Highland Warrior Woman (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 11

  They all settled down together to sleep. Tired as she was, Maeghan lay awake for a little while, listening to the breathing of her men. She thought of the bed she’d lain in only this morning. She felt like a different woman now. A married woman.

  A loved woman? Although all her men had told her they liked her looks and called her beautiful, Maeghan still wasn’t certain how they felt about her. There was a big difference between lust and love, and she yearned to hear them tell her that they loved her as she did them.

  There was no way she was going to make a fool of herself and say those words first.

  Chapter Twelve

  Calum and his brothers along with a few of their warriors rode through the forest many leagues from their keep. Word had come early that morning via one of his warriors that Laird MacLeod and his second-in-command had been captured. His warriors were some of the best-trained men in the highlands and could creep into a camp, take whom they wanted, and leave without being noticed.

  They’d had to ride hard and fast so they could get to his men’s encampment before Laird MacLeod was discovered missing from his own camp. Calum knew exactly where he was going and, as the clearing appeared, halted his steed and dismounted. His eyes scanned the surroundings, taking note of his concealed men. There were only a few of his warriors in the clearing, guarding MacLeod and his commander.

  Calum pinned the bastard with his eyes and strode forward with seething intent.

  “Release him.” He barked out the order to the man guarding his wife’s nemesis.

  “What is the meaning of this, Campbell?” MacLeod bellowed as the bindings that held him were released. He rose to his feet. “I’ll war against yer clan and wipe ye oot of the highlands.”

  “Ye are a sniveling coward. Only cowards prey on women and children.” Calum spat at his feet. “Ye make my stomach roil just having to look at ye.”

  “What are ye talkin’ aboot? Ye have no right to accuse me of…”

  “Och, that’s where ye are wrong, MacLeod. Ye took my intended from a small village and then ye and yer second-in-command attempted to rape her. I will show ye what it is like to feel helpless.”

  Calum reached for MacLeod, but he was fast and ducked beneath his arm. The bastard whirled away and spun around, Calum’s fist missing him as he sidestepped.

  “Just be thankful I am a fair man, MacLeod. I could get my brothers to hold ye while I beat ye like ye did to my wife. Better yet, I should let my brother Hamish at ye.”

  Even though the light was poor, with only the fire and the moonlight providing scant illumination, Calum saw the laird pale at the mention of Hamish.

  “I see the name of my brother precedes him. Ye have obviously heard of his temper. I think unleashing him on ye is fitting punishment for what ye did to my wife. Hamish, he’s all yers.”

  Hamish stepped forward into the ring of the firelight. MacLeod backed away, looking behind him occasionally so he wouldn’t be trapped by the trunk of a tree. The smile that crossed Hamish’s face would have scared even him if he didn’t know he was kin.

  Hamish let out a roar of fury and dove for MacLeod. Even though the other man put up a good fight, he was no match for Calum’s enraged sibling. Hamish went berserk. The sound of flesh striking flesh filled the clearing as Hamish’s fists connected with MacLeod.

  By the time Hamish was finished with the laird, MacLeod’s face was bruised and swollen beyond recognition. His nose was broken, both eyes were swelling rapidly, and if Calum had to guess, so were the man’s jaw and ribs. It would be a long time before the laird attacked another woman.

  Calum drew his dirk and sliced through the hemp securing MacLeod’s commander. He lifted him to his feet by fisting his shirt, drew back his fist, and slammed it into the asshole’s noses. Blood spurted out, dripping down over his face and off his chin. The man hadn’t even attempted to protect himself, and now he was out cold from one punch. Even though retribution had been served, Calum wasn’t pleased with the ease of their revenge. He threw the commander down with disgust and headed toward his destrier.

  The sun was already beginning to lighten the sky, and he knew they would not reach the keep for a few hours. Calum had wanted to be back in his bedchamber with their wife when she woke, but she was an early riser. After the special night he and his brothers had spent with their spouse, he hoped she wouldn’t react poorly to waking alone. There was nothing he could do about it now except try to return swiftly.

