Page 53 of Taming the Highland Beauty

A hush fell over the beach. All eyes shifted to Gille.

Obviously, the song in three parts had worked for Lady Janet and Minerva. Did that mean it would work for her? She waited, trying to sense a change. When a tingling sensation came to her fingers, she stretched her hands before her. A shimmering light appeared at the ends of her fingers, but before it could spread up her arms, a dark mist blew across the water and enveloped her. A chilling laugh echoed through the air as the mist consolidated into Oberon.

The sound of steel against leather filled the air as the men drew their swords. Callum charged forward with an angry cry.

Oberon raised his hand and sent Callum flying backwards across the beach, then did the same to the other men before they could attack.

Isolde and Aria balanced on their feet, waiting for the right moment to strike as the air became charged with tension. “Release her,” Aria growled. “You have no right to be here. Go back where you belong.”

“And let your sister succeed? I think not,” Oberon sneered. “Someone must pay for what you all did to me. I almost died.”

“But you did not,” Aria countered. “You could have taken what we did to you as a warning. That perhaps you needed to change your overbearing ways.”

“Change?” His eyes bulged. “You expect me to acquiesce to your expectations of me? Me? Ruler of Fairyland. Maker of mischief. Master of magic?”

With a wave of his hand, the women flew backwards, joining the men.

Oberon turned to Gille, his face contorted with hatred. Fear fluttered in her stomach as she met his gaze. “You will pay for your insolence,” he hissed, his voice laced with venom.

While Oberon had been talking to the men, Aria and Isolde, Gille had discreetly inched up her skirt, her hand wrapping around the hilt of the dagger at her thigh. As Oberon stepped closer, she drew her dagger and aimed for the fairy king’s heart.

Oberon struck her weapon away with a flick of his hand, sending it spinning to the ground. But the blood that spilled from a wound on his arm told her she had struck him. He howled in pain, grabbing her hands with one of his own, his grip cruelly biting into her flesh. His eyes, glowing with a sinister light, fixed on Gille. “You thought you had won, didn’t you?” he taunted. “But I am not so easily defeated.”

With his other hand, he extended his palm towards the horizon, beginning to recite ancient words. As he raised his hand, a sinister energy began to gather in the air. The sky erupted in a fiery display, the dawn coming with a blinding intensity. The world seemed to freeze for a moment, the air thick, suffocating. Then, with a deafening roar, the sun burst over the horizon, casting its harsh light upon the land.

A searing pain shot through Gille as the light touched her skin. Her flesh began to harden, her limbs stretching and morphing. Her hair turned into leaves, her fingers transforming into gnarled branches. With a final, anguished cry, Gille was consumed by the transformation, her body becoming a towering beech tree.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Callum watched in horror as Gille transformed. His heart shattered into a million pieces, the pain almost unbearable. He had failed her, failed their love. He did love her, he realised as the most profound sense of joy countered his pain. He’d never had the chance to tell her how he felt, to show her one last time what she truly meant to him.

Now, she would live out her days along the shores of the loch, a constant reminder of his failure. His heart ached with a deep, consuming sorrow. He had lost her, and he knew he would never be able to forgive himself. Tears streamed down his face, blurring his vision. He sank to his knees, his body trembling with grief, allowing his tears to fall upon her bark.

As he stared down at the form Gille had become, a part of him hoped she could hear his silent plea for forgiveness. He would spend the rest of his days caring for her, hoping that somehow, she could feel his devotion even from beyond.

With his next heartbeat, his grief shifted to something else. The need for revenge. He tensed as his hand found his dagger, ready to exact penance for the fulfilment of Gille’s curse. He flexed, ready to strike, then paused when a small root lifted from the ground, covering his hand. A voice, Gille’s voice, drifted across his mind. Revenge is what trapped me here. Do not let that sentiment continue.

Before Callum could react to the slim branch that touched his flesh, evidence that Gille was still somehow with them, a shimmering portal opened beside the tree. Titania, the queen of the fairies, stepped through, followed by several male fairies. Her face was flushed with anger as she glared at Oberon. “How dare you get in the way of true connection, true love,” she exclaimed, her voice filled with venom. “Your actions have caused great harm.”

Callum looked beyond the newly arrived fairy to see Alastair and Tormod circulating amongst the others, gathering the iron bracelets from their arms. Callum had to keep himself from smiling. Where their swords had been ineffective against the powerful fairy king, the simple protective pieces could very well be their best defence. His gaze connected with Alastair’s, a brief nod communicating that he understood what he had to do.

Titania’s gaze locked with Oberon’s. “You will no longer interfere in the lives of the MacLeods,” she declared, her voice filled with authority. “I have grown quite fond of them in the past few years, and I will not have you meddling with them any longer.”

Oberon sneered. “I will do as I please,” he replied, his voice dripping with arrogance.

Titania’s eyes narrowed. “We shall see,” she said, her tone laced with a hint of menace. With a wave of her hand, she summoned a shimmering barrier that enveloped Oberon, trapping him in place.

Alastair and Tormod took advantage of the moment, tossing Callum the bracelets. While Oberon remained suspended, Callum quickly secured the iron bands around both of the fairy king’s wrists and up his arms.

Oberon cried out in pain as the metal singed his flesh and weakened him so when the barrier faded, he was too weak to do anything but stumble forward, leaning against the woman who had betrayed him. “I’ll have your head for this,” he growled.

“No, you will not.” Titania smiled as she signalled the other fairies to come forward and secure Oberon with ropes about his waist. “I am making the decisions now. Instead, you will be taken back to Fairyland and locked in a tower for as long as it takes for you to change your ways.”

As Titania’s men secured Oberon, Titania approached Alastair. “Your bravery in sacrificing yourself for your clan, and for Graeme, is truly commendable. You used the last of the Fairy Flag’s magic to save your people.”

“It was my duty as a leader,” Alastair replied modestly. “I simply did what was necessary.”

Titania arched an eyebrow. “As a reward for your leadership and Oberon’s part in provoking the English attack, I will restore what you lost. The castle wall will be rebuilt, and the Fairy Flag will be renewed.”