Page 126 of Highlanders for the Holidays
“No right!”
“Pardon me, but nearly a fortnight ago, ye told me ye thought ye might like to marry me. Ye were all sweet and filled with pretty words. Words I was stupid enough to believe,” she all but spat at him.
“’Twas nae me fault ye believed them,” he said through gritted teeth. His face was red with anger, his hands drawn into tight fists.
“Yer right, ’twasme ownfault.”
He took a step closer. “Do nae ever come to me home again, do ye hear me?”
“I would nae want anywhere near yer home.” Her words were filled with anger.
She could almost see his mind racing for his next words.
“Does yer wife ken what a liar and cheat ye are?”
In hindsight, ’twas not the right question to ask. His arm swung out, and he struck her across the cheek with the back of his hand, sending her to the hard, cold earth. Her head swam; her stomach lurched with an ugly blend of fear and anger. The metallic taste of blood filled her mouth as her cheek throbbed in time with her frightened heart.
He stood over her, hands on his hips, warning her in a harsh and angry voice. “If ye ever tell another soul what we did, I’ll deny it. No one will believe ye. Everyone kens yer a liar and a thief, just like yer da.”
His words struck deep and cruelly. “And if I carry yer child? What then, Darwud?”
’Twas the second least intelligent thing she could have said that day. In a fury, he pulled her to her feet by her hair, only to slap her again. That second brutal smack was much worse than the first. She fell to the ground again, this time sprawled out on her back. White dots of pain floated in her eyes.
“Ye really are a stupid whore. Do ye really think anyone will believe ye over me?”
’Twas his laughter, which came after, that hurt more than his words or his calloused hands. He was laughing at her, comfortable with the knowledge that he was right. No one would believe her.
He left her there with her pulse pounding in dread, her head swimming, her heart shattering into tiny slivers.
All because she was Grueber’s daughter.