  But he felt a little better knowing they had dealt with the MacLeod Laird. Maybe the next time he had the urge to kidnap and try to rape a woman, he would think twice.

  “Ye should have let me kill him, Calum,” Hamish sighed as they mounted up.

  “Nay, he needs to suffer like Maeghan did. Killing is too quick.”

  “He’s right, ye know, Hamish. Killing that bastard would have been merciful.” Ewan swung up onto his warhorse’s back and nudged it forward.

  “Let’s go home. We have a wife to care for.”

  * * * *

  Maeghan woke up to an empty bed and bedchamber. Disappointment washed over her, and despondency invaded her soul. She had spent a wonderful night with her three husbands and had slept wrapped in their arms. To wake up and find them gone at such an early hour made her heart clench with sadness.

  Pushing her ennui aside, she got out of bed and performed her morning ablutions. By the time she was dressed and ready to head downstairs to the great hall to break her fast, her stomach was rumbling loudly.

  The sun was only just beginning to rise, and even though the sconces had been lit, the steps were still full of shadows. As she stepped down each stair, she felt as if she was being watched. When she reached the bottom, she sighed with relief then mentally berated herself for her overactive imagination. Hurrying across the hall, she saw that the warriors were already seated at the long table. Gerty and the serving maids scurried about, placing platters of food in the middle of the table and passing out trenchers and goblets. The head of the table was unoccupied.

  Maeghan sat by herself, feeling uncomfortable when the men’s eyes turned toward her. She also noted that her husbands’ seats weren’t the only ones empty.

  “My lady Maeghan, ye are looking very bonny this morn,” a large warrior called from near the end of the table.

  Maeghan felt her cheeks flush and quickly lowered her head. “Thank ye.”

  “Ye big dolt, ye have embarrassed the fair lass,” another warrior interjected.

  Maeghan looked up and smiled when she realized they were teasing her but toning down their words in her presence.

  “I’m not embarrassed, gentlemen,” she said emphatically, “but since I am very hungry, I would appreciate it if someone would pass me a platter of food.”

  A young warrior rose to his feet after picking up a platter. “Sorry, my lady, yer beauty has addled our brains and made us forget our manners.”

  “Thank ye.” Maeghan put some food on her trencher and then waved the platter away. She looked at each man. “Ye will have to be patient with me while I learn all yer names. Since there are so many of ye, it will take some time.”

  “Lady Maeghan, my name is Blane. Begging yer pardon, but I would like to ask ye a question.”

  “I will answer yer question if I can, Blane.”

  “Is it true that ye were raised as a lad?”

  Maeghan was a little uncomfortable with the question, for she had suffered much ridicule from the women of her own clan over her unconventional upbringing, but since she was now part of the Campbell clan, she felt she should answer honestly. “Aye, it is.”

  “What skills were ye taught, my lady?” asked another man.

  “And ye are?”

  “Sorry, I am called Dougal.”

  “Well, Dougal, I was taught to hunt with bow and arrow as well as how to wield a sword and a dirk.”

  “If ye knew how to protect yerself with a sword, my lady, how is it that Laird MacLeod was able to capture ye?”

&
nbsp; “I was going to market to barter my woven cloth, and since my mare was old, the extra weight would have been too much for her. So I only took my dirk.”

  “Yer nay carrying a dirk anymore, my lady. What happened to it?” Blane asked curiously.

  “I left it in the arm of the MacLeod Laird,” she replied vehemently.

  “Och, ye are a fierce one, Lady Maeghan.” Dougal chuckled. “Methinks ye be a good match to our laird and his brothers.”

  Maeghan was pleased with Dougal’s praise, and when the rest of the warriors agreed, she felt as if she had been accepted into the clan. She had spent many a morn talking with the women and children but had worried over what her husbands’ warriors thought of her. The knot of anxiety in her chest, one that she didn’t know she had been carrying, loosened and vanished. The only person she hadn’t been able to win over was Lilith, but with time and patience she would try to befriend the other woman.

