Born In Sin

by Kinley MacGregor

  Henry narrowed his gaze on her suspiciously while Simon and Jamie dismounted from their horse. Simon held her brother back with a gentle hand. For once Jamie remained silent, awed by the presence of the English king their uncle had made out to be Lucifer incarnate. No doubt the lad feared to move, lest Henry make his next supper from the lad's flesh.

  When the king glanced back to Lord Sin, she noted the way his gaze softened ever so slightly. "Well, 'tis glad we are to see you two together. 'Tis our hope to see the two of you well suited."

  Callie frowned as an uneasy feeling came over her. "I beg your pardon, Majesty?"

  Henry ignored her as he took a step toward Sin and said in a tone for only the two of them to hear, "I have found that priest, Sin, and on the morrow I shall see the two of you wed."

  * * *

  Chapter 4

  « ^ »

  "I beg your pardon?" Callie repeated, her heart stopping. "What did you say?"

  Sin paid her no heed as the king's eyes turned sly, devious.

  "Have we been remiss?" Henry asked in a tone that feigned innocence. He knew she had no knowledge of what he spoke and it angered her for him to toy with her like this. "Caledonia of the MacNeelys, meet your soon-to-be husband, Sin."

  She saw the fury smoldering in Sin's black eyes. Fury that sparked and built at the mention of her name. "What is her name?"

  "Caledonia," Henry repeated.

  Sin cursed, though why her name should cause him such distress, she couldn't imagine. Not that it mattered to her; she wasn't about to be married to an Englishman.

  "I will not marry him."

  Henry arched a brow in warning of her tone. "If you wish to return home, you will."

  "My people will kill him."

  Henry laughed. "They might try, but we assure you, they won't succeed."

  She turned her gaze to Sin. "You knew of this?"

  "I have yet to consent."

  Henry scoffed. "You gave your word. Should we find a priest for the event, you would adhere to our agreement."

  Sin narrowed a suspicious glare on Henry and crossed his arms over his chest. If her future didn't hinge on the victor of this confrontation, she might have found their behavior enjoyable. It wasn't often a woman got to see two such powerful men clash.

  "First," Sin said slowly, "I want to meet this priest of yours and make sure he's not some peasant dressed in monk's robes."

  The king managed to look both offended and amused. "Think you we would do such?"

  "I have no doubt."

  Henry laughed again. "Sin, my boy, you know us too well. But in this, there is no trickery. 'Tis the will of Our Savior that we should find you a spouse."

  " 'Tis the will of Lucifer that you should torment me until the day he can take over."

  "Perhaps."

  Callie glared at each of the men in turn. She had no intention whatsoever of honoring any agreement forged by two Englishmen without her consent. Especially since such an agreement would be to the extreme detriment of her clan. "Whatever bargain the two of you hatched, it doesn't concern me. I will not marry an Englishman."

  Henry looked thoughtful as he stroked the reddish beard on his chin. "Very well, then, you leave us no choice. We shall march our army into your lands and put down every man and male child to ensure peace. We shall start on the morrow with the death of your young brother."

  Jamie gasped and stepped back, stumbling over Simon.

  His face horrified, Simon scooped the lad up and held him close. He patted Jamie on the back comfortingly.

  Callie's heart stopped as terror consumed her over Henry's cold-blooded threat. "You wouldn't dare such."

  Her words of defiance were over the line of acceptance and they all knew it. Henry gave her a stare that made her tremble. Even so, she wouldn't cower. Not over something this important, especially while he threatened Jamie. If he even attempted to carry out that threat, she would see to it herself that he paid for his crime with his life.

  "We would counsel you to watch your tongue," Henry said, his voice thick with malice. "Of royal Scots lineage you might be; he most certainly is not. Now, do you honestly think you could stop us from doing what we must to ensure the prosperity of England?"

  She locked gazes with Sin and saw the warning in his eyes. Aye, Henry could be that ruthless. They both knew it.

