Highlander's Beautiful Lia ( Historical Scottish Medieval Highlander Romance)

by Adamina Young

  “Kill them!” Seth screamed, and his men flew into action. Alec tensed, but he ignored everything around him. He only had eyes for Seth.

  By the time Alec got within striking distance, the man fled. Gritting his teeth, Alec raced after him. If there was one thing he hated, it was a coward.

  Pulling his horse up short, he slid off the beast and ran up the steps after Seth as the man tried desperately to make it to the tower. Unfortunately for him, he was too drunk to move quickly; Alec grabbed him by the shoulders, turned him around, and slammed him into the stone wall.

  “Don’t think I haven’t seen what ye’ve done to these people. Some of the structures are burnt to the ground, the crops are withered, and while they starve, ye are getting rather fat around the middle. Ye deserve the hanging that awaits ye,” Alec snarled. “These people looked to ye, and ye have betrayed them.”

  “Ye cannae have my clan!” Seth bellowed. He pulled a dirk from behind him and thrust it forward. Alec moved quickly and had no choice but to bring his sword down.

  The man slid to the floor with a low moan and was dead in seconds. Anger washed over Alec. The man had deserved to die in front of hundreds but instead had chosen the coward’s way out.

  Reining in his disgust, he strode back out to his horse and rode back to the battlefields. It looked like the Sinclair warriors had everything well in hand.

  “Yer laird is dead,” Alec bellowed. “By orders of the King, ye will swear yer fealty to me or ye will find yerself without a clan. Make yer choice wisely.”

  The fighting stopped instantly, and there was a mix of emotions on the men’s faces. Most of them looked relieved, but some just stared at him in disbelief, as though he were mad to think they would ever declare their loyalties to him.

  One by one, they dropped their swords. It was enough for now. “Who takes responsibility for these men now?”

  A hulking man with dark hair and an angry scowl stepped forward. “I’m Kane.”

  “Kane. Come with me. I want a tour of these lands. Everyone else, gather the people. I’ll address everyone when I am ready.”

  He didn’t look pleased, but Kane did as Alec asked. Silently, they rode side by side through the lands with Shane, Jamie, and Stephen behind them.

  “I donnae want this transition to be difficult,” Alec said quietly. “I want ye to know that this has nothing to do with transgressions in the past. I mean to strengthen this clan, and I’ll need yer help to do that. So tell me, Kane. Will ye be fighting me every step of the way, or do ye care enough about yer clan to help me?”

  “Seth was no prince, but ye have no right to step in. A MacKay should rule. To abide another is unthinkable,” Kane said shortly.

  “’Tis not my choice to be here. I have been summoned by the King, and ye will step aside for the verra same reason. Be the bridge that I need, Kane. Help me.”

  Before the man could respond, they were quickly joined by a dozen warriors who didn’t wear the MacKay colors. Alec recognized their leader and immediately curled his lip in disgust. “Innes Campbell. What might ye be doing here?”

  “The MacKays are our allies. If ye have slain Seth MacKay, it will be the last thing ye ever do,” Innes growled. He was the younger brother of Mac Campbell, laird, but Alec knew his kind well. When he spoke on behalf of the laird, he was most likely interjecting his own wishes in the decree.

  “I’m here by order of King Edward. We gave Seth MacKay a chance to ride peacefully to court. He rather violently declined the offer. I would not make a move against us if I were ye,” Alec said coldly. While Innes’s older brother Mac was a respectable laird, Innes was just as much of a weasel as his friend Seth. King Edward made it clear that if Alec could not take the clan in hand, the job would be given to Innes.

  It was just as clear that King Edward didn’t want that, so Alec could only imagine the King’s anger if he failed.

  Innes held out his hand expectantly, and Alec reluctantly gave him the letter. He didn’t want Innes to get his grubby hands on the paper much less on the clan itself. Although they were MacKay allies, the people deserved better.

  The vile man grunted his disapproval and handed the letter back. “Fine. But that doesn’t mean that I have to leave. The MacKays will continue to have the Campbells as allies, but donnae expect that loyalty to extend to ye.”

