Page 8 of A Touch So Wicked

“Your lady is in no danger from me,” he vowed. “Misterly is your home; I need your full cooperation and loyalty for things to run smoothly. You’ll find me a generous landlord. Tithes will not be raised nor taxes increased.

“I hope to maintain peace without the use of force. But make no mistake,” he warned, searching the sullen faces staring back at him, “as the Lord of Misterly, I demand your respect. If I uncover signs of rebellion, I will not hesitate to retaliate accordingly.”

A spate of grumbling followed his words, but Damian was quick to note grudging approval for his pledge not to raise taxes and tithes.

“All I require is your cooperation and loyalty,” Damian continued.

“How can ye ask that of us when yer sending away Alpin Fraser’s widow and daughters?” Dermot argued.

“Hear me, good people,” Damian said, growing alarmingly short of patience. “I will tolerate no dissension. I am your lord and demand fealty. In return, you will be treated fairly.”

He waited a moment for that to sink in before announcing, “There will be no alliance between the Gordons and Frasers. The Maiden of Misterly, her mother, and her sister will make their permanent home at St. Mary by the Sea Convent. Return to your homes; I’ve said all that needs to be said.”

The assembly slowly, reluctantly, returned to their homes or duties amid much whispering and fearful glances at the Demon Knight. Damian stopped Lachlan before he could join the exodus.

“A word with you, Lachlan Fraser.”

Lachlan stopped dead in his tracks. “Aye, yer lordship?”

“Obviously you and your clansmen don’t agree with my acquisition of Misterly and your kinswomen’s fate.”

“Aye, ye have the right of it.”

“’Tis not my decision, Lachlan,” Damian explained. “Tavis Gordon is an outlaw and a rebel. He wants to renew a war that was lost long ago. The Crown is justifiably opposed to an alliance between the Gordons and Frasers. ‘Twould be disastrous to the tenuous peace that prevails in the Highlands. Lady Elissa cannot be allowed to wed Tavis Gordon. The only way to prevent such an alliance is to send her where she is out of Gordon’s reach.”

“I can understand England’s concern,” Lachlan admitted. “Highlanders have ever been vocal about their hatred for yer countrymen. Can ye blame them? But why should Alpin Fraser’s widow and daughters be punished?”

“They are not being punished,” Damian maintained. “They are merely being sent to a safe haven. I must obey my king in this. You have my word that no harm will befall them.”

“The Frasers will hold ye to yer word, yer lordship.”

Damian dismissed Lachlan with a nod of his head.

Elissa had heard enough. Nothing the Demon Knight had said was the truth. The English king wanted to punish the Frasers for their beliefs and had sent the Demon Knight to accomplish the deed.

“You lie!” Elissa charged. “The Demon Knight isna known for his mercy. Sending Mother and Lora to the convent is…is inhuman.”

“They will not suffer,” Damian argued.

Elissa stiffened her spine. She had naught to depend upon but her own wits. Sparring with Lord Damian was a frightening prospect, yet strangely exhilarating.

“What now, my lord? Will you rouse my mother and sister from their sickbeds to send them away?”

Damian’s black scowl sent a shiver down Elissa’s back. The new Lord of Misterly appeared short on patience. How far could she push this hard, ruthless man before he retaliated? she wondered.

“I will make my decision after I’ve seen your mother and sister, lady. I know enough of sickness to distinguish between a life threatening illness and an imagined one. Lead the way, lady. I will speak to your mother now.”

“Nay! She couldna survive the shock.”

“Follow me, me lord, I will take ye to Lady Marianne.”

“Nan! How could you?” Elissa exclaimed.

Damian looked down his nose at the old hag hovering at Elissa’s elbow. “Who are you?”

“Nan is my nursemaid,” Elissa explained. “She lives in the keep and tends the hurts and illnesses of our kinsmen.”

Damian made a thorough inspection of the diminutive old woman while her keenly intelligent blue eyes studied him in return.