Page 20 of Kilted Abduction
“Like I told ye before, I dinnae ken who yer faither is. How am I goin’ tae take ye back tae his keep if I dinnae ken who he is?”
“Aye, so ye keep sayin’. But I call ye a liar.”
“Ye callin’ me a liar daesnae make it so.”
“Aside from that, there’s the fact that ye and that braither of yers are some kind of dark sorcerers or somethin’ tryin’ tae bewitch me.”
Magnus stopped moving and stood statue-still with a look of surprise on his face. “What are ye bleatin’ on about then?”
“Ye and yer braither are tryin’ tae bewitch me. Dinnae bother tryin’ tae deny it,” she hissed.
Magnus shook his head. “We ain’t tryin’ tae bewitch ye, lass.”
“Then what are ye tryin’ tae dae, huh? And it doesnae matter anyway, I suppose, because ye’re goin’ tae let me go now.”
“And why would I dae that?”
She waved her blade at Magnus. “Because if ye dinnae, ye’re goin’ tae get hurt.”
Despite the seriousness of the situation and not wanting to inflame her further, Magnus had to physically suppress his smile. She was dangerous and a spy, but she was adorable, nonetheless. She had gotten the drop on him last time and she’d obviously had some training, but he was a skilled warrior. He doubted she had ever seen an actual battle and there was a marked difference between training and sparring in a controlledenvironment and fighting for your life when the world around you was utter chaos and one wrong move could get you killed.
“Put the blade down, lass.”
“Come try tae take it from me and see what happens,” she hissed. “The best thing ye can dae fer yerself is tae let me go on me way.”
“I cannae dae that.”
“Then ye’re goin’ tae bleed.”
Despite taking a strong posture, looking ready to attack, and putting as much heat into her voice as she could muster, Magnus heard the slight quiver of fear that faintly dusted her words. He wanted to believe she knew she was outmatched and was simply trying to bluster and bluff her way into escaping. But Magnus had her in his sights and wasn’t about to let that happen. Too much was at stake. He didn’t want to hurt her, but he would if it meant protecting his family and his clan.
“Last chance, lass,” Magnus said, his voice steely. “Drop the blade and come with me peacefully or?—”
She didn’t even wait for him to finish before charging at him with a strangled cry bursting from her lips. Magnus wasn’t ready and had to spin to the side quickly, the edge of her blade slicing through the air he had occupied only a moment before.
“Easy now, lass,” he said. “Let’s nae dae somethin’ either of us is goin’ tae regret.”
“Then make sure we dinnae and let me go.”
“I cannae dae that.”
“Then fight.”
She lunged forward, the tip of her dagger leading the way. Magnus was able to parry the thrust easily but wasn’t prepared for the foot that followed it. Ciara’s boot connected with his groin, making Magnus’ eyes bulge and a hard “woof” burst from his mouth. Despite the pain that gripped him, Magnus somehow managed to keep himself upright and got his blade up in time to deflect the wild swipe of Ciara’s dagger, which would have likely sliced straight through his throat.
Magnus hobbled backward, his groin aching and his head spinning. She improvised and adapted well. And even though she was much smaller than him, the woman was fearless and, he had to reluctantly admit, was far more skilled at fighting than he’d believed she could be, based on her lack of experience in a combat situation. Before he could catch his breath, Ciara charged back in, forcing him to dance backward and get out of range of that dagger. She was better with it than she was with her sword.
“Wait, wait,” he gasped. “Just hold up, lass. Take it easy. Let’s just talk this out.”
“Are ye goin’ tae let me go?”
“I cannae.”
“Then we’ve got nothin’ tae talk about.”
The brief respite gave Magnus a chance to catch his breath and prepare himself, which was good, because Ciara came charging in once more. Magnus was ready though. As she slashed with her blade, looking to disembowel him, he caught her by the wrist. Although she had the momentum, he was bigger and stronger than her and arrested her slash. He twisted her arm viciously, drawing a shrill scream of pain from her.
The dagger hit the soft earth beneath their feet with a hard thud but with her free hand, she threw a wild punch that cracked off Magnus’ jaw. His face exploded in pain, but Magnus barely flinched. He growled but managed to maintain his grip on her wrist. Despite the life and death struggle they were in, being so close to her, feeling the warmth and firmness of her body pressed against his, Magnus found himself strangely aroused. There was just something about her he found powerfully compelling and it sent lightning crackling across his skin.