  “Wouldn’t dream of it,” Alec muttered as he put the letter safely back in his satchel. “Do as ye will. I’m trying to discern how much damage yer friend has wreaked on his people. Feel free to join me. Perhaps ye can explain just what the hell Seth MacKay was thinking.”

  Innes narrowed his eyes in anger, but he urged his horse into step with Alec and his men.

  Alec ignored him completely. His first step to win over the clan was with Kane, and that was his only focus.

  The water trickled down the walls as it mocked her. Cora’s throat was so dry, and yet, in Alec’s last bout of cruelty, he’d chained her to the middle of the prison so that she couldn’t reach the walls.

  It was demeaning to lick the walls like an animal, but she would have done it in a heartbeat. There were days when she thought that if dying was her only means of escape, she would gladly take it. Then she thought of her family, her sister, and knew that she couldn’t give up. She needed to protect them.

  Seth and Innes were careful. When they came to visit her, they made it very clear what would happen if she made a sound, and they never left a mark that could be seen outside her dress. She didn’t know why they would take such care unless they were afraid of what would happen if word got out that the two men were regularly beating on a prisoner, and a female one at that. She didn’t even know what they’d told the guards she’d done.

  At the very least, they hadn’t taken her virtue. For all of Innes’s cruelty, it was apparent that he wanted a virgin on his wedding night. A shudder of disgust ran down her spine as she remembered the last thing he’d whispered in her ear.

  Soon.

  Obviously they’d thought that enough time had passed that no one would suspect her to be Cora Isles. Soon she’d be wedded to Innes. Her torture would continue, but at the very least, she’d be out of the prison.

  She could plot her escape. She could make sure that her sister was safe, and they’d live out their lives far away from Scotland. If she’d learned one thing in the past six months, it was that highlanders were never to be trusted.

  Rolling her shoulders, she winced. She was quickly losing feeling in her hands and arms as they hung above her head. They stretched the muscles in her back, and she was aware of every bruise and cut on her skin, every crack in her ribs.

  Seth had chained her up hours ago. When did he expect to return? Her hands and arms were going numb.

  There was a sudden flicker of light around the corner, and she stiffened. As much as she wanted to be released from the chains, she knew that Seth would find some reason to beat her more.

  “How many prisoners are currently housed down here?” a strange voice asked.

  “Who the bloody hell are you? Where is Laird MacKay?”

  The voices lowered, and Cora strained to hear what they had to say. Finally, the light moved around the corner, and Cora’s eyes opened.

  Seth wasn’t with them, but Innes Campbell was, and there was a deadly coldness in his eyes. Whatever was happening, Innes was not pleased about it.

  The man clearly in charge was a big man, but that was nothing new. It seemed that all highlanders were big men. The better to beat women for.

  Long dark hair framed his large rugged face, and there was blood splattered on his shirt and the tartan of his kilt. Even through her pain and exhaustion, she noted that he did not wear the MacKay colors or the Campbell colors.

  Had Seth and Innes sent someone new to torture her?

  His face was different though. Cora couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but there was something strange in his dark eyes. Perhaps kindness? Pity? Would she even recognize it if she saw it again? He lo
oked over her curiously, and his lips pressed into a thin line.

  “She’s a thief you say? What’s her name?” he asked slowly.

  Her guard shrugged. “No idea. I’m not to speak to her.”

  “What did she steal?”

  “I doonae know that either.”

  Alec growled angrily. “Do you happen to know how long she’s been strung up like that?”

  “Several hours. Laird MacKay is punishing her.”

  “How long has she been here?”

  “Six months.”

  “Then what could she possibly have done to warrant this?” The new man shook his head. “Release her. Now,” he ordered.

  The guard hesitated, but the hard look that the new man gave him was enough for him to fumble with the keys. Once the bars were open, all three men stepped into her prison. The guard unlocked the chains around her wrist, and her arms dropped heavily by her side. Immediately, she stumbled and fell.

