Chapter 18
Alec had never envisioned fighting alongside a warrior wife, not even in his wildest imagination.
“Ye ken she can fight. She’s trained tae kill, just as we are,” Bran assured him when he confessed his concern for Kira’s safety. With their fighting force ranked behind them, they were riding en masse to face the numerous, well-equipped enemy troops deployed on the fields outside the castle gates. All around them was mayhem; behind them, squads of enemy soldiers were attempting to scale the castle walls and falling by the dozen as they were cut down by flurries of arrows shot from the battlements above.
“Aye, I ken, Bran, but still… she’s me wife.” Alec glanced at Kira riding at his side. The expression on her lovely features as she leaned low in the saddle as her horse sped forward, her sword in her hand, was one of savage concentration, commanding his respect. “I cannae stand the thought of anythin’ bad happenin’ tae her.”
“’Tis the same fer her,” Bran pointed out as they picked up speed, about to clash with the enemy forces arrayed before them. He raided his sword high in the air and broke into the clan battle cry.
“All foes beware, the Mackintoshes are comin’ tae cut ye down, while their hounds are bayin’ fer the flesh and blood of their enemies!” he bellowed, repeating the threat as it was picked up and resoundingly echoed by the army behind them. Alec felt his bloodlust rising as he too yelled out the old war cry at the top of his voice. An answering roar came from the other side as the enemy cavalry raced towards them with weapons raised. Alec’s last thought before they plunged into a head on clash with the enemy riders was a resolution to keep Kira safe.
They entered the thick of the fighting, a chaotic nightmare of screaming men and horses, shouting, clashing metal, and flying blood. Alec sensed rather than saw Bran fiercely fighting nearby, but he tried to keep Kira within sight. It was likely this was what distracted him enough to allow an enemy cavalryman an inroad.
Before Alec knew what was happening, he was struck violently, lost his footing in the stirrups, and landed, winded on the ground. He looked up to see the bloody face of the cavalry man, sword in hand, poised to deliver what would almost certainly be a fatal blow to his head. He closed his eyes, his heart thudding in his ears, his last thought for Kira, expecting the blow to fall.
When it did not, he opened his eyes. The cavalry man’s head was rolling past him, wearing an expression of shock, while his horse cantered on by harmlessly.
“That was a close one,” he heard Bran say before his brother helped him up, handed him the reins of his horse, and gave him back his dropped sword.
“Thanks, I didnae see him comin’,” Alec confessed, getting back on his mount, feeling rather foolish. “D’ye ken who we’re fightin’ yet? I’ve seen nae colors.”
“I’ve nae idea who these bastards are unless they’re Shaw’s men,” Bran confessed with a shake of his head. “Ye said we should—” His words ceased mid-flow as a piercing shriek split the air.
“Stop movin’, Mackintosh, if ye dinnae wish tae se yer bride slaughtered!”
The harsh command rang out over the clamor of the fighting, which ceased almost at once. The two sides inched back from each other. A kind of silence fell, in which only the panting of men, the moans of the injured and dying, and the raucous cawing of the blood-maddened crows wheeling above the castle could be heard.
Alec stopped and turned, his stomach dropping through his boots as he faced the horrible sight of Laird Clayde Shaw standing but a few feet away from him. The burly, bearded monster leered out from beneath his battle helm. He had his arm in a choke hold around Kira’s neck and the tip of a foot-long dirk pressed against the jagged scar on her throat.
“Dinnae try anythin’ stupid,” Bran whispered in Alec’s ear.
“Throw down yer weapons. All of ye!” Shaw ordered.
“Drop them, lads,” Bran commanded the Mackintosh soldiers, letting his own sword fall to the ground. The men followed suit with obvious reluctance.
Alec too, threw down his sword. He had already decided he would do nothing to endanger Kira’s life any further. Shaw was a ruthless maniac with a reputation for killing for the fun of it. He would give everything he owned to save her. But he still needed to buy some time, enough time to figure out a way to get her away from the violent and capricious Shaw.
“There’s nae need fer that, Shaw. Just tell me why ye’re attackin’ us like this.” he said in a reasonable tone. “Just what is it that ye want from us?”
“Everythin’. That’s what I want, Mackintosh, ye bastard. Everthin’ ye own, down tae the last groat in yer war chest.”
