Chapter Twenty-Three
At the sight of Kirk, Micheline gasped with astonishment. Lionel might have also made a noise. But Kirk had eyes only for Mara.
“Come out of the window, love,” he told her again, softly.
For a moment, nobody moved. They were stunned.
But then Mara shrieked, propelling herself out of the window and towards Kirk.
But the moment she ran past Lionel, within arm’s length, the old man reached out and grabbed for her.
Mara turned into a wildcat, punching and scratching the man until he released his hold.
The next arms that grabbed her were Kirk’s.
Mara threw herself against him, sobbing hysterically. Kirk held her tightly, trying not to jab her with sharp and deadly things strapped to his body. He stroked her dark head and kissed her salty cheeks, so very grateful to have her in his arms. He wasn’t sure she would ever end up there again.
The truth was that his trip home had been a nightmare of worry and helplessness.
Having no idea what had transpired at Quernmore during the time Corwin had withheld this explosive information, it was easy to imagine the worst. Fortunately, the winds had been with him and the trip across the Irish Sea had taken less than the usual day and a night. It had been relatively swift.
The moment the ship docked, Kirk tore off to Quernmore, twelve miles from the port, and made it there in the dark of night.
He hadn’t stopped moving, or worrying, in days.
Now that he had Mara in his arms, the relief was indescribable.
But there were still many unanswered questions and he struggled to keep a level head.
“All is well, love,” he murmured into her dark hair. “I have returned. All is well.”
“Kirk,” Spencer’s eyes were wide as he took a step in Kirk’s direction. “What are you doing here? Has the entire army returned?”
Kirk kissed Mara one last time before turning his stone-gray gaze in Spencer’s direction. “It has not,” he said, his voice low and deadly. “I have returned prematurely because I was told that Edmund offered Mara to le Vay in marriage. Was this information incorrect?”
Spencer shook his head reluctantly but it was Lionel who spoke. “It was correct,” he said steadily. “Edmund de Cleveley, as Lady Mara’s legal guardian, offered her to me in marriage and I have accepted.”
Kirk’s attention shifted to le Vay. “Have you already married her?”
Le Vay shook his head. “Not yet.”
Kirk relaxed somewhat. Now the most critical issue was answered so he allowed himself a bit of respite from his worry. However, he found that his anger was gaining speed and he struggled to keep it at bay.
“My lord, you are aware that she belongs to me,” he said, perplexed. “Why would you accept Edmund’s offer?”
Le Vay hesitated. “Because…,” he said, paused, and started again. “Because it is my last chance to have an heir, Kirk. With Michael gone, I am in need of a son. I want a son. You cannot blame me or deny my wants. It is my right.”
Kirk’s brow flickered angrily. “Your wants?” he repeated. “What about mine? Mara’s? Or are you the only person of import and our wants do not matter?”
“I am a wealthy man,” Lionel said, summoning courage. Kirk was becoming intimidating. “I was legally offered the lady’s hand and I legally accepted. I have done nothing wrong. To want a son to pass my titles and wealth to is not a crime.”
“It is not a crime but it is certainly a sin to knowingly marry a woman who loves another,” Kirk fired back softly. “You know she belongs to me, my lord. I am shocked and disappointed that you seriously considered this marriage proposal.”
Le Vay held Kirk’s gaze a moment longer before lowering his head. He couldn’t look at the man anymore. He found he was frustrated more than anything.
“So you have returned from Ireland to stop me,” he muttered. “Who told you?”
“It does not matter. I have returned to claim what is rightfully mine.”
Le Vay’s gaze flicked up to him. “Rightfully, she is mine.”
Kirk could see that the man was deadly serious and more than being perplexed by his behavior, he was quickly approaching desperation.
He knew that he had no real legal ground to stand on; the contract le Vay had accepted trumped a love story.
His thoughts moved to the real problem in all of this; Edmund. His gaze moved to Micheline.
“Where is your husband, my lady?” he asked, grinding his teeth. “I have a need to speak with him.”
Micheline was pale and frightened but she met Kirk’s gaze evenly. “He is dead,” she murmured. “Both Edmund and Johanne are dead.”
Kirk didn’t react except with a flicker of confusion over his brow. Then his features seemed to slacken. “Dead?” he repeated. “How?”
