Highlander Untamed Read Free

That’s all he owed the king. And when the year was done, Rory would resume his plan. He wouldn’t rest until Sleat was destroyed and the MacLeods once again held the Trotternish peninsula, land seized by the MacDonalds that rightly belonged to the MacLeods.
    Rory drove blunt, battle-scarred fingers harshly through his shoulder-length hair. He’d been damn close to bringing down his enemy—until Sleat had run to the king, and James had decided to interfere.
    But if King James thought to end the feud with marriage, he was sorely mistaken. Not after what Sleat had done to Margaret. The hatred between the clans ran too deep.
    Rory’s eyes traveled up to the tower where Margaret slept. Could it be only three years ago that his beautiful, bright-eyed young sister had ridden away from Dunvegan, bound for Dunscaith Castle, the happy young handfast bride of the MacDonald of Sleat? It seemed impossible that so much could change in such a short time. Margaret had returned to Dunvegan a sad shell of the sweet, naïve, yet spirited little sister he remembered.
    Not long after Margaret’s return, the MacLeods had attacked the MacDonalds at Trotternish with fire and sword. And so it began, two long, bloody years of feuding. The MacDonalds called it Cogadh na Cailliche Caime, “the War of the One-Eyed Woman.” Even the ridiculous epithet riled his anger.
    Rory resumed his pacing. Although every fiber of his being rebelled against this alliance, he had no choice. The unrest in the Highlands made it look as if King James could not control his own kingdom. When the subject of marriage had first been broached by the king, Rory had refused to consider the proposition. The years of constant fighting had taken a toll on his clan, but he resisted being tied to a MacDonald—even to end the bloodshed. But James would not be gainsaid. So Rory had come up with a solution, one that would not see him tied forever to his enemies. He rejected marriage to the chit but negotiated a handfast. Unlike a wedding, the temporary bonds of a handfast were easily undone.
    Rory rubbed his stubbled chin. That the MacDonalds had not demanded marriage was strange, especially after the devastation brought about by his sister’s handfast. Perhaps Sleat was not as interested in ending the feud as he pretended. Did he, too, seek a way out of the alliance? If Sleat was up to something, it likely involved his new bride.
    Rory would be wary of this Trojan horse.
    A voice floated out of the darkness, interrupting his private rampage. “You have the look of a caged lion, Chief. I assume your bride has not yet arrived?”
    Rory stopped pacing and turned to see his younger brother Alex striding toward him across the barmkin from the old keep. Rory cursed the MacDonalds again, this time for what they had done to Alex. Rory noticed the same roguish grin, but the thin veneer of lightheartedness could not hide the dark shadows under Alex’s eyes and the hard lines around his mouth forged in a MacDonald dungeon.
    “No,” Rory said. “There is no sign of them yet, but I’m sure ’twill be soon enough.”
    Alex grunted. “MacDonalds at Dunvegan. It defies belief.”
    “Aye, but not for long,” Rory promised.
    Alex turned to meet his gaze. “Do you really think Sleat will dare show his face?”
    Rory’s mouth fell in a grim line. “Count on it. He’ll not miss the opportunity to taunt us with his presence by taking refuge in the protection of Highland hospitality. He knows we are honor bound to do him no harm while he is at Dunvegan.”
    Alex sighed and shook his head. “Poor Margaret.”
    “Don’t worry. I’ve seen to Margaret. She’ll be kept far from Sleat.”
    “Damn King James for his interference,” Alex swore.
    Rory smiled dryly, having had the very same thought only moments ago. Even in the darkness, he could see the frustration etched on Alex’s face. Like him, Alex detested the untenable position James had put them in. “’Tis only for a year,”