  After breaking her fast, Maeghan left the keep and wandered about the bailey. She watched the warriors training off to the side of the yard for a while. When she became bored and the noise of metal clashing with metal made her head ache, she began walking again.

  She walked to the back of the castle, heading to the top of the small rise. When she looked down, she saw that the younger men were practicing with bow and arrow. Maeghan wished she had had the foresight to bring her weapons when she had gone to market. She might have been able to hold off the MacLeods if she had. But then she realized that if she’d had more than her dirk, she might never have met the Campbells. God certainly worked in mysterious ways.

  Taking a step forward, Maeghan kept her eyes on the men as they practiced their aim. She approached slowly until she found herself standing behind them on the flat. One of the young men noticed her and turned toward her.

  “I be Aedan, my lady,” the young man said with a bow. “I heard what ye said while breaking yer fast. Would ye like to use my bow and arrows?”

  Maeghan took the proffered weapon from his hand as excitement formed in her belly. “Thank ye, Aedan. I would love to use yer bow.”

  She took the arrow he handed her and notched it in the bow. Just as she began to pull the string back as she sighted the target, one of the other men spoke.

  “Aedan, ye should let the lady move closer to the target.”

  Maeghan lowered the bow and turned toward where the voice had come from. “And ye are?”

  “Ailig, my lady.”

  “Thank ye for yer concern, Ailig, but I am already too close to the target.”

  Ailig’s mouth dropped open in disbelief.

  Maeghan turned back to the board and aimed for the bull’s-eye. Pulling the string back until it was taut, she released the arrow and watched it sail through the air.

  The arrow landed in the center of the red mark. Cheers erupted all around her as the young men praised her ability. The competition was on. The young warriors moved farther and farther away from the target, challenging Maeghan to keep up with them. She met them arrow for arrow and gained more of the young men’s respect.

  When her arm began to tire, she handed the bow back to Aedan and headed back to the bailey.

  Just as she reached the top of the incline, agony ripped through her arm. The pain was too intense to scream, and she groaned as her knees buckled. She reached up with her other hand but pulled back when sharp metal cut into her palm. There was an arrow sticking out of her flesh. It had gone all the way through the underside of her upper arm.

  Turning her head to look over her shoulder only increased the white-hot pain shooting through her arm, but she tried to ignore it. A fluttering plaid and bare, feminine legs caught her eye before Lilith disappeared behind a large copse of trees.

  Pandemonium reigned as people hurried toward her, and the ground beneath her trembled. Her vision began to blur, but she breathed through the agony until it cleared again. Gentle hands reached for her, and when she looked up she realized the vibrations she’d felt had been horses’ hooves meeting the ground.

  Ewan lifted her into his arms carefully, but the sound of an enraged wounded animal made her look around. Hamish looked so angry, like a man gone demented from too much ire. She gulped in a breath so she could speak, but the sight of Hamish running as if the hounds of hell were on his feet toward the copse of trees halted the words in her throat.

  “I will kill her,” he screamed.

  Maeghan shook with fear and pain. Ewan began walking toward the keep, but she was worried about what Hamish would do to Lilith once he got hold of her.

  “Donnae let him hurt her, Ewan,” she panted through the nausea rolling in her belly.

  “She deserves everything he does to her.” Ewan snapped his reply and then sighed as if trying to control his anger. “Donnae worry, dearling. Hamish won’t raise a hand to her. She is a woman, and we have been taught that women are to be protected.”

  “What will he do to her?”

  “She will be banished,” he answered.

  Maeghan relaxed knowing Hamish wouldn’t hurt Lilith, and banishment was less than she deserved after trying to kill her, but she didn’t believe in the motto an eye for an eye. At least this way Lilith would get to live out her life, albeit away from the Campbell clan.

  “I donnae feel very well, Ewan.”

  “Rest yer head on me, dearling. I will have ye back in yer chamber soon and we will attend ye.”

  Another roar of fury resonated off the walls of the keep. Maeghan looked up and saw Calum running toward them.

  “Lilith,” Ewan said before he could question his brother. “Hamish is dealing with her.”

