Page 66 of The Highlander's Virgin Nun
“What I see here is far from holy, Sister, and what ye just did to these two poor lasses arenae even half of it.”
“What do ye mean? Who the hell are ye?” she demanded.
“It isnae who I am that matters, Sister, but who I could tell.”
Caelan moved forward suddenly, scaring the nun until her hands released the girl and instead moved to shield her own body. Caelan grabbed the girl by the arms and pushed her behind him. Jayden did the same with the other.
As he did so, Caelan tried to convey with his eyes that he meant her no harm. But he knew the girl would have a hard time trusting him, just as Rosaline had. His priority for now was to keep themsafe, not calm.
“I have seen what ye did to these two girls, and so has me man here. That makes four witnesses to yer cruelty. I can call on at least two more girls who had escaped yer torture. I dinnae think the Bishop will take kindly to yer savage ways. Do ye, Sister?”
The nun’s face contorted in a mix of shock and disgust. Caelan could tell that she was not used to being threatened. She was not used to getting anything other than her own way, and he somewhat reveled in being the first to show her.
“Who sent ye?” she growled, her voice lower now but her hackles still raised.
“I brought meself, Sister, and I’ll be takin’ meself and me five witnesses straight to the Bishop and the council afterward if ye dinnae do as I say.”
The woman stood tall, her chin jutted, but the fear would not leave her eyes. Her lower lip almost wobbled, and she bit it hard. He took her silence as an indication to state his conditions.
“These girls are goin’ to leave this establishment with me tonight. If they have homes to go to, we will escort them there. If nae, they can come to work in me castle for food, board, and money.”
He paused, turning to the girls to check whether they agreed to his conditions. He found them gaping at the nun, still cowering away from her.
Realizing he was awaiting their approval, they quickly nodded, their eyes wide as saucers.
Caelan turned back to the nun. “If ye have any more hostages here, ye will hand them over too. Ye willnae take in any more girls, as ye cannae be trusted to care for them. If I ever find out that ye have taken in more—and by God I will find out, Sister—I will tell the Bishop of yer crimes, and he will strip ye of yer title and habit. The council will put ye in jail, and I shall burn this godforsaken convent to the ground.”
The nun’s eyes flashed with fury, but she voiced no protest. She knew she was cornered.
“Understood, Mother Denise?”
It was a guess, but as time had gone on and her authority shone through, Caelan was fairly sure his assumption was correct, going by Rosaline’s description of the woman.
The shock on her face confirmed his suspicion.
Eventually, she nodded.
“Do ye have any more slaves here?”
“Nay,” she croaked.
But Caelan turned to the girls for confirmation anyway.
“Nay,” they echoed.
“Good. Then I will be out of here with these two. And since I dinnae live far, Mother Denise, I will send a patrol here every week so I can monitor yer devilish ways. If ye feel guilt, I will ken about it. Do ye understand?”
Mother Denise had to force the word out like vomit, squeezing it up her gullet, but she managed it.
“Aye.”
Caelan turned to Jayden and silently instructed him to help the girls climb out the window. He gave the nun one final glare and turned to leave, but not before catching her devastation as her villainous world crashed down around her.
* * *
Once they had gotten the girls safely up the tree and over the wall, Caelan took the time to reassure them. They were shivering, cowering, afraid of what would happen to them.
“I promise ye are safe. We willnae hurt ye,” he said.
