“Nothing much, really. I merely promised him that by nightfall, I would bring him yer head and the head of that bonny lass to him on a silver platter.”
Seamus roared.
All thoughts of logic and reasonable means of fighting fled his mind at Archie's taunt. It was one thing to threaten him, to go after Seamus. But to vow harm to Flora, to threaten her life, was another thing entirely. Rage consumed him as he cut through two soldiers, taking the stairs as quickly as he could. Heknew that Flora and Liam were both on his heels, but he paid them no heed. All he could think about was silencing Archie.
“It has been so long since I last saw ye fight. I forgot how emotional ye could be. That mistake will cost ye, ye ken.”
Archie's tone was light and teasing, but his eyes were razor-sharp. The men around him dispersed into the crowd behind Seamus. He could hear Flora grunting as she fought against whoever had come against her. Still, Seamus did not take his eyes off Archie.
The man made no effort to meet Seamus halfway, rather he stood directly in front of the door, as though he was the castle's last defense. Seamus didn't mind. In fact, he preferred it this way. He wanted as close to the castle as he could get, even if that meant going through Archie. Especially if it meant going through the man.
“Look how sweet,” the old man cooed in a too-sweet voice, “the lad has brought his lass with him, unable to fight for himself.”
“I always thought it was a scared man who spoke too much before a fight. They cannae use their swords, so they fling whatever shite they can in the hopes of wounding their opponent with words.”
“I see it is working,” Archie grinned.
“Och, but ye are forgetting that a real fight always follows. And that is where ye will fail.”
Seamus brought his sword up, swinging at Archie with his last word. He moved with a power and speed that he had not felt before. Despite his age, Archie managed to move quickly, jumping out of the way just in time. Seamus' attack, at the very least, wiped the smirk off Archie's face.
“I see that ye have missed more than a handful of training sessions, lad. Yer technique is so verra sloppy.”
“This isn't training,” Seamus forced out between grunts, swinging in between every word.
He could feel Flora silently moving up behind him, getting closer. Though it might not make it a fair fight, he knew that together, they would be able to take Archie down without a problem. He only had to get Archie in the prime position.
“Unlucky for ye. That only means that one of us will die before this is over. And as I said, I dinnae break my word.”
The corner of Seamus' lips threatened to rise. Just as he had said, Archie was too busy goading him to notice his surroundings. He had stopped paying attention to the fight and instead was focused on Seamus' reactions. The wall that Seamus had backed him into seemed to have come out of nowhere for Archie. As did Flora's sword against his neck.
“I am afraid, Archie,” Seamus said with the same mocking tone Archie had been overly fond of using, “that today, ye will break yer word.”
“What's the matter? Ye must rely on the strength of a woman, rather than fight the battle yerself. What kind of man are ye?”
Seamus could see Archie's prodding for what it was—a desperate attempt at putting off his death as long as possible.
“I ken that ye cannae understand this, and ye will never get to,” Seamus told the man, stepping closer and closer, “but I have nay problem relying on my woman. I picked a strong one for a reason. And that is yer second mistake.”
“What? That I dinnae ask a woman to fight for me?” Archie carried on, even as his eyes grew wider at Seamus' sword.
“Nay. The mistake ye made was going after her in the first place.”
Seamus plunged his sword into the man's chest, sinking it deep. He didn't stop until he felt the tip hit the stone wall behind Archie's back. Blood gurgled up and bubbled over out of the man's mouth. His eyes turned into giant orbs of shock and pain,but he said nothing. His sword fell with a clang to the stone floor as his hands reached for the blade still piercing his heart. Just as quickly as Seamus had driven the sword in, he yanked it out in one smooth motion, sending a waterfall of red rushing down the front of the man's shirt. Archie fell to his knees. A second later, he was face-down on the stone, lifeless.
From over Archie's body, Flora stared at Seamus. Her expression was a mix of pride and awe and a hint of disbelief. As if she shouldn't believe that he would ever go to such lengths for her. As though, until that very moment, she had been unable to imagine a love great enough to protect her so completely.
He wanted to rush over to her, gather her in his arms, and kiss her until neither of them could breathe or think about anything but each other. However, the clashing sounds of battle ruined the feeling for him entirely, and he was brought back to reality. He doubted that Flora would even want to kiss him in the middle of a battle like this.
“What are ye standing around for?” Liam shouted, shoving two of Campbell's guards down the stairs at once, leaving them to topple onto each other. “Get inside! Find Campbell! Let's end this.”
Seamus picked up his bloodied sword and shook out his shoulders as he turned toward the now-empty castle entrance. It was dark and quiet, though he doubted that was too out of the ordinary. He imagined that all the servants had taken to hiding as soon as the fight had started.
“Which way?” Flora asked, right by his side.
“The Great Hall is this way.”
He led Flora and Liam and a handful of others through the corridors until they reached the hall. It had been a marvelous, massive room when he was a boy, one filled with banquets and music and dancing. In Campbell's day, it had been a place of spectacle and suffering. He would meet out punishments and doall he could to show off to any who would watch. But now, now it was empty. Completely and utterly…
