Page 70 of In Bed with her Highland Foe

Larry flinched, as if she had struck him with those words. Shay, on the other hand, froze, then slowly turned around. The moonlight fell on his face and she saw his face looking at her with curiosity rather than outrage.

“Release him,” she demanded as she came to a hasty halt in front of Laird Shay. “I demand ye let him go at once.”

“Lady of the clan, eh?” Shay said, stepping toward her. “Are ye used tae having yer orders followed, Kyven?”

She stumbled, her stomach turning over in fear as she took a step back from him. She realized at once how alone she was, how foolish it was to demand they released him when she had no power here, no threat to hold over them.

“Release him,” she pleaded again, her eyes flitting down to Laird Shay’s weapon’s belt. Could she take one of those dirks, if she was fast enough?

“Larry.” Laird Shay jerked his thumb toward her. “Deal with her.”

Larry stepped toward her, a rope tangled between his palms.

“Nay!” Kyven shouted and threw herself at Shay. She pushed him back, and momentarily, despite his greater height, she had the upper hand because of the surprise of her attack. She toppled him back against the side of the cart and reached for the dirk in his belt. She drew it out, raising it high. “Release him, or I – ah!” She didn’t even manage to finish the threat.

Larry’s arms came up around her. He pinned her arms down to the side of her chest, trying to wrap the rope across her body.

She leaned back as far as she could, pushing her weight into him and lifting her legs. As Laird Shay moved toward her, trying to help with that rope, she kicked out at his nose.

The nose that Gilchrist had already broken once now shattered again.

“Argh!” the cry that emitted from him was pure animal, as if a wild beast had come upon the castle to curse the place. He stumbled away back against the cart and raised a hand coolly over his nose, then lowered his palm, looking at the blood as if it was a marvel. “Ah, Lady Kyven.” She continued to struggle, ignoring his words, fighting against Larry who was coming dangerously close to fastening that rope around her chest. “When we are wed, ye’ll have tae learn tae control that temper of yers.”

“Ye bast –” She didn’t manage to finish the curse. Shay had something in his hands. Was it a plank of wood? She couldn’t be sure as he moved so fast.

The last thing she remembered was the way his lip curled, in some sort of malicious smile, before she felt the thwack across the side of her temple. The darkness was abrupt, so sudden and fast, that she wasn’t even sure if she whimpered in pain, or perhaps screamed, before she was lost to unconsciousness.

“Kyven? Kyven!”

Someone was saying her name, but she didn’t want to respond. There was something comforting about the darkness, something that felt rather numb.

Let me stay here.

“Kyven!” the voice demanded of her again. This time, it was accompanied with a tap against her foot.

She woke up a little more. That pleasant numbing feeling lost her, and she was suddenly aware of the acute pain at her temple. She whimpered, opening her eyes and trying to lift her neck. That hurt too, as if her head had been at an uncomfortable angle for a long time.

It was still dark. That much she deduced fast, before she realized there was a firelight nearby. The fire, lit in the middle of a clearing in the woods, was surprisingly strong, reaching quite high, encouraging the heat to fall on her and the person in front of her.

“Kyven?” the voice was gentler this time.

Kyven tore her gaze from the glowing flames onto the man before her.

With Gilchrist’s eyes staring at her, everything else came into focus.

She was tied down, her arms wrapped around the small trunk of a tree behind her. The rope cut deeply into her wrists, grazing them all the more as she shifted her arms together. Her gown was dirtied, as if they had been on the road for some time, her boots practically falling off her feet. Her hair was loose too, half falling across her face, so much that she had to blow it out of the way to see Gilchrist fully.

He sat a short distance from her, close enough that he could tap her foot with his own. A thin trickle of blood ran down the back of his neck and onto his white shirt. Half of his body was cold, one cheek bright white, the other closest to the fire red, as if he had sat too near the fire for too long.

“What…” She began, but she said no more.

There were sounds around the fire and two men appeared. Larry threw more firewood into the flames as Shay walked toward her, his arms folded, with a smile on his face. They were making camp somewhere for the night, and judging by the trees around them, a heavy amount of Douglas firs and larches, they were nowhere near the castle anymore. She didn’t recognize this place.

“Ye are awake. Excellent. There is much ye need tae ken, Kyven.”

“Take her back tae the castle,” Gilchrist abruptly barked. His voice was so sharp, so fearful, that Kyven flinched. She stared at him, agog, amazed how different his manner was to how he had been in the bedchamber with her just a few hours ago. She could see at one glance just how terrifying he had to be on the battlefield. “Yer quarrel is with me, nae Kvyen.”

“Quarrel?” she managed to murmur, with her mouth strangely dry after being unconscious for so long. “What quarrel? What is this?”