who was caring for his widowed sister’s child. I had no idea what was to come.”
“Was I there as well?” Connall asked.
“No, Your Highness, I didn’t meet you for several weeks. Gunnar never even mentioned you.”
“Who is Gunnar?” Kade asked.
Abela bit her lip. “He was your father.”
Kade’s body tensed. “No, my father’s name was Erik Gunnach.”
Abela shook her head. “No. That’s what he called himself when you arrived in Scotland. His real name was Gunnar Egilsson.”
“What?” Kade bellowed, standing quickly. “You lie.”
Abela burst into tears. “Please, sire. I swear to you. I’m not lying.”
Brodie, Angus, and Connall stood as well, just in case they had to step in. Payton had never seen Kade so angry. She reached up and took Brodie’s hand, partly to calm him, partly to calm herself.
Thank you, he projected.
“Kade.” Samantha grabbed Kade’s arm and tugged him down next to her. “You’re scaring her, honey. Just let her explain.”
“This isn’t possible.” Kade dragged his hands down his face. “Gunnar Egilsson was one of Egill Skallagrímsson’s sons.”
“Já . I know,” Abela rasped. “Egill was your grandfather.”
“What?” Brodie asked, anger on the edge of his tone. “You didn’t tell me that.”
“We didn’t have time,” Abela said.
“This all makes sense now,” Fiona said to Brodie. “The reasons we’re mates to who we are and why we couldn’t feel each other’s emotions. You and I aren’t really brother and sister.” Her eyes filled with tears.
In a very non-Brodie-like move, Brodie reached over and squeezed Fiona’s hand. “We’re brother and sister in other ways that count just as much. And now we’re bonded through the law and family. That won’t change.”
Fiona smiled sadly and nodded, letting Angus pull her against him and comfort her.
“Please continue, Abela,” Connall encouraged.
Abela’s hands shook as she clasped them in her lap. “I warned your father not to go against his marriage vows and I tried to resist, but I was no match for him. When I gave birth to Brodie, your father took him from me. He wanted him to be raised within the royal household and told his wife Brodie was an orphan.”
Kade stood and started to pace, although he kept his anger under control. Payton glanced at Sam, whose eyes were closed, possibly the reason why Kade’s anger was under control.
Abela took a deep breath “My conversion—”
“I’m sorry?” Brodie asked. “What conversion?”
“I was human.”
A collective gasp from the ladies sounded in the cavernous room. Sam and Pepper sat a little straighter, their interests peaked.
“You were human,” Brodie said slowly, as though working through the information.
“Já. My conversion nearly killed me,” she said. “Your father was of no help, as he was the first to ever bind a human and thought I was dying. As you may or may not know, the oracles of the time had all been murdered or exiled, so he had no one to ask. He yelled and cried and blamed me as my body went through the change. I could feel his fear and panic, but I didn’t know what was happening. I almost froze to death—”
“My vision,” Payton exclaimed. “You were the one frozen.”
“I almost died.” Abela nodded. “My body shut down for a time, and Gunnar certainly thought I was gone.”
“Were you angry with him?” Brodie asked.
“I was. But why do you ask?”
Payton blushed. “I went into a bit of a rage when I had my vision.”
“Yes, rage is a better word. I wanted to kill him.” Abela sighed. “Gunnar left me with my father, who really wanted nothing to do with me after I’d slept with a man who was not my husband. I couldn’t tell them the truth. My parents were very religious, and my father assumed I had brought shame on the family. It took almost a week for my body to heal, and by then I thought Gunnar had abandoned me. I was inconsolable… and pregnant… and it took him ages to return.”
“Where was he?” Brodie asked.
“He said he’d been fighting somewhere, but wouldn’t tell me the details, not that I asked. I was just glad to be with him again. He would visit whenever he could, and when we were together, I felt whole, but when I gave birth to Brodie six months later, my parents disowned me, sure I had lied to them about the timing of my affair with your father. And then your father took him from me and shortly afterwards, I was dragged from my tent in the middle of the night, drugged, and woke up on a ship sailing for Scotland.”
