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Douglas was being held in a small cabin. Pinpricks of light shone through gaps in the wooden decking above, and echoes of footsteps could be heard as Vikings moved about the ship. There was a gentle sway as the boat was harbored, and the smell of ale hung in the air. Douglas cut a pitiful figure, slumped against the wall with his head hanging down. When she entered, he looked up, and hope filled his face.

“What are ye daeing here?” he asked.

“I have made an agreement with Gorm,” she said with a lump in her throat. “I have agreed to be his wife if he will call off the attacks.”

As soon as she said the words, Douglas flew into a fit of rage. He stared at her as though she had gone mad and then jumped to his feet, slamming his palms against the walls. He kicked out and paced across the floor. “Are ye mad, woman? What would ye gae and dae something like that for? How could Erik let this happen?”

“Erik didn’t have a choice,” Brenda said tersely. “This is my decision. I’m doing it to save my clan, and I hoped that it would save you as well, although Gorm wouldn’t accept that.”

“Oh, lass.” Douglas looked at her pitifully, as though she had just broken his heart. “Please dinnae gae through with it. Dae anything ye can. Let the Highlands burn if ye must, but dinnae give yerself tae him. Ye hae no idea what he’s capable of, what he’s like. He will nae treasure ye like a wife. He’ll take ye and tear away everything that’s good about ye. He’ll nae let ye live in peace. He’ll torture ye, torment ye, and dinnae think that he’d honor the vows of marriage either. Ye are only condemning yerself tae a lifetime of suffering. It’s nae worth it, lass. Please, ye hae tae listen tae me.”

His voice was filled with desperation, but the agreement had been made, and Brenda couldn’t walk away from it now, not when she knew that her clan could be saved.

“You have suffered so much, Douglas. I don’t want anyone else to go through what you’ve been through. If these attacks continue on the Highlands, then so many people are going to die. So many are going to be taken prisoner. I can’t stand by and do nothing. I can defend the land with my sword”—she gestured to the weapon at her thigh—“but I can save people with my virtue.”

Douglas spat and scoffed and shook his head. He glared at the four walls, as though all he wanted in that moment was to set them aflame, but he was no sorcerer. “Ye are mad, woman,” he gasped.

“I have no choice. But there’s another reason why I want to do this, Douglas. I think I can free you. Gorm wants to kill you, but I have no intention of letting that happen.”

Douglas’s expression changed from one of anger to one of utter disbelief. “Why, Brenda? Why would ye dae this for me?”

Brenda shook her head and chuckled dryly. “Are you really this blind, Douglas? Why do you think I’ve done anything while we’ve been together? Because I love you.”

There was an almost imperceptible shake of the head from the Highlander, and he stepped back.

“Nay,” he gasped softly.

Brenda stepped forward, closing the distance between them again.

“Yes,” she confirmed.

“Nay…ye…ye cannae,” he said.

“I can, and I do,” Brenda said, her eyes sparkling. She reached out and took his hand. “I know you don’t believe you’re worthy of love, Douglas. You’ve been through so much.”

“But I…I lied. I betrayed ye.”

“Yes, you did, but after all you’ve been through, I can’t fully blame you. You need help, Douglas. You need to be surrounded by friends and family and remember what it’s like to be home. The Vikings have warped your mind and made you forget who you are. But I’ve seen him. I’ve seen the man you can be again, and you deserve a chance to be that man. All you have to do is let me save you.”

Douglas’s eyes glistened, and silent tears fell down his cheeks. Brenda held her gaze. He flung his arms around her and held her tightly.

“I dinnae know what I’ve done tae deserve ye,” he murmured in a choking voice.

“You haven’t had to do anything,” she said. “You’ve only had to be yourself.”

She wrapped her arms around his trembling body, and emotion swelled within her. From the moment she had found him on the beach, he had been in need of saving. He was a mighty, strong man, and yet he was fragile inside as well. She was only sad that she would not be able to see him recover as her fate was destined to be with Gorm. She told herself that she could cope with it, that she could bear the struggle of being his wife, but the horror in Douglas’s eyes was difficult to ignore.

Douglas stepped back and collected his emotions.

“Ye may nae be alone in this fight,” Douglas said. “Before we left—before I came tae talk tae ye—I told Seamus what I’d done. I wanted someone at home tae know that Erik was nae entirely tae blame.”

“Then let’s get out of here,” Brenda said. “Follow my lead.”

Brenda left the cabin holding her nose and weeping. She cried out that Douglas had been so angry he had hit her. The guard waiting for her outside growled and surged into the cabin, where Douglas was waiting for him. Douglas grabbed him by the neck and swung him into the wall. The guard yelped and sank to the ground. Douglas stomped on his chest and then wrapped his mighty arms around him, choking the air from his throat. Within a few struggling moments, the guard was unconscious. Douglas closed the cabin behind him and grabbed his sword. Brenda led him through a shadowed area of the boat and found a narrow slit through which they could climb. It was a struggle to make it through, and the drop was steep. They both had sore rumps when they landed, but they were able to brush away the bruises and sprint toward the cover of the forest, leaving a trail of splashing water behind them.