  Calum walked beside them and, when they got to the keep doors, held them open for Ewan. He followed them inside, the tall, thick timber doors slamming behind him.

  “Gerty,” Calum bellowed, “bring cloths and hot water to my chamber.”

  Every step Ewan took made pain shoot through her arm. Maeghan bit her lip so hard to stop her cries of pain that she tasted blood on her tongue. When they entered the chamber, he sat down on the bed but kept her on his lap.

  Calum came striding toward them, dirk in hand. Maeghan wasn’t worried that he was going to hurt her, but the look of fury on his face gave her pause. Taking a calming breath, she relaxed her body and leaned against Ewan. The dirk sliced through the material of her shirt, leaving her arm exposed. Maeghan shivered as the cool air touched her hot flesh.

  “Hold her still, Ewan.”

  Closing her eyes, she bit the inside of her cheek and prayed she wouldn’t shame herself by losing the contents of her stomach or by crying out. Ewan’s hands moved up to the top of her arm, a few inches above where the arrow had entered her flesh. She whimpered with distress, and pain radiated up and down her limb.

  “I’m so sorry, sweetness. I wouldn’t touch it if I dinnae have to.” Calum kissed the side of her head and held on to her lower arm. He jerked, and the wood snapped just beyond the arrow tip. White-hot agony shot through her body and her head spun. The last words she heard were Ewan’s.

  “She’s swooning.”

  She slumped against Ewan and let the beckoning darkness take her.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Hamish wasn’t about to let the bitch get away, so he kicked his horse in the side and took off after her. He ran her down in minutes, and she stood against a large tree, her eyes lowered and limbs shaking. He jumped from his destrier and moved toward her until his boots touched the material of her slippers.

  “Ye are banished from this clan,” Hamish yelled. “Ye will gather yer things and leave immediately. If we even catch ye in sight of this keep or on Campbell land, I will kill ye myself.”

  Hamish snatched away the bow and threw it to the ground. Gripping her upper arm none too gently, he pulled Lilith and his horse out of the trees.

  “Aedan, Ailig, I have a task for ye.”

  “Aye, Hamish.”

  “I want ye to follow Lilith to her cottage. She is to pack up some of her belon
gings, and then she is to leave the village. Ye will escort her off of Campbell land. If she tries to escape, kill her. If she does anything suspicious, kill her.”

  “Aye.”

  Hamish grabbed Lilith’s hair and jerked her head up. “Be thankful we were taught to protect the weaker sex. If ye had been a man, ye would be dead already.”

  “Ye will regret yer decision, Hamish,” Lilith spat with fury.

  He thrust her away from him and didn’t feel any remorse when she fell to her knees. He turned away, mounted his horse, and kicked his stallion into a gallop. Maeghan needed him.

  Hamish jumped from his warhorse when he reached the front steps to the keep and flung the reins to one of his men. He crashed through the doors with such force that one of them fell from its hinges. Gaining the steps, he sprinted up them three at a time and rushed into the bedchamber just as Calum removed the shaft from her arm. Maeghan’s face was pale and she was slumped against Ewan’s chest.

  “How is she?”

  “She’s in a swoon. She fainted when Calum broke the tip away.”

  “Thank God.”

  “How much damage is done to the arm?”

  “Not as much as I first thought,” Calum replied and took the cloths Gerty handed him. “The metal head dinnae hit any bone. She will heal unless the wound festers or fever sets in.”

  “I have heard that cleaning the wound with soap and then dousing it with whiskey helps prevent such.”

  “I have heard the same,” Gerty said. “Lilith often bemoaned that the wounds hadn’t been cleaned when they festered.”

  “Donnae mention that woman’s name in my presence,” Hamish yelled and immediately felt contrite when the older woman flinched. Taking a deep breath, he tried to calm himself.

  “I am sorry, Gerty. I meant not to frighten ye. Lilith is the one who shot the arrow at Maeghan. She has been banished from Campbell land.”

  “Did ye arrange for her to be escorted from our land?” Calum queried as he took the cake of lye soap from Gerty.