Marion threw her arms around thepriest, who looked distinctly uncomfortable with the contact. “I’ll pray foryour safety, Father John, and for my father to stay his hand and his temper.”
Father John nodded as hedisentangled himself from Marion’s hold. “You should go.”
“It’s daft for ye to stay, vow ornae,” Iain said. “The baron will kill ye, I’m sure.”
The priest shook his headdisapprovingly. “I would think a man such as you would understand a sacredvow.”
Iain scowled. “I do, but in thiscase, I dunnae think getting yerself killed is the best way to keep the vow ofreforming the baron. Ye kinnae reform the man if ye’re dead.”
The priest frowned at Iain. “I’mwilling to risk such things.”
“There are smart risks,” Iain said,“and then there are dim ones.”
Marion gasped, and Angus laughed.Marion patted the priest on the arm. “I’m terribly sorry, Father John, for Iaincalling you dim.”
Iain frowned. “I did nae—”
“In my bedroom,” she continued,cutting Iain off with words and a sharp look, “in the gold cup are my coins.Please take five—no, you better make that six—and give the rest to the poortenants.”
The priest mumbled his agreement,and Iain’s patience snapped. He grasped Marion’s hand and tugged her toward thedoor. “Why did ye tell the priest to take the coins?”
“I’m buying indulgences,” sheexplained. “One is for your sin of pride. One is for the knights you killed.One is for when I lied to my father. Two are for Angus—” She glanced at Anguswith a grin and then eyed him with reproach. “Herefuses to take up the customof indulgences and he is almost as proud as you are. And I bought two more forwhatever sins you commit during our escape.”
Iain shook his head at her strangeideas of forgiveness as he pulled her to his side and stepped through the exitand into the bailey.
Noise and thick smoke from theburning kitchens hit him like dual waves, and his eyes watered. A white cloudseemed to blanket the entire bailey, which was helpful in that it made itharder to see them, but it also made it more difficult to see their enemies.
As they headed toward the wall theyneeded to scale to gain the moat, he motioned to Angus behind him, gesturingfor him to flank Marion’s other side. The Scot gave a nod, but as he moved todo so, a man came out of the mist with his sword swinging in a high arc.Instinctively, Iain reached for Marion to shove her behind him, but she hurdledforward with a shriek. Iain felt his jaw drop as his heart tripped over itself.He yanked Marion back with a roar as the knight’s sword came within a hairsbreadthof cutting her.
For a moment, Iain could not move.Everything around him seemed to fade away as he stared at the material of hergown. He half expected the material to suddenly gape open and for blood to gushout. When nothing happened, relief flooded him, even as crazed anger consumedhim. He wasn’t sure if he was more furious at Marion or the fool knight who’dalmost killed her.
He snapped his gaze to theman—Marion could be dealt with later—and took one step to close the distancebetween them. He was young, his face blanched, eyes wide, and hands trembling.At any other time, Iain may have taken pity on him, but if the fool had possesseda truer aim, Marion would have been bleeding to death right now.
He deflected the oncoming swordwith his forearm, grabbing the hilt of it as the knight swung low by Iain’shand. The man tried to pull back, but Iain easily took possession, swung thesword swiftly upward, the steel slicing through the air with a hiss, andpointed the tip at the man’s throat.
“Ye almost killed my wife,” Iaingrowled.
“Your wife?” The man glanced atMarion, who nodded.
His eyes grew wide with disbelief.“I would never harm Lady Marion,” the knight said and smiled at her in a wayIain didn’t care for at all. As if there was something special between them.And he wasn’t the first knight who seemed lovesick when he spoke of Marion. Theknight Andrew had sounded miserable when he’d said he’d failed to protect herwhen she went missing, as if her loss was very personal.
Iain scrubbed a hand across hisface as the man met his gaze once more and sneered at him. “I was trying tokillyou.”
“I ken that,” Iain replied with anod. “’Tis the only reason I’m going to let ye live. That, and I want ye todeliver a message to Baron de Lacy from the MacLeod.” When the knight didn’treadily agree, Iain pressed the tip of the sword against his throat.
“Iain, please!” Marion cried.“Peter is a good man!”
Iain narrowed his gaze on theknight as he curled his fist tighter. He didn’t like that Marion was pleadingfor the man’s life as if she cared for him, but then again, he didn’t want hisfuture wife to be uncouth, either. “Marion is mine,” he said, continuing withhis message for de Lacy. “If he’s bold enough to defy his king and come afterher, then tell him he should be ready to die. Ken?”
“I understand,” the man snarled.
“Good.”
With that, Iain hit the man withthe hilt of his sword, causing him to faint. As the man thudded to the ground,Marion moved to Iain’s side and patted his arm. “Thank you for not killinghim.”
He glanced down at Marion, and hischest tightened a bit. He wasn’t sure how to feel about it, so he shoved theconfusion away. “Quit trying to save me.”
“You needed me,” she retorted, herexpression wounded.
