Chapter 29

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

K endrick felt nothing. The sort of nightmarish nothing in which he tried to move but his legs seemed to float, disobeying every command he gave them to stride forward. He tried to scream, but only silent, cold air escaped his lungs. Like a warrior in a battlefield ordering his lifeless warriors to attack his enemies…

Aye, that type of nightmare.

He saw a sword pierce a man's chest, and he saw a reflection of his own scarred face in hiseyes. Before the sword could strike him, his war chief had shielded him. He then collapsed to the ground.

He cradled him in his arms, sealing their fates. It was simple back then—a life for a life. The war chief kept a smile on his face as his heartbeat came to a halt, and then his smile stilledas his eyes closed for good.

He had led ten men to their deaths. His heart was blackened by tenfold guilt.

As if the thunder in his heart wasn't enough, Laird Munro revealed his beastly, scarred face at the keep's entrance. His evil grin was wide as he stepped forwardover the dead soldiers.

Kendrick's father had told him as a child that he would never know true fear until he was on the verge of losing a fight. But his father was mistaken. Kendrick's heart was filled with unquenchable rage. At the time, it was pure, violent desire to quench his sword's thirst with Munro's blood.

He roared so loud that even the shrillest war flute could not compare. He picked up his sword, tearing through human flesh, sputtering more blood on the much that already resembled a butcher's slab.

There will be nae mercy.

Kendrick gripped his sword tight; he raised it up to strike Laird Munro, but it took only a word from the enemy's mouth for him to freeze.

" Sophia ." Munro accompanied the word with a dark chuckle. "Tis a bonny name for a bonny lass."

"Where is Sophia?" Kendrick demanded. "Where is she?"

Munro howled with laughter. "Drop yer sword if ye want to see her alive, MacNeil."

"Tell me where she is, Munro," Kendrick screamed, "Or yer neck will be rolling."

"Ach, it's quite obvious ye dinnae understand what is going on here, do ye?" Munro leaned into Kendrick's ear. "If yer sword so much as grazes me, the lass will die."

Kendrick growled before he reluctantly tossed his sword to the floor. Munro smiled a damning smile. He is a fool of course… that will be his last smile .

"Now, MacNeil, yer lass will watch ye die slowly, aye, but at least she'll be safe." Munro thumbed his jaw. "Or perhaps yer lass and I can have some fun while ye watch."

Kendrick's body coiled in anger. He would take any torture himself, but he would not let a soul do any harm to Sophia. "Dinnae ye dare touch her! I will kill ye if ye do!"

Munro twisted his fist and aimed it at Kendrick's stomach, making him fall to the ground in pain.

"Listen, lad," Munro said as he squeezed Kendrick's jaw, tilting his face up to look at him. "Ye dinnae give the orders here," he snarled. "I can have ye killed whenever I please and do whatever I want with the lass, do ye hear?" He pushed his face away and turned to his remaining warriors. "Drag him to the cage! Dinnae take yer eyes off him."

The guards rushed to Kendrick's sides and dragged him to his feet.

"Where is… Sophia?" he asked again, trying to fight away.

"Ye'll be with her shortly," Munro grinned. "It's a shame I'll miss yer wee gathering. Have fun while it lasts—cause when I return, ye'll have to choose which of ye dies first."

Kendrick stopped resisting and let the soldiers drag him away, if that was what it would take for him to see Sophia. At least he could comfort her until Reed arrived.

Reed . Surely, they would reach the keep soon enough.

He noticed a rusted cage over the drawbridge and in thecourtyard, not far from where they had fought. It looked like it had been built for beasts. He could see Sophia inside, but her face was obscured by her long dark hair that fell to the ground. She was curled up, her knees drawn to her chest.

Kendrick landed on a pile of sopping wet hay as they threw him into the cage. Hescurried over to heras he watched them lock the cage and flee back to Munro. She didn't turn or react to his presence, and he would have assumed she was dead if she hadn't flinched. Her feet were bare, except for bruises and muck. Her wild hair was tousled around her head and flecked with straw. He reached out to push her hair away from her face, but she recoiled and shifted away, not even looking at him.

It broke his heart in two to see her that way. What did they do to her? he asked himself. Then carefully, he moved towards her.

"Sophia," he whispered, slowly pushing her hair from her face. "Sophia, can ye hear me?"

Tentatively, she turned to look at him. "Kendrick." Her voice was trembling. "Is that ye, Kendrick?"

"Aye," he answered in a whisper. "Tis me."

