Chapter 4
Theodore didn’t say a word as he carried her back to the keep. The sky looked as if diamonds had scattered across it’s silky surface. He couldn’t help but admire the beauty of them and compare their light to the one the burned to boldly within his captive.
“Do ye have nothin’ to say to me?” she hissed. He shook his head. If there was one lesson he had learned young in life it was never to argue with a woman. It was the very last piece of advice his father had given to him and saved him many arguments.
“Where are ye takin’ me by the way? Or are ye just goin' to steal me away just like the other laird would have done to me?”
“I told ye,” he finally answered in a calm demeanor. Theodore had made the resolution to remain neutral no matter what venom she spewed at him. “I have nay intention of hurtin’ ye. Nor will anyone do so while ye’re under me care.”
“And just how long might that be?” she asked. There was no hiding the quaking of her voice. He didn’t have to ask her whether she believed him or not. Her demeanor spoke volumes.
Theodore hated the way she recoiled from him, how each glance at him only held ire and anger. And as much as he wanted to understand and show her nothing but compassion, he couldn’t help but feel responsible for her. She needed to be protected, and he was certain he would be the one to do it.
He glanced at her. She stared at him with a bewildered expression of expectancy mixed with terror.
Arching an eyebrow, he wondered how to respond.
It was clear nothing he said to her would make any sense.
He would have to take her to the others, maybe then when she was with the other girls from the hunt, it would dawn on her he wasn’t the enemy.
“How long do ye want it to be? I have the room to keep ye for as long as ye’d like. I might even be able to find ye a decent husband so that ye can settle and find yer happiness again.”
“And why would ye do such a thing? What do ye get out of such an arrangement?” she snapped. Her pain was evident, and he wished more and more that there was something he could do or say to show her he wasn’t the man she thought him to be.
“Ye’re a skeptical lass, I can see it in yer eyes, but there are some of us out there that would rather save the world, than watch it burn.
And whether or nae ye believe anythin’ that comes from me mouth, is on ye.
I’ll nae keep anyone against their will.
I ken ye daenae believe a word I say,” he said as the keep came into view. “But I promise, yer nightmare is over.”
“Theo, come quickly,” Ryan said with a shout as he waved from the top of the gate. “We’ve got five others in here and the keep is secure.”
“What’s this?” she asked as the shock rattled her tone.
“I told ye,” Theodore answered as they passed under the arch of the gate. “Ye’re safe. Ye’ve nothin’ left to fear. Yer enemies have all been slain. Even this keep will be nothin’ but rubble come next week.”
“Well now daenae be so hasty,” Ryan said as he scrambled down the steps of the wall. Ryan glanced at the lass in Theodore’s arms. “This is a rather nice property. ‘Tis well placed for routin’ and such. I think it may even back up to the river.”
“This isnae the first ye’ve seen like this,” Theo said noticing Ryan’s intense gaze on his captive. Ryan shook his head.
“We’ve got five others here. Skeletons the lot of them,” Ryan answered as he ran his fingers through his hair. “I think we’ve got Ernie in the kitchen. Although I daenae ken what he’ll fix, I’m certain it’ll be more than what these lasses have had in some time.”
“What of the healer? Have we one in the keep? Or is he still in the field?” Theodore asked as he noticed his captive looking rather hopeful.
“He’s inside the keep I believe. I think I spotted him comin’ up nae too long ago,” Ryan answered as Theodore paused.
“Go back to the wall and keep watch. I want this whole place torn down. Nay brick is to remain stacked, is that clear?”
“That’ll take at least a month, if nae longer,” Ryan complained.
“Then see that it gets done. Ye’ll nae return to Castle MacLeon till this vile place is scrubbed from the face of the earth.
Nay one should ever endure this sort of treatment, ever,” Theodore said as he continued for the keep.
He could feel her eyes boring into him as they made their way to the front.
“What?” Theodore asked finally as they reached the steps of the keep.
There was no one to greet them. No one to bid them well and welcome them in.
No. Theo and the other honorable lairds had made sure that no one who lived here was left alive.
Every single person was slain at his command.
It was the only way to ensure the evil never sprang up again.
“Nothin’,” she answered although, Theodore was certain she wasn’t being completely honest with him. He could tell by the shift in the air around her something was amiss.
“Ye’ve been talkin’ me ear off since I grabbed ye from the grove and now ye want to be silent? Ye make nay sense woman. Then again, I suppose that is the curse of all women.”
“That’s nae nice,” she grumbled. “Ye daenae ken anythin’ about me. I happen to be the daughter of a baker who taught me all sorts of things.”
“Aye, that’s all fine and dandy,” Theo answered with a smirk tugging at his lips. “But there’s a difference between learnin’ and applyin’.”
The girl’s face dropped. She wanted to protest, he could see the ire brewing and festering within her as they stepped into the keep. Whatever words she was about to let loose on him fell to the ground like rocks the moment she caught sight of the other girls.
“Oh my,” she muttered as Theodore stopped to take in the sight. None of the others were as thin and emancipated as the lass he had found. It seemed as if everyone in the room the moment they spotted her felt pity for her. She was by far the skinniest one in the room.
