Highland Defender Read online

“I consider him a friend.”

  “I know, Greer.”

  “Ye missed going tae the Cal for about a month, so I was told.”

  That caused Lady Currie to falter. “I was…ill,” she said. “Had you come to visit me, you would have known.”

  He chuckled weakly, but it was without humor. “I am not in the habit of visiting a woman, not even my wife, when she is ill with another man’s child,” he said. “Dunna let it upset ye, my dear. I’ve known all along. But there is something ye should know, too—any child ye bear will be my heir. I need a son and since ye will lay with everyone but yer husband, I’ll claim any child ye give birth tae as my own. So remember that when choosing those who will lie betwixt yer legs—make sure he’s strong and intelligent. I should like those qualities for a son since I dunna have those qualities in a wife.”

  By the time he was finished, Lady Currie was red in the face. She stood over by the door to the solar, twitching with anger as Laird Currie continued to shuffle through the contents of his table as if he didn’t have a care in the world.

  “I must look for a father for my child elsewhere since my husband is a shriveled shell of a man,” she hissed. “I must find a real man to produce a son.”

  He glanced up at her. “I wish ye well,” he said. “I’ll have yer money for ye later. Mayhap it’ll buy ye the man ye want.”

  Lady Currie departed in a huff, slamming the solar door behind her. Laird Currie stood there a moment, remembering the first woman he’d married, the fair Iris, and lamenting the tumor that had claimed her life. Had he known then what he knew now, he would not have married again so he could have a son. At least, he would not have married Blanche Ireby. It had been a dreadful mistake.

  Unfortunately, it was one he had to live with.

  * * *

  Lucia was in her sewing room, working on a vibrant orange silk for Lady Currie that she planned to wear when spring came. Lucia had been embroidering flowers and bees all around the neckline, a detailed project that took focus and skill, but all the focus in the world couldn’t help her today.

  Not after everything that had happened the night before.

  Even now, she knew Lady Currie was with Laird Currie, making demands of the man. And she knew what the demands were—Lady Currie intended to purchase Bane from the Ludus Caledonia so he could take charge of Meadowbank’s tiny group of soldiers. But it wasn’t because Lady Currie wanted Bane’s fighting skill.

  It was because she could command the man to bed her if he served her husband.

  That had been the grand scheme she’d come up with. As long as Bane was at the Ludus Caledonia, he could refuse her advances. But if she purchased his contract, he could refuse nothing.

  Lucia’s hands were shaking even as she thought about it. It was all Lady Currie could speak of last night as they returned from the Ludus Caledonia. Lucia had spent a night of turmoil, thinking of Bane’s body against hers and the importance of their intimate encounter, but Lady Currie’s horrible plan threatened to ruin the joy she was feeling. When she should be focused on her love for Bane, she was focused on her conniving mistress.

  It was a hellish situation she found herself in.

  “Lucia?”

  A little voice broke her out of her train of thought, and she looked up to see Tynan standing in the doorway with a tray in his hands. She smiled weakly.

  “Come in, Tynan,” she said. “I’ve not seen ye lately. Where have ye been?”

  The little boy entered the room, setting the tray down on the corner of a table that wasn’t covered with fabric or needles or thread.

  “Angus has been teaching me about the horses,” he said. “I can work in the stable someday.”

  Lucia set her sewing down in her lap. “There’s a good lad,” she said. “It’ll do ye well tae learn as much as ye can about many things.”

  Tynan nodded. Then he pointed to the tray. “Mam told me tae bring ye this. She said ye need tae eat.”

  Leave it to Amy to pay attention to Lucia’s moods. It was true that Lucia hadn’t eaten much over the past few days. There had been too much on her mind. She smiled at her friend’s concern.

  “I’ll thank her for watching over me,” she said.

  She peered at the contents of the tray, which contained cheese, bread, and a full cup of wine. The food didn’t hold any allure, but the wine did. Picking up the cup, she downed half of it in two big swallows, feeling the warmth course into her belly.

  Tynan was watching her closely.

  “Lucia?”

  “Aye?”

  “Are ye worried?”

  She looked at the boy, smiling. “About what?”

