Only A Highlander by Chapman Janet

Author:Chapman, Janet [Chapman, Janet]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Romance
ISBN: 9780743486323
Publisher: Pocket Star
Published: 2005-10-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fifteen

T he clouds had thickened and lowered by the time Winter crossed Bear Brook and entered the high meadow, the wind blowing at gale force and a wet snow falling with blinding intensity. Though she was wet to the skin and miserably cold, the closer Winter got to Matt’s cozy little cave the calmer she became. Despite all her questions and confusion, she was confident she could figure out a way to lure Cùram into the open for Robbie.

But what was she going to do about Matt while she dealt with the magic? How could she keep such a powerful secret from him? She couldn’t say when it had happened exactly, but Winter now accepted the fact that she loved Matheson Gregor with every fiber of her being. Until she had pictured herself having to live without him, she hadn’t realized just how deeply he had become entrenched in her heart. As she rode across the meadow through the driving snow, Winter vowed that she would not allow Providence or the magic or some angry drùidh to mess with that love. Gesader disappeared into the woods that separated the meadow from the cliff, having to twist his head to fit the long pinewood stick through the trees. Winter had deliberately left the staff at Daar’s tree, but as soon as she’d found a stump and mounted Snowball, Gesader had taken up the lead again, once again carrying the blasted thing in his mouth.

Winter had no idea how the big cat knew its importance, but he did seem determined the staff remain with them. She’d often wondered if the tiny cub Robbie had brought her from eight hundred years ago was something more than he seemed. Even though panthers were not indigenous to Scotland, he had been living in the cave Robbie said had held Cùram’s tree of life. But other than being unusually well-adapted to living with humans, Gesader had shown no signs of being anything other than a typical, semiwild leopard.

He’d never spoken to Winter the way Robbie’s snowy owl spoke to him, nor did Gesader appear to possess any magic, much less act the part of a familiar. He was simply Winter’s cherished pet and steadfast companion. Yet he’d brought her to the dying pine, somehow knowing she needed to feel its waning energy in order to realize the seriousness of the situation. And the crow she’d seen sitting on the branch above her. What had that been about? Tom certainly loved crows; he’d told Winter they were the harbinger of renewal and transformation, to be revered as spirits who helped restore order to the heavens.

Had the crow she’d seen today symbolized some sort of transformation? Had he been there to encourage her to fight for humanity’s future?

Following Gesader, Winter guided Snowball through the narrow band of trees as she contemplated the meaning of the crow. They stopped at the granite cliff that rose thirty feet above the meadow. She slid from the saddle, nearly falling to the ground when her numbed legs buckled under her weight.

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