When she had finally turned to face him, the sight of her made his heart lurch in his chest. Her pale skin was red from crying and black from muck. Her eyes were swollen, raw around the rims, as if she had been crying incessantly.

"Sophia!" He panicked and held her to himself. Her skin was so hot that it seemed like she had been left out in the sun for days on end. He noticed her shirt had been ripped apart, revealing her light cotton stays. He quickly took off his blood-stained jacket and wrapped it around her.

As if his discoveries had not broken him enough, he found her neck bruised as he tried to pull the coat over her. "Did Munro do this to ye, Sophia?" He could hear his own anger in his voice. "Who treated ye like this ?"

Sophia burst into tears. For the first time, he looked at her and she was weak. God… he hated to see her like that. It was as if her spirit had been broken in Munro's prison. He held her body close. Embracing her, stroking her back, he could feel the sting in his eyes as he wanted to cry along with her. He could feel her pain, so strong it was.

He ran his hand down her hair. "I am sorry, Sophia," he muttered in anguish. "I am so sorry..."

But she did not say a word. She only let him hold her as she wept.

When he saw that she was done crying, he held her up and stared into her eyes. They were darker than ever. Sad. Tortured.

"Sophia," he said softly, "What did they do to ye?"

She looked at him and he could see the tears pool in her eyes again.

"Don't cry, my love," he tried to say, desperately searching her eyes for answers. "Tell me."

"Ye shouldn't be here, Kendrick." She pushed him away and moved back. " Run ! Munro will nae spare ye when he sees ye." Her chest started to heave. "He'll kill ye—leave at once!"

Kendrick went to her, holding her hands, and trying to calm her. "It will be fine Sophia… he will nae kill me."

"He will," she cried hysterically. "He'll kill ye if ye dinnae leave now."

Her sob tore through him. Nothing had ever hurt him as much as this. Not even after seeing his mother's body on the floor. He clutched her tightly until he heard her relax. Then he drew her down so they could both rest atop the hay. He couldn't bring himself to let go of her, not even after she whispered his name.

"I am sorry, Kendrick." Her voice was weak. "Ye shouldn't have had to see me like this."

"Nae, dinnae say that." He held her back to look at her face. "Nae… I'm the one who should be sorry. I have hurt ye badly. I should've protected ye, but I let my guard down."

Sophia held onto his arms. "Tis nae yer fault. None of this is yer fault! There's nae way ye could've ken."

"I should've," he argued. "I should've ken that the bastard would try to hurt ye or someone else. I should've ken. I should've locked my door that morning so Catherine could nae sneak into my bed while I was still sleeping. I should've told ye the truth all those years ago. It has always been my fault, Sophia. Everything has been bad because I was nae honest enough with ye."

"Kendrick—"

"Nae, Sophia, let me finish. I should've asked for ye decently. I should've given ye a brooch to show my love for ye!" Why was he grousing? All he wanted to do was tell her how much he loved her, but he simply rambled. "Sophia, I should've treated ye better than I did. I am truly sorry."

"Ye mean it? Ye did nae touch another woman since my return?"

How can she even think I had touched anyone else with her in the keep? Nae, I ken. I have never given her any reason to believe I loved her.

"Sophia," he cupped her face in his hand. "I swear it. I've never—"

"Sophia!" It was Catherine… and she was screaming.

Before Kendrick could make sense of things, Catherine unlocked the cage with a small key and stormed inside. She looked wild, with her hair knotted and madness in her eyes. She halted as soon as her eyes met Kendrick's.

"Milaird…" she muttered with a crazed smile.

"Is she the one that did that to yer neck?" Kendrick asked Sophia as they both raised themselves to their feet.

"Aye," Sophia answered weakly. "Munro stopped her before I…" She cut herself off.

Kendrick tried to fight his urge to run up to Catherine and strangle the life out of her. Had she been a man, she would not even have lived after such villainy. He decided another punishment would suit her better.

"Catherine," he said harshly. "Yer desperation has led ye to yer own ruin."

"Nae! Nae, milaird!" Catherine ran her hands through her hair. "I'm nae ruined! All I have to do is kill her, then ye'll marry me. And we'll live happily as I've always wanted."

Kendrick stepped back at Catherine's delusion. "I ken everything about ye, Catherine." He watched as her eyes widened. "How yer mother and father died; how ye were left alone. I really feel pity for ye, I do, but yer ma and da—they would feel ashamed of who ye became."

"Nae!" Catherine shook her head. "They wouldn't. All this, I am doing it for them! They would be—"

"Ye're working with the same man who killed yer parents!"

