It took awhile for Hannah to calm down and she may have lingered in Camden's arms longer than she actually needed to, but in a way, it was comforting. She had seen it happen in romance movies time and time again. The girl would end up having something devastating happen to her and then the guy who she had feelings for would come along and console her until she was all better. This was one of those moments, except it was not how Hannah had pictured it. It was almost perfect except for one thing: the smell. The reek of animal feces mixed with human feces and body odor of many men did not help this moment, but rather, they put a damper on it.  

She gave a small push signaling to Camden that the moment was over. Slowly, he released her from his tight bear hug.

"Ye alright lass?"

Hannah gave a small nod. He released her all the way and stood there a little awkwardly as if he did not know really how to handle the situation. Hannah wanted to laugh but she stifled it as quickly as it had come. Glancing quickly to the side, she hoped she would spot the shadowy figure but realized that it would come back when it wanted to. She could not will it to appear when she wanted which was a downside to whatever this was. Camden patted her shoulder in a gentle way that brought small tears to her eyes.

Damn hormones, she thought to herself thinking of how she had no idea how they handled periods during this time frame. She sent up a silent plea that this time traveling would throw the scheduled visit of Mother nature off course. 

"Dae ye wanna go back in?" He motioned to the door where the loud noise of rowdy, drunk men filled the air. 

Hannah shook her head, "I will stay out here for a little longer if you don't mind."

Camden gave a small nod, "I will come back out to check on ye." He turned on his heel and strode in through the doorway completely disappearing from Hannah's view. Hannah stood by herself in the large yard of sorts. Looking around, Hannah could pick out a few things such as the stables that sat over the hill and the small garden that was near the kitchen giving the cooks easy access to it. As she walked forward towards the stables, she could hear the squishing of her shoes in the mud as it sucked and lapped at the leather of the shoes that the maid had given her. There was also the piercing of the corset into her ribs that made her long for her normal clothes which gave support but did not cut off all organs from receiving the blood they so desperately needed.

Hannah climbed over the ridge of the hill giving her a better view of the land. She could see the fires burning that Camden and his men had started in order to burn the bodies of the men who died during the clash between the two clans. Questions rose but then disappeared as she thought to herself. She did not know the time frames of certain events so asking Camden would alert him to something off about her which is something she wanted to avoid. There was something in the back of her mind that did stick. Balfour had mentioned the McCracken clan. It was the clan that she happened to belong to and the very same clan that was warring with Camden's clan. 

"What the hell am I supposed to do," she whispered into the wind as it blew passed her. Hannah plopped herself down in the middle of what looked like a meadow of sorts. Flowers blossomed everywhere making it look almost picturesque. Along the horizon of the hill, rocks jutted out as if they were reaching out to great the sky but protect the flowers that peeked out around their bases. Hannah took a deep breath inhaling the floral scents that tickled her nose. In a way, this journey or experience was refreshing but at the same time, it forced her to think.

What would happen if she stayed here and never went back? Would she just disappear from existence or would she have two selves? All the possibilities made her head spin with absurd answers and more absurd questions. Giving her head a small shake, she continued to admire the beautiful landscape.

"Beautiful," a voice sounded from behind her. 

Hannah jumped to her feet with her hands raised in fists. She had taken some self-defense lessons but dropped out after a week due to other activities. 

"I'm sorry, did I scare ye?"

"Yes, you did. You do not just sneak up on someone and say something like that!"

The woman chuckled letting her basket of flowers swing a little, "Mah name is Aileana." She smiled and sat down. With a pat of her small hands, she invited Hannah to sit by her. Hannah hesitated at first. This woman was a stranger.

To hell with it all. They are all strangers, Hannah thought to herself. Gathering her skirts in what seemed like an appropriate position, she sat down next to the mysterious lady. Hannah studied her features. She looked like any Scott, or so Hannah assumed. Aileana was graced with the fiery red hair and vibrant green eyes that seemed to bless every Scot including Hannah. The one thing that did stick out was the porcelain skin that was not blemished by a freckle or mole. Hannah looked probably longer than she should have, but she could not find one.

"I live here in the land. I was gonna go tae the feast but did not. Aren't ye supposed tae be there?"

"Well, yes, I mean no. I have no idea," Hannah said burying her head in her hands. The world around her was a strange one in the sense she felt displaced. It was the same Earth that she knew and loved, but the wrong time and the wrong place. She did not belong here, yet Fate had got it in their twisted minds that she was supposed to be here. 

"Och, I see. Ye are conflicted. The Faeries have cursed ye they have. Ye are supposed to find what they want ye to find."

"What are you talking about?"

"Ye bear the mark," Aileana stated with a small motion to Hannah's skin right beneath her right ear lobe. "'Tis the mark of the Faery. They do the will of Fate and are not tae be trifled with."

"I did not trifle with the Faeries as you put it." Hannah was exasperated. The very idea that she was the one to mess with Fate was utterly ridiculous.

"Magic lies deeply in the words," Aileana whispered.

Those words pricked a memory in Hannah's mind. The book. The very first page had a warning on it, but she had quickly skimmed it and then flipped on to the next page. 

"What do you mean by those words?"

