Page 4 of Trapped By the Exiled Bastard

As soon as the door was closed and they were alone, she rounded on him, unleashing her fury toward him and the men downstairs all at once. “Never touch me!” she snarled. “When me lover gets here—”

“I dinnae care about ye or yer lover. Be silent,” Keir growled. He snatched a fraying piece of rope from a hook on the wall and moved toward her again, roughly grabbing her arms. “Stay still.”

Elin had no intention of obeying. She pulled her arms back, fighting as he swooped to grab her again, kicking out hard with the heavy sole of her shoe. He grunted as her toe connected with his shin, but he used the momentum to lurch forward and regain control. Keir pushed her back, causing her to stumble backward to the bed, her knees connecting with the edge. Collapsed on the mattress, she had no way of fighting as Keir straddled her hips and covered her mouth again with his hand.

His body was hot and heavy above her, and his chest heaved as he stared down into her eyes. She wondered how she looked to him like this, completely at his mercy.

“I appreciate that ye have some fight in ye, but if ye make a sound, I’ll kill ye,” he warned. “Put yer arms together.”

Hatred burning inside her, Elin obeyed. He slowly released her mouth, then quickly bound her hands together. He slid off her, leaving her body oddly cold and light where the heat of him had been a moment before, and roughly yanked her to her feet.

“Will ye stay silent, then? Or do I need tae gag ye?” he growled.

Elin only paused for half a second before the fire ignited inside her again. He was no better than the men who had accosted her downstairs, no better than any of them. She spat at his feet, causing him to jump back in surprise or alarm, and before he could say anything, she snapped back at him. “Coward! Thief! Outlaw! The MacKenzies are all traitors, but ye’re the lowest of them all. Yer bastard blood shows in yer bastard actions, ye monster. Do ye make a habit of stealin’ women for yer pleasure?”

Keir raised a heavy dark eyebrow, his anger giving way to something inscrutable. “Ye think this is pleasure, lass? That says little for that lover of yers. Does he enjoy yer bonny mouth despite the foul words that spill from it?”

The anger already boiling inside her grew white-hot. “Dinnae ye speak of him. Dinnae ye dare! Me Eamon is a good man, a kind man, and stronger and more honorable than ye will ever be. He is an honor tae the Grant name!”

In response, Keir laughed, a harsh, cold laugh that carried no humor. “Eamon Grant is yer so-called lover? Of course, I’d end up caught up with one of his foolish mistresses of all people. How many of ye are there now? I suppose he thinks ye’re the bonniest wee doll in his collection.”

With a furious cry, Elin threw herself forward, blinded by rage and only wanting to hurt him. Her bound hands rendered her ineffective, and Keir caught her without much effort, tutting as he did. She scowled and twisted in his arms, throwing her entire body weight against him, and he grunted in surprise as she managed to get away. With a growl, he grabbed her again, pulling her close in an iron grip.

“Stay still,” he warned her.

She writhed in his arms, desperate to escape, and kicked out with her legs. Jerking hard, she made him fall back, but it was still not enough to get away. She didn’t care. She’d fight until he killed her if that was what it took.

But as she kicked out again, to her surprise, saw him grimace as he pushed her back. He raised a hand to his side, stumbling slightly, and Elin watched with widening eyes as his cloak fell back and his shirt darkened red with fresh blood. He grimaced, gritting his teeth as he straightened himself back up, but Elin’s mind was already whirring. He was injured. She could use this to her advantage, but she had to think quickly, and her thoughts were blurred by the anger still pulsing through her.

“Ye’re hurt,” she said. “Dinnae make this worse for yerself. When Eamon gets here—”

“Will ye stop yer chatterin’ about Eamon?” Keir snapped, clutching his side. “I’m tryin’ tae figure out what tae do with ye. If ye could have just kept yer mouth shut in the first place, I could have just left ye well alone.”

Elin’s fists clenched. “Ye’ll wish ye had left me alone. Ye’ll regret ever touchin’ me when he gets here. It’ll be any minute now.”

Keir’s expression changed from a scowl to something more alarmed. “He’s comin’ now?” He swore. “By crivvens, I dinnae have time for this.”

“He’ll kill ye if ye try tae face him like that,” Elin warned, nodding to his bloodied shirt. “Let me go. It’s yer only chance of survival.”

He scoffed. “Aye, until ye send him after me. Nay, lass, yer comin’ with me.”

Elin opened her mouth to protest, but before she had a chance, she gasped in surprise as the floor vanished from under her. Keir slung her over his shoulder as though she weighed no more than a bag of flour and threw open the heavy window shutters. Elin shrieked in protest and kicked her legs, beating his back with her tied fists, but he ignored her blows as though they were nothing as he peered out the window.

With a low groan, he muttered, “Hold on, then.”

Elin stilled, alarm overtaking everything else. “Ye cannae possibly—”

But Keir didn’t give her the chance to finish.

With one arm secure around Elin, he climbed onto the windowsill and then slid down, hanging on with his other arm. Elin was buffeted by the wind, and her heart froze with fear. Yes, they were only a floor up, but the fall could injure them badly even then, and if they fell at the wrong angle, they could easily die. Keir’s fingers were already slipping, and Elin was now stock still, terrified that the slightest move would send them both tumbling to the ground. But what could she do? There was no way he could pull them back up either.

She was going to die with this traitor!

“Ye’ll kill us! Ye’re mad!” she screamed.

“God willin’. Maybe then ye’ll stop talkin’,” he grunted, and then, to her horror, he let go of the windowsill.

The ground rushed toward them, and Elin closed her eyes as they fell.