“His ship?” Payton asked.
“No. God forbid, if Alice were to discover me, she probably would have killed me. But Gunnar “spoke” to me when he could and assured me I would always be safe. We arrived in Scotland and I was whisked away without a word to anyone. I was isolated, but able to speak to your father telepathically which helped ease my loneliness at times. In the coming years, your father would come to me as often as he could, but when I found out I was pregnant again, I ran. I couldn’t face the possibility of him taking another child from me. I was able to stay hidden well after his death, until that day I saw you in Edinburgh, a few years ago.”
“Is this why our mother had the affair?” Kade asked. “It would explain a lot.”
“I don’t understand,” Pepper said with a snort. “How could there be a ‘reason’ for someone to cheat?”
“When my father found his true mate, he would have never been able to touch another woman,” Connall explained. “So my mother would have been ostracized. Without her true mate, she would have felt justified in seeking comfort elsewhere.”
“Really? I thought that was just something you said,” Pepper admitted, blushing. “To convince me to marry you.”
“Even if it was only a line, it still would have worked, eh?” Connall smiled and took her hand. Pepper rolled her eyes.
Abela nodded. “Alice also thought if she could bond with a human, then she could perhaps be at peace. It didn’t work.”
“Because only men can bind their women,” Fiona provided.
“Já,” Abela said. “Unless the woman is an oracle. All Alice managed to do was drive the poor man mad. She killed him for it in a fit of rage one night.”
“What do you mean? I thought my father killed him,” Kade said.
“No.” Abela’s eyes widened in surprise. “Alice did. Shortly before we sailed here. She stabbed him fourteen times.”
“She killed my father?” Fiona gasped, her eyes filling with tears. “Has anything she’s said to me been true?”
Angus pulled her closer, rubbing her back.
“I’m sorry, dear,” Abela said. “I should have been more sensitive. Gunnar felt Brodie should be king as the rightful heir from a mated bond. Alice wanted to rule the Cauld Ane and felt with Kade at the head, she could. She tried to make sure of it.”
“But she couldn’t, because Kade can’t be controlled,” Samantha surmised. “Which is why she tried to kill us… again.”
Kade sat next to her and linked his fingers with hers. “She will never get another chance.”
This is why she hated me. Makes sense, Brodie said.
Bitch.
Brodie faced her, his eyes wide with shock. Did you just swear?
Payton shrugged. I just spoke the truth.
Brodie smiled and kissed her palm.
“Alice has kept so much from us,” Fiona complained. “Our family heritage, our clan history, our race… everything. I feel like I’m treading in the ocean with the amount of information I’m trying to sort out in our book. She either told us half-truths or outright lies!”
Angus squeezed her hand. “You’re doing an amazing job researching all of this, Fiona.”
“Aye,” Kade agreed. “You are answering questions that we didn’t even know to ask. Don’t be too hard on yourself, sister. We will ask you questions if and when they come up, and we’ll have all the knowledge we require sooner than you might think.”
Fiona nodded and smiled. “Thanks, Kade.”
He leaned down and kissed her cheek. “No, thank you for all the time you’re putting into this, lass.”
Kade made his way back to Samantha and pulled her close.
“So, if you are Icelandic, your surname cannot be Smith,” Connall said.
Abela shook her head. “No. It’s not.”
“What is it?” Brodie asked.
“Olafdóttir. Olaf Rosson was my father.” She smiled sadly. “Not that that would mean anything to you. They were no one important.”
“They were your family,” Samantha said. “Which means, they were important to you.”
“I suppose so, yes.”
“I need to speak with my brothers,” Kade said, and rose to his feet again. “If you’ll excuse us.”
Summarily bid, Brodie, Angus, and Connall rose and followed Kade from the room. An awkward silence took over until Fiona broke it. “How did you find Brodie, Heather?”