Highlander's Ransom (8 page)

Robert released her elbow, now completely focused on
his man. He went down on his knees and clasped Liam’s hand in his.

“Mara…” Liam began, but was soon coughing, and blood
came out of the corners of his mouth.

Robert leaned in, speaking in soft and soothing Gaelic
close to the man’s ear. A faint smile touched Liam’s lips, and then Alwin
watched as the light behind the man’s eyes seemed to dim and go out. Without
realizing it, she had fallen to her knees, and reached out a shaky hand to rest
lightly on his blood-soaked shirt. She watched him leave, felt it. She willed
his spirit to heaven, and though she didn’t know the man, she knew he was good,
and that he should have a place of peace to rest.

Everything seemed frozen for several minutes. Robert
held Liam’s hand fast in his own. Alwin lowered her head, feeling the tears
streaming freely. The men creating a circle around them bowed their heads, some
whispering a prayer.

Robert broke the spell when he gently laid Liam’s hand
down on his still chest and stood. He cleared his throat, then in a gravelly
voice instructed his men to find a proper place to bury their fallen comrade.
Alwin slowly withdrew her shaking fingertips, gazing at the faint red tint left
on them from Liam’s shirt. As she looked up, her eyes locked with Robert’s. She
feared his cold gaze; she was sure that she would crumble to pieces if he gave
her one of his icy glares. Instead, she found sadness in his eyes, and solace.
He extended his large, calloused hand toward her, and she took it, allowing him
to draw her up and to him. His gaze moved from her eyes to her cheeks, where
her tears glistened in the moonlight. He raised his hand to her face, and with
his thumb, he wiped away a tear as it slid past the bruise on her cheekbone.
She let out a breath at the contact, and her eyes closed at the warmth and
gentleness in his touch.

His hand left her face all too quickly, though, and
when she opened her eyes, he had already turned his back on her. She watched as
he strode over to Burke a few feet away and talked quietly with him as his men
began digging a grave for Liam in the dark as night settled in.

Chapter 12

Robert sensed Alwin’s eyes trailing him as he strode
away from her. A part of him longed to return to her side, take her into his
arms, and wipe away each tear that fell from those large grey eyes. For some
reason, her tears did something to him. Perhaps it was because he sensed that
she was actually quite a strong person, and that her emotion was genuine. Her
deep grief for Liam had surprised and moved him. He had sensed it earlier, but
now he was sure that she was not like Warren, nor could she be like her father
if what he knew of the man was true. She didn’t seem to fully grasp the connection
between Warren and the death he brought with him, though, which angered him.
She had clearly led a very sheltered life, judging by her naïve reactions to
the realities of battle, and of Warren’s malevolent nature. He shouldn’t think
so harshly of her, he thought with an inward sigh, for she was surely getting
an education in the ways of the world since his path had crossed hers.

It was also beginning to trouble him that he found his
thoughts focused on her more often than not, and that his eyes followed her
when she wasn’t near him. It was just her beauty, he told himself. It had been
a long while since he had shared the company of a beautiful lass, opting
instead to go on these secret missions. He was simply longing for female
contact. That explained the fact that his eyes followed her, that he couldn’t
get the smell of her hair out of his mind, that his thoughts kept drifting back
to the feel of her softly curved bottom pressed against his—

Pushing her from his mind, he reached Burke’s side.
His friend’s eyes were pinched with grief over the loss of one of their
clansmen. Despite the danger he and his men were regularly in, they had
suffered very few losses. Robert’s skill in striking quickly and quietly, as
well as their much-honed fighting abilities, had made them the victors of
nearly every encounter. The blow was made all the worse by the knowledge that
Liam left behind a young wife and son. Robert would be the one to deliver the
news. It was his responsibility as Laird.

“The others are seeing to their wounds. It looks like
only a few stitches will be needed. How do you fair, Robert?” Burke asked.

“I’m fine,” Robert said, waving away his friend’s
concern. “You?”