"What do ye mean?" Catherine staggered back, yanking her hair. "Who killed my parents?"

"Ye're from the Munro clan, Catherine." Kendrick sighed. "Laird Munro killed yer parents."

"Tis nae true!" Catherine yelled, shaking her head. "Yer lying to me!"

"Then ask him yerself," Kendrick retorted. "Ye thought ye used him, but he was using ye. He would've killed ye after he killed me."

"Tis a lie!" Catherine cried, but the tears in her eyes made it clear she believed him. "All a lie…" She forced a grin through her crying. "Yer trying to stop me from killing the one girl that stands in my way."

"It's nae too late, Catherine. Ye still have a chance to change."

"Tis too late, for this wench has ruined everything!" Catherine's gaze was fixed on Sophia. "Aye, if I cannae have ye, neither will she."

Suddenly, Catherine darted towards Sophia, a blade gleaming in the sunlight, and Kendrick used his body as a shield to protect her from the attack. He fell to the ground, sending the woman away.

"Kendrick!" Sophia exclaimed as Catherine crashed against the bars of the cage. "Kendrick…" She tugged on his shirt as she called his name again.

"I am fine, Sophia." He turned back to Catherine, but she lay on the floor, her eyes wide open, and her body still. Her dagger had been plunged in her own heart. It had been an accident…

He didn't have time to think things over. As he glanced to the side, Reed was standing at the gate.

"I am sorry I came late, milaird!" Reed apologized, casting a glance at Catherine's lifeless body. "He must've suspected we were coming as we encountered a few of his soldiers in the woods."

"Tis fine…" Kendrick nodded, trying not to look at Catherine. "Where is he?"

"We cannae find him at the moment, but he should still be around."

Kendrick glimpsed at Sophia. She was frozen, staring at Catherine's corpse. He took her by her hands. "It's all right… she is dead. We should go, now." She didn't seem to have heard him, so he repeated his words. "Sophia! Let's get out of here."

She finally looked at him and nodded sadly.

As they crossed the drawbridge, Kendrick could see Munro surrounded by MacNeil warriors. Every one of the Munro soldiers were either badly wounded or dead.

"Take her," Kendrick said, pushing Sophia gently to Reed's side. He did not want her to witness what he would do next.

Reed shook his head and drew Sophia away without question. As they moved from his sight, Kendrick entered the circle his warriors had formed. He stood before him, the man's face overcome with fear.

"Ye'll nae have an easy death, Munro." Kendrick removed a dagger from his boot. "I'll strike ye once and abandon ye till yer body fails ye. Only hungry black ravens will surround ye as ye die."

"Perhaps, Laird MacNeil," Munro smiled shamelessly, "We can come to an agreement. We—"

Kendrick pierced his blade through Munro's chest, just beneath his heart. "This is for my war chief." He removed the dagger and buried it again into Munro. "This is for the soldiers who have lost their lives today." He buried the dagger one last time in Munro's belly. "That is for daring to touch my lass."

Munro fell to the floor, bleeding out slowly, just as he wanted.

Kendrick crouched beside Munro, returning his grin. "Dinnae fash, Laird Munro. Yer death will be slow and very painful."

He rose to his feet and walked away with his warriors following closely behind him.

They mournfully saddled their mounts.

Kendrick asked Sophia to ride with him since she was weak, but their ride back to the keep was silent.

He went to her chamber the next day. Her rose curtains were back up on the windows, and her bed was dressed in rose sheets as well. She'd lit the candles and was back to reading. With her hair neatly tied behind her and her pale smooth skin reflecting the candlelight, she looked like a goddess. Astunning sight to behold.

"How're ye feeling now?" he asked as he sat on her bed. He put a hand on her forehead and was relieved her fever was gone.

She put the book down. "I am feeling… better."

"Sophia," he started, "I avoided ye because I thought my father had killed my mother." He turned away from her gaze. "I was afraid I'd hurt ye… that was why I avoided ye and asked for yer sister's hand instead. But the truth is… that I've never loved anyone but ye."

She blinked up at him, but tears formed in her eyes. "Love…?"

He turned to face her. "Aye, Sophia. I've loved ye since we were wee children running around the gardens, since ye tended my first wound, since we were playing games till dark with Reed."

Her face eased into a smile—a bright, contagious smile. "Oh, Kendrick." She wrapped her arms around him. "Ye dinnae ken how long I have waited to hear that. I love ye, too." She leaned close to him until their lips met.

And with that kiss, she sealed a lifetime together.