The clang of steel on steel sounded the beginning of the end. Their strategy foiled, the attackers’ next strokes were not as well timed, and Alex had no trouble blocking their blows. Quickly he assessed the relative skills of the men and concentrated his efforts on the stronger of the two, leaving his open side to the weaker one. Unfortunately, it was also the side that had taken the brunt of the blow earlier, and the villain managed to get in one strike on his ribs before Alex dispatched the other.
Gaze still focused on his man, Alex glanced out of the corner of his eye toward Meg’s remaining guardsman. He’d managed to kill one of his attackers, but the hook-nosed man from the tavern had just dealt him a death blow. Alex returned the favor to his attacker and turned to face the man from the tavern. But something bothered him. He looked around at the dead littering the forest floor, searching for a body that would match the other man from the tavern.
Meg’s scream cut through the still air, turning his blood to ice.
Too late, he’d found the man he’d been looking for. He cursed, realizing that while he’d been locked in battle, repelling the attack, the other man from the tavern had circled around his flank and found Meg.
Ignoring Hook Nose, Alex spun around and started toward the tree where he’d left Meg. But the scene that met his eyes forced him to halt in his tracks.
Rage such as he’d never experienced before coursed through him at the sight of the dirk pressed into Meg’s neck and the light trail of blood trickling below it. He’d cut her. His response was visceral, every muscle in his body twisted with uncontrollable anger.
The memory of Dougal’s evil smirk right before his cousins were gulleted flashed before his eyes. Alex would not let it happen again. Not to Meg.
An urge to kill crashed over him, so powerful that it must have been a remnant of his barbaric Viking ancestry. Everything went black, except for the clear vision of the ruffian, a man he recognized too well, holding the blade to her neck. Thomas Mackinnon. Her father’s trusted chieftain wanted Meg dead.What the hell was
going on?
“Let me go,” Meg pleaded. “Why are you doing this?”
“Shut up, bitch,” Mackinnon said. “This is all your fault. If you had accepted my proposal, none of this would be necessary.”
So that was it. Alex watched the man so intently, he could see the hairs bend on his arm from Meg’s uneven breathing. Not much ground separated them, but he dared not try anything with that blade so deathly close. He kept his gaze leveled on the attacker. He could not risk looking at Meg, seeing panic in her eyes. Panic that might paralyze him.
But what he saw in Thomas Mackinnon’s gaze offered little in the way of reassurance. There was a hint of wildness in his eyes that bespoke a man who’d risked everything and knew it. Meg was alive only to get to Alex. Once Alex was contained, they both would be killed.
“I don’t understand,” Meg said. “What could you hope to—” She stopped as understanding dawned. Alex could hear the horror in her voice. “You want to be chief.” Her eyes widened. “Tell me you didn’t have anything to do with my father’s illness—”
“I told you to shut up,” Mackinnon growled. He pressed the dirk, and another drop of blood slid from Meg’s neck. Alex could tell he was quickly losing whatever control he had on his restraint.
A cold rage settled over him, fueled by a bloodlust so powerful that he could taste it. “Let her go,” Alex said. It was not a request; his voice resonated with the promise of death.
Alex sensed Hook Nose moving toward him, and he beat him back with a fierce glare.
Thomas Mackinnon directed his venom toward his compatriot. “You fool. You said there were only three guardsmen. What is Alex MacLeod doing here?”
“He didn’t ride out with her,” Hook Nose faltered nervously. “You need not have interfered, I have everything under control.”
“You should be thanking me, you idiot,” Mackinnon said. “You would be dead right now if not for me.”
Hook Nose studied Alex. “You look familiar…” Recognition dawned. “The outlaw.” He turned to Mackinnon excitedly. “It’s him. The man I told you about. Now you must believe me. I told you he fought with the skill of five men.”
“I thought you said they were MacGregors?” Mackinnon snapped.
“They were,” Hook Nose assured him. “My men recognized a good number of them.”
Mackinnon looked at him sharply. “What is the brother of Rory Mor doing fighting with outlawed MacGregors?”
Damn.Alex heard Meg gasp. Doubtless he’d have some explaining to do later. He took a step closer. “Let her go and you can have me.”
“You are in no position to bargain,” Mackinnon said. “Drop your weapons.” He tightened his hold around Meg’s neck, causing the dirk to press deeper into that delicate flesh.
He’s a dead man.
“I’ll put down my weapons, but lower the blade.”
Mackinnon laughed. “And why should I do that?”
“A show of faith. How do I know you don’t intend to kill us both?”
