Page 1 of The Darkest Knight

Chapter One

DUNIMARLE CASTLE

CULROSS, SCOTLAND

It wasn’t every day that one traveled to a beautiful medieval country estate in Scotland to rescue a knight in distress. And it certainly wasn’t a normal part of Tammie Lockhart’s life to be the heroine in a real-life fairytale.

However, needs must and all that stuff.

It didn’t seem real, even as she walked to the front door of the castle that her sisters, Gwen and Sabrina, called home since Gwen had married a real-life handsome laird. That this particular hunky laird was from the sixteen hundreds, and Gwen had rescued him, was a story she didn’t have time to delve into at the moment.

The entryway was straight out of a movie set with a high ceiling and tapestries depicting hunting scenes or people frolicking about in the outdoors hanging on the thick stone walls.

Her feet sank into the thick plush rug, and she glanced down to note the design of huge bouquets of roses seeming to be tossed haphazardly and yet creating a beautiful scene.

On her right was an archway that led to what she would call a large sitting room furnished with couches, chairs, and tables that were grouped in different areas for easy conversation.

To the left, just past the sitting room, was another archway into a dining room with a long mahogany table that could easily sit twelve.

Continuing forward, the next doorway opened to the library, where she and her sisters spent many an hour working on what had become the most important project of their lives.

Sabrina, who was engaged to a man named Gavin Campbell, would probably be in the library, Tammie considered.

She pictured Gavin again, a walking golden god that had to be the most beautiful human being in existence. Her soon-to-be brother-in-law’s good looks were no exaggeration, as wherever he was seen, people would stop mid-sentence, mid-bite, even mid-step and gawk, their conversation, food, and destination instantly forgotten.

Thankfully, the guy was an introvert, who preferred spending time at the stables in the company of the horses and an older man named Miles.

“There you are.” Sabrina poked her head out of the library doorway and grinned at her. “I think I found something. Come and read this.”

Despite the direness of the situation, Tammie considered making a run for the kitchen. The cook, chef, or whatever the man liked to be called, had baked a delicious cake the night before and she was anxious to gobble another piece.

“Can it wait until I cut myself a slice of cake?” Tammie called out.

“No,” came the abrupt answer.

Upon entering the library, she found that Gwen was there as well. The eldest sister sat on an overstuffed chair, her ebony hair twisted into a messy bun that didn’t distract from her Instagram-ready beauty. Not that Gwen had ever been on social media.

Gwen’s dark gaze lifted to Tammie as she walked through the door. “Something must be done to convince Niall to assist in his own rescue. It seems he wishes to remain behind, stuck there in that horrible place.”

Nail MacTavish had been plunged into an enchantment by an evil wizard after he and four others, including Tristan and Gavin, thwarted his plans to snatch defenseless women from a village. The men had been stuck in another realm, a place filled with peril and danger for hundreds of years.

The entire situation was beyond belief. Even after her sisters had freed two men, Tammie still had a hard time accepting that the reality of alter-worlds, other realms.

And yet, not only was it real, but now it was her turn to save someone.

Just before being trapped, a powerful enchantress had managed to cast a spell that made it possible to break each man’s curse. Figuring out how to break each of their spells was not easy, even harder in Niall’s case because he refused to cooperate, claiming he preferred to remain in the other realm until death.

As much as Tammie wanted to free him, at the same time, it was a bit frightening to find out what Niall’s particular curse was. Not only that, but she had to come up with a spell to break the curse, and somehow do this within a short time, as the possibility of the men being trapped forever came near.

Despite the looming deadline and the dilemma of what to do about the trapped men, at the moment her life could not be more perfect. She was assistant to her sister Sabrina, who was a well-known and extremely well-paid fashion photographer. Just recently she’d hooked up with Gerard, a handsome model, and if she read things right, they were on the brink of formalizing their relationship.

Not only that, but her handmade and personally designed online jewelry business was thriving. Yes, her life was definitely on the right track.

Lastly, there was the bonus of spending time with her sisters in an honest to goodness castle in a small town in the most beautiful country she’d ever visited.

Everything couldn’t be more perfect.

Well, except for the reluctant knight in distress.