Micheline sighed heavily, feeling exhausted and sick to the bone. The past few days had been too much to bear.
“Johanne went mad,” she said softly. “She did not know that you and Mara were in love. Edmund purposely kept the information from her, I can only assume, out of fear for you. When she found out that he had not told her the truth, she went mad and killed him. When she tried to kill me, Sir Spencer intervened and killed her in self-defense.”
Kirk listened intently. He was seriously shocked at the news but, oddly, he found he wasn’t particularly surprised. Nothing about events at the Darkland surprised him any longer; he’d grown numb to that place and its poison. He looked at Spencer.
“What were you doing at Anchorsholme?” he asked.
Spencer met his gaze evenly. “I was there to deliver Lord le Vay’s acceptance of the marriage offer for Mara.”
Kirk fell quiet, digesting the information.
His mind was working swiftly, mulling over the facts, the results, and the future.
He realized that he felt a great deal of relief at the news of Edmund and Johanne’s deaths, more than he ever imagined possible.
He had no great love for Edmund and certainly no great love for Johanne.
No, he wasn’t disappointed in the least. He was glad.
But one thought became abundantly clear as he stood there and stewed; he looked straight at Micheline.
“You are Lady de Cleveley and I am sworn to you,” he said quietly. “You command an army of one thousand men and a great Irish empire. Long live Lady de Cleveley.”
Micheline, slumped against a chair, stared at him. But she could see the warmth in his dark eyes and she smiled wearily.
“Thank you,” she murmured.
Kirk’s warmth faded. “That also means that you are responsible for the contracts your husband brokered,” he said. “Should you wish to dispute the contract between Lord le Vay and Mara, it is within your right to do so but know he will expect compensation of some kind.”
Before Micheline could reply, le Vay interrupted. “I will not give her up,” he said flatly. “I am within my legal right to maintain the integrity of the marriage contract.”
Micheline showed surprising courage; she wasn’t courageous by nature but the past few weeks had shown remarkable growth. She was Lady de Cleveley and the empire of Anchorsholme was now hers. She could either fold or she could meet the challenge; she chose to meet it.
“My lord,” she said steadily. “It would seem that we have two choices in this matter; obviously, you know what my sister and Sir Kirk are in love and plan to be wed. Should you choose to go through with the wedding to my sister, Kirk will not fade away. As much as it is your legal right to enforce the marriage contract, it is Sir Kirk’s moral right to fight for the woman you are taking from him.
He will challenge you and you will lose.
In fact, you will die. Therefore, it would make more sense to dissolve this contract and find a bride elsewhere. ”
Le Vay looked at Lady de Cleveley with some contempt as well as resignation. Then, his attention turned to Mara. She was still in Kirk’s protective embrace and he knew there was no way he would be able to wrest her from the man. But he also knew he didn’t have to; he had a champion.
“I choose to fight for what is legally mine,” he said quietly. “I feel strongly that I must. Spencer, it would seem you have a task ahead of you.”
Spencer knew that. In fact, he’d known all along that it would come to this.
He was to face off against Kirk again and not at all looking forward to it.
What an ironic twist of fate, he thought.
Once, he had faced Kirk because he himself wanted Mara.
Now it was because le Vay wanted her. He would fight Kirk because he was obligated to, not because he wanted to.
If he was in Kirk’s shoes, he would want his woman back, too.
“I am not going to do anything with Lady Mara in his grip,” Spencer said. “He will have to release the lady before I make a move.”
Kirk didn’t want to go through the effort of another dark and bloody fight. He knew Spencer was cunning and sly; he also knew he was deadly. He couldn’t take the chance that the man would win. Before he could reply, a female voice interrupted.
“Father!” Lily gasped, squeezing around the twisted door to enter the room. “What have you… Kirk!”
Lily nearly stumbled in her surprise as her gaze fell on Kirk. The door was destroyed, Kirk had Mara in his arms, and there were women in the room she didn’t recognize. Her mouth fell open.
“What on earth is going on here?” she demanded, pointing to the door. “Father, did you do this? What has happened?”
Lionel could see her agitation and lifted an impatient hand to silence her. “Kirk has only just arrived,” he said. “Where have you been?”