“Let them go,” Leona said quietly. Her voice didn’t shake. She was proud of that. “Let Skye and Nyx go, and I’ll come with ye. Willin'ly. Nay fight. Nay resistance.”
“Leona, nay!” Murdock’s voice was raw, desperate. “Daenae do this!”
She turned to look at him. Saw the anguish etched into his features, the way his hands were clenched so tight they were trembling. Saw the man who’d just confessed his deepest fears standing helpless while the woman he was trying to protect sacrificed herself.
Their eyes met across the distance, and at that moment, everything else fell away. She saw his soul laid bare, the terror, the rage, the desperate care he’d only just begun to acknowledge.Saw him breaking apart even as he stood there, unable to move, unable to save her.
“I have to,” she said simply. “Ye ken I do.”
“Like hell ye do!” Murdock started forward, but Hamish and Killian grabbed him, holding him back even as he fought against their grip like a wild animal. “Leona, I order ye to stop!”
“Ye’re nae me Laird,” she said softly, her heart breaking at the look on his face. “Nae yet. And this is me choice.”
“It’s nae a choice if ye’re doin' it to save someone else,” Murdock ground out, still struggling against the hands holding him back. “Leona, please. Please daenae do this. We’ll find another way.”
“There is nay other way.” She blinked back tears. “And ye ken it.”
She turned back to Ragnall, meeting his triumphant gaze without flinching. Behind her, she could hear Murdock’s ragged breathing, could feel his gaze burning into her back. Could sense the exact moment he stopped struggling, when he realized she truly was going to do this.
“Do we have a deal?” she asked Ragnall, proud that her voice remained steady. “Me in exchange for them?”
Ragnall studied her for a long moment, his eyes calculating. Then he smiled, and it was the smile of a man who’d just won everything he wanted.
“Aye. We have a deal.” He released Skye with a little shove that sent her stumbling forward. “Go on, brat. Run to yer faither.”
Skye flew across the courtyard and crashed into Murdock’s legs, her small arms wrapping around him as she sobbed. Murdock immediately dropped to his knees, gathering her close, one hand cradling her head against his chest while the other checked her over for injuries.
“I’m sorry, Da,” she cried. “I’m so sorry. He said he just wanted to feed the kitty, and I thought?—”
“Shh, it’s all right. Ye’re all right.” Murdock’s voice was thick with emotion as he held his daughter tight. “I’ve got ye. Ye’re safe now.”
Ragnall dropped Nyx, who landed gracefully and immediately sprinted toward Rufus, who’d appeared in the courtyard. The boy scooped up the hissing cat, holding her close despite her struggles.
“There.” Ragnall turned back to Leona, his smile widening. “All hostages released as promised. Now, me bride… ye’re exquisite.”
He stepped toward her, reaching out with one hand stained with blood from Nyx’s claws. His fingers stretched toward her face, toward her hair, claiming her with his touch.
The world slowed down. Leona watched those fingers approach, watched the cruel satisfaction in Ragnall’s eyes, and felt her stomach turn.
This was it. The moment she became his. The moment she lost everything she’d fought for.
Behind her, she heard the sound of a wounded animal. She stood frozen, every muscle locked tight, forcing herself not to flinch. This was the price. This was what she’d agreed to. For Skye. For all of them. She couldn’t…
A blade flashed in the sunlight.
The sharp ring of steel cutting through bone echoed across the courtyard, impossibly loud in the sudden silence. Time seemed to fracture, the moment stretching like taffy as Leona watched Ragnall’s hand—still reaching for her, fingers still extended—separate from his wrist in a spray of crimson that caught the light and turned it red.
It hit the ground with a wet thud, the fingers still twitching.
For a heartbeat, the world fell silent.
Ragnall stared at his severed hand lying in the dirt, blood pumping from the stump of his wrist. Then the pain registered, and he screamed.
Leona looked up to find Murdock standing beside her, his sword still raised, blood dripping from the blade. His face was carved from granite, cold and merciless and absolutely lethal.
“She’smebride,” he said, his voice deadly quiet.
Then chaos erupted.