  "This is preposterous," she insisted to the king.

  "Preposterous or not, come morning you two shall marry or our army marches into Scotland. The choice is entirely yours."

  Callie met Henry's gaze as an equal. She wasn't going to let him see her fear, or her shivering. If she were a man, he'd never dare this, and it angered her that these Englishmen thought so little of their women.

  How she wished this were a bluff. But she knew better.

  The rebels in her clan, led by an unidentified man known simply as the Raider, had been unmerciful to the English who had dared settle in Scotland. She was sure the only reason Henry had refrained thus far from marching on her clan was the rather large matter of her kinship with King Malcolm of Scotland. It was also what had kept her safe in his hands.

  As cousin to the Scottish king, she had spent much of her early life at his court and knew of the royal way of life and the way kings thought.

  And she knew that if she dared take Sin into Scotland, those rebels who had been attacking the English would no doubt attack him and his men as well. It would be open warfare in a matter of days.

  This had all the trappings of a disaster.

  In her mind's eye she could see it clearly. Sin's army marching in and his soldiers wreaking havoc with the men of her clan, who hated all things English. Neither side would back down nor be reasonable. Her clansmen would never stomach an English army on their lands.

  Whatever was she to do?

  "What size army will you lead into my home?" she asked Sin, terrified of his answer.

  "None. I will go alone."

  Henry laughed out loud until he realized Lord Sin was in earnest. "You can't be serious."

  Sin shrugged nonchalantly. "Even as few as ten English knights living among the Scots would invite the kind of conflict you're trying to avoid. The only-chance for peace is one man against them."

  Sin's knowledge of her people surprised her. As did his courage. But it was beyond foolishness to walk alone into enemy territory and expect them to surrender and bow. The day would never come when the Scots would do such.

  Henry's face turned dark, his eyes angry as he regarded Sin. "They'll kill you."

  "You said they couldn't," Sin reminded him.

  Henry's face darkened even more from the weight of his rage, and the heads of the courtiers came together as they gossiped, reminding Callie that this entire discussion was being witnessed and noted.

  Henry shook his head. "That was when we thought you'd have your men with you. What kind of fool—"

  "I'll go with him."

  Callie turned to see Simon still holding on to Jamie. Jamie's eyes were larger than saucers and the lad chewed his fist nervously.

  Henry cursed. "Simon, we would have thought better of your sense than to entangle yourself with this."

  Simon appeared to consider that. "Nay, Majesty, I appear to be rather suicidal in such matters. Besides, I've always wanted to see Scotland."

  Sin scoffed. "Who says I shall allow it?"

  A taunting, irreverent smile played on the edges of Simon's lips. "Allow it or not, I will be there. I figure it would be easier traveling with you, but either way, I will make for Scotland. You need someone at your back."

  His words seemed to bitterly amuse Lord Sin. "I assure you, my back is well protected."

  Something unspoken passed between them. Something that obviously bound these two men together on the level of brothers. Something that seemed sinister and cold, judging by the tormented looks in both their eyes.

  "Well I know it," Simon concurred. "But even the strongest of us can use a friend now and again."
r />   "I appreciate the thought, Simon; however, I have yet to agree to the marriage."

  "You agreed," Henry insisted.

  Callie wanted to argue, but she knew better. There was only one hope for her.

  Escape.

  There was no way to argue with these men who didn't care one whit about her or her opinions. She was nothing to Henry except a political pawn to be used as he saw fit.

  As for Sin, she didn't know what he would gain from their union. But then, she didn't intend to stay around long enough to find out. Let him find an English heiress to marry. Or some other lass who caught his fancy.

  She had to get away from here. From these men and this horrible country, or else all was lost.

  "Well," she said slowly, backing away from them. "If I am to marry on the morrow, I'd best be returning to my room, where I can make preparations for it."

  "You're going to marry a devil?" Jamie asked, curling his lip at the thought of it. "Bet you grow horns if you do."

