Page 24 of Highlander’s Evil Twin

“Hiram,” she said. “Not when we are by the window!”

He laughed, bowing towards her. “Your wish is my command, your Ladyship.”

Once he had straightened up, he pulled her to him again but this time, slightly away from the window. “I don’t care if they see,” he teased her, kissing her lips. “They have probably heard you scream my name out at night anyway.” He laughed with delight while Heather blushed.

“Am I so noisy?”

“Beautifully noisy. Never change.” He smirked. “When do we tell them our news?”

He laid his head against her breasts while he sat on the bed and hugged her to him. He was gentle now, not thinking in a sexual way, but driven by the need to hold her, to touch, and to love her.

“I would rather they didn’t know for a while,” she admitted. “At least until we are sure that all is okay.”

“Everything is going to be perfect,” he promised her. But inside, he had doubts.

It was like a worm burrowing within him. His intense joy was overshadowed by the two people outside. People who should be happy for him and for the child to come and yet, were only interested in what was good for them. He wondered what Connor would say when he found out that Heather was pregnant? He might be furious, overcome with jealousy and rage. Would that be the trigger to send him over the edge?

12

It didn’t seem to matter how hard he pushed his steed; he couldn’t outrun Connor. He could hear his brother shouting at him and pushing hard at his own horse so as to overtake him. He was just slightly behind him. Hiram could feel his presence and that intense anger directed at his back. The journey back to the castle seemed to take forever. With no one around, there was no one to bear witness to their fight. He couldn’t quite remember why they were out riding together. He would never have chosen to spend time with his brother like this. A battle? An emergency? The reason for being together was just out of reach in the grey mists surrounding his brain. Yet, somehow, they were here and galloping across the moors. Connor, as usual, had turned it into a competition. But when he had looked into his eyes, he had seen that his inner rage was clearly visible. His eyes were the darkest he had ever seen, fueled by anger and jealousy. It was as if he had been hiding his true feelings about Hiram and now he could contain his hatred no more. Hiram had known in an instant that somehow Connor knew about Heather’s pregnancy.

“I will kill her before I let her have your brat!” Connor had snarled.

The words resounded in his ears. He had to save Heather. His brother was mad, the sickness had taken over him. He must get back to protect Heather. Connor would hurt her; he was now completely out of control. Hiram pushed his horse as hard as he could, but Connor’s horse kept pace. Every now and then, he would direct his horse against Hiram’s, knocking them off course. Hiram felt his own horse stumble but manage to right itself. The terrain was difficult. It would take nothing for his horse to fall or to throw him.

“Connor, stop it!” He turned his head back to glare at him.

But he came forward again, ramming the horse against him. Hiram clutched the reins more tightly and turned to the front. The wall to the castle boundary was looming ahead of them. It was only a small wall but they needed to jump it. Hiram pulled at the reins to turn his horse, to straighten him ready for the jump, and as the horse lifted its front legs, he felt Connor against him, his horse equal to his, moving through the air, cutting him out of the route forward. They landed together and Connor reached across with his horsewhip and Hiram felt the stinging blow to his face. The force knocked him off the saddle and he landed heavily, bouncing across the ground, the wind knocked out of him. As he rolled to one side across the spongy heather, Connor had dismounted and was striding towards him.

“I will get rid of that baby. You won’t know when it will happen but trust me dear brother, that baby will not survive. Then, once it has gone, I will impregnate your darling wife. I will take her! She will be mine. Soiled goods. Do you hear me?” Connor was spitting at him, his eyes dark, madness gripping him. “Do you hear me?” He brought the whip down again and again, cutting deep welts into his face and arms.

“No, Connor, don’t!” he cried out, trying to sit up, but he was caught, tangled in something. The reins? It was the stirrups and yet, still, Connor lashed out at him. The stinging blows made him cry out in pain. Darkness enveloped him like a shroud. He gasped. He couldn't make out where he was. Where was Connor? He put his hand up to his head, touching where Connor had whipped him. There was no blood, no sticky substance, no pain. His breath, still erratic, began to slow but he felt sick. What the hell was going on?

“Hiram?” Gentle hands enfolded him, and he felt her warmth. She kissed the side of his face. “You were dreaming.”

Hiram shuddered. “No, not a dream. A warning.”

His throat hurt, as if he had been strangled in his dreams. But, gradually, relief started to see through into his conscious mind. Connor hadn’t threatened Heather and his unborn child. He hadn’t been thrown from the horse or whipped. An ugly dream, one born of his own fears about his brother, nothing more. He was still sweating profusely though. Hiram got up and walked around the room, trying to wake himself out of his nightmare. His mouth was dry and he felt strangely disoriented.

“Hiram, I have never seen you like this. What were you dreaming about?”

“Connor.” His voice trembled as he said the name. Her heart sank.

“Tell me about it. My father told me a long time ago that if you face the fears of your dreams, you overcome them. Let’s do that.”

Still visibly shaken, Hiram nodded. “He was attacking me. We were out riding together but I couldn’t understand why. I wouldn’t choose to go riding with him. We were thundering back across the moors; he was chasing me, and I couldn’t get away. He was threatening you. He’d found out about the baby. He wanted you but he threatened to kill you. Then I came off the horse and…well…he was whipping me with the horsewhip. Oh, it sounds pathetic saying it like this.”

“No, it doesn’t Hiram. It shows that we are both worried about Connor and his reaction. I feel sick with dread that it will make him go crazy. Do you think your dream was a premonition?”

Hiram looked at her sharply. “No, not really...just for a second maybe, but not now.” He sighed, rubbing his face with his hands. “He is supposed to be leaving soon anyway.”

“Do you think he will? How do you think your mother will take it?”

“To be honest, I don’t give a damn. She chose Connor over me so she can happily go and stay with him. All I care about is you.”

He kissed her gently on the forehead and rested his head against hers. Such a simple thing to do and yet, it showed their bond. They had something special and no one, especially not Connor, could tear them apart.

Now that his nightmare had passed, Heather pulled him back onto the bed and wrapped her legs around him. He groaned as he felt her softness and engaged with the hardness, telling her of his excitement. He plunged deep and she called out his name, holding him to her and begging him not to stop. When they had finally finished, they cried, their emotions brimming over with happiness and trepidation.