  The new man stepped forward and caught her. “Easy,” he murmured in her ear. “I’ve got ye.”

  Cora couldn’t help it. Even though the arms around her were gentle, she still stiffened. He noticed, but he didn’t let her go.

  “Seth MacKay is dead,” he said softly.

  Relief swept through her, but it was short-lived. Her eyes fell on Innes, and she knew it wasn’t over. Just because one of her captors was dead didn’t mean that the other one was any less deadly.

  “My name is Alec Sinclair,” he continued, still speaking as though he were afraid that he’d scare her. “I am current acting laird of the MacKays. Can ye tell me yer name, lass?”

  She opened her mouth to tell him the truth, but suddenly, all she could see was Innes. He shook his head slowly and mouthed a single word to her.

  Lana.

  Her stomach twisted, and she squeezed her eyes shut. “Claire,” she said finally. “My name is Claire.”

  “Yer English,” Alec said in surprise. “What the bloody hell are ye doing here?”

  Wasn’t that a story that he would love to hear? Clamping her mouth shut, she kept silent.

  “Can ye tell me what ye stole, lass?” Alec asked as he watched her closely. Cora had never been very good at lying, and she couldn’t risk saying anything in front of Innes.

  So she said nothing.

  Alec sighed and picked her up. She gasped as he swept her up in his arms, and clenched her teeth against the pain from her bruises.

  “She’s a thief!” Innes growled. “What do ye think ye are doing?”

  “Can ye tell me what ye stole? Cause if no one can tell me what she’s doing here, then I’m not going to keep her here. The woman is obviously in need of a healer. If I discover later that she is indeed a criminal, I’ll deal with her accordingly,” Alec hissed.

  Maybe it was the realization that she was finally getting away from the dungeon, or maybe it was the hope that she had an ally, but Cora felt herself slowly sinking into the man’s embrace. He was strong and warm, and although he wore a hard expression on his face, she found him strangely handsome.

  Lord, she wasn’t attractive to him, was she?

  Looking over Alec’s shoulder, she saw Innes following them with a grim look on his face. She knew that she could tell everyone what he’d done.

  What Seth had done.

  But then she’d risk Innes following through on his threat to hurt Lana. The girl was only fourteen, and the Thistles had no idea the danger she was in. They’d never be able to protect her.

  Lana was more important than Cora. She was a beautiful girl with a bright future ahead of her. Even if Cora had been able to find a husband who was okay with her mother’s occupation, no one would have her after being held in a highlander prison for six months.

  No one would believe that she remained a virgin.

  No, her future was ruined. She’d take whatever she could get now, and she’d keep Innes’s secret.

  For Lana.

  2

  Alec crossed his arms as the healer examined Cora. She shrunk back whenever the older woman tried to touch her, and he couldn’t tell if it was because she was afraid or hiding something.

  “Aye,” the healer said finally as she stood. “She’ll live. Plenty of rest, and she’ll need to put some meat on those bones.”

  Cora didn’t say anything but watched him closely. He pulled the healer out and closed the door. “What do you know of her?”

  “I knew there was a lass in the prisons, but I dinnae know who or why. Laird MacKay and Innes Campbell would go down there frequently to visit her.”

  “Did they hurt her?” he asked quietly. For some reason, he felt protective over the prisoner. Even if she was a thief, she didn’t deserve their particular brand of cruelty. “Did they rape her?”

  The healer shrugged. “She says she’s fine, but she wilnae let me examine her. Not to speak ill of Seth MacKay, but from the way that she reacts to my touch, I’d wager that she’s been beaten. Is it true what they say? That you killed Laird MacKay?”

  “Go join everyone else below. I’ll address the whole clan at once,” he said sternly. He didn’t like having to repeat himself over and over again.

  He’d sent Innes downstairs as well. He could tell that the sight of the man distressed the prisoner, even if he didn’t know why. Turning to the guard at the door, he frowned. “What’s yer name?”

  “Hoyt.”