  She ignored him and took him from Simon's arms.

  Jamie shook his head like an old man chastising a child. "I wonder if you'll get a tail, too."

  Callie sighed. Well, at least the lad had found his tongue again. She shushed him and still he rattled on and on about the consequences of marrying into the devil's royal family.

  "Bet your children will be born with the tongues of snakes. Scales, too. Think you they'll have poison in their teeth if they bite me? You remember that time, don't you, when Robbie's baby bit me? I think I still have the bruise. Dermot said it went bone-deep, though it just looked kind of purple to me."

  Sin watched the two of them head back to the castle all the while the boy prattled.

  The woman had reversed herself just a little too quickly and he knew her mind, could see her thoughts plainly. She was plotting a new escape.

  He motioned Simon to him. "Watch her while I speak to Henry."

  "Should she escape custody, you won't have to marry her."

  "I know. Watch her just the same. She has an incredible knack for getting herself into trouble."

  Callie felt Lord Sin's gaze on her as she made her way with Jamie toward the castle. At the door, she stopped to look back and found Simon a few feet behind her.

  Oh, cursed toads, Sin must have sent the knight to watch over them.

  No matter. It merely made her escape more challenging. It by no means made her plans impossible. In her youth, she had often thwarted her intuitive nurse to slip out of the castle so that she could swim naked in the pond. If she could fluster Torna, who was part fey with her abilities to read Callie's mind, she could easily bypass a mere Englishman.

  As Simon approached, she noted the black raven on his green surcoat. By the cut and cloth of the stylish piece and pride of the knight, she surmised he was a man of some standing and wealth. No doubt a great nobleman. "What are you lord of?" she asked politely.

  He opened the door for her. "Only myself, milady. I am a landless knight."

  "Friend to Lord Sin?"

  He hedged a bit as she walked past him. "I suppose I'm as close as he gets to a friend."

  "Meaning?"

  "He only has enemies and those who would curry his favor to reach the king's ear." He shut the door behind her and Jamie, then led her through the bright hallway, splashed with color from the stained-glass windows, toward the stairs.

  "Can I play with your sword?" Jamie asked.

  Simon's eyes were gentle and kind as he ruffled the boy's red curls. "When you're older."

  Jamie stuck his tongue out and Simon laughed at the imp. "You know, they say every time a boy sticks his tongue out, it sends a message to the night ogres where the boy sleeps."

  "It does not." Jamie looked quickly to Callie. "Does it?"

  She shrugged. "I know nothing of these night ogres."

  Jamie ran up ahead of them, but kept his tongue in his mouth.

  "Into which category do you fall?" she asked Simon, returning to their conversation. "Do you curry his favor or are you an enemy?"

  "I fit into a third category that seems exclusive to myself, my brother and the king." He paused and pierced her with a sincere stare. "I owe Sin my life and quite probably my sanity as well. He did things for me no child should ever have to do, and I thank God every night for that man's loyalty to me at a time when any other boy would have been protecting himself and cowering in a corner somewhere."

  "For that you would travel to Scotland to die with him?"

  The sincerity in his eyes was scorching. "You have no idea."

  A chill went up her spine at his words. Whatever had happened to them, it must have been horrible indeed.

  Simon glanced to where Jamie was waiting for them at the top of the stairs, near her door.

  He lowered his voice to keep Jamie from overhearing him. "I was scarce your brother's age when Sin laid his body over mine to keep me safe. He almost lost his own life that day because of it. The night my mother was killed, it was Sin who hid me from her murderer's wrath. From the wall where I was hidden, I could hear the beating he took rather than reveal my location. There are times at night when I can still hear and see the blows he received defending me not just that night, but for all the years we lived at Ravenswood.

  "The last image I have of him as a child is with a hand wrapped around his throat by a man who swore Sin would be sorry for helping me. I shudder to think what was done to him over it. But knowing Harold as I do, I am quite certain he made good on that promise."