“Flora? What happened to Piper and Gabriella?” she asked, her voice rising with concern. Theodore set her carefully on her feet and kept close. She barely had enough strength to hold herself up right and stumbled as she tried to step to the others.
“Madison?” Piper said. Her voice was hollow and weak as her gaze shifted from Madison to the other girl who looked as if she’d just woken from a bad dream.
All of them shared the same fearful expression, but it was Madison’s well-being that concerned him the most. She was by far the worst of them.
.. In the corner of Theodore’s eye, he spotted Lucas coming down the steps.
He glanced to the one they called Madison and let the name roll around his head for a minute.
From all accounts she looked pleased the others had been spared the horrors of the hunt.
But he didn’t need to stick around for the joyous reunion.
“I’ll be right back,” Theodore said as he helped her to the other girls. “I’ll be back for ye in a moment.”
Theodore moved to the stairwell to greet Lucas at the bottom of the steps. His chest tightened as he glanced around at the carnage and damaged keep. So many trinkets scattered about he would have thought the place had been looted by bandits.
“Well?” Theodore asked as one of the lairds came down the steps in a hush. Theodore rolled his shoulders back as Lucas came down to him.
“The keep is secure. It will never be used for such nefarious things again,” Lucas said with such conviction that Theodore had no choice but to believe him. “But the question remains, what do we do with the lasses?”
Theodore glanced at the row of girls sitting along the hallway. His gaze fell on Madison as his heart went out to her.
“They need help. Where’s the healer? Where is Matthew? I was told he was around here somewhere,” Theodore said.
“I havenae seen him around, but ye might find his wife Edith,” Lucas answered.
“Have Edith look over them. I’m sure they have families they’ll be wantin’ to get back to as soon as they can.”
“Are ye sure that’s such a wise decision?” Lucas asked in a hushed tone as his gaze drifted past Theodore to the girls still lingering in the hall. “I daenae think some of them will be able to make the journey home.”
Theodore didn’t need to look at the girls. Their images had been seared into his brain as he pulled in a deep breath. There was no doubt in his mind that the girls would need time to rest before taking on such journeys.
“Aye, then I shall have them as me charges and see they are well cared for,” Theodore suggested as he noticed Lucas’s shoulders tensing.
“Surely ye cannae manage all the lasses. I could take one off of yer hands. That way there’s nay strain on the clans,” Lucas suggested. It was clear by the way Lucas’s gaze lingered on one of the girls, he fancied her over the others.
“I will hold ye responsible for that girl’s life,” Theodore growled in a warning to Lucas. “If word reaches me ear that some foul thing has fallen over her, I’ll come for ye.”
“There’s nay need for such threats,” Lucas said as his voice cracked from the fear he tried to keep hidden from Theodore.
each lass and assess if they can be moved or nae.
Then we get them back to their family. I’m sure many if nae all of them have been missin’ their homes,” Theodore said as his gaze remained on Madison.
She was lovely to look at despite the layer of grim and dirt.
“Aye,” Lucas said. “I’ll see what sort of transportation we can offer them and where they need to get back to.”
“I cannae believe this sort of thing was happenin’ on Hector’s lands,” Theodore said as he folded his arms over his chest. “If somethin’ like this ever happens again, nay matter where, I expect ye to inform me of it instantly. This sort of thing must be stopped before it can gain any traction.”
“Aye, ye can rest assure it’ll never happen again,” Lucas hurriedly responded, his voice tight with conviction. Theodore nodded, believing the man. Lucas, like the other lairds, had also been horrified that something like the hunt existed. None of them would allow anything similar to occur again.
“Do ye ken if there is anyone in the kitchen?” Theodore asked as his gaze drifted back to the lovely Madison. Despite her appearance, there was a quality about her that he couldn’t pen. “There are bellies to be filled.”
“I’ll see about that right away,” Lucas said with a nod and off he went down the hall.
Theodore turned his focus back to Madison.
She was a wee thing that needed far more attention the rest of them.
It pained Theodore to see her in such a manner.
He moved closer to her, as if she somehow pulled him to her by some unseen force.
“How is the leg?” he asked as he noticed her rubbing her thigh. “I think we can round up some willow bark, that should cut the pain a bit.”
“Why does it matter?” she asked. “If yer plan is to get me back to health only to send me on another hunt, just put me out of me misery now. I daenae want to keep goin' on as I have been. I daenae have it in me to go on any longer.”
Her tears poured out of her as if she were a spring. Instinctively, he reached for her, wanted to comfort her. She recoiled and glared daggers at him.
“Ye can torture me all ye want, I’ll nae break. Lewis couldnae do it and I’ll be damned if I let ye do it,” she hissed at him.
“Nay one here is goin' to hurt ye. Ye’re safe. In fact, I wanted to ask if ye’d come back with me to Castle MacLeon.
Ye’ll find the place decent enough. The winter frost willnae harm ye there while yer leg mends.
And ye’ll be fed a hot meal every day as long as I draw breath.
” The suspicion plastered on her face made Theo smirk.
She glared at him and shook her head defiantly.
“It’s a trick, and I willnae fall for it.”
“Nay tricks,” he said, “Merely an offer to change yer life. But ye have to be brave enough to want it. Are ye brave enough, Madison?”