Page 16 of Highlander’s Vengeful Seduction

“Did ye hear what happened?” he asked her. “Did ye hear what Vika is saying?”

Vanora stayed silent for a few moments, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth. “Aye,” she said. “She has told everyone in the castle…everyone in all of Knapdale must have heard by now. She was not very kind when she was telling our father and the laird what happened.”

“But ye dinnae believe her?”

Donal hated how much hope there was in his voice, a desire to cling onto anything, anyone who would believe that he was innocent. Still, if anyone was going to believe him, then it would be Vanora.

She hesitated, though, pulling her hand back slowly and clasping her fingers together in front of her.

“I dinnae ken what tae believe. I dinnae believe that ye could ever do such a thing as try and kill Angus, I ken that ye love him like a brother, but Vika…weel, I havnae forgotten that ye forced yerself on me, too.”

Donal couldn’t feel more shame about what he had done than he already did. He buried his face in his hands, averting his gaze from Vanora, as he could not bear to look at her anymore. Despite everything that he had done to her, and despite all the rumors, she was still there, visiting him in his darkest hour.

Donal didn’t know what he would do without her.

“Vanora, ye must believe me,” he said. “I widnae do such a thing to Vika, and I despise myself for doing it to ye. The difference is…well, the difference is that I am in love with ye, and I am no’ in love with Vika, never have been. It had always been ye, before I even kent it myself.”

Vanora simply blinked a few times, surprise evident in her face as her mouth dropped slightly open. “Yer in love wi’ me?”

Her words were little more than a whisper, but Donal heard her, and he nodded frantically. “Aye. I’ve never been in love wi’ another lass before. Ye are the only one. Ye have always been the only one, but I was tae foolish tae see that until now. If I ever leave this wretched place, then I will make it up tae ye…if I clear my name, I will ask yer father for yer hand, if ye wish to have me, and I will make ye the happiest woman in the world.”

Vanora didn’t reply for a long time, but once she did, she did not say what Donal wanted to hear.

“Yer getting ahead of yerself,” she pointed out. “I dinnae ken what will happen tae ye. Father is furious, and so is Laird MacMillan. They both want yer head, ye ken, and so dis Vika.”

“What about Angus?” Donal asked, still worrying about his friend, even as he was facing imminent execution. “Is he alright? What does he think of all this?”

“He’s alright,” Vanora assured him. “Ye didnae hurt him much, so I ken that ye didnae mean tae kill him. I ken that, and I think he does, too. He doesnae want ye tae hang, but there is no stopping oor fathers from doing what they want…and what they want is yer neck in a noose.”

Donal swallowed drily, his throat clicking as he tried to push down the knot that had begun to form there. He wasn’t surprised that Cormag believed his own daughter over him, but it did sadden him. He had only recently heard that he was like a son to him, after all, and having the man want to kill him was worse than Vika’s betrayal.

“I came here so that I can hear what ye have to say about this,” Vanora continued. “I dinnae believe my sister, so I want tae ken what happened, what truly happened. I want ye tae tell me.”

With a shaky hand, Donal reached into his pocket. Fortunately, no one had bothered to empty his pockets and take his belongings before he was thrown in that cell, so he still had the letter and the handkerchief with him. He handed both to Vanora wordlessly, who took them with a small frown, confused.

“Read the letter,” Donal said.

Vanora did as she was asked, her eyes widening more and more as she read. Once she was finished, her gaze fell to the handkerchief in her other hand.

“I dinnae understand,” she said. “What does this mean? What is this?”

“My brother didnae die of a weak heart, Vanora.” It felt good to finally say the truth to someone, even though he knew that if anyone else found out, it would cause problems for his family. “He died of a broken heart. He killed himself after yer sister sent him this cursed letter. Ye read what she told him in it…and ye kent Ronald. He was…he was gentle. He was kind. He couldnae handle any of this, and so he took his own life. It was the initials that led me here, tae Castle Sween. Vee em…Vanora MacMillan, I thought at first. Yer sister made it sound as though ye were really close with Ronald, closer than friends, and when ye said that ye didnae have yer handkerchief, I thought that this one was yers.”

Vanora examined the blood-stained handkerchief, and within a moment, she had confirmed its owner. “This is Vika’s,” she said. “She embroidered it herself. I would ken that sloppy needlework anywhere. I promise ye, Donal, I had nothing tae do with Ronald’s death. I was never in love with him, ye ken that…I was always in love with ye, and me and him were good friends. I widnae hurt ye or him like that.”

“Aye, I believe ye,” Donal assured her. “After everything, I ken that it wasnae ye. Vika lied tae everyone. She lied tae get me in this cell, and I’m sure she lied tae ye, too.”

Vanora thought back to the past few days, and she suddenly remembered the handkerchief. “She asked for mine,” she said. “Donal, she asked for my handkerchief before the feast. She said that she had to fix hers and begged me tae give mine to her, and so I did. I never kent…”

Donal could see that Vanora was getting upset, her hands shaking and her lip trembling. He would have done anything to wipe the sadness off her face, if only he knew what he could do. After all, there was not much to do from where he was behind bars.

He reached for her once more, extending his arm past the bars to urge her to take his hand, smiling when she did.

“Look at me,” Vanora said, shaking her head softly. “Yer the one behind bars, and I am the one who needs to be comforted.”

“I would do anything for ye, Vanora. Anything. It wasnae yer fault. Ye couldnae have kent any of this.”

That seemed to comfort Vanora a little, and she reached for Donal’s other hand, holding both in hers. Donal could practically feel the worry that radiated off her, her entire body shaking and her palms sweating where he was holding her hands.