Page 26 of Enchanted

Keiran walked in a tight circle around the man, forcing himself to breathe. The sooner they gained answers, the sooner he could go and check on Rosalyn to see how she fared in his absence. Tormod had asked Keiran not to use his powers to gain information from this man. His brother was worried that the more people who knew about his powers the more risk there would be for Keiran.

So instead, Keiran leaned close to the man’s face and scowled. “Did Lieutenant James Long send you?”

The man’s eyes went wide. “How did you know?” Then realising what he had acknowledged, he paled. “I meant, I do not know.”

“The lieutenant relinquished his connection to his betrothed when he tried to kill her, so why does he want her now?” Keiran asked, his voice brusque.

The man flinched. “He will kill me for telling you this, but I suppose I am dead if I remain silent or tell you the truth.” The man sighed, no doubt realising there was no retracting what he had admitted. “The lieutenant does not like to lose at anything, not at cards, in war, or in matters of the heart. He suspected the MacLeods were holding his betrothed hostage, which is why he sent us to confirm that fact. When we do not return, he will see that as confirmation of his suspicions, and will stop at nothing to get her back.”

Keiran’s stomach tightened. “He’ll never get the chance to attack and wound Rosalyn a second time.”

A confused expression settled on the man’s brow but before he could speak, Keiran turned to Tormod. “I’ll leave his fate up to you,” Keiran said, before walking out of the chamber. He needed to speak to Alastair. Keiran understood enough about the human realm to know that a near-death experience was not enough to sever a betrothal contract. It might help expedite the process, but until Rosalyn was officially free of her intended, she was still Lieutenant James Long’s property. And the MacLeods might have to go to war with the English to keep her safe. Keiran only hoped Alastair would agree to such a plan.

Keiran found Alastair in the library, sitting at his desk with a young man of medium height, with a square, hard jaw. At Keiran’s entrance, the man rose and offered a bow.

“Keiran, you are just the person I was hoping to see,” Alastair said, waving his brother towards the seat opposite him behind the desk. “This is Geordie Buchannan, our solicitor.”

“A solicitor?” Keiran shifted his gaze between the two men, amazed at the man’s presence. “How could you possibly know that was what I was coming to talk to you about?”

“Gwendolyn arranged for Geordie to come earlier today. I had no idea he was coming until a moment ago.” Alastair leaned back in his chair. “My wife is clever, indeed.”

“Agreed,” said Keiran as he settled in his own chair.

The solicitor slipped on a pair of spectacles, then pulled a sheaf of papers close before picking up his quill. “I was led to believe there is yet another betrothal agreement that I am to try to dissolve?”

“We should send for Rosalyn,” Keiran said, a heartbeat before she appeared at the door.

“Come in, Rosalyn,” Alastair said, standing and moving to hold out the chair next to the solicitor for Rosalyn to sit before returning to his own chair. “Mr Buchannan is here to help you terminate the contract of your betrothal to Lieutenant Long, if that is what you wish.”

“With all my heart,” she said, turning her gaze to the young man beside her.

“I must ask you a few more questions. Gwendolyn already informed me about the particulars of your arrangement with Lieutenant Long.” He positioned his quill over the paper. “Are you aware of a bride price being paid?”

Rosalyn shook her head. “There was no exchange to my knowledge. I had no dowry to offer.”

The solicitor made a few notations on his paper. When he was done, he looked up once more. “And to be absolutely clear, you did not sign any sort of contract?”

Rosalyn lifted her chin and met the solicitor’s gaze directly. “I signed nothing. My brother was the force behind this proposal. Had he asked my opinion, I would have refused.”

The solicitor set his quill down and looked to Alastair. “Is there any proof that Lieutenant Long tried to harm Miss de Clare?”

“We retained her bloody clothing. The fabric of her gown is torn where the sword pierced her flesh,” Alastair offered.

Keiran leaned forward. “I witnessed the event, and we have taken the man who stabbed her as our prisoner. He confessed that it was Long who sent him to kill her.”

The solicitor picked up his quill and made several more notations before turning to Rosalyn. His gaze narrowed. “If you are called upon to show the courts your wound, are you prepared to do that?”

Her breath caught as she paled. “I cannot—”

“There is no need for her to expose herself,” Keiran interrupted, not wanting Rosalyn to reveal that her wound no longer existed. Such a fact might support Long in suggesting that the situation never occurred. “A witness, the bloody clothing, and the attacker’s confession should be sufficient evidence to support the dissolution of a poorly executed contract.”

“It will entirely depend on the courts,” the solicitor said. “I will have to travel to England to file the necessary documents, unless there is any reason they could be filed here in Scotland.”

“Perhaps they should be filed here. Lieutenant Long’s regiment is here, and . . .” She paused, looking down at her twined hands before unfurling them and smoothing them against her skirt. She drew a breath, raised her head, and said, “Mr Buchannan, my mother was Scottish and my father English, making me half-Scot.”

Even though Keiran already knew that information after hearing her attacker’s confession yesterday, she’d had yet to acknowledge that fact to any of them. Yet, she revealed her heritage now, not with shame, but with a hint of pride in her voice.

The solicitor’s brow arched. “Thank you for sharing that information, Miss de Clare. That will make filing a petition much easier, and I’ll be honest, the Scottish courts are much friendlier to the petitions of women than the English courts.” Mr Buchannan took off his glasses, then gathered his papers and rose. “One last question. If there is a forfeiture price to be paid, are you able to pay that?”