Page 85 of Trapped with the Vicious Highlander
“Look, we dinnae ken where she is, and we dinnae ken what’s waitin’ for us out there. I willnae be able to focus if ye’re also in danger.”
Darach returned to announce that the horses were ready, and without a backward glance at Flora or Ava, Brodrick bolted out of the castle and towards the horses. Before he knew it, they were riding out of the courtyard and following the tracks in the dirt path.
He took the lead, and Darach followed closely behind, his eyes peeled for anything that looked out of the ordinary.
They moved with incredible swiftness, wading through leaves and gnarled branches. The tracks in the path grew fresher, and then Brodrick heard it—the distant neigh of a horse. He nudged his horse in the direction of the sound.
A well-hidden cabin came into view, along with a horse tied to a fence. Brodrick turned to Darach and, with a wave of his hand, directed him to the back of the cabin, signaling for him to secure the other way out. Then, he jumped down from his horse, his hand steady on the hilt of his sword, and advanced towards the cabin.
While he tried to move quietly, there was not much he could do but hope that whoever was in the cabin could not hear the sound of the leaves crunching under his boots.
He approached the entrance of the cabin and knocked gently. He waited for a response, but it didn’t come. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he knocked again.
Still, no response.
He stepped back, took a deep breath, sent up a prayer, and then kicked the door with the heel of his boot as hard as possible. He’d broken down so many doors that he was practically a master at it by now.
The door gave way, and he stormed inside, his eyes searching the empty space before him.
Then, he saw her. His daughter.
She was tied to a chair facing the wall, a thick rag stuffed in her mouth.
Good Lord.
He hurried towards her and pulled the rag out of her mouth. He watched her take a deep breath and cough almost at the same time. He began to undo the rope while she looked up at him, unable to say anything but one word.
“Faither.”
It had come out of her mouth earnestly, the word laced with pure relief. Brodrick faltered for a second before he resumed undoing her bonds.
It was the first time Margaret called himFaither.
He could see it in her eyes. She knew she was safe. She knew he would always protect her. And that he would always be there for her.
“Ye’re safe now, child,” he crooned, finally undoing the last of the rope.
As he lifted Margaret off the floor, a young man with blond hair stormed out of one of the rooms in the cabin, brandishing a sword.
Definitely not Laird MacMungo.
Brodrick reached for the hilt of his sword as the young man’s eyes settled on him, a tense feeling settling steadily into him.
The young man charged, his grip tight on his blade.
Before the man could reach Brodrick, Darach swooped in, running straight into him and knocking him off his feet.
“Kill him.” Brodrick’s order was clear and direct.
No one would ever try to take his daughter and live to tell the tale ever again.
He carried Margaret out of the cabin, refusing to expose her to the horror that was most definitely about to happen.
“Ye’re safe now child,” he kept repeating, heading straight to his horse, the wordFaitherechoing over and over in his ears, his mind, his body, his soul.
CHAPTER25
Ava paced the Great Hall,her heart pounding hard in her chest. The sun had begun to dip below the horizon, and yet Brodrick hadn’t returned. There was no way of knowing if he found Margaret or if he was even safe.
