Faith is Fallen (Broken Fantasies Series)

Chapter 7

The next time Cara woke, a hyperactive feeling of dread overtook her. Her senses on high alert, she searched for signs that her attacker had returned. A single tear streaked across her face, and she ruthlessly banished the thoughts from her head. No matter how many times she was attacked, betrayed, she would be strong. She would persevere. She was to be a queen one day. She had to.

A breath of relief drifted from her senses calmed, trusting in the calm, even breathing of the room's only other occupant. She opened her eyes, revealing a large, muscular man in a grey great kilt. A brown belt with a metal bucket that appeared to be a family crest cinched it at the waist, and a pin of some Celtic design pulled the material up at his shoulder.

His strong jaw spoke of stubbornness, his blue eyes of kindness, and his long black hair of a bit of wildness. She smiled slightly as she took him in.

He'd gasped when she opened her eyes. Cara imagined her bright purple eyes would be a surprise to a human. Purple wasn't a common eye color in their kind.

"How are you feeling?" His deep brogue rumbled through her. Ah, the voice. She would know that voice anywhere.

"Better," she croaked, her voice cracking and hurting on the single word.

The Scot leaned forward, and carefully offered her a sip of water, but they spilled more on the bed than got in her mouth. She couldn't twitch without it hurting her back, but at least when the next words left her mouth, they didn't sound quite so hoarse.

"I'm Cara," she said in Gaelic.

"I'm Conall McKay, lord of these lands, and you're under my protection now. No one will harm you."

Her mind drifted to the events of so recently, events that happened in that very bed, but skittered away from the topic just as quickly. She would simply have to trust him for now, no matter how hard that might be. She had no other choice.

"Do you know who did this to you?" He pointed at her back.

This she couldn't shy away from. She had to accept it. Her brother had tried to kill her, and he'd tried to do so in the most horrific, traumatizing manner possible.

After all, what were the chances that a lone Scot would stumble upon her bleeding body in time to save her? She'd certainly been too far from the Seelie Gate, or any other Faerie gate, to be discovered by her own people. And her injury would have drained her of power, leaving her a void no different from a human in the magical landscape that was Samhain night.

No, he'd meant to kill her. Her own blood. A man that she'd always trusted, even if she didn't always like him. But the words snagged in her throat, not wanting to be unleashed. It took three tries before the whispered word finally slipped from her lips, an unreality made real. "My brother."

#

Conall froze, his jaw slack as he absorbed her response. He'd been initially surprised to hear here speak Gaelic, but no where near as much as that little revelation. Her own brother? His mind drifted to his own brother, Duncan, who had betrayed him just the day before, and couldn't believe they could have this in common.

He itched to ask why, but held himself back. She would not want to say, and he really didn't want to pry. Instead, he asked, "Do you have other family? Those who will worry about you, come looking for you?"

"Yes, my mother."

"How do I reach her? I can send a message that you are safe."

"No, you can't. No message you sent could ever reach her."

What did she mean? How is that no message could reach the woman? Where was she? "There's no one you wish me to send message to?"

Cara buried her face in the bedding, muffling the response. "No."

He nodded, and reached out to grasp her hand, the one with a chain hanging out of her fist. "I will take care of you, Cara. You have my word on that. I won't let anything happen to you."

A wry smile that spoke of the horrors she'd seen crossed her face. "You can't guarantee that. No one can."

He squeezed her hand gently in reassurance. "But I can promise you that I will do everything in my power to protect you. And the first way I will do that is by asking for your hand."

"What?" She jerked in place, and gasped when the movement pulled on her stitches. "Ugh."

"Easy, darling. Easy."

"Why would such a thing even pop into your head?" she asked after per breathing evened out once more, the pain having clearly dwindled.

"Why would I not? My brother took advantage of you in the worst way. I banished him, so you need not fear him returning, but that doesn't absolve my responsibility in the act."

"But you didn't do anything."

"But one of my people did. My own brother, no less. Honor demands this."

Cara snorted, rolling her eyes at him.

He watched the movement of her beautiful, vibrant irises with rapture. Could such a miraculous, vivid color really appear on a human? It seemed a gift from God. He shook his head, and returned to the topic at hand. "I would be doing you a great injustice if I didn't marry you, Cara. Certainly you can see that."

#

Cara stared Conall down suspiciously. Certainly, she could not see it. She understood why he might think so, but the Fae had infamously low birth rates, and for that reason monogamous sexual relationships were unheard of. Monogamous romantic relationships? Of course, but sex was sex, and absolutely separate from that issue.

But she couldn't actually tell this human that, now could she? It wasn't as if she'd been a virgin last night. She'd exercised you libido early and often, as any Fae would.

"I could not possibly hold you to such a thing, Conall. This was nothing of your doing. I couldn't reward your having saved my life in such a terrible way."

He smirked. "Would it be such a terrible thing, Cara? The more we talk, the more I think we would be perfect for each other."

She raised an eyebrow at that statement, economy of motion being the buzzword in times like these. "We've only talked for a few moments. How could you possibly know anything of me?"

He leaned closer, one elbow propped on his wool-clad thigh. "I know you are strong, for you haven't let this defeat you. I know you think of others before yourself, for you turned down my offer. I know you are well spoken, clever, and have a sense of humor. And that you are capable of such things at a time like this speaks volumes about your character."

"But I know nothing about you except for your supposed honor, which could just as easily be a smokescreen, intended to mask your true intentions."

A sad expression crossed his face, but he nodded in understanding. "Of course. It is only right that you be slow to trust after what you've been through." He leaned forward again. "But I will earn your trust, Cara. I promise you that. I will."

Author's Note: Oh, the weekend is so exciting.  It's Saturday.  And yeah, I have to work today, but I don't have to tomorrow, and I'll be attending 2 write ins tomorrow!  Much to my chagrin as I discovered that Comicon was this weekend and I don't have time to attend.  The humanity!

And yeah, I'll totally post another chapter tonight if I reach 16 votes for the book.