That was the wrong thing to say. The man lunged forward, a filthy hand clamping over her mouth. He shoved her backward, through the trees and under the lantern string, into the darkness of the forest.
“Oh nay, ye willnae,” he hissed.
17
Well, I’m in more trouble than I expected, now,Melody thought dizzily, trying and failing to scream for help around the dirty palm pressed against her lips. The man shoved her forward, and she stumbled, nearly tripping on her hem.
It was as if they’d fallen back into a separate world, where it was dark and cold, and the muffled sounds of chatter and music seemed almost taunting instead of alluring.
“I was only goin’ to ask ye to dance,” the man hissed. “But now I think ye need to be taught a lesson.”
He released her arm, but before Melody could do anything to defend herself—not that a slap would do much, but it would be better than doing nothing—he snatched her braid and yanked hard, preventing her from darting away.
“I meant what I said, though,” the man sneered. “Ye are a pretty wee thing, there’s nay denying that. A bit tall, but never mind that, eh?”
Melody twisted, ignoring the stabbing pain in her scalp, and pulled herself away. The braid came undone, leaving the drunk with a handful of her hair dangling from his fingers. She gasped for breath, wiping the back of her hand across her mouth.
“You’re going to be sorry you did that,” she wheezed.
The man looked uncertain, just for a brief minute.
“I wouldnae shout for help if I were ye. It’ll nae look good for ye, standin’ in a dark clearin’ with a man.”
She made to dash away, but he seized her wrist again, his fingers tightening until she gave a yelp of pain.
“Let go of me!”
“Nah, lass, this isnae over. I’ll say that ye luredmehere,” he added, eyes brightening with inspiration. “And they’ll believe me. Yer betrothed will believe me. Nobody believes the woman in cases like these.”
“I wouldnae be so sure of that.”
A deep, familiar voice cut through the darkness around them. Melody sucked in a breath. She was perfectly placed to see the drunkard’s eyes widen in panic. His fingers tightened on her wrist.
A twig cracked in the undergrowth, and a shadow-man detached himself from the darkness. He prowled forward, and for an instant, Melody could have sworn that she saw a flash of teeth, a ragged mane of hair, and glinting wolfish eyes. Then she blinked, and the fangs were just ordinary white teeth, the mane nothing more than dark hair hanging around his face.
The green-gold eyes, however, were every bit as vibrant with rage as they were before.
Callum stepped properly out of the shadows, straightening to his full height.
The drunkard gulped audibly.
“Let her go,” Callum said pleasantly, fixing the man with a long, unblinking stare.
“Th-This isnae what it looks like, me Laird,” the man stammered.
A blade flashed in the darkness, its long, thin point flickering like a silver fish. The movement was almost too fast for Melody to track. She blinked, and the painful grip on her wrist suddenly disappeared.
The drunkard gave a wail, reeling backward, and clutched at his wrist. A gash opened up across the back of his hand, from the soft flesh between his thumb and forefinger all the way to the opposite wrist bone. Blood poured over his skin.
“I told ye to release her, and I daenae like to repeat meself,” Callum snarled, taking another step forward. He pointed his blade—Melody thought that it was a short sword, but of course, she had not seen sufficient swords in her lifetime to be sure—and the man cringed back. Now the blade was bloodied near the end. A fat glob of blood dripped lazily from the point.
“Ye have made a serious mistake tonight,” he continued, his voice tight and furious. “And one I daenae think ye will recover from.”
Callum could not remember the last time he had been so angry. His heart was already beating hard, aware of the great space all around him. These forests were so open that an attack could come from anywhere. Even from below, as deep leaf piles and pits could present a serious threat.
This was bad. This was very bad. They needed to get home, back to the keep, where it was safe.
I was right about the danger, he thought grimly, leveling the sword at the cringing drunk.Maybe they’ll listen to me next time.
