Then,the man on the ground tried to get up. Ryan’s heel came down on his shoulder hard, knocking him back against the stones. He yelled an unintelligible curse, and Ryan sneered.
Ryan’s punishing that man.That’s what this gathering is. This is why the wedding planning was canceled today.
Margaret’s pulsethundered in her ears. Her breath came in ragged gasps. The self-preservation instinct buried beneath her breastbone urged her to run. It seemed, though, that her feet were nailed to the ground.
I’m toldthis is how Duke Cunningham behaves. Though… I’m told it happens in private, not in a public courtyard. Am I really about to tie myself to this culture of violence as a show?
She didn’t knowthe Laird, not really. This, however, was a chance to see the parts of him that she knew he’d try to keep hidden from her. Hidden, at least, until he decided it was time to aim this wickedness at her.
The manbefore Ryan was cowardly. He’d tried to escape the guards with low, juvenile tactics. And now that he was here, he was refusing to speak.
If he were truly a man,he wouldnae pretend he was innocent. He was caught red-handed. There’s nay denyin’ his crime.
“Ye were already goingto be thrown in the dungeon,” Ryan said as he bent over the bound man, showing his teeth. “But ye’re makin’ things worse for yerself.”
The thief staredup at him. The sneer on his face deepened, and he spat toward Ryan’s feet. With a growl, he asked, “Even if I did what ye’re accusin’ me of, would throwin’ me in the dungeon for feedin’ me family be the right thing to do?”
Ryan straightened out,not bothering to hide his contempt for the man before him. The blatant lies infuriated him. And the fact that the Laird had made it a point to ensure that families in need wouldn’t go hungry only deepened his disdain.
“Ye must take me for a dobber,”Ryan scoffed, his hand resting on the hilt of his blade. “If yer family was hungry, we’d feed ye.That’s nae a secret. I willnae let me people starve. And that is just one crime on the list of many ye have. Perhaps ye didnae want to come to me because ye were worried about gettin’ caught for what ye’ve done.”
The man glaredup at him, and Ryan couldn’t help but get a bit of his aggression out, jamming the toe of his boot into the man’s side. The grunt of pain he earned was satisfying. So, he did it again, this time getting a yelp.
“We ken ye’re lyin’to us and keepin’ someone safe by nae talkin’. Yer punishment willnae be as harsh if ye speak,” Ryan said. “And ye still willnae tell the truth? Ye willnae tell us who hired ye?”
A murmur passedthrough the group, and Ryan let them talk. The sentiment seemed to be that this man deserved far worse than what Ryan was planning on giving him. Perhaps hearing his men’s propensity for justice would coax the confession and names of accomplices from the thief’s lips.
After a few moments of deliberation,his men looked toward him for instruction, and, keeping his eyes locked on their prisoner, he shook his head. It was nothing more than a small mercy, though. Ryan was not keen on letting their captive off easily.
He has hadthe opportunity to explain himself, yet he refuses. This isnae the kind of behavior I can allow.
“Perhaps ye needa little motivation to talk, aye?” Ryan asked, the question cold and unfeeling. He cocked his head to the side, making a show of considering his punishment. “I ken ye were eatin’ yer fill before we caught ye. I’d say food’s a pretty powerful motivator, is it nae?”
A flurry of voices rose.All of them were demanding harsher punishment. It had been a while since someone had been brought for discipline, and it was obvious his men were champing at the bit to prove their allegiance to this castle and the village it oversaw. Ryan raised a hand after a beat, the gesture sharp and unmistakable. The chatter came to an abrupt halt.
“This is merely the beginnin’of his punishment. He has information we need. He cannae give it if we render him incapable of speech,” he said, his head sweeping back to look at the guards crowded around him. “What comes next depends on how well he cooperates, aye?”
All at once,the men replied, “Aye.”
As Margaret retreatedinto the castle, her stomach turned violently. She thought for a moment that she might be sick, but she swallowed down the bile. Her feet carried her unthinkingly through the corridors.
He’s a monster.What kind of sadistic man deprives another of food for punishment?
She shuddered,wrapping her arms around herself despite the comfortable temperature inside the castle. This was the man she was going to be bound to. He seemed so cold and ruthless.
Perhaps she wasnaïve for thinking that Ryan was anything other than what her aunt told her Highlanders were. Being so close to him had blinded Margaret to the bigger picture. She’d been so caught up in the details that she wasn’t seeing the rough edges.
What would have happenedif I hadn’t seen that? I’d be marrying a monster without knowing. I have to do something.
But what could she do?It wasn’t as if she had anywhere else to go. Perhaps she could make her way back to England. Her family wouldn’t be looking for her, though. She’d sent a letter to Eva letting her know that she was safe, so once she crossed the border again, she’d be at Duke Cunningham’s mercy.
That’sif she even managed to get away. Surely, someone would see her if she tried to leave the castle. She’d be stopped before she got off the grounds. And if she did slip away?
The wedding was tomorrow.They’d already planned so much. Ryan wasn’t going to let her leave. He’d hunt her down and bring her back by force. Then, what? She’d likely be thrown into the dungeon, perhaps in a cell beside the man who was being punished in the courtyard.
I can’t leave.This is something I have to go through with.
She sighed,slipping into her quarters and closing the door behind her. She dragged an armchair away from the hearth toward the window. Then, she settled into it, looking out at the rolling green hills beyond the castle walls.