Chapter 18

"Ach, this is all me fault. I went too far in goading Rollo," Maddison cried to Liam next to her. "Can ye nae stop them, Liam, please?"

"'Tis nae yer fault. Ye dinnae ken all that's been goin' on. This has been brewin' fer years. It was only a matter of time before somethin' like this happened. 'Tis best they get things sorted out once and fer all. Odhrán needs this."

"But Odhrán might get hurt, even… killed!" Just the thought was making her nauseous, along with a sense of guilt.

"Let them fight it out like men, and pray Odhrán's the better man," the captain advised her calmly.

"Oh, God!" She put her hand over her face, afraid to watch as she heard the song of swords being unsheathed. She peeped through her fingers to see the cousins squaring up to each other. "Let Odhrán win, dear Lord, please, let Odhrán win," she began to pray under her breath. Ursula was in a similar state of distress but equally powerless to do anything about it. They stood next to each other, watching, united in fear, as their men engaged in a fight that could turn out to be fatal for one of them.

Odhrán struck the first blow, striking from above, his blade threatening to pierce Rollo's neck. But the older man skillfully parried it away, thrusting the blade aside with his own before shoving Odhrán backwards. To her relief, Odhrán kept his balance, maneuvering on the balls of his feet to strike again, this time at Rollo's midriff.

Maddison screamed as Rollo almost imperceptibly moved backwards and raised his sword arm, aiming to bring down a shattering blow on Odhrán's head. But Odhrán dodged it easily and again thrust his blade at Rollo's soft underbelly, the point of his sword slicing through his cousin's coat and shirt. A long, thin ribbon of blood showed against Rollo's belly, but he laughed it off. Ursula sobbed in the background.

"A lucky hit, Coz. Can ye nae dae any better?" he taunted Odhrán, feigning left and right as Odhrán went after him. The clash of metal on metal rang about the castle walls as the pair slugged at each other, exchanging a volley of heavy blows but deflecting them all. Then, to her horror, Rollo's blade glanced off Odhrán's forearm.

"Odhrán"" she screamed, seeing his blood dripping scarlet onto the cobblestones. She doubled over as if the pain he must be feeling was her own. But when she dared to look, he appeared not to have noticed the injury, continuing to fight like an automaton, his face dark and set, his eyes seeming almost black and expressionless, his hair sticking to his face with sweat.

Rollo danced about like a grotesque monkey, and she could hear him talking to Odhrán, his voice a snake's hiss. She could just make out what he was saying.

"I see ye're in love with the lassie, ye weaklin', but I also see she cares naethin' fer ye. A beauty like that, why, 'tis obvious she cannae be less interested in ye. She wants a real man."

Maddison gasped at the man's deviousness. He clearly knew what to say to goad Odhrán into making a slip. Guilt assailed her once again, for she knew Rollo was speaking the truth. And after all, Odhrán had confessed to her the night before about his feelings for her, she was terrified it might be the one thing that would truly hurt him and make him loose concentration.

Me stubbornness could cost him his life!

But it appeared to have the opposite effect, for Odhrán suddenly seemed to get his second wind. He stood taller, shrugging the massive muscles of his neck and shoulders and loosening his neck before giving his cousin a grim smile. He attacked Rollo like a machine, his arm moving so fast, Maddison could hardly see anything but a blur.

Cuts appeared on his face and arms as Rollo's sword tip caught him, but he ignored it all and just kept relentlessly beating his claymore down on his cousin, not giving him an inch of quarter, until it was obvious the older man was starting to tire.

Rollo tried to get on the attack once again, but Odhrán was in the ascendent, and it was not long before Rollo struck at him, and Odhrán was able to flip his sword from his hand and trip him up so that he stumbled and fell to the ground. He lay on his back, cursing, scrambling to get up. But in an instant, Odhrán had him pinned, his boot on his chest and his sword point poised at his throat.

"Who's the better man now, eh, Coz?" he spat, his face dripping with blood and sweat.

"Ye were just lucky, is all. Go ahead and kill me," Rollo shot back. Maddison was afraid then that Odhrán really was going to run his cousin through, in front of everyone, including Ursula. She was shocked when Ursula suddenly flung herself forward and onto the ground next to her husband.

"Please, dinnae kill him, Odhrán, I beg ye, fer the bairns' sake," she sobbed, gazing up at Odhrán with tears running down her face. Maddison's heart clenched with sympathy for the poor woman. But she was Rollo's wife and obliged to beg for the miserable wretch's life. She held her breath as Odhrán, his breathing ragged, pushed the point of his blade a little harder against Rollo's throat so that beads of blood appeared. Ursula let out an agonized squeak. Then, in a liquid movement, the sword was gone and back in its sheath.

"For yer sake and theirs, Ursula, I'll nae kill him. Nae today at least," Odhrán told her in a low voice. "I ken 'tis hard fer ye tae see yer husband endure such treatment at me hands, and I apologize fer subjectin' ye tae that. Ye and the bairns are welcome tae stay here as long as ye like, whenever ye like." He turned his eyes back to Rollo, who was still lying on the floor, an injury to his thigh bleeding heavily. "But ye, ye cheatin' bastard, ye can get out and never show yer face here again as long as I'm laird."

