Page 100 of The Highlander's Virgin Widow
He slammed the rock as hard as he could against the padlock. The rock crashed against the metal, and a chunk fell to the floor. The lock was still secure.
He swung again and slammed the rest of the rock against the lock. It only budged a little. Evander dropped the rock and reached for the padlock. Then, he pulled at it as hard as he could.
“Evander,” Keira murmured, the concern in her voice obvious.
Evander didn’t respond. Instead, he tugged at the padlock even harder, trying to yank it off the shackle.
Then, it gave way.
He pulled out the entire contraption and flung it to the side, then yanked the door open. Keira stepped out, and he pulled her into a hug. The scent of her bathing oils mixed surprisingly pleasantly with the musty smell of the damp dungeon walls.
“Are ye all right? Did they hurt ye?”
Keira let out a wet laugh, tears welling up in her eyes. “Ye’re alive. That is all I’m concerned about.”
“What have they done to ye?” Evander whispered. “Give me names. I promise ye, nae a single one of them will go unpunished.”
Keira wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer to her. Their foreheads touched, and she held still for a while, tears streaming down her face.
“Ye have nay idea how relieved I am. I thought I’d been cursed. I thought I’d somehow managed to kill ye with this curse I have, like I killed Fletcher.”
Evander reached for her hand and squeezed it tightly. “Ye didnae kill Fletcher,” he whispered. “And ye cannae get rid of me that easily, even if ye try.”
Keira wiped the tears from her eyes and let him examine her. She knew at that point, from the anger and redness in his eyes, that there better not be a hair out of place on her head, or else she wouldn’t be able to control what he would do next.
And neither would he.
“Let us go. We have spent enough time in this place,” Evander urged.
He reached for her hand once more and held onto it as tight as his weak body would allow him. Keira followed silently behind him as he led her out of the dungeons. She felt as if she was leaving doubt and captivity behind.
“We must clarify as soon as possible that ye didnae kill me,” Evander muttered, pulling her up the stairs, his hand still wrapped tightly around hers.
33
Keira led Evander to the Laird’s quarters, her arm wrapped around him. Somewhere between the dungeons and where they currently were, the bout of strength Evander had mustered had left him completely. Now, he looked like a man who had just survived a terrible ailment and needed as much rest as he could get.
He had been unconscious for four days; the least he could do was rest for at least half that time.
“Watch yer step,” Keira cautioned, the concern in her voice never dwindling as they walked.
Soon, they got to the Laird’s quarters, and she pushed the door open, all the while he leaned slightly on her. She led him to the bed and eased him onto the covers.
“Ye’re all right,” she soothed, almost like she was reassuring herself as well. “Ye’re alive and ye’re all right.”
Evander sank into the mattress and looked up at her, a smirk tugging at his lips as he watched her push stray strands of hair from her face.
“’Tis quite hilarious, is it nae?” he asked.
Keira frowned. “What is?”
“Oh, ye ken. The fact that it was ye who almost saw God after ye came undone, but ‘twas me who had a heart failure. I think fate has a twisted sense of humor.”
Keira rolled her eyes. “Even on the brink of death, ye still find a way to?—”
“Nay longer on the brink of death. I’m recovering,” he corrected, raising his index finger and stressing every syllable in the last word.
Keira only laughed in response and turned around.