“The same. It seems that Lady Alwin will be alright?”
Robert’s eyes narrowed at the anger that Burke held in check, but that
nevertheless seeped into his question about Alwin.

“Speak what is on your mind, Burke,” he responded with
irritation.

“I can tell that you are plotting something, Robert.
When will you inform me of your plans?”

“Is that why you are angry? Because you think I have
slighted you by not including you in my thoughts yet?”

“Nay, it is not that, or not just that,” Burke
replied, running a hand through his hair. “I am…concerned for the lady’s
wellbeing.”

Robert saw red at that. For some reason it made his
blood boil to think that Burke was being protective of her. He had no right, he
thought angrily. Robert didn’t stop to question why he felt that
he
should be the one to protect her. Before he could respond to Burke’s comment,
though, Burke answered his thoughts. “I am making no claim to her, Robert, so
you can stand down. But you must recognize the fact that every moment she is
with us, she is in danger. She already has more scrapes and bruises than she
has likely accrued in her entire life.”

“Aye, of course I know that, but what would you have
me do? Hand her back over to Warren?”

Burke’s fierce scowl matched his own. “You know that
is not what I mean. You plan to ransom her, but to whom? I want Warren to
suffer just as much as you do, but collecting his money is not enough
justification to give Alwin to that monster. And returning her to Hewett would
result in the same thing, since her father would likely continue with the
betrothal.”

Robert exhaled, trying to calm his nerves. He had been
thinking along the same lines as Burke, circling back over his plan to ransom
her and trying to solve the knotted problems it caused. It bothered him that he
might pass up an opportunity to thwart Warren, but letting him have Alwin was
clearly out of the picture, so he couldn’t trade her back to him for ransom
money. He wasn’t sure when he had become so possessive of her, but he didn’t
have time to think on the matter now. He had been chewing on an alternative
plan for a few hours, but wasn’t sure he was ready to reveal it to Burke. He
knew his friend wouldn’t be happy about it.

“Out with it, Robert. I know you too well. What do you
plot now?”

Robert smiled inwardly. Of course he couldn’t keep his
thoughts from Burke. Taking a deep breath to steel himself against his friend’s
anger, he said, “What if I were to marry her?”

Burke opened his mouth to speak, but words seemed to
fail him.

“Hear me out,” Robert proceeded. “As you say, we
cannot just ransom her and return her to Warren. The bastard will never lay
hands on her again,” he said heatedly, picturing the red mark and bruise on
Alwin’s cheek. “We also cannot ransom her to her father, who will just turn
around and hand her over to Warren. But think on it. That Hewett fool has laid
a path for us. He has made it clear to practically everyone in England that he
has gathered a dowry for his daughter that will only be paid out after a
marriage. That is probably why Alwin was traveling in that empty cart. The
greedy bastard likely wouldn’t even shell out a chest with a few dresses in it
for the lass until the deed with Warren was done.”

Burke nodded, though his brow was knitted. Robert
continued. “If I wed her, he will have to pay out, and thus we will snatch that
money from Warren’s grasp, who has likely already counted it among his
coffers.”

“And what of Warren? Clearly, he knows that we have
the lass, and has at least made a show of coming after her,” Burke pointed out.

“Aye, but he needn’t know that I will have wed her.
Before I collect from Hewett, I will open negotiations with Warren for his
beloved bride to be returned—for a price. Once he has paid out for her—and I’m
sure he will, as long at it saves him face—I will break the news to him that in
the eyes of the church, she is mine. She will be out of his grasp forever, and
we will have dealt Warren a double blow to his coffers, not to mention to his
pride and reputation.”

Burke gazed hard at him. “It’s clever, Robert, but I
don’t think you have thought this all the way through. In the first place,
everyone in the clan knows that you do not wish to marry. You may best Warren
with this maneuver, but don’t forget that you will also pick up a wife for the
rest of your life in the process.”