With that, he turned and walked away, back towards the doors to the hall. Maddison ran after him.

"I'll never let me family stay anywhere near this accursed castle while ye're in it, ye damned upstart," Rollo shouted after them. "I'll make ye rue this day. I'll be back whatever ye say, I'll have me revenge. And I'll take what's mine, ye'll see."

His threats hung in the air as Maddison put her arm around Odhrán's waist and entered the keep with him. His clothes were soaked with sweat, and blood was coming from a myriad of injuries that, thankfully, did not appear to be serious. As they made their way to the staircase, she collared a servant and ordered him to have plenty of hot water brought up to their chambers and for Alana to be summoned at once.

"I'm all right. Dinnae fuss," Odhrán told her. "It looks worse than it is."

"I dinnae care," she told him, not letting him go as they approached the doors to their rooms. "Those wounds need taking care of." They went inside, and she steered him over to the bed and sat him on the edge, pulling off his coat and boots and lifting his legs onto the bed before letting him collapse with a deep, weary groan.

She was greatly relieved when Alana appeared a few minutes later, with Tadgh and Liam in tow. The healer made Odhrán strip down to his shirt and examined every wound minutely.

"Naethin' major, though ye'll have a few more scars, I'm afraid, me laird," she told the patient. "These just need cleanin' up and some salve tae prevent any infection and ye'll be as right as rain."

"Thank ye, Alana, but I can see tae it if ye leave me the salve and some bandages," Maddison said quickly, anxious tae dae all she could to make Odhrán comfortable.

"Of course." Alana took the things from her basket and handed them to Maddison, who put them on the nightstand ready to use once the others had gone.

"Ach, women. They make such a fuss," he complained tiredly, looking slightly surprised when Maddison hovered over him, brushing his hair from his face and checking his temperature pointlessly with the back of her hand.

"Aye, but enjoy it while ye can, man. Likely as nae, it willnae last," Liam joked.

"Ye fought well and sent that bastard off with his tail between his legs, Odhrán. I hate tae say I was right, but did I nae tell ye he'd come out into the open?" Tadgh put in with a grin.

"Aye, ye did, lad. But I have tae admit, I didnae expect it so soon. I wish I could believe it'll end here, but ye heard his threats," Odhrán said, accepting a dram of whisky from Maddison, who continued to fuss over him. "Dae me a favor, will ye, and make sure Rollo gets packed off soon, with or without his family?"

"Aye, we will," the brothers chorused before taking their leave with Alana.

As soon as the door closed behind them, Maddison fetched a bowl of clean water and some clean wash rags and carried them over to the bed, placing them on the nightstand with the bandages and the little pot of salve. She got up on the bed and knelt next to Odhrán, concerned about how battered and tired he appeared. He also looked wonderfully handsome with his hair all tousled, and a big wave of affection for him washed over her.

"I'm gonnae clean yer wounds now, all right?" she told him, wetting a cloth and wringing it out over the bowl.

"Thank ye," he said, his dark gray eyes on her as she took his injured arm and laid it in her lap, beginning to gently clean away the congealed blood. His touch sent a thrill through her that reminded her of their previous passionate encounter, and she felt her cheeks flushing.

"I feel terrible, Odhrán, because I think I should nae have said those things tae taunt Rollo. If I'd kept me mouth shut, the fight maybe would nae have happened," she confessed as she worked, feeling truly contrite and finding it hard to meet his eyes. "Ye could have been seriously injured or even killed, and it would have been all me fault."

"Well, ye can put that worry straight out of yer head. Ye ken the trouble I've had with Rollo all me life. His plans tae take me lairdship have been seriously upset by our marryin', and me and Liam and Tadgh kent he would try something tae provoke me intae a fight. He'd like tae see me dead so he can take over here. That's the whole reason he came. Ye heard him diggin' at me all the time."

Maddison nodded as she worked. "I've never met anyone so brazen. And when he looked at me… ugh!" She shivered. "He's repulsive. He reminds me of yer faither," she added, pushing away unpleasant memories.

Odhrán sighed. "Aye, two peas in a pod, those two. Rollo came here lookin' fer a chance tae deliberately insult me, knowing I'd demand satisfaction. It was naethin' tae dae with ye."

I may have won today, but I reckon he's nae finished with me yet.

"I'm glad tae hear ye say so, but it disnae change a thing. Ye could have been hurt, or even killed."

"Are ye sayin' ye were worried about me, Maddison?" he asked, quirking a brow. "That's a big change from what ye told me this mornin'."

Maddison felt heat flushing her cheeks. "That was… before the fight," she said, burningly conscious it was not any sort of explanation.

"So, if ye think I'm close tae death ye suddenly care about me, is that it?"

"Oh, will ye stop askin' questions?" she complained, feeling put on the spot. She wanted to tell him the truth about how she was feeling, but it was difficult to know how to start or even what words to use.

