Page 5 of It Began With A Kiss
Iona did not think. She pulled the dirk from her boot and ran at the man who had killed Ewan. Slashing her arm forward, she managed to nick the man’s face before he was once more grabbing her arm, causing the knife to fall. The sound of Gregor’s sobs filled the passageway.
“Let me go! ’Tis my husband ye have killed, ye merciless bastard,” she screamed, whilst plummeting her fists on his chest. It damaged her own hands more than it did him, as the links of his chainmail dug into her flesh.
“I did not kill him, lass.”
“Liar!”
The sound of more knights coming down the corridor caused the man before her to shove Gregor in her direction. “Get the lad out of here. ’Tis no place for a woman and a wee lad to be found.”
“Ye shall pay and pay dearly for what ye have done this night. I vow if ’tis the last thing I do, ye shall pay for what ye have taken from me.”
With a shake of her fist, she grabbed her son’s hand. “Come, Gregor. There is nothing we can do for yer papa now.”
“We canna leave him here, mama,” he whimpered.
“Aye, we have no choice. I willna lose ye both in one night.”
She gave one last look at her husband before she ran from the sight that would surely haunt her for many months to come.
CHAPTER5
Aiden stared into the angry eyes of the man he was told was Broden Ferguson, younger brother to the laird of the keep. There was still too much chaos at the moment to determine if the laird was in hiding or had been killed during the siege. But this man had raised his sword toward Aiden, giving him several slashes on his body. For this reason alone, the man needed to be punished.
The Scot’s hands were bound and he was kneeling before Aiden, and was none too happy with his current predicament. Aiden was certain that, given the choice, Broden would rather try to run him through with his sword again than kneel there suffering at Aiden’s feet. The man’s eye was turning a nasty shade of purple whilst blood ran from a cut at his temple and a corner of his lip. He had put up quite the fight and Aiden could appreciate the knight’s duty to protect his kinsmen.
The taking of the keep had not gone completely as planned but ’twas at least now under his control. Luckily, the bloodshed that had occurred had been minimal but ’twas still a loss in Aiden’s mind. He would need to assess who in the household had been lost and what their purpose was in maintaining the estate. He would not mind also finding out who was the hellion who escaped from her chamber. Obviously, she had been married, but unfortunately that was no longer the case.
“Ye willna get away with this,” Broden sneered.
“It appears you are wrong, since I have indeed already laid ownership to this land.”
“The king will send men tae reclaim what is his.”
Aiden lifted one brow. The man had courage to speak his mind, he would give him that much. “King Henry II of England most assuredly will know I have not failed in my quest to win him this stronghold.”
Broden spat in the direction of Aiden’s boots, a knowing jeer marring his bruised face. “Bah! Yer English pig is no king o’ mine.”
Aiden suppressed his own knowing grin. “We shall see. Throw him into a dungeon cell, if one can be found. If he gives you any problems, see if there is a pit to cease his arguments, where he can learn some manners.”
A roar of outrage erupted from Broden, followed by curses damning Aiden to hell. It took two knights to force the man from the great hall. Aiden flicked his fingers towards one of his men he had fought beside.
“I can see you scowling at me, Finlay.You may as well speak your mind,” Aiden stated, as he picked up a chalice of wine and motioned for his comrade to take a seat next to him.
Finlay lowered himself into the chair with a heavy sigh. “I am having a strange sense of having been through this situation before. I like it not.”
Aiden peered at him over the rim of his cup. Taking a large gulp, he set it down. “’Tis nothing out of the ordinary. I was asked by our king to take this land in his name. I have done so and now will reap the benefits of my victory.”
“Such an action will not make it right in the eyes of the people you will now rule in his name. ’Tis not like Berwyck, being located right on the borders of two countries. We are too far north,” Finlay replied. He reached for a piece of venison on a platter before them, bit into the meat and then wiped the juice from his lips upon his sleeve.
“They will learn to obey me,” Aiden replied with confidence. “They have little choice in the matter. What’s done is done.”
“And yet, this is exactly the very same type of situation that caused ye tae leave Berwyck in the first place. How is what ye are doing any different than what yer brother-in-law Dristan did when he lay siege tae Berwyck Castle taking over yer homeland and inheritance?”
A moment of bitterness leaped into Aiden’s mind as regret for those who lost their lives in the battle filled him with grief. “You are leaning dangerously close to incurring my wrath. Leave it be, Finlay.”
“If ye do not hear this from me, then who else will ye hear it from?” Finlay asked, leaning back into his chair. “I have been a part of the MacLaren clan with ye and yer sister Amiria for as long as I can remember. I watched whilst she buried yer father and mourned for the loss of her twin because she thought ye were among the dead. Since ye were whisked off during the battle tae recover from yer injuries, ye were not there tae see the utter destruction and turmoil that battle caused yer family and the clan.”
“You know nothing of what I have been through,” Aiden muttered, taking another sip of his wine. “How dare you question my motives? I would think you, of all people, would understand my need to prove myself and earn the respect of a king who can award me lands and monies if I but do his bidding.”
