Fergus and the others looked down upon them with evil smiles. “Now it’s time we find us a laird who can actually handle the-”
”What in the name of Satan’s hairy toes is this?”
Fergus’s face paled at the sound of the deep bellow.
Settling down, Lochlan breathed a sigh of relief at Braden’s appearance.
But his relief was short lived.
The mob turned on Braden with a vengeance. Their angry voices again reached a deafening tone.
Until a loud whistle sounded.
The men settled down, and they drifted back, making a path from Braden to Lochlan and Maggie’s brothers.
His face a mask of fury, Braden stepped forward and eyed the crowd. “Would someone care to explain to me why my brother, your laird, is tied to a chair?”
A wave of sheepishness washed through the men. Except for Fergus. He moved forward to confront Braden. “We want this matter with the women settled.”
“And you think tying Lochlan to a chair is the best way to accomplish this?”
Lochlan smiled. With Braden here, he allowed himself to see the ridiculousness of the situation.
Fergus looked shamed.
Shaking his head, Braden started for Lochlan. But a big, burly Enos stepped out of the crowd to block him. “Your brother isn’t going anywhere until my wife is back inside my home, tending our children, warming my bed and cooking me some food worth eating.”
“Aye,” Fergus shouted. “I say we kill the laird and take our women back!”
The men quickly took up Fergus’s shout of “kill the laird, kill the laird.”
Lochlan held his breath, afraid of what the obsessed mob might do. Damn, but he should have grabbed his sword when he had the chance.
“Whoa!” Braden shouted over them, until he shushed them once more. “Have you lost all your wits? That’s your laird you’re speaking of. The man all of you have sworn to follow and protect with your lives.”
“He stands between us and our women!”
Which was always a bad place to be.
Braden took a deep breath as he regarded the sea of angry men. This was quickly getting out of hand. And if he didn’t stop it soon, there was no telling what they might do.
Sweet Mother Mary, what had Maggie started?
Braden took a long, slow breath for patience. “Now let’s be reasonable for just a moment, men. Killing Lochlan won’t get your women back. They’ve sworn an oath to each other and that oath has nothing to do with his life.”
“Fine then.” Fergus stepped forward. “We’ll kill him, send Ewan to the MacDouglas, and have our women home by week’s end.”
“Aye!”
“Aye, hell!” Braden roared. “You kill my brothers and you’ll have me to deal with.”
Fergus snorted as he raked a cold look over Braden’s body. “Is that a threat? You’re but one man against all of us.”
Braden returned the cold glare with one of his own. “One man with a full garrison of troops sitting rather nicely entrenched on my English lands. Trained knights and soldiers ready to march at my command. You touch one hair on Lochlan’s head and I can promise you, I’ll see every one of you in your grave.”
Now that gave them pause. At last, Braden had found the one thing to reach through their stubbornness.
Davis was the first to come to his senses. “You know, Fergus, he does have those lands that tie MacAllister loyalty to England, and the English king might not take it kindly if we attack him, especially now that the MacAllister is on peaceful terms with King Henry.”
