“I’m sorry,” she said when he recovered himself.
He strode toward the rushing water in the stream, knelt down, and splashed water onto his face. After he washed the blood away, he cleaned his hands aswell, scrubbing them together vigorously, violently, scraping at the skin with his fingernails.
“God help me, Amelia,” he said in a low, dangerous voice.
“I want to thrash you senseless. What were you thinking?”
She frowned at his broad back, for he wasstillcrouching over the water. “What do youthinkI was thinking? I was trying to escape from my enemy and reach anally—my own countrymen. It was hardly an outrageous plan, and you shouldn’t be surprised. Angus wanted tokillme tonight. What did you expect?”
He glared at her over his shoulder. “I’llnot let anyonekillyou. I told you that already.”
“But Angus seems to be at odds with your decision making in that regard.”
“He’lldo as I say.”
“How can I be sure of that? I know nothing of him, or you for that matter.allI know is that you abducted me, and that you want tokillmy fiancé, and that the entire English army is quivering in their boots right now because you are a wild, brutal savage with impossible strength who carries a big axe and wants to slay every last one of them in their sleep!”
He rose to his feet and stalked toward her.
She backed up in fright.
“Those men,” he said in a low and threatening voice,
“wanted to dishonor you. You shouldn’t have gone there.”
“I didn’t know that when I left you!allI wanted was to feel safe again.”
“You’re safe with me.”
Something inside her shifted and tipped over onto its side. “I find that difficult to believe.”
«Well, believe it.” He turned away to fetch his horse. “And I hope you learned your lesson tonight.”
“I did,” she admitted grudgingly. “I think.”
He whirled around to face her again. “Youthink? Do you have rocks in your head where your brain should be?”
“What do you expect, Duncan? You’re the Butcher, and you brought me here against mywill. You abducted me and made me your prisoner!”
He stared at her in frustration. Animosity seethed in his voice. “Aye, because I couldn’t just leave you there.” He raked a hand through his blood-soaked hair and spoke in a low growl. “If only you knew how badly I wanted tokillthat soldier tonight. Seeing him on top of you like that, groping at you like some kind of animal, when clearly you did not want it.
And the others, standing by and watching…” He shook his head. “I want to go back there now and finish what I started. I want to shove his head under the water and watch him splash and kick and die. Why’d you stop me?” Duncan’s fists were clenching and unclenching.
“Because I … I couldn’t bear to watch.”
He seemed to be fighting some inner demon that wanted to break free. He wouldn’t lift his eyes. Amelia stared at the top of his head,stillmatted with blood. His shoulders heaved with each breath.
She wasstillso unsure of him, so fearful of his explosive, hot-tempered nature. He had beaten those men insensible back there andstillwanted to go back and do more damage.
And yet he wanted to do those things to protect her. To wreak vengeance on those who tried to dishonor her.
Or perhaps it was notherdishonor he wanted to avenge.…
“Thank you,” she softly said, for she did not know what else to say. “Thank you for rescuing me from those men.”
He looked up in anger—or was it remorse?—then put a hand to his head and staggered sideways. “Ah, bluidyhell.”
She dashed forward and tried to grab hold of him under the arms but could do nothing as he sank heavily to the ground in a huge tartan-covered heap.
