"It could have pierced your heart."
"But it didn't."
She demanded that he put her down, and when he did, she walked to a tree so that he could see she was as fit as ever. Then she leaned against it to take the weight off the throbbing leg. Forcing a smile, she said, "Do you see? I'm quite all right."
Brodick turned away from her and stared out into the night, brooding. He didn't say a word for several minutes.
"I made up my mind a long time ago that no woman would ever unsettle me again. I will not let it happen."
"What are you telling me?"
His temper exploded. "You and I struck a bargain when we married, and you're going to live up to your end of it."
"What bargain?" she asked quietly.
"You married me for my protection."
"I married you because I love you. Now, tell me, Brodick. Why did you marry me? What did you get out of this bargain?"
He wouldn't answer, but she wasn't about to give up. Prodding him, she asked, "Did you marry me because you loved me?" She held her breath until he answered.
"Love weakens a man, and I'm not weak."
His hard words shattered her heart. She bowed her head so he wouldn't see how he had hurt her. "You told me you wanted to protect my reputation. I remember that conversation, but even then I knew that wasn't the real reason you married me. I thought… I hoped, anyway… that you cared for me. I knew you were grateful because I helped Alec and you're his guardian, but surely you didn't marry me out of gratitude. A simple thank you would have been enough."
"I had a responsibility to you, Gillian, and that is all that need be said about my reasons."
"You care for me, Brodick. I know you do."
He turned away from her. He was acting like a cornered animal. He had never hedged or skirted an issue before. No, he'd been honest and blunt, but now he was deliberately being evasive.
It made her worry all the more. What he wasn't telling her frightened her.
Why was it so difficult for him to admit what was in his heart. "I ask you again. Why did you marry me?"
He refused to answer. "Ramsey's here," he said then. "I'll carry you back, and then you're going to start at the beginning and tell both of us what happened today."
"I can walk," she assured him. "You go ahead. I'll be there in a few minutes."
"You're coming with me now," he told her, and before she could argue, he picked her up and carried her back to the clearing.
One of the soldiers had started a campfire in the center of the grassy flat, and all the Buchanans sat in a circle around the flames. Proster, Ker, and Alan stood together near Ramsey and his men while Proster waited to give his laird their accounting. Bridgid faced her laird, and after one quick glance, Gillian knew her friend was hearing Ramsey's displeasure.
Brodick settled Gillian on the plaid Dylan had spread out for her, but she didn't stay there. As soon as he turned his back and walked away, she got to her feet and went to Bridgid.
"Ramsey, don't blame Bridgid for what happened. She isn't responsible."
"Then Bridgid was forced to leave the holding?"
His voice was deceptively mild, but Gillian knew he was seething with anger. "No, of course she wasn't forced."
"I take full responsibility for my actions," Bridgid said.
"If anyone is responsible for what happened today, you are, Ramsey. Yes, you are," Gillian added when he looked so incredulous. "If you had kept your promise to me, this incident could have been avoided."
"What promise?" he demanded.
"It meant so little to you that you have already forgotten?"
Ramsey glared at Brodick, obviously seeking his assistance. "Your wife believes I'm responsible."
"She's wrong."
Folding her arms defiantly, she boldly turned to Brodick. "I warned you that I would give Ramsey until noon today to do as he promised and order my sister to see me, but he didn't, and so I took matters into my own hands. Bridgid was kind enough to help me."
Ramsey was seething now. "I haven't had time to speak to your sister, and your impatience nearly got you killed."
Bridgid tried to deflect some of her laird's anger. "It was all for the good," she blurted out, and when Ramsey and Brodick looked at her as though she'd lost her senses, she hastened to explain. "You never would have known that Faudron and Durston wanted to hurt Gillian, and now perhaps you can figure out why."
"I'm sorry you're angry with us," Gillian said then. "And I'll admit we did take a needless risk, but in our defense, I would point out that neither one of us knew we were leaving your territory."
"Laird, may I speak freely?" Bridgid asked.
"What the hell have you been doing?" he countered.
She shook her head. "You're my laird and I respect you, and for that reason I will not lose my temper. I would appreciate it if you would treat me with the same consideration, for I am one of your most loyal followers."
"Bridgid, I'm going to assume that the bump on your head has addled you and that's why you dare to speak to me this way."
"Please don't be angry with her," Gillian pleaded on her friend's behalf. "This is all my fault. It's just as you have said, Ramsey. I was impatient."
"I'm the one who came up with the idea to follow Brisbane," Bridgid insisted.
"No, you didn't," Gillian countered. "You told me that Anthony came up with the idea."
Ramsey's roar stopped the discussion. "What does Anthony have to do with this?"
Gillian realized then that Bridgid hadn't told her laird everything. "Anthony told Bridgid that he would follow Brisbane."
"And?" he demanded when she hesitated.
"He told me he did follow him," Bridgid said. "He gave me specific directions, and I memorized them so we wouldn't get lost."
"He sent us into a trap."
Ramsey was shaking with rage. "I'm going to kill the son of a bitch with my bare hands."
"No, you're not," Brodick countered. "He tried to kill my wife. I'm going to kill him. It's my right."
"The hell it is," Ramsey muttered. "By God, he's going to suffer before he takes his last breath."
Chapter Thirty
It was late, well past midnight, and Bridgid and Gillian were so exhausted from their long day and their ordeal, they could barely keep their eyes open. They sat shoulder to shoulder with their backs resting against a tree trunk, their legs stretched out in front of them, trying to hear what their lairds were discussing.
Everyone else had gone to sleep, and the ground was covered in a maze of plaids. Ramsey and Brodick sat in front of the fire with their heads bent, their whispered conversation grave. Ramsey continuously stirred the embers with a long, crooked stick as though looking for a forgotten object, while Brodick gazed at some distant point in the darkness, nodding every now and again at what Ramsey was saying.
Gillian moved her head slightly and stared at Brodick's chiseled profile. She could see the tenseness in his shoulders, and though he sat motionless now, she felt as though he was about to spring.
Bridgid nudged her and whispered, "Ramsey thinks he's done a terrible injustice to the MacPhersons because he thought one of them was responsible for taking Alec Maitland. Does that make sense?"
"Yes," Gillian answered. "I'll explain later. Keep listening."
"I am," she whispered back, and a minute later she turned to Gillian again. "He said that when he came home and challenged for the position of laird, he made an error in judgment by allowing the old guard to stay in place. He acted out of kindness, and that was a mistake."
Bridgid continued to listen and after a while, Gillian nudged her again.
"Ramsey says he's going to stop procrastinating. He's… Oh, God."