  Tynan lowered his voice. “About m’lady,” he said. “About…everything.”

  “What’s ‘everything’?”

  “Ye know,” he said. “Bane. He said he’d come back for ye. Dunna worry because I know he will.”

  Lucia’s smile faded and she set the cup down. Reaching out, she pulled Tynan very close to her so she could whisper in his ear.

  “Tynan, I want ye tae listen closely,” she murmured. “Can ye do that?”

  He nodded eagerly. “Aye.”

  “Ye must never, ever mention Bane’s name here at Meadowbank,” she said. “Never speak of him, not even tae me. And if ye ever see him here, ye must never acknowledge that ye know him. Can ye do that?”

  Tynan frowned. Bane was his friend and Lucia’s words were confusing, but he nodded. “Canna I even talk tae him?”

  Lucia shook her head. “Nay,” she said. “M’lady might hear, and if she does, she will do terrible things. Or Colly will. We must never speak of Bane again. I know ye dunna understand why, but ye must trust me. Please?”

  The boy nodded solemnly. “Aye.”

  “Ye must tell Angus, too,” she said softly. “He’s not tae speak of Bane or let on that he knows him, and he’s tae make sure no one else does, either. There are a few servants who saw Bane when he worked here, but mostly the men from the stables. Make sure Angus tells them not tae speak of Bane at all. Can ye do that?”

  “Aye, I can.”

  “Good. ’Tis very important.”

  “I’ll tell him right now.”

  Her smile returned and she pinched him gently on the cheek. She was about to pick her cup up again when Lady Currie was suddenly in the doorway.

  “Lucia,” she said sharply. “Come with me. And bring the orange silk you are working on.”

  Lucia was on her feet, garment in hand as she quickly followed Lady Currie into her warm, fragrant chamber. She wondered with horror if the woman had heard her speaking to Tynan about Bane, and she braced herself for what was surely to come. Lady Currie was in a snit and surely Lucia was going to take the brunt of it. She caught sight of the boy dashing for the stairs as she swept into Lady Currie’s chamber.

  “Is the orange silk ready for me to wear tonight?” Lady Currie demanded. “Let me see it.”

  Lucia held it up to her. “I’m not finished with the embroidery, m’lady,” she said. “It is very delicate work.”

  Lady Currie looked at the beautiful embroidery all along the neckline. “Aye, it is,” she said, her crisp manner softening as she inspected the stunning work. “It is quite lovely, Lucia.”

  “I am sorry it is not ready tae wear yet, m’lady.”

  Lady Currie handed the dress back to her, taking a deep breath before plopping down on a cushioned bench at her dressing table.

  “You did not know I wanted to wear it tonight,” she said. Then she snorted ironically. “I did not even know I wanted to wear it. Forgive me for being sharp with you, Lucia. It has been a trying day with Laird Currie.”

  Lucia was coming to realize that the woman hadn’t heard her conversation with Tynan and relief swept her.

  “May I get ye something, then?” she asked. �
��More wine? Something tae eat, mayhap?”

  Lady Currie was staring at herself in her big, polished glass mirror that had come all the way from London. “Nay,” she said, sinking into melancholy as Colly rushed in from another room. Having heard her mistress’s voice, she had come running. “Nothing to eat. But I do want to wear something beautiful tonight to the Cal. What do you think I should wear?”

  Before Lucia could answer, Colly interjected. “If ye’re going tae the Cal tonight, ye should rest before ye go, lamb,” she said. “Lie down and I’ll rub yer head. Ye like that.”

  But Lady Currie waved her off. “I do not want to lie down,” she said. “I want to dress beautifully. Like a bride. Lucia, what do you think about the pale-blue silk?”

  Lucia knew the dress. “It is very thin for this cold weather, m’lady,” she said. “Unless ye wear the ermine with it. Ye’ll freeze if ye dunna.”

  Lady Currie flicked her hand at her. “Bring me the blue silk and my ermine cape,” she said. “I will wear those tonight. We are going to the Ludus Caledonia, and we must be dressed like queens.”

