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Charlotte Andrews had opened up his cold heart, and she had made her home there. She could not be removed, and he didn’t want her to be. She made him better, and he was more confident with her than he had ever been in his life. With her, he felt like he was actually worth something. But now she was leaving him forever. And she’d known it! How could she not tell him? How could she let their hearts become so intertwined? Unless it wasn’t real.
His disappointment and despair quickly turned to rage. As the two of them sat in the boat together, heading towards their unknown fates, Angus boiled inside. He couldn’t even bring himself to look at her. Did she knowingly put him and his clan in danger by coming to see him? Had she planned on coming and giving her body to him before leaving him behind and marrying another man? Why toy with him in this manner? It seemed like pointless cruelty and so unlike the Charlotte that he thought he knew.
His mind was occupied with these questions, even though he was heading towards a danger he did not yet understand. His very life could be in this man’s hands. No one said anything as they glided over the smooth water towards the Fort. Angus was impatient. He wanted it to all be over, one way or another. If he was found guilty, then he could be killed, and that would be the end of all of his pain. What good was he anyway? If he was found innocent, then he could return to his clan and fulfill the duty that had been thrust upon him and try to push Charlotte out of his mind. Once Calum returned, he would think of a plan for how to get on with the rest of his life.
He would no longer let a woman get in the way of what he was meant to do. Charlotte had filled his entire being, and he could barely think straight anymore. With her assistance, he had been able to make a bit of progress with the clan, but without her, he was nothing. He had made a shambles of everything.
Calum would be returning soon, no doubt, and he would find just what he thought he would find: a useless brother who needed help from a Sassenach woman, one who didn’t even wish to stay.
The small party finally debarked onto the shore, and the soldiers grabbed Angus roughly once he stepped out of the boat. Charlotte walked slowly as if she would fall if she didn’t. But once they arrived at the Fort’s walls, Lord Darling led the way inside, Charlotte and Angus behind him. As they moved into the Hall and Charlotte was turning to go, Angus whispered to her through gritted teeth, “Why did my brother ask ye tae stay? He didnae think I could handle it myself, did he? And he was right. I am a broken man, now, nae least of all crushed by a woman whose sole purpose was tae turn me in tae the British.”
At his words, Charlotte looked like she might faint. His heart panged slightly with regret as he watched her pained expression, but he turned away, his fury masking that feeling instantly. He would not feel sorry for her after all that she’d done. Angus left, following Lord Darling into a side parlor. The soldier who had been holding onto Angus pushed him inside and stationed himself outside the room.
Angus sat down opposite Lord Darling, who gracefully and slowly lowered himself into the chair behind his desk. “Now, Angus MacLean, I am here on the King’s behalf to question you about the death of General George Whiteman.”
Angus’ heart fell.