“’Tis yers if ye let me wife go,” Alec replied, his nerves at breaking point.
“Are ye deaf, man, or stupid? Did I nae just say I wanted everythin’ ye own? That includes her.” He savagely tightened his hold on Kira’s throat, and Alec’s blood froze in his veins to see a string of bloody beads oozing from the scar on her neck.
“She’s me wife. She has me bairn in her belly.” That was a blatant lie, he knew, and it drew an odd look from Bran. But at this point, Alec would have said anything that might make Shaw change his mind and leave her be.
“I dinnae care about that,” Shaw roared, making Kira squeeze her eyes tight shut. “I want her. I heard she’s a warrior, and I hear she killed some of me men. She’ll pay fer that, and so will ye. Now, I want ye tae hand it all over, the lairdship, the castles, the land, the gold, the whole lot. Ye and yer family are already dead, and the rest of yer clan are mine now. So, be quick about it before I grow impatient and slit her throat.”
“I already told ye, ye can have everythin’,” Alec replied. Except me wife. He could see Kira’s eyes were open now, and they were on him, signaling frantically to him not to give in to Shaw’s threats. But much as he appreciated the gesture, he ignored it. “Just tell me why ye hate me clan so much that ye’d want tae destroy us all.”
Shaw appeared to think for a few moments, then his face darkened. “D’ye remember yer maither, lad? Rhiannon? She was a beauty,” Shaw began. Alec felt a shock go through him at the mention of their mother, but he did not take his eyes off Kira for a moment.
“What’s our maither got tae dae with anythin’?” he asked, wanting to smash the man to pieces for even sullying their mother’s name with his vile tongue. But he knew he had to control himself if there was to be any chance of Kira getting out alive.
“Well, I was in love with her and asked fer her hand. But I wasnae good enough. Nay, she refused me and chose tae marry a Mackintosh instead.”
“Our faither.”
“Aye, yer faither, damn his soul tae hell and back,” Shaw spat. Alec heard Bran’s sharp intake of breath next to him. He was sure his brother was itching to hack Shaw limb from limb, just as he was.
“That’s why I got rid of him. He killed yer maither by puttin’ his seed intae her. Were three boys nae enough? Nae, he wanted more, greedy swine!”
Alec’s ears rang with the admission. This was the proof they had been searching for, this open admission of guilt. But what good was it now? If he and Kira and all his family were soon to be slaughtered, it meant nothing.
“Aye, that was me,” Shae continued with a menacing laugh, giving Kira’s neck a squeeze. She struggled for breath, and it was all Alec could do not to hurl himself bodily at the monster. “I first thought causing him trouble by starting a feud tae damage his clan would be me revenge. Then, when that wore off, I thought killin’ him would give me all the satisfaction I needed, that it would be enough. But that turned out nae tae be the case.”
“But if what ye say is true, then surely, ye’ve had yer revenge now,” Alec pointed out, fighting back a growing sense of despair. There seemed to be no way out for any of them.
“Like I said, it was enough fer a while, and I enjoyed the fact ye could dae naethin’ tae prove it was me.” He grinned maliciously. “But then I got tae thinkin’. Well, I said tae mesel’, ye’ve killed the old man, why nae kill his bairns as well, fer good measure? That would draw a line under it all. Plus, ye’ll get all the Mackintosh wealth and power tae boot. It amuses me tae see ye all sufferin’.” As if to emphasize his point, he pressed the edge of the dagger harder against Kira’s skin. She froze, and the fear in her eyes struck abject terror into Alec’s heart.
“There’s nae need fer that, Shaw. I’ve told ye, ye can have it all, whatever ye want. Kill me if ye like, but let me wife go, and let me family live.”
“Aye, we’ll clear out and leave the place tae ye,” Bran said, the tremor in his voice inaudible to anyone other than Alec.
“Ye think I’ve come this far tae let ye go free? Nay, if I let even one of ye live, ye’ll be back seekin’ yer revenge upon me. I cannae have that.” He looked down at the top of Kira’s head and gave a malignant smile. “And I may as well start with this one here.”
He viciously pulled Kira upward by her neck, so that her feet left the floor. She kicked and struggled, fighting for breath, her eyes rolling back in her head. It was torture for Alec to have to watch her suffering, while Shaw laughed, holding her in an iron grip, the dagger now poised to enter her flesh and end her life.