Prologue

Highlands, 1457

"Kill him?"

Nora Douglas"s young eyes widened as she stared wildly at her father as he paced about his cabinet.

"Aye, lass..." Laird Douglas"s eyes flashed, illuminating their bloodied edges. "Ye take yer man, hold him still, then slit his throat side to side, like so..."

Terrified, Nora watched as the laird lifted the startled rabbit aloft, severing its throat brutally. It expired with barely a squeak. Nora stared, nauseous, as the thick blood dripped over the desk.

Nora could barely watch. Not exactly squeamish, there was something in her father"s face she did not trust. And his impromptu tutorial did not aid matters.

"Here, noo let"s see ye gut him." Her father handed her back the rabbit, and Nora took it with shaking hands.

At thirteen, she was beginning to transform into the beautiful woman she would become. Her pale skin bathed in the gold light from the fire, illuminating the red in her hair. Every single thing about Nora was striking. Already, men turned their heads wherever she went. However, her father would gouge out the eyes of any man who dared to linger too long over her.

It was December, the fiercest month in the Highland calendar. The air was thick with snow, and ice pervaded every inch of Douglas Castle. Beneath her thick shawl, Nora shivered. She had been hunting all day because her father had demanded she capture a live rabbit. A strange request, especially this late in the season, and now she knew the reason for it.

Sort of.

As Nora took the still-warm corpse, her young mind swam.

Is he mad? It is possible.

The fact was, it was hard to tell. Either way, she had better take him seriously. The girl"s emerald eyes pierced her father"s searchingly. His florid face was fortified by the fire—and whiskey—as he watched her, amused, with his dram.

"Hurry up noo, lass. I said I wanted that wee bun for me tea." He grinned before handing her the knife.

Taking the bejeweled sgian dubh, Nora got to work. Pressing her head down, she began the consuming business of paring the rabbit. It took some time, in which she felt her father"s hot breath upon her. She could smell him. Garlic and fish. The smelly air wafted around her, making her sick.

"Sometime today, what hoo, lass," he cried impatiently. "Och, there, Sorcha. Let"s have a wee dram."

A gray lady who looked like a poker made flesh appeared to refresh both her and her father"s goblet.

"Thank ye, lassie," said the laird, with a sideways glance at the older woman.

Only now did Nora look at her properly. She looked harassed even more than usual, which was saying something.

Sorcha was the Douglas clan lady-in-waiting, cum governess, cum head servant all rolled into one. Nora"s father liked to think he was haughty, but in truth, he didn"t really know what to do with a highborn woman like Sorcha.

"Och, lass, it"s a muckle shame ye"re nae wed. Ye"d make someone a braw wife!" the laird laughed.

Nora blushed. Her father was drunk. Perhaps that was why he was acting so strange. Sorcha said nothing but delivered one of her withering glances, which put even Laird Douglas in his place. Seeing her face, the laird guffawed.

"Och, I dinnae mean anything by it, hen. It"s a compliment! Noo then, let"s have a wee look."

Drunkenly, her father staggered over to where she was working with the knife. The commotion almost knocked the candelabra over.

"Och, sir," murmured Sorcha, steadying it quickly. She fixed Nora with a rueful smile. Even Sorcha felt sorry for her. Things must be bad.

"Hmm, hmm, nae bad, but ye"ve still got some fur on this side," said her father, inspecting her work. He held the rabbit aloft as bits of it bled out all over the floor. The tinge of blood filled the air.

"But ye"ve got a long way to go afore ye skin an" gut yer first man," he gruffed.

Nora looked up. He was joking. He must be. This was the sort of thing her father thought of as funny. Nora"s deep green eyes watched his closely.

Pushing her ginger curls from her eyes, Nora removed the rabbit"s fur, then cleaned the knife diligently. It needed attending to before the nightfall. There was a tremendous mess in the study, and the light was already failing.

"So, come on then, lassie, are ye done?" asked her father, as Nora worked with the knife.

Uncertainly, Nora nodded, the candlelight picking out the delicate pink of her cheek. Carefully, she pressed the rabbit toward him, as if presenting him with some valuable prize.

The laird took it, then snapped. "Ha! A mess. Ye"ll have to do better than that, lass. Sorcha!"

He clicked his fingers, and Sorcha took the rabbit entrails and mess without speaking before leaving the room. Then, the laird fixed Nora with an unwavering smile.

"Dinnae fash, wee lassie. I am going to teach ye, but ye"ve got a lot to learn."

Shakily, Nora nodded.

"Aye, Father," she said. But her mind was reeling; her father had been overly concerned about her doings of late, and she was wondering why. Worse still, he had called her into his cabinet study for a "wee chat." This alone inspired fear in Nora. Would she be sent away?

Taking the lead for the first time ever, Nora cleared her throat.

"Da," she said uncertainly. "Didnae I please ye? I did my best."

