Wee William's Woman, Book Three of the Clan MacDougall Series Read Free Page A

backwards, his head making a loud thumping noise as it hit the hard wooden table. The man moaned as his head lolled from side to side.
    “Wee William,” Black Richard began. “I beg ye to reconsider this.” He pleaded, uncertain just how serious Wee William was with his order.
    Wee William grunted. “Did ye no’ hear the lass? She wishes to be a widow this night and I wish to see her request granted.”
    Had he lost his mind? The Highlanders stared at one another for a long moment. Mayhap Wee William only wanted the Englishmen to think they were headed to their deaths. Angus had been quite adamant that no lives were to be taken unless it was absolutely necessary.
    Believing he wasn’t truly serious about killing the three unarmed men, Black Richard and Garret stood on either side of the unconscious, bleeding brother, and lifted him to his feet. His head fell limp against his chest as the two men dragged him out of the cottage.
    Tall Thomas and Daniel motioned for the other brothers to follow, which they did, without protest. They did allow them to pull on their boots before ushering them out the door, though ’twas more than any of them deserved. Rowan followed the group out of the cottage and closed the door behind them.
    Once the small home was cleared, Wee William turned his attention back to Nora.
    She had been quietly watching the events as they played out before her. She couldn’t suppress feeling a bit of satisfaction each time the large Highlander hit her husband. It was all she could do to not cry out and beg for them to hit him again.
    Deciding good manners barred cheering these strangers on, she remained mute. Served the fool right, she thought to herself.   When the Highlanders gathered up Horace and his younger brothers, she was left wondering just where they were going and what would happen to them. She was also curious as to what they planned to do with her. She could only pray that they would show her some mercy and leave her unharmed.
    “What are they doing with them?” she whispered, afraid to ask what his intentions toward her might be.
    Wee William eyed her curiously for a moment. “Did ye no’ say ye wished to be a widow this night?” he asked, as if his question would answer hers.
    God has a very peculiar way of answering a girl’s prayers, she thought to herself. How many prayers had she sent to the good Lord asking for a way out of her marriage? How often over the past months had she prayed God would strike Horace dead?
    Of course, she’d meant for his untimely death to come by means of a heart seizure, an apoplexy, or a simple strike of lightning. She’d not once imagined a group of tall, angry, fierce looking Highlanders coming in the dead of night to kill him.
    Their actual presence did not surprise her over much as there were always strange people coming and going. More often than not they were coming to collect money Horace owed them. Her husband was as odd as he was cruel and was constantly getting into trouble of some sort or another.
    Mayhap these men were sent to settle a debt on behalf of someone else, for Horace appeared not to recognize them. She wondered exactly who he had angered to the point that they’d send such big men after him.
    Shivers of fear coursed over her as she sat staring up at this most strange fellow. Her teeth began to chatter and the lingering question seemed lodged in her throat.
    “Are ye cold, lass?” Wee William asked. His voice was deep, and while he was a rather frightening man to look at, there was something odd about his voice. She should have found the sound of it quite frightening. Instead, she found comfort in it.
    Nora’s brow twisted into a knot of confusion before she realized she was shivering, from fear as much as the cold night air. Before she could answer, the giant lifted the blanket and tucked it under her chin and around her shoulders. She was quite surprised by his kind gesture. Horace would have yelled at her to stop chattering