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Prologue

The carriage trundled along the well-beaten paths of the countryside. Lyndsay Smythe gazed out of the window, sighing softly as the beautiful, vibrant colors of the world passed by. The trees were emerald spires, the sky was a sapphire blanket, and the flowers that popped up now and then were small bursts of vividness set against the backdrop of this natural vista. It was easy to lose herself in this vision of natural beauty, easy to forget about the path her life was taking. Now nineteen, she was forced to grow up swiftly and take on the responsibilities of an adult. She had neither asked nor desired these responsibilities, and yet they were hers anyway.

Her gaze drifted from the world outside to the man sitting opposite her. The lines on his face were stern; his hair was silver. He was the man she trusted most in the world, the distinguished Baron Edward Smythe, her father, and yet, at this moment, she felt betrayed by him.

“It’s really a stunning estate Baron Adams owns,” Edward said. “You’re going to be very happy there. He’s promised a fine dowry as well, although he has specified in the marriage contract that he expects a child sooner rather than later. I’m sure you won’t have any problem in providing him one. It’s such a tragedy what happened to his boys. Parents should never outlast their children.” Edward’s head hung down, and a shadow fell across his face as he glared at the outside world, looking in the same direction as Lyndsay had been mere moments ago. “That’s the curse of where we live, though, so close to these monsters. Those brave men put themselves at risk for the sake of us, and they paid the price. If I had my way, we would build a wall to keep all those brutes in the Highlands where they belong. We don’t need them coming down to raid our towns. Frankly, I’m amazed that we haven’t been attacked.”

“You have prepared our route well, Father,” Lyndsay said diplomatically, inclining her head slightly.

Edward returned the gesture. “Yes, well, I suppose that was my fortune to have a daughter rather than a son. There is no obligation for you to go off and fight back these awful men.”

“No, instead, I have to be given to another man,” Lyndsay muttered under her breath and made no effort to hide her misery.

Edward sighed and shook his head. “I really don’t know what to say to you, Lyndsay. Perhaps I have always been too soft on you. This is simply the way the world works. It’s what is done. I can no more change it than I can change the tides. You were born into nobility, thus you must marry into nobility as well.” There was a sharp edge to his words, for this wasn’t the first time they had had this conversation, and he was beginning to get tired of it. Lyndsay never would, though.

“It just seems so unfair that I can have no say in my future.”

“You must trust me, Lyndsay. I only have your best interests at heart. Baron Adams is a nobleman who has lived an honorable life. He has many connections with other barons and dukes, and his estate is vast. You are lucky to even be considered as his wife given how many other women have been offered to him. It pains me that you cannot see what a great opportunity this is. You have the chance to become part of a great dynasty. Who knows what your child will grow to become? He could venture south and ingratiate himself with the king’s circle. He could spread influence across the country and marry another noblewoman to gain more land and expand his power and wealth. There is no end to the possibilities. All I have ever wanted is to give you the opportunity to flourish, and now you have the chance.”

“And what if I have a daughter? I will have to see her married to some other man, used as a pawn in the game you all play.”

“This is no game,” Edward replied in a beleaguered tone. “This is our lives, and there is no greater duty for you than to be wed to a great man. Would you rather I had tossed you to some farmhand in return for some grain?”

“I’d rather you had let me make up my own mind,” Lyndsay said, putting her hand under her chin and turning her gaze to the window again.

Edward barked a laugh at this. “Lyndsay, you are only a girl. You don’t even know your own mind yet. This is why I am here to make these decisions for you. One day, you will look back and thank me, believe me. I’m only doing this for your own good, and it pains me that you can’t see that.”

Lyndsay didn’t understand how her father could make himself to be the victim in this matter when she was the one being forced to marry a man against her will. By this point, she sighed in frustration because she knew there was no changing his mind. She was almost tempted to fling the door to the carriage open and run out into the beckoning embrace of the forest, but the dangers that were lurking there were more frightening than marriage to Baron Adams. There were creatures in the shadows, not to mention the brutish Highlanders that could come from anywhere and bathe the land in blood. She shuddered as she thought about the stories she had heard of battles that had raged on this border between England and Scotland. It was strange because it seemed so peaceful, so idyllic. She couldn’t imagine anyone fighting in this place.

Then her thoughts turned to her future, to the man she was going to marry. She had only met Baron Adams once, but apparently, that had been enough to make an impression on him. All she remembered was the musty smell of him and the wispy hairs that sprouted from his bald head, as well as his withered hands and rounded shoulders. He was not the vigorous, powerful type of man that she had always assumed she would marry. He was at the end of his wheel of life while she was at the beginning, and it seemed unfair that she should be given to him as a gift and would have to endure his love rather than falling in love herself.

But sometimes dreams were merely fleeting things and never came true. It was a shame as well because she would have loved to find out if there was a man out there who could have been what she desired. She sighed again and decided not to say anything to her father for the rest of the journey because it would only turn into an argument, and there was no point in such a thing because he was intractable in his decision. There was nothing that could prevent her from marrying Baron Adams, so she had to resign herself to having a miserable life, one that would be over before it ever truly had a chance to begin.