Page 18 of Bewitching her Highland Savior

CHAPTERNINE

Acrackling sound woke Liam in the middle of the night. The first thing he noticed was that it was strangely hot in the house – much more than it ought to be in the middle of the night. The next thing he noticed was that it was much brighter also.

The entire place was in flames.

At first, he assumed that the fire he had started had spread throughout the house. But then he noticed that it was almost out, whereas the flames engulfing them were coming from the ceiling.

Another attempt at Muriel’s life?

“Muriel, wake up,” Liam said; shaking her awake. The first thing they had to do was get out of there before they either burned alive or the smoke suffocated them. He didn’t give her a second to wake up properly before he grabbed her and threw her over his shoulder. It would be easier that way, quicker. She wouldn’t have to strain her leg.

“Oh God!” Muriel shouted; scrambling to hold onto him once she was completely awake. “What is happenin’?”

“I think someone started a fire,” Liam said. “Dinnae fash, I’ll get ye out of here.”

“Another assassin?” Muriel asked; her voice bordering on hysterical, and for good reason. Liam himself was almost hysterical. He'd only been by her side for three nights and every night she had come close to dying. They couldn’t go on like this all the way to Lewis.

Liam had started to think that maybe he was the one bringing Muriel bad luck.

He tried to make his way to the door, but the flames had already spread to the walls nearby, a risk too dangerous to take. Instead, he turned around and dashed back to the house, where the flames were still contained in the ceiling. The only problem was that there was no door, only a small opening where the wall had begun to crumble.

Liam put Muriel down and kicked at the wall multiple times until it started to give under his boot. He was not going to die in there. He was not going to let Muriel die in there either.

Once the bricks were loose enough, he pushed them with his hand – widening the hole until it was just big enough for them to go through. He gave Muriel his hand and helped her through before getting out himself and only then did he allow himself to think about anything else.

“Stay away from the house,” he said; pushing her further away from the burning structure. “And stay here. I’ll go and see if I can find who did this.”

“Nae! Dinnae leave me here alone,” Muriel said; grabbing his arm to stop him from leaving. “Please.”

“I’m nae goin’ far,” he assured her. “And I’ll be right back.”

Liam forced her to let go of him, despite her obvious reluctance to be apart from him for even a moment. Then, he circled the house slowly; trying to make as little noise as possible. A man was standing not too far from the house; watching the flames, perhaps waiting for them to die and ensure they really were dead this time.

Liam approached the man from the side, staying as hidden as he could in the vast, empty field. He couldn't hide for long, and when the man finally noticed him, he broke into a run, attempting to flee.

Liam – quick on his feet – started chasing after him and it didn’t take long to reach him. He tackled the man to the ground; fist connecting with his cheek before the other could stop him. Even as the man tried to shove him off, Liam clung to him – using all his weight to pin him down.

“Who sent ye?” he asked; screaming into his face. “Huh? Who was it?”

The man remained silent. He just kept struggling beneath him, and Liam was half tempted to kill him and be done with it, but he needed to find out the truth. Whoever was sending assassins after Muriel was obviously not going to stop anytime soon, and one of them would succeed sooner or later.

“Fine,” Liam said, as he brought his fist down on him once more – this time knocking him out. “We’ll do it the hard way.”

Once he was certain that the man was still breathing but unconscious, Liam stood and grabbed his arm – hauling him up to his feet. He carried him to the back of the house, where Muriel was waiting, and dropped him to the ground a little further away, just so that she wouldn’t have to look at him.

“Did ye… did ye…”

“I didnae kill him,” Liam said and Muriel let out a sigh of relief. “But he doesnae want to talk, so I’ll have to make him.”

He hated having to do any of this in front of her, but it was preferable if he kept an eye on her at all times. He couldn't be sure the man didn't have someone else with him, or that no one else was on their way.

“So, what happens noo?” Muriel asked; hands on her hips as she looked at the man.

“Noo, we wait for him to wake up,” Liam said. “It shouldnae take too long.”

Just as he had expected, the man woke up soon after and ,for a moment, he seemed confused – uncertain of where he was as he observed his surroundings. But then he saw Liam and Muriel and scrambled to his feet, hoping to flee once more. With his injuries, he was even slower and more disoriented than before. He tripped and fell, and all Liam had to do was walk up to him and place a foot on his back to stop him.

“Ye’re nae goin’ anywhere, so ye might as well start talkin’,” Liam told the man. “It’ll be much less painful for ye if ye tell us what we want to ken.”