  She shivered at what he was describing. But it went a long way in explaining the man she knew Sin to be.

  Once they reached the top of the stairs, Callie gathered Jamie to her and opened the door to her room. Lord Sin was a fascination for her, but that was all he would ever be. She couldn't give him anything more than that.

  Not while she had an escape to plan.

  Sin spent hours trying to dissuade Henry from his madness. The man would not be swayed.

  Damn.

  A wife. The mere thought made his stomach queasy. What would he do with a wife?

  He wasn't the kind of man who needed, let alone wanted, comfort. Hearth. Home. And, God forbid, love.

  All he wanted was to be left alone.

  Unbidden, an image of his brother Braden and sister-in-law Maggie drifted through his mind. Whenever his sister-in-law looked to his brother, a light so bright came into her eyes that it was blinding.

  No one had ever given him such a look.

  Less than a handful of people had ever looked at him with anything other than scorn or hatred. Not that he needed any tenderness in his life. He'd lived quite well without it. Why would he want it to change now?

  Still…

  Sin shook his head. No more thoughts on the matter. He would do as Henry wished, but there were ways yet to thwart him. An unconsummated marriage was easy enough to dissolve. He would go to Scotland, find this Raider who had been harassing Henry's people, put a stop to him, then regain his freedom.

  Henry would be happy, and he was quite sure Caledonia would as well…

  Caledonia.

  He cursed at the irony of her name. I hate everything to do with Scotland and its people, and would sooner rot with pestilence than ever put one piece of my body in Scotland again. Sin's vow echoed in his mind.

  Disgusted, he made his way up the stairs toward his room.

  When he first reached the landing, he thought nothing odd about the hallway outside of his and Caledonia's room being empty. Not until he heard a rhythmic thumping that echoed from the other side of her door.

  With one hand on the hilt of his sword, he paused with a frown to listen.

  Thump, thump… thump, thump… thump, thump… He cocked his head and moved closer to the dark oak door and splayed his hand over the wood.

  It sounded much like a bed hammering against the wall while two people…

  A stab of rage went through him. Especially when he heard the muffled grunts. He curled his hand into a fi
st. Nay! Surely Simon knew better than that.

  Sin pressed his ear to the door.

  There was no mistaking the sound. It was definitely a bed striking the stone wall with a tremendous amount of force. And the rhythm could be nothing other than a man thrusting.

  "Simon," he hissed under his breath, "you're a dead man."

  Unsheathing his sword, Sin narrowed his eyes and flung open the door to see two lumps beneath the covers, writhing in unison on the bed.

  Sin couldn't remember the last time anything had made him this angry. But for some reason, the thought of Simon deflowering Caledonia made him want blood. Simon's blood.

  Every last tiny drop of it.

  His wrath barely leashed, he approached the bed silently, then angled his sword to the small of the largest lump's back.

  Both lumps froze.

  "This best not be what I think it is." Sin tore the blanket from the bed.

  Shock rooted him to the floor as he took in the full sight before him.

  Simon lay on his side, fully clothed, tied both to the bed and to a lump of pillows with a rope. A gag of linen was stuffed into his mouth. Simon's hair was tousled all about his head. His surcoat was soaking wet and his eyes were swollen and red, and they burned with a rage that was tangible.

  Sin sheathed his sword, then pulled out his dagger to cut away the gag.

  "It isn't what you were thinking," Simon said. "But it's what you're thinking now."

  "What the devil happened?" Sin set about cutting him free of the lump and bed.

  Simon's face flushed with anger. "She told me she had woman troubles. Then, when I came to check on her to see if I needed to fetch a physician, she blew some witch's brew into my eyes."

  "Why are you wet?"

  "After they tied me down, the wench tried to drown me."

  Sin would have laughed had he not been trying to decide who to strangle first, Caledonia or Simon.

  "I should leave you tied up here."

  "If it'll keep me safe from that she-witch, then please do so."

  Sin cut the last rope. "Any idea where she was bound for?"