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“Ye do?” Felix’s heart lurched into his throat.
“Aye, M’Laird. I might be gainin’ in years, but my eyes are as keen as ever. There are two people sittin’ atop that horse. I’d stake my life on it.”
Drawing in a deep breath, Felix addressed his loyal band of soldiers, including Ryder and Angus. “John and I will ride ahead, so we daenae spook the bastard and cause him to bolt. Follow behind at a discreet distance, and if I give ye the signal for aid, ye come chargin’. Aye?”
“Aye, M’Laird,” they chorused back. Even Angus and Ryder nodded their heads in agreement, for this was Felix’s battle, and only he could win or lose it.
With that, Felix and John set off at a slow pace, heading for the rider in the near distance. After all, Felix did not want to lose the element of surprise by announcing his arrival with an entire stampede of hoofbeats.
It did not take long for Felix and John to near the rider, for the horse was barely able to keep plodding along. Fatigue radiated from the poor creature’s entire body; its head slumped and its gait awkward. However, it was the weary demeanor of the rider’s passenger that held Felix’s attention.
The figure was draped in a hooded cloak that appeared to be pulled tight at the neck, in order to conceal the identity of the person inside. Yet, even hidden, Felix knew it was Edwina. He could smell the sun-warmed honeysuckle aroma of her, infiltrating his senses as it had done countless times before.
I’m here, Love. I’ve come for ye.He longed to say it out loud, in the hopes of his words making her turn to look at him, but he held his tongue and squeezed his thighs. His gelding stretched into a canter that took him cleanly past Victor and Edwina, while John did the same on the left flank.
A moment later, Felix and John veered their horses to block Victor’s path. The wretch did not seem to notice immediately, his chin drooping to his chest as if he were fighting off sleep. In that daze, Victor kept his horse moving forward, oblivious to the obstacle up ahead.
“Victor McAdams!” Felix shouted. “Halt yer horse and face me.”
Victor’s head snapped up, his eyes blinking quickly as his gaze darted around. At last, it settled upon Felix. “I’m sorry, do I ken ye?”
“Daenae play the fool,” Felix replied, in that tone of eerie calm that had worked so well on Kenney. “Ye ken who I am, and I ken who ye are. Or do ye nae remember whose wife ye’ve stolen?”
Behind Victor, the hooded figure peered over his shoulder. Edwina, pale and clearly exhausted, stared at her husband as if he were a mirage in the desert.
“Let me pass, Sir,” Victor said, in a hoarse voice. “I daenae ken who ye are, nor which wife ye’re speakin’ of. This lass behind me ismywife, and we’ll be on our way if ye daenae mind.”
A grimace twisted the corners of Felix’s mouth. “Ye would pretend ye daenae ken me, though we met at my weddin’? What sort of bampot are ye, to try somethin’ like that?” He rested his hand on the hilt of his sword, ready to draw it. “Hand my wife over and ye might keep yer life.”
“As I said, she’s nae yer wife anymore,” Victor shot back. “Move aside, or I shall force ye to.”
“Felix… Felix, ye came—” Edwina’s soft, frightened voice was like a blade to Felix’s heart. Her beautiful eyes, the color of his childhood home, glittered with tears.
That was when he noticed it—the bruising that framed his beloved’s eye in a crescent. Casting his gaze downward, his blood boiled as he saw her sweet lips, swollen and split from a recent blow. Felix needed no other reason than the kidnap to want to kill Victor, but seeing his wife hurt was the last straw.
“Get down from yer saddle, ye despicable wretch!” Felix seethed. “This is as far as ye travel today, and I daresay it might be the farthest ye ever travel again.”
Victor chuckled darkly. “Ye cannae have her, Laird Moore. Ye shouldnae have had her in the first place. She wasnae yers to take. Since we were bairns, it was decided that she and I would wed, so stand aside and do the honorable thing.”
“That’s nae true!” Edwina barked, thumping Victor in the back with the point of her shoulder. “My faither thought of ye like a son, so do ye really think he would want us marryin’? Och, if he could see ye now, he’d box yer ears like he did when ye were wee.”
Hearing the spirit come back into Edwina’s voice spurred Felix into decisive action. If Victor would not give her up willingly, then Felix would simply have to reclaim what was his by force. With that fixed in his mind, he drew his broadsword. Fighting on horseback was not one of his finest skills, but he could manage well enough… especially with John to aid him.
Before Felix could swing the sword, Victor seemed to realize the peril he was in. Moving faster than Felix had expected, Victor slid down from the saddle and, drawing a long dagger from his belt, he charged at Felix and his horse. As he surged forward, the wretch unleashed an ungodly howl that made Felix’s blood run cold.
“Daenae be a coward!” John shouted, bringing his broadsword down in time to block Victor from plunging the blade into the Laird’s horse. Metal clanged, as Victor’s dagger flew out of his hand.
Undeterred, the vile man darted for the fallen weapon, fumbling awkwardly to try and snatch it back up again. The brief pause gave Felix enough time to jump down from the saddle, smack his horse on the rear to get it to run to safety, and raise his broadsword.
“Is it a duel ye’re wantin’?” Victor sneered, wiping the dirt from his blade. “What are the terms—the victor keeps Edwina?”
Edwina groaned from her seat. “Even I wouldnae make such a dire jest, Victor. I always thought ye were amusin’, but I guess that has changed, too, like the rest of ye.”
“Be quiet!” Victor raged, his eyes wild.
“Never,” she shot back. “Ye should’ve shoved that gag back in my mouth when ye had the chance, ye idiot. Nay, ye should have left me with my husband, instead of draggin’ me on the most tiresome journey of my life!”
Victor’s lip twitched in annoyance, making Felix wonder just how much of Edwina’s chatter he had endured. The thought brought a smile to his lips, for though he found his wife’s conversation endearing and engaging, he could imagine how she might turn it into a fearsome weapon that could weaken the spirits of even the toughest man.