  “Well, Hoyt, since there are no more prisoners in the dungeons, ye’ll guard her. No one but the maid is allowed in and out, and if Innes Campbell tries to get near her, ye let me know.”

  “And if she tries to escape?”

  “She’s not a prisoner anymore,” Alec said sharply. “But I want her to rest, and I want her protected, so no. She’s not to leave the room until I return.”

  Hoyt looked dubious, but he nodded. Alec strode downstairs.

  He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so furious, but when he discovered the auburn-haired beauty strung up in the prison, the whole world had darkened. It was cruel to leave anyone in that position, let alone a woman. She was far too skinny for his taste, but there was still life in her gorgeous green eyes. A flicker of hatred and temper. He wanted to tempt her into flaring out and giving him a taste of what she was capable of, but she was still strangely quiet.

  Claire.

  They both knew that she was lying. If she’d tell him nothing else, it was doubtful that she’d give him her real name. He wanted the woman to trust him. He’d be gentle with her, give her whatever she needed, until she finally decided to tell him the truth.

  And if she was a criminal? What then?

  There wasn’t a doubt in his mind that she’d already paid for her crimes and then some under the hands of Seth and Innes. But she didn’t look beaten, so maybe there really was something else going on.

  Crowded on the field just outside the keep, the MacKay clan waited. They were all a sight. There had been rumors that most of the younger MacKay men, those that could fight back against Alec’s rule, were either killed or exiled. The ones that remained were forced to pledge their loyalties or join their mates, so there were precious few left. It was obvious that the boys were forced to grow up way too quickly. Pride flashed in their eyes, showing that they’d shouldered their new responsibility without complaint, and resignation resided with their mothers, as though they knew they didn’t have a choice.

  They should have hated Seth, but Alec knew that even if they did, they’d never admit it to him. He was an outsider, and now he was in charge.

  “Listen to me,” he shouted forcefully. “Aye, the rumors are true. Seth MacKay is dead. I am Alec Sinclair, and I have been ordered by the King to take control of this clan. Ye will respect me, and in turn, I will respect ye. Make no mistake that I will be watched closely by the King, and if he does not see the results that he wants, there will be another. And another. If ye don’t want that, ye will do as I say. I am here to strengthen yer warriors to protect you against attack. I am here t
o help ye rebuild yer homes and restock yer kitchens. If ye cannot abide my presence, then ye should leave now, because I doonna plan to go anywhere. The Sinclair clan is large and robust, and they will share their resources to help ye get on yer feet. Ye will respect their presence on yer land, and I’ll not hear of any fighting or cruelty. Do we have an understanding?”

  He could read the crowd and see the contempt, but no one dared to speak out against him. He had a feeling that, in time, that would change. As they regained their resources, they would regain their pride, but that was a risk he was willing to take. In time, he would win them over.

  “Good. Shane, Jamie, and Stephen are my three top men. They will be coming around to hear yer most pressing needs. Kane here is also to act as an ambassador. He will always have my ear if ye have something that ye need to say. Now, it’s been a long day. Normally I’d suggest a celebration dinner, but I doubt there’s enough food for that. Go home, get some rest. I promise that tomorrow, ye’ll see some changes.”

  More than a few grumbled under their breath as they dispersed. Kane had nothing but fire in his eyes as he shook his head.

  “Do ye have something that ye want to say to me?” Alec said as he crossed his arms.

  “No,” Kane grunted.

  “No, what?” Alec challenged.

  Kane’s eyes widened in horror, and for a moment, Alec thought that the man would deny him. “No..my Laird,” Kane choked out finally.

  It was hardly a win considering that the words were practically dripping with poison, but Alec let it go. Waving his hand, he dismissed Kane and waited for Innes to approach him.

  “I’d like to stay the night and make sure there are no fights breaking out,” Innes said politely.

  It was a strange request, and it aroused suspicion in Alec. He immediately shook his head. “No. I don’t have enough food in storage to feed the clan, let alone you. I’ll send word if I have need for you.”