  Lucia was moving to the massive wardrobe in Lady Currie’s chamber, one of three that held her expensive clothing.

  “Is there something special tonight, m’lady?” Lucia asked.

  Lady Currie was looking at herself in the mirror. Staring at herself, really. Picking up a brush, she began to stroke her soft, red hair.

  “Special? Aye,” she said after a moment. “I have Laird Currie’s agreement. We are going tonight to purchase Bane Morgan’s contract for Meadowbank.”

  Lucia had the doors of the wardrobe open wide, closing her eyes at the realization that Lady Currie planned to execute her scheme sooner rather than later. “I see, m’lady,” she said, trying not to sound distraught. God, this can’t be happening! “The laird…agreed with ye, did he?”

  Lady Currie nodded. “He did,” she said. “I was able to convince my stupid husband that we need an experienced warrior, and he told me that he would give me the money. Tonight, I will purchase Bane’s contract from Clegg, and he will become mine to do with as I please.”

  Lucia’s hands were quivering as she pulled forth the blue silk. So much rage and horror was bubbling up inside of her that she was sickened by it, struggling not to reveal her true feelings. She knew what would happen if Lady Currie knew of her relationship with Bane. She knew the woman would put her through hell.

  But the situation had become so much more than Lady Currie purchasing Bane.

  Now there was also the matter of those two pounds for her freedom.

  Even if Bane purchased her freedom, she’d be right back where she was—living under Lady Currie’s roof while Lady Currie ordered Bane to pleasure her. And Lucia would have to stand by and watch it happen. Servants were not permitted any free will; they did as they were told. By purchasing Bane, Lady Currie removed the protection of the Ludus Caledonia, the protection that had given him free will to deny Lady Currie’s propositions.

  But no more.

  Once his contract was purchased, Bane would have to submit to Lady Currie like everyone else.

  “Hurry up, Lucia,” Colly snapped. “M’lady wishes tae be dressed immediately.”

  Lucia realized that she was daydreaming, thinking of the murky future of both her and Bane at the hands of Lady Currie. As she took the dress over to the rack where it would be hung and inspected for any spots or flaws, she eyed Lady Currie as the woman brushed her hair.

  “M’lady,” she said hesitantly, “have ye considered that the man will bring his wife here tae live at Meadowbank? He told ye that he was married.”

  Lady Currie stopped brushing and looked at her. “I never told you that.”

  Lucia only realized that as Lady Currie said it. It was true; she’d never told Lucia, in all of her scheming and planning, that Bane was married. Quickly, Lucia hastened to clarify how, exactly, she knew that.

  “I know ye dinna, but I heard him tell ye that when we were in Sir Clegg’s private box,” she said, which was the truth. “He told ye that he had a wife.”

  Lady Currie went back to brushing her hair. “As if that will stop me,” she snorted. “He can bring his wife, and I will put her to work in the soldiers’ barracks. She can be of use to the soldiers while her husband becomes my personal comfort-giver.”

  It was a rather brutal thought, even for Lady Currie. Usually, the woman wasn’t so nasty, but it was clear that jealousy had her in its grip when it came to Bane. The more the man refused her, the more obsessed she became over him.

  And she didn’t want any competition.

  “Mayhap ye’ll be lucky and he willna bring her at all,” Lucia said. “It would be better if she dinna come if that is the fate ye have consigned for her.”

  Lady Currie chuckled, but not in a nice way. She stopped brushing her hair long enough to pour herself a large cup of wine from the pitcher that was always on her dressing table.

  “Then she’ll do well to let me have her husband,” she said, taking a long, satisfying gulp of the red liquid. “Hurry now, Lucia. I want to dress and go early to the Cal so I may make the offer to Clegg. I want to make sure I offer for the man before anyone else does. I saw how those whores at the Cal were looking him over. You know the ones I speak of: that hideous mother and her equally hideous daughters. They want what I want, but in the end, I shall have him.”

  Lucia began the process of hanging the dress and smoothing it out, laboring to focus as Colly summoned Amy and the woman began to fashion Lady Currie’s hair. The chamber became a hive of activity once again, as it so often did when Lady Currie dressed for a visit to the Ludus Caledonia.

