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Tovie blinked away tears and pushed away the shuddering thoughts that came to her mind. The last thing she wanted was another Wallace man who was going to treat her like that. She had not told anyone about the way Fraser had treated her because nobody would have believed her, and nobody would have done anything about it if she had. She was his wife, after all, which basically meant she was his property. The only sliver of hope she had was that he had died, offering her freedom, but that door had been shut abruptly. Was she destined to be a prisoner here? Her life had been so full of hope, and she was still young, but the years could slip by incredibly swiftly. She worried that before she knew it, a large portion of her life would have passed by and she would have achieved nothing of note. She didn’t even have a child to show for it, although in some ways that was a blessing for she wasn’t sure she wanted to give birth to a spawn of that man. Either it would have turned out to be like him and other people would have suffered, or the child would have been another victim of Fraser.

Neither outcome was desirable.

There was a frantic knock at the door, interrupting Tovie’s thoughts. She recognized the knock as Shara’s.

“Ye wanted tae see me?” Shara said as Tovie opened the door.

Tovie prided herself on being strong and being resolute of spirit, but in this moment she felt desperately alone, and when Shara appeared, emotion overwhelmed her. She flung herself at the maid, wrapping her arms around Shara and almost pulling the woman down to the floor with her weight. Shara comforted her and escorted her over to the bed, where they sat down. She patted Tovie’s back and caressed her a little, trying to comfort her as much as she could.

“There there, now what’s the matter? I know ye got intae it with that man last night, but maybe it’s for the best. Ye dinnae need all the responsibility of being laird.”

“It’s nae about that,” Tovie said through a veil of tears. “It’s worse than that. I’m…I’m his wife.”

“Ye are now Niall’s wife?” Shara replied, leaving Tovie to have to explain the situation, which just made everything seem worse.

Shara allowed her head to drop with understanding, letting out a small gasp. “I never knew that was a thing. I’m sorry, lass. Ye should be able tae mourn the laird properly, nae be shifted along to the next man in line like this. It’s a terrible thing, absolutely terrible,” she said.

Tovie couldn’t bring herself to speak about the truth of the matter. This wasn’t about grieving for Fraser at all.

“I dinnae know how I can dae it, Shara,” she said.

“They surely cannae expect ye tae be at peace with it. What kind of people are they?” Shara said, shaking her head. “This world haes gone mad.”

“I thought I could make a difference. I thought the clan was gaeing tae be mine. I haed sae many plans, and now this man haes come and stolen everything from me.” Her tears stopped, and anger poured out of her eyes instead. It felt as though everything was boiling inside her. Her skin was flushed, and there were flickering lights in her eyes, and all she wanted was to find a way out of this situation. She thought about running, but where would she go? If she returned home, they would only send her back, for her parents feared shame more than they wanted their daughter to be safe. Anywhere else in the world was fraught with danger, and she was not like one of these warriors who could carry a sword and simply storm through the world threatening anyone who came across her path.

She was stuck here.

“I dinnae know what tae dae, Shara,” she groaned. “The problem is that they’re all men. I could see in their eyes they were never gaeing tae agree tae let me lead the clan. What dae I know? I’m just some wee lass after all,” she said in a heavy breath, shaking her head dramatically. “They think he’s the right choice just because he’s a man. They didnae even ask me what my plans were for the clan. How are we ever supposed to prove that we’re capable if we’re nae given a chance tae rule? I’m starting tae think men are afraid tae let anyone else intae their wee club.”

“Aye,” Shara said. “But perhaps there is something ye can dae.”

“What’s that?” Tovie asked, wiping her eyes of the tears that were blurring her vision.

“Just be yerself and show him up. I hae been hearing rumors that he and his clan hae been traveling around the mountains and the wildlands of the Highlands. He doesnae know what it’s like tae rule over a village like this. Ye dae. Give it time and ye may find that he cannae cope with the challenges. When the time comes, ye can show him up and prove that their decision was the wrong one.”

A glimmer of hope appeared, and Tovie could feel her spirits rising. Yes, this wasn’t the end of things. Niall could come back and claim that this place was his birthright as much as he wanted, but that didn’t make him a good laird. The proof was in deed, not in will, and over time, Tovie was certain that she could show everyone she was the superior laird. Her cunning was second to none, and if she could endure being married to Fraser then she was certain she could cope with this man as well. After all, she had outlasted one husband. There was nothing to say that she couldn’t outlast another.