"I donna know. They came tae me. I think that the warrior is looking for you." 

Hannah could pick out a faint sound of Camden calling for her with some panic laced in his voice. She turned to talk to ask Aileana the question again, but she was already walking away. With a small wave, she disappeared into the trees that lined the hill. Her mood had gone from mediocre to down right upset. She had missed the instructions. She had missed the crucial pieces of what the book wanted to tell her. She stood up and kicked a large rock with her foor forgetting that the shoes only had a leather bottom and were not completely encased in the harder fabric. Hannah cringed as the side of her foot made contact with the rock making a loud cracking sound. 

Biting her tongue, Hannah held in the stream of profanities that were begging to come out of her mouth. 

"Ruadh, where are ye?"

Hannah gingerly set her foot on the ground and winced when she put more weight on it. She was sure it was going to have a beautiful black and blue bruise tomorrow.

"There ye are. I looked everywhere! Why did ye run off like that? Ye could have been taken!"

"Camden," Hannah said bitterly, "I am not in the mood to explain to you of why I walked away. And you know what? Why the hell does it matter if I walk away from here or if I fall off of a cliff? It shouldn't. Hell! You don't even know me! I am a stranger. You don't need to protect me! You do not need to talk to me endearingly. In fact, stop."

Hannah regretted the words as they slid out of her mouth as fast as a snake attacking its prey. Camden's warm and open appearance shifted. The arms that hung once by his side were now crossed and his eyes held a steely look that made Hannah wish that the earth would swallow her up whole or she would go whooshing back to her own time.

"Is that how ye want me tae act? Ye want me to act like the savage that ye view me as? Dae ye want me to take yer virtue and leave ye here tae rot? Is that what ye want?"

Camden took her by the arms and stared deeply into her eyes without any emotion, "The Gods sent ye tae me. I donna know why, but they did. I will see that their will is carried out. I donna want to wish Fate's bad side on me! Donna make me dae that!"

Hannah bit her lip. This was a side to Camden she had not seen and it frightened her. Looking down, she stared at the strong arms that gripped her biceps in a crushing hold. 

"I am sorry Camden. I did not mean those words. I am exhausted. Please forgive me."

Camden loosened his iron grip, but the warmth did not return to his eyes. He remained stoic. 

"I will take ye back. Ye will go straight tae bed." He motioned with one arm for her to lead the way. Hannah lifted her head up high and walked in front of Camden. The flowers bent beneath her feet just like her soul bent a little further within itself. Camden could be heard crunching slowly behind her. Something in her wanted to know what he was thinking but at the same time, she did not especially if it was inappropriate. 

They soon reached the grounds of the castle. The men could still be heard, but Camden ignored them. He marched through the kitchen sending all of the maids into a scurry and flurry of skirts as they rushed to get out of the large warrior's way. Hannah had not noticed that he had taken the lead, but instead of questioning it, she followed meekly behind him. The stairs creaked as he put his weight on them and Hannah thought she could see the boards bend a little bit beneath them but it could have also been from the tiredness that consumed her body. Whispers reached her ears as she continued the ascent, but she could not understand them since they were in the Gaelic form of the Scottish language. Hannah cursed at herself for not paying more attention to her grandfather when he tried to teach her the language.

Camden stopped outside of her door. He opened it and motioned for her to go through. Angry at the attitude he was taking, Hannah marched through the door but before she could make it all the way into the room, Camden grabbed her by the arm and pulled her in closely to him. He brought his lips down on hers in an aggressive assertive way that shocked Hannah. She did not wait a moment longer. Quickly, she pulled back and slapped him hard across the face making a loud whack sound that reverberated throughout the hallway. The slap gave her enough time to shut the door and lock it from the inside with the key that was conveniently left there.

There was an angry bellow and then angry stomps in the opposite direction of her room. Sighing, she slid against the door. She had just slapped a laird of a clan across the face. A small knock on the door stirred her from the haze. 

"'Tis me. I have come tae get ye undressed!"

Hurriedly, Hannah unlocked the door, pulled the maid in, and locked the door again.

"Ye must have done something terrible to have sent the laird in a fit like that."

"He deserved it," Hannah shrugged.

The maid stared at her with wide eyes but did not say anything else. She rushed about helping Hannah to take off the dress and corset leaving her in nothing but a shift. Hannah shivered but the maid did not notice. Soon, the whole ordeal was done and Hannah was once again alone with the door locked. Slipping into the large bed, Hannah stared at the ceiling. The fire crackled in the fireplace and the sun gave its last ray through the narrow window. It was as if she had been a small child banished to her room and then Camden thought he had the right to kiss her. She did not even know the man and let alone like the way he assumed he could dominate her.

Hannah vowed that he would not be able to do that again. If Camden was used to getting his way, he was in for a rude awakening. Rolling over, Hannah closed her eyes as she formulated the plans that would give Camden a run for his money. If he truly wanted to do that again, he was going to have to deserve it.

A/N WHAT DO YOU THINK? How do you feel about Aileana? What about Camden's shift in attitude? Please comment, vote, fan, and share with others!

Dedicated to RandomNugget14 and NerdySquarePants for the constant following of this book! LOVE YOU GUYS!