Her father turned straight to her. His stark look scared her. At six foot six, Laird Douglas was the tallest man in the Highlands, at least according to himself. His bearlike frame intimidated many a foe, as well as his daughter and staff.

"Is this yer best, lass?" barked her father fiercely. He held the unfortunate rabbit up high. It drooped miserably. It was gruesome, but the violence of his voice was what unnerved her. This was the voice that launched armies into battles. Intimidated, Nora changed track.

"I-I mean, I am sorry, Da," she said hurriedly. "I will learn."

It was the sensible thing to do. In fact, the only thing to do. Any perceived slight sent her father into a senseless rage.

"Aye, aye, ye will, lass," said Douglas, finally backing down.

He straightened up, moving his thick, angry head away from her. Her father always seemed to look angry, even when he wasn"t. Perhaps his face was just made that way. Everything from the bulbous nose to the whiskey-induced thread veins made it so. And in his eyes, the bloodshot was more prominent than their actual color.

"An" dinnae fash," he added, calming down as he sat back into his mahogany chair. The fire crackled, adding further to his red face. "Let"s just ye an" me have a wee chat, eh lassie?"

He smiled stiffly, causing Nora instant panic. His rages were one thing, but being nice was something new. Uncertainly, she perched on the mahogany chair as her father poured a glass of ale.

"Now then, lassie, as ye"ll be coming of age, there"s a few wee things we need to discuss!"

At the mention "of age," Nora"s perfect eyebrows rounded. Seeing her face, her father laughed.

"Och, dinnae fash, lassie. Nae for a good few years yet. Nay, I mean in the future. However, it is still time to make an arrangement."

"An arrangement?" Nora"s young heart skipped a beat.

At last. It was here. Her father was about to make nuptials for her.

"Aye, lassie. A betrothal. For ye an" for yer clan."

The laird beamed, as Nora was all agog.

"An" I was thinking o" the Duncan clan!"

Nora"s eyes widened.

"The Duncans? But ye... Da, nay, I cannae!"

But her father just waved her down.

"I ken. We hate them. They are our sworn enemy."

But for Nora,this was too much. Forgetting completely her father"s rages, she leaped up from the mahogany chair.

"They killed mother! I cannae—I willnae!" Her voice was so loud that it echoed around the hall, causing Sorcha, still at work in the background, to look up.

The laird hit her with his heaviest look. His murky eyes met hers.

"Haud yer wheesht, lass. Ye dinnae ken it all."

Grabbing her by the hand, Laird Douglas hauled her in, bringing Nora close by his side. Trembling, Nora was forced to listen. There, in front of the firelight, with thick snow falling across the Highland hills, it all unfurled.

"Aye, it is true, lass. The Duncans killed yer maw. I was there."

Laird Duncan looked sorrowfully at Nora, placing a hand on her shoulder. The warmth of her father"s touch unnerved her; Nora flinched. Normally, he only touched her to hit her or push. But this time he was sincere. A surge of emotion took her.

"It shouldnae ha" happened. I should ha" prevented it. But I couldnae. We were taken by siege."

The laird"s eyes misted over. Reaching for his dram, he drank deeply. He did not like to be outflanked by emotion. Nora, for her part, was reeling. Feelings she had shoved down for years came back. She had never known her mother, and the mention of her was strangely emotional.

"It wasnae yer fault, Father," she said reassuringly.

Uncertainly, she went to pat her father"s hand. It was a rare moment between father and daughter. After a deep silence, her father grunted.

"Maybe," he said, without moving. "But I vowed to avenge it. An" I will. Or ye will."

"Me?" asked Nora. Her heart leaped. She was scared and young, but the thought of avenging her mother spurred her on. Although just then, she could not see quite how.

"Aye. Ye, lass," said her father slowly. He seemed to have instantly sobered up and was looking at her with cold eyes. In fact, a chill seemed to come into the room, breezing in through the drafty windows.

"Because ye will marry this lad, the son o" the Duncans—William—when he comes to be laird."

"William?" said Nora, her thoughts diverting. Everything inside her bubbled.

Do I know him? Ha" we ever met?Nora"s young mind reeled, wondering what this mysterious man was like.

"An" ye want me to wed him?" she asked. Her understanding was still uncertain.

Somberly, her father nodded. "It is a good match. We can gain much from the Duncans."

"But they are our enemy?" she questioned, looking up.

"They were," said her father smoothly. "They will nae be when ye wed him. They have things we want; the land, the farming, the riches. Many things. An" when ye wed him, we can take them all!"

Finally, his eyes glinted as Nora came to his meaning.

"Aye," said her father, smiling. "Ye will have it all after he dies."

The laird"s twisting smile came around his face, toying with her. Nora just stared.

"Ye will seduce an" kill him on yer wedding night an" take it all. Can ye do that? For yer maw, for yer clan!"

Heart thundering, Nora paused. Then, coolly, she said, "Of course, Father."