Page 68 of Tempted By a Highland Beast
“Who sent ye?” His voice was quiet, conversational even, but Rowena could hear the steel beneath it.
The raider spat blood. “Go tae hell.”
Constantine knelt beside him, the tip of his sword finding the hollow of the man’s throat. “I’ve been there, lad. It’s naethin’ compared tae what I’ll dae tae ye if ye dinnae start talking.”
Something in Constantine’s tone, in the absolute certainty of his words, broke the raider’s defiance. His eyes darted between the sword at his throat and the cold fury in Constantine’s face.
“The MacKenzie laird,” he gasped. “Paid us well tae bring back the woman. Said she belonged tae him.”
Rowena felt the blood drain from her face. Alpin was actively hunting her. Sending hired killers into MacLean territory to drag her back like a runaway horse.
“How many others has he paid tae find the lass?” Constantine asked.
“This was it. Just us. But he said... he said if we failed, he’d send more. Said he’d keep sending men until she was back with him.”
Constantine studied the raider for a long moment, then rose to his feet. The sword remained at the man’s throat, steady as stone.
“Tell yer employer,” he said quietly, “that Rowena MacKenzie is under the protection of Clan MacLean. Tell him that any man who comes fer her again will die. And tell him…” His voice dropped to barely above a whisper. “Tell him that Constantine MacLean sends his regards.”
The blade moved in a quick, efficient stroke. The raider’s eyes went wide, then empty.
Theo raised an eyebrow. “Ye dinnae let him live long enough tae carry a message.”
“Dinnae I?” Constantine’s expression was unreadable as he cleaned his blade on the dead man’s shirt. “Must have been an accident.”
Rowena pushed herself to her feet, her legs unsteady. The violence of it all, the casual efficiency with which Constantine had ended lives, should have horrified her. And part of it did. But a larger part of her only felt grim satisfaction.
“They would have taken me back tae him.”
“Aye.” Constantine sheathed his sword and moved to her side, his hands gentle as they checked her for injuries. “But they didnae. They couldnae.”
“There will be others. Ye heard what he said—Alpin will keep sending men.”
“Then we’ll keep killing them.” The matter-of-fact way he said it, as if discussing the weather, sent a shiver down her spine. “But we’re nae going tae wait fer the next group.”
Constantine turned to Theo, his expression shifting into the mask of command she’d seen him wear in the council chambers. “How many men can we muster within the day?”
“Fifty, maybe sixty if we call in the outer patrols. Why?”
“Because we’re nae going tae sit behind Duart’s walls and wait fer Alpin tae make his next move.” Constantine’s eyes found Rowena’s, dark and determined. “And because there’s been a change of plans.”
Something in his tone made her pulse quicken. “What kind of change?”
He stepped closer, his voice dropping to something almost intimate despite their audience. “We cannae wait any longer, Rowena. Every day we delay, gives Alpin more time tae organize, more opportunities tae strike. And after today…” He gestured toward the bodies scattered around them. “After today, he’ll ken exactly where ye are and we ken how far he’s willing tae go tae get ye back.”
Alpin had somehow tracked her to MacLean territory, had sent professional killers to drag her back to a marriage she’d rather die than endure.
“When?” she asked quietly.
“As soon as possible, a matter of days.” Constantine’s answer was immediate, brooking no argument. “We’ll send word taethe surrounding clans taenight, call in whatever allies we can muster. That’s why I need more men. By tomorrow evening, ye’ll be me wife in the eyes of God and man, and Alpin will have nay legal claim tae ye.”
“And if he decides legal claims dinnae matter?” Theo’s question was practical, soldier to soldier.
Constantine’s smile was cold as winter steel. “Then we’ll remind him why they should.”
The ride back to Duart passed in tense silence, every shadow potentially hiding another threat, every bend in the path a possible ambush point. But no more attackers emerged from the forest, and they reached the castle gates without further incident.
Word of the attack spread quickly through the castle. By the time they’d reached the great hall, Lilias was waiting with wide, frightened eyes and a dozen questions. Servants hurried to tend Constantine’s wounds while runners were dispatched to summon the priest and gather the household.
