Page 81 of Tempted By a Highland Beast
“Of course it is,” Rowena said with firm conviction. “Ye’re family, Lilias. Naethin’ changes that.”
For the first time since Constantine had found her in the library, Lilias smiled; a real smile that transformed her face and chased away some of the shadows that had gathered around her. “Family,” she repeated, as if testing the word on her tongue. “I like the sound of that.”
Constantine found himself looking at the two women—his wife and his sister—and feeling something settle into place in his chest. This was what belonging felt like, he realized. Not just the claiming of title or territory, but this quiet moment of connection, of people choosing to stand together because they wanted to, not because they had to.
“Aye,” he said quietly, his voice rough with emotion he didn’t try to hide. “Family.”
The peaceful moment was shattered by the sound of boots in the corridor, quick and urgent steps that spoke of important news. Constantine was on his feet before Finlay appeared in the doorway, his travel-stained clothes and exhausted expression immediately commanding attention.
“Me laird,” Finlay said, his breathing slightly labored as if he’d been riding hard. “I bring news from MacKenzie territory.”
Constantine felt every muscle in his body tense, his instincts immediately alert to danger. Beside him, Rowena had gone very still, her hand still clasped in Lilias’s but her attention focused entirely on Finlay.
“Speak,” Constantine commanded, his voice carrying the authority of a man prepared for bad news.
Finlay’s gaze flicked to Rowena, his expression troubled. “Alpin has declared ye dead. Killed, he claims, while in MacLean lands.”
Rowena’s face went white, her free hand coming up to press against her throat as if she could feel phantom fingers closing around it. Lilias gasped, her grip tightening on Rowena’s hand in instinctive support.
“Dead?” Rowena’s voice was barely a whisper.
“Aye,” Finlay confirmed grimly. “He’s told the clan that ye were murdered by MacLean warriors, that yer body was found in the woods near the border. He’s positioned himself as the clan’s savior, the only one who can preserve MacKenzie honor and secure their future.”
Constantine felt fury rise in his chest, cold and controlled but murderous. The calculating cruelty of Alpin’s move was breathtaking, not just stealing Rowena’s inheritance, but erasing her very existence from the world.
Finlay stepped forward with a leather satchel. He began pulling out items, scraps of fabric, a broken clan badge, pieces of evidence gathered during his reconnaissance.
“These were found at the sites where Alpin’s men have been spreading their false tale,” Finlay reported. “He’s nae just claiming she’s dead—he’s manufacturing proof. Torn clothing, bloodstained cloth. He’s selling the story tae anyone who will listen.”
“How did the elders react?” Constantine asked, his voice deceptively calm.
“From what I could learn, they are rallyin’ behind him,” Finlay said with obvious reluctance. “They’re desperate and grievin’, and Alpin’s offered them hope. He’s promised a marriage alliance with one of the southern clans, says it’s the only way tae preserve MacKenzie strength.”
Rowena sat in stunned silence, the full scope of Alpin’s betrayal sinking in. “What cruelty this is,” she said finally, her voice hollow. “With me dead, he’s nay longer an usurper, he’s a grieving uncle stepping up tae save his clan. The elders will support him because they think they have nay choice.”
Constantine moved to stand behind her chair, his hands coming to rest on her shoulders in a gesture that was both protective and possessive. “It willnae stand,” he said, his voice carrying absolute certainty. “I willnae let it stand.”
Rowena looked up at him, seeing the cold fury in his dark eyes, the set of his jaw that spoke of violence barely contained.
“What can we dae?” Lilias asked, her young voice carrying the same fierce protectiveness that Constantine felt. “How dae we fight someone who’s already declared ye dead?”
Constantine was quiet for a long moment, his mind working through the implications and possibilities. When he finally spoke, his voice was steady, resolved. “We prove Rowena’s very much alive,” he said.
“If Alpin wants tae steal her name and her clan, then he’ll have tae face me in the open.”
Rowena stood from her chair and turned to Constantine, her hazel eyes blazing with determination. “I want me clan back. I want me birthright. And I want Alpin tae answer fer what he’s done.”
Constantine’s smile was sharp, predatory, filled with the promise of violence to come. “Then we’ll give ye all of that and more. Anyone who threatens what’s important tae me learns exactly why that’s a mistake they’ll nae live tae repeat.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
The library had never felt smaller.
Constantine swept aside ledgers and correspondence before unrolling a weathered map across the polished wood. The parchment crackled as it settled, revealing the familiar contours of Highland territory. Clan borders were marked in faded ink, mountain passes traced in careful detail, and the sprawling MacKenzie and MacLean lands that now lay under false rule.
“With Alpin claimin’ Rowena’s dead, we ken what comes next. He cannae leave her alive in the Highlands,” Constantine said and his gaze swept the map in front of him. “Nae if he wants his lies to hold weight. He’ll strike sooner rather than later, and his first aim will be tae silence her.”
Theo stepped forward first, his lean frame casting a shadow across the map of the MacLean lands as he pointed to a narrow glen. “Here,” he said, his voice steady despite the gravity of whatthey were planning. “This is where me and the men spotted Alpin’s scouts before the wedding.”
