The blue-black emptiness of the cloudy night had given way to the dismal faded gray of early morning. The sky looked like an old flannel blanket that had been washed one too many times. She vainly searched for the position of the sun. It had to be just past dawn. A warning kind of cloudy sky promised inevitable rain or maybe even snow flurries. She shivered. They must have traveled a lot higher up into the mountains. Winter grudgingly surrendered to spring’s warmth at this altitude in the Highlands. The wind was like a cold damp rag sliding across her. She sagged back down into the nest of pillows and curled into a trembling ball among the blankets. This was just great. The weather matched her frame of mind perfectly.
A forced swallow around the gag knotted between her teeth angered her even more. The distant rumble of muffled conversation and quiet laughter echoed somewhere up ahead. The happy sound triggered a visceral surge of burning fury. This was pure, unadulterated bullshit! She would be damned if she cowered here and like an animal bound for the slaughterhouse.
Kenna stretched out and arched her back. With hopping kicks, she grunted and rolled until she succeeded in propping herself up into a seated position near the end of the wagon. Ronan Sutherland would rue the day he had trussed her up like a freaking turkey ready for the oven.
And there he was, standing in front of several men looking to him for instructions. She glared at the back of Ronan’s head as he barked out orders and pointed to several different locations around a cleared bit of ground surrounded by good-sized boulders and pines. Biting down hard on the gag, she forced her will back to the doorway of his unbreachable mind. She might not be able to access his memories, but she could damn sure shout her thoughts into his awareness.
If you think this is the way to get an obedient wife, you’re in for one hell of a surprise, buddy. Ever hear the saying, “Be careful what you wish for”?
Ronan immediately stopped talking to his men, turned to her, and grinned. “And that is why I was sent to ye, my dear. I believe we are a perfect match.”
Not bloody well likely. Can you tell what I’m thinking now?She ground her teeth into the knotted cloth, propelling her fury into his mind with the coarsest language she could possibly use, describing quite colorfully and explicitly what he could go and do to himself.
His dark brows rose to his silver hairline. The corners of his eyes crinkled with mirth as he threw back his head and roared with laughter. The men around him stared at one another, confusion filling their faces. Even the horses turned and stared as Ronan’s deep guffaws echoed down the rugged hillside.
“Ah, ye bring joy to my heart, lass.” He wiped the corners of his eyes with the heels of his hands while still beset with a fit of snorting chuckles. After a deep breath, he shook his head and leaned against the wagon.
“I havena laughed like that in many a year.” He turned to her and made a gallant bow. “I thank ye, my lady.” Then he straightened and twirled a finger in the air. “As much as I enjoy hearing yer thoughts, if ye will turn just a wee bit, I shall remove that dreadful gag from around yer lovely face.”
She twisted and scooted back enough for him to reach the knot tied at the back of her head. As soon as he pulled the cloth free, she held up her bound wrists. “And now these?”
“Sorry, lass. I think not.” He motioned toward the wooded ravine sloping down from the road’s edge. “This is still MacKenna land, albeit the farthest border. I willna release the rest of yer bonds until we are well away from yer family’s reach.”
“How am I supposed to . . . ” She jerked her chin at a clump of thick bushes higher up the hillside. “I do have needs, you know.” She wouldn’t goad him by accusing him of being inhumane—at least not just yet. Ronan Sutherland needed to be studied before she plotted the full extent of his torture.
He frowned and scrubbed the day’s growth of stubble shimmering silver on his chin. “I have an idea.” He rapped his knuckles on the boards of the wagon as he turned away. “Ian. Bring me the chains ye use for training the wolf pups.”
Animal chains?Wolfpups? Was he serious? She stopped mid-scoot toward the edge of the wagon’s opening. “What the devil do you think you’re going to do with chains?” It was then she realized she had snagged the ropes of her tied ankles on an iron peg jutting out from the rear hitch. “Dammit!” She braced herself for face-first impact on the ground as she pitched forward.
Strong hands locked onto her shoulders and swept her up through the air. With her knotted wrists tucked to her chest, she found herself nose to nose with Ronan.
“Take care, lass. Such a tumble could break yer lovely neck, and what a terrible waste that would be.”
His warm breath tickled against her as she looked up into his eyes. His smile slowly faded as his gaze settled on her mouth. The tip of his tongue flicked along his bottom lip as he tilted his head and eased a bit closer.
“Put me down.” She shoved her clenched hands up between them and turned her face aside. Her kisses belonged to Colum alone. The sooner Ronan realized that the better.
“Aye, lass. As ye wish.” He huffed something unintelligible in a resigned tone as he lowered her to her feet. Then he turned and called to a young man rubbing down one of the horses. “Liam.”
Liam’s head popped up from behind the chestnut back of the first mount tethered along the line stretched between two trees.
“Help Ian with the length of chains and bring a blade for these ropes around Lady Sutherland’s wrists and ankles.”
The grim-faced youth bobbed his head with an obedient jerk and trotted out of sight.
Lady Sutherland.Kenna suppressed a shiver. He had called her that just before dumping her in the back of the wagon. Why? Why did he insist on calling her that? “My name is Kenna Sinclair,” she corrected. “And ropes or chains—what’s the difference? You are still treating me like some kind of criminal. Is that how you always woo your wives?”
Ronan didn’t answer—just slowly paced up and down the roadside with a self-satisfied expression that only made her black mood worse.
Damn him.She hugged her bound hands to her waist and hopped to the moss-covered trunk of a fallen tree at the edge of the dirt road. Big mistake. Now she needed to pee even worse. She lowered herself to the log and glared at Ronan. “Well? Are you going to answer me or just stand there and piss me off even more with that stupid grin on your face?”
The man’sgrinwidened exponentially. He fanned her fury hotter with a teasing wink as he motioned Ian and Liam forward. “Take care, lads, and be quick about it. Yer mistress grows weary of waiting.” Ronan tapped the end of the lightweight chain in Liam’s hand, then pointed in her direction. “Latch one end of the chain snug around Lady Sutherland’s waist. Lock the other end to the back of the wagon for now. Later, we will move her to a tree closer to the fire. Once ye have the chain secured around her, then—and only then, mind ye—ye may remove the remainder of her bindings. Remember what a fighter she is and how she wounded Dougal at the onset of our trip back to Draegonmare.”
As he turned away and headed toward the small group of men gathered among the horses, he paused and glanced back over his shoulder. “The light chain will allow ye just enough freedom to tend to yer private needs but will create enough noise to let us all know ye are still bound to us. But dinna think ye will slip away and find a way to remove it. I give ye my word, ye willna be allowed to escape.”
She glared at his back as he walked away. What she wouldn’t give for the ability to shoot daggers with her eyes. Ronan chuckled and wagged a scolding finger in the air without looking back.
Kenna bit back a stream of expletives and aimed her scowl at the gangly youths edging their way toward her. She couldn’t overcome them physically, but maybe she could guilt the two into helping her escape. If that didn’t work, surely she could erase their minds and plant her wishes inside their heads. First, she would give the guilt route a try. “What would your mothers think if they saw you right now?”