She hid her consternation by paying close attention to his wrist, turning it gently in her lap, making sure the wound was thoroughly clean before applying the salve and covering it with a bandage. "There, that's that one done. What's next?"

"This one here," he replied, pushing aside the neck of his shirt to reveal a gash on his chest, just under his collar bone.

"Och, it does look rather deep." Maddison frowned at it, pausing for a moment to collect herself as her heart fluttered strangely at the sight of his broad, tan chest with its covering of springy dark curls. The memory of running her hands over its expanse freely in the throes of ecstasy vividly came back to her. Slightly flustered, she smiled at Odhrán, feigning composure. "I'll have that cleaned up in nae time," she told him, rinsing out the cloth with fresh water before tending to the gash.

She leaned over him, resting one palm on his chest while she bathed the wound, feeling the heart beating beneath her hand under his warm skin, his gaze on her face. He said nothing, but his warm breath brushed her cheek, making her shiver. In a moment, she was covered in goosebumps, her whole body seemingly on alert at his proximity. She forced herself to complete the job and say brightly, "Which one next?"

"This one," he said, lifting his chin slightly to indicate a bloody cut on the side of his neck about four inches long. Maddison leaned in to look. Odhrán's breath moved a stray strand of her hair, for their faces were now only inches apart. Maddison trembled, her body tingling with mounting tension.

"Ach, that could have been so bad, Odhrán! Luckily, 'tis nae so deep, but ‘tis bleedin' a lot," she exclaimed, horrified by how vulnerable he had been under Rollo's onslaught.

Odhrán chuckled wryly. "Well, I'm pretty sure Rollo's got a few more injuries than me, so I'm nae complainin'. I reckon I got off lightly."

"That's nae the point," she chided him, sitting up to fetch a clean cloth from the nightstand and wetting it, doing her best to concentrate on what she was doing. But it was getting increasingly more difficult with every second, for she was drawn to him. She leaned back over him, her hand resting lightly on his chest once more and began cleaning the wound.

"Would ye have been sad if Rollo had won? Are ye nae proud of me just a wee bit fer winnin'?" he asked.

How to answer? Was this the time she should tell him the truth as Tadgh had suggested?

"Aye, and aye, I am proud of ye, of course. But that disnae mean I forgive ye fer getting' embroiled in a duel like that." Odhrán's boyish smile made her insides turn to water.

"So, ye dae care about me a wee bit." It was a statement, not a question.

"I didnae want ye tae be seriously injured or killed, Odhrán!"

"Why so? Ye've told me many times how much ye hate me. Ye blow hot and cold. After the way ye acted this mornin', 'tis hard fer me tae understand why ye're suddenly bein' so kind tae me."

Realizing she could not answer his questions without admitting her feelings, she decided it was time to come clean. She sat back from what she was doing and sighed, meeting his eyes as she fumbled for the words.

She rubbed her forehead and finally said, "Ye must understand, this is all very difficult fer me, Odhrán. I've been fightin' with mesel' fer a while now. I suppose that's why I've been blowin' hot and cold, as ye say. It's all so confusin'."

"Ye can say that again," he agreed, listening attentively to her every word, his eyes drawing her in.

"What I mean is, 'tis confusin'…" She paused to take a deep breath before adding, "the way I feel about ye now." There, it was out.

There were a few moments of silence where the only sound was the crackling of the fire.

"And how dae ye feel about me now?" he asked in a low voice that made Maddison shiver.

"I want tae hate ye, tae keep on hatin' ye, just like I swore I would. I feel like I'm betrayin' mesel' and me family by even thinkin' like this. How can ye trust someone who breaks their own vows?" She paused to look deeply into his eyes. The warmth she found there gave her the strength to go on.

"But ye've been so kind tae me, much kinder than I deserve after the way I've treated ye. I've tried and tried, but the truth is, I just cannae seem tae hate ye any longer. 'Tis true that I've come tae care about ye, and I wantae apologize fer the way I've been actin'. I was gonnae tell ye all this before the fight with Rollo. When I saw ye really were gonnae fight with him, I thought I'd faint, I was so scared. And when ye were fightin', me heart was in me throat. I panicked, thinkin' ye could be hurt. Ach, I couldnae stand it!"

By the time she had finished, tears were running down her face, releasing the terrible tension she had been under. To her surprise, Odhrán reached up and brushed them gently away with the back of his fingers. Her skin tingled under his touch.

"Dinnae cry, lass. De ye nae ken how it hurts me tae see ye cryin'?" he whispered huskily, gently taking hold of her wrist and pulling her to him. She went willingly, hypnotized by the tenderness she saw in his eyes, her tears drying as Odhrán gently cupped her face in his hands and told her, "I only ever want tae make ye smile."

"I'm sorry, Odhrán," she murmured again, feeling as though her heart was about to burst. "I'm sorry if I hurt ye."

"Hush, there's naethin' tae be sorry fer," he assured her, coming closer. "Everythin' will be all right now, ye'll see."

Maddison closed her eyes when she felt the soft, warm pressure of his lips on hers, and she returned the chaste, sweet, loving kiss.