Ronan raised his sword, taking a defensive stance with his men. “Daryl, find the keys,” Ronan ordered one of his men. Their only hope was to get his other men free. Even without swords, it would improve the MacKinnons’ odds of surviving. When the first men approached, Ronan went on the offensive, taking the MacLeods by surprise. With the MacKinnon battle cry “Cuimhnich bàs Ailpein”—"Remember the death of Alpin,” the king the MacKinnons believed they descended from—Ronan charged forward. He swung his sword and strength he’d been certain was gone after a week in his jail surged through him. Ronan cut through a second man just before a draught gusted from behind him, and a war cry of “hold fast” filled the corridor behind him. “Kieran?” Ronan called out.
“Kyle!” A man’s voice responded. Ronan recognized the voice and the name as Kieran’s second. Men poured in from behind Ronan, ready to clash with those charging toward him.
“Abby?”
“Here, but safe,” Kyle answered before he drove his sword into a man’s chest.
MacLeods of Skye fell as Ronan fought alongside men sent by his brother-by-marriage. As they pressed forward against the men from Skye, something—or someone—slid past, hugging the walls and cell doors. Ronan’s jaw clenched and his eyes narrowed when he recognized the head of black hair that didn’t even come to his shoulders. But the sound of metal jangling in her hand as she raced past him told Ronan she’d found the keys. As he continued to fight, he heard her unlock one cell door after another. It wasn’t long before he sensed that the fighting force at his back grew. His men picked up swords from the fallen warriors and joined the fight for their freedom. A small hand pressed against his back before wrapping around his belt.
“There’s a door ahead that should take us into the sea cave. If we can get there, we can get away.”
“Abigail.”
“Ye can have ma head on a skewer after we’re free.”
Ronan knew the men heard them when there was another shift. Rather than remain on the offensive, the MacKinnons and MacLeods of Lewis formed a defensive circle around Abigail. They fought their way forward, but the goal now was to protect Abigail. Men continued to enter the dungeon from the bailey, but the onslaught slowed. When they reached the wall with the door up to the keep and the one Abigail assumed led to the cave, she slipped past Ronan. He whistled, and the MacKinnons and her former clansmen turned their backs to Abigail, facing out to guard her while she tried the keys until she found the right one. She yanked the door open, grateful to see the three birlinns waiting for them.
“Ronan!” Abigail lifted her skirts and ran toward the boats. More Dunvegan men entered the cave from the keep, but the combined forces that Kyle brought and Ronan led were enough to keep the Dunvegan warriors at bay until everyone was aboard the birlinns. Abigail moved to the stern, as far out of the way as she could. As the men rowed out of through the sea gate, Ronan spun around to find Abigail staring at him.
Thirty
Ronan rushed forward, and Abigail launched herself into his arms. Their lips ground against one another until it finally seemed real that they were in one another’s arms. The kiss continued as desperation and terror eased into relief. When they pulled apart, Ronan looked in horror at the grime now covering Abigail. He tried to release her, but she shook her head.
“I dinna care. I dinna care. Dinna let go.” Abigail ran her hands over Ronan’s gaunt face as tears streamed down her dirt smeared cheeks. She cupped his jaw and pressed a tender kiss to his mouth. She sobbed, “I was so scared, Ro—so—scared.”
“Me too, Abby. I canna let go. I’m too scared I’ll lose ye again.” Ronan crushed her against his chest as he relished the feel of Abigail in his arms again, knowing she was unharmed and leaving Dunvegan.
“Too—tight,” Abigail gasped as she tapped on Ronan’s rock-hard pectoral. He eased his hold on her, but still kept her within the circle of his arms. She searched his exhausted but handsome face. She ran her hands over his arms and back. “Did they hurt ye?”
“Nay. Gordon said—”
“Nay. He never touched me. I can only imagine what he said, but he left me alone. Cormag warned him.”
“Gordon kenned making me think he’d abused ye was worse than any physical torture.”
“Did he torment ye often? I thought ye believed me.”
“I did. It was only today that he made claims I kenned couldnae be true. He told me ye escaped. The bluidy eejit started out telling me ye’d drowned, then suddenly, he said he’d caught ye. I dinna think he kenned ye made it to Stornoway.”
“I dinna ken if Cormag even kens. Kieran went to deal with him and to get yer men locked away in the bailey.” Abigail looked toward the keep as they rounded the headland. She spied her brother’s tawny hair covered with snow as he stood outside the main gate, the Fairy Flag still folded but raised above his head.
“Is that—?” Ronan murmured.
“Aye. I stole it,” Abigail grinned.
“Bluidy hell, Abigail. Do ye never listen?”
“Sometimes. But only when I hear what I want.” Abigail stood on her toes and pressed a smacking kiss to Ronan’s lips. “If ye or our family is in danger, I willna give up. There’s naught I willna do to protect the people I love. I’ll accept the risks if I can save ye. Dinna bother trying to convince me otherwise. Ye’d do the vera same.”
“But—”
“Och, if ye even think to say it’s different because ye’re a mon, or because ye’re bigger, or because ye swing a sword, I will dump ye in the drink.”
Ronan tried to smother his guilty smile. “I was going to say, but I wouldnae look nearly as good as ye.”
“Liar,” Abigail laughed as she leaned back against her husband and closed her eyes. She whispered around the tightness in her throat, “I love ye.”
“I love ye, Abby. Always.” Ronan felt his heart slowing from its rapid cadence as he stood holding his wife. He didn’t know what would come next, but he could face anything now that he held Abigail. He knew the fight with the MacLeods of Skye wasn’t nearly finished, but he was free of his prison, and his wife was safe. As they sailed closer to the dock, Kieran’s voice drifted down to them.