  But this time, there was something more to it.

  The stakes were about to escalate.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  “Bane?”

  It was a gentle winter’s afternoon. Bane was sitting outside his cottage in the warrior village, smoothing the gladius he’d been using since he’d arrived at the Ludus Caledonia. He’d used it so much that splinters were coming out all over the place.

  Glancing up when he heard his name, he could see Lor and Isabail approaching. Isabail was carrying their toddler son on her hip, a little lad with his mother’s red hair and his father’s green eyes.

  Bane smiled weakly at the pair.

  “Well?” he said. “Am I fighting tonight?”

  Lor lifted his big shoulders. “I’ve not yet heard,” he said. “I came tae ye about something else.”

  “What?”

  “Lady Currie came early today,” he said, lowering his voice. “I saw yer lady, Lucia, with her. They were heading intae the keep of Caelian Hill.”

  Bane lowered the sword, looking at Lor curiously. “Why did they go intae Caelian Hill?”

  “That’s what I wanted tae know,” Lor said. “Axel and I followed them because he saw them arrive, too. It’s no secret that Lady Currie wants ye badly, so we assumed she’d come tae speak with Clegg about ye again.”

  “And? Did she?”

  Lor nodded. “Axel and I slipped in after them and listened from the shadows,” he said. “’Tis no secret I dunna like Lady Currie. She’s spoiled and bold. The more ye deny her, the more she wants ye. In fact, she wants ye so badly that she offered Clegg sixty pounds sterling tae buy yer contract.”

  Bane’s eyebrows lifted in surprise. “Sixty pounds?” he repeated. “Are ye certain?”

  “I heard it myself.”

  “But I’m not worth that much. No man is.”

  Lor grunted unhappily. “She thinks ye are,” he said. “I dunna know what Clegg has agreed tae because I left before he answered. I thought I should warn ye that it’s possible he’ll take her offer. The Cal is a business, Bane. If someone offers enough money for ye, Clegg will take it, regardless of his personal feelings.”

  Bane’s jaw began
to flex as that possibility settled. In fact, he could feel a creeping sense of unmitigated horror at the very thought.

  “But I’m not even fully trained,” he said. “I’ve given my word that I will stay with the Cal for seven years. I’ve not even been here for two months. Why would Clegg take money on a warrior who hasna earned his worth?”

  “I have a theory about that, Bane,” Isabail said, bouncing her restless son. “I saw Lor when he came out of the keep, and he told me everything. I dunna know if Clegg will take the offer, but I have an idea why Lady Currie made it.”

  Bane was disgusted, furious and disgusted. He set the sword aside. “Because she’s mad?” he snapped softly. “She’s mad and she is fixed on me like a hunter fixed on prey.”

  “The lady is a hunter,” Isabail agreed. “She’s hunted ye and failed, so she’s become resourceful. Now she’s going tae buy ye. If she buys yer fealty, ye’re sworn tae her and she can command ye tae do whatever she pleases.”

  Bane’s head snapped up. “Is that it? She will command me tae do what I have refused tae do? I’ll still refuse tae do it. I’ll not touch her and I’ll not let her touch me.”

  “If she buys yer contract, ye may not have a choice,” Lor said softly.

  Bane’s anger was rising. He stood up, pacing in a small circle, pounding a balled fist against his open palm.

  “Lucia told me that Laird Currie said that it would only take two pounds tae pay off her da’s debt,” he said. “I made some money in my most recent fight, but it’s not nearly enough. If I had two pounds, I’d buy her freedom and I’d bring her here tae live with me so she’s away from that…that witch of a woman.”

  “Bane, if Lady Currie buys ye, then ye’ll be taking Lucia back tae her home,” Lor pointed out. “Dunna ye see? Lucia would be the one in danger. I’ve seen Lady Currie coming tae the Cal for the better part of a year. She is jealous and spoiled, and I have a feeling she’ll not take kindly tae ye marrying her servant. Do ye know what I mean?”

  Bane did. In truth, he hadn’t thought of it that way. Wearily, he rubbed at the back of his neck, trying to think of a way out of this mess.