“Aye, I’ve considered that. I’m sure that once the
transaction is complete, we can undo the arrangement,” Robert said coolly. He
hated being so harsh, but he had to keep his sights on what was most
important—his clan.

“Would you truly use her so callously?” Burke said,
anger rising in his voice.

“If it means dealing a blow to Warren that could put a
stop to his warmongering, then yes, I would,” Robert responded, heat entering
his voice as well. “She is one lass, Burke. I don’t like the thought of hurting
her, but think of the lives that it would save. And no, I don’t relish the
thought of being married, but as you have pointed out more than once, the clan
needs me to. Isn’t this the best thing for the clan? Our fortune will be
secured, and perhaps an heir will even come of it.”

“Oh, so you
do
intend to keep her around! Wed
her, bed her, get an heir on her and
then
discard her when you no longer
wish to have a wife—is that it,
Laird
?” Burke’s fists were clenched at
his sides, and Robert sensed that he was close to taking a swing at him.

“Careful, Burke,” Robert said, hoping the ice in his
voice would cool his friend’s mind. “You are not the lass’s champion, you are
my second in command.”

“Someone needs to look out for her, since you seem to
have discounted her interests in all your plotting. That’s another problem—how
do you plan to get her to even agree to this ruse?”

“She’ll not know until afterward,” Robert said,
setting his mouth in a grim line. At this, Burke’s eyes widened.

“So, you would trick her into marrying you?”

“You know the place I have in mind. Father Paul only
speaks Gaelic.”

“This is wrong, Robert, and you know it. It isn’t fair
to the lass to keep her in the dark about this. And I may be your second in
command, but if you harm her—”

“I do not wish to, my friend, but if deceiving one
lass could save the lives of hundreds, perhaps thousands of others, I know that
I can still count on you to trust in my honorable intentions,” he said softly.
He watched as a war waged across Burke’s features. Just as he had expected, his
good-hearted friend was angry with him, but he also knew that Burke was loyal
to him still. Burke hated Warren and the war he brought with him just as much
as Robert did. Burke knew Robert’s character. He knew that his Laird didn’t
make decisions based on greed or revenge, but on what was best for his clan and
country. As much as they were both willing to fight to the death to protect
their home, they longed for peace.

Robert saw the resignation on his second’s features,
but Burke nevertheless said, “I’ll not be a part of your lies to her, Robert.
It’s your plan, and you can be the one to explain what you’ve done to her.”
Burke seemed to be finished, but then spoke again. “And I’ll not let you forget
that you are a man of honor.” With that, he turned away angrily and returned to
the other men. They had finished digging a grave for Liam, and Robert joined
them as they lifted their clansman’s body and settled it gently into the earth.
After covering him, they bowed their heads once again and whispered a prayer.

Raising his head, Robert caught Alwin’s eyes on him
again. She had watched his conversation with Burke from a distance, but since
they spoke Gaelic, she couldn’t know what had transpired. Still, she searched
his face for answers, confusion and grief clouding her grey eyes, which shone
in the moonlight. He hardened himself to her vulnerable look, refusing to give
in to his desire to explain everything, to wrap her in his arms until she felt
safe and warm again. He forced a cold distance once again into his eyes as he
approached her and spoke.

“Ready yourself. We ride north. Hard.”

Chapter 13

They kept a grueling pace for the next several hours.
No one spoke, but Alwin could feel the tension in Robert’s men. They were
exhausted, with only a few hours of sleep in the last two days, and had engaged
in two battles that had left one of their own dead. Burke seemed particularly
stiff on his horse, keeping his back rigid and riding a few paces farther away
from Robert than he had earlier. The snow had stopped falling and no longer
clung to the ground. Instead, the forest floor was a soggy mush underneath the
horses’ hooves. It appeared as though they were going to ride through the night
without stopping.

Finally, longing to break the tension, Alwin turned
slightly in the saddle in front of Robert to look up into his face. His jaw was
set in a hard line, and his eyes looked forward.