But oddly, as he stood holding her at his mercy, he seemed much smaller than she’d remembered. He had a slight build, much smaller than the average warrior. How had he seemed so much larger than life just a few years before?
Had she made him more than he was because he talked so big and she feared him so deeply? Or maybe her panic was producing stupid thoughts, telling her that she could fight back, that she wouldn’t let this evil idiot make her cower as he had when she was younger.
Perhaps the time with Graeme and his clan had given her a strength she lacked while in the protective bosom of her own clan. She’d had to fight for any respect she earned in the Montgomery clan. She was fiercely proud that no one had given her a thing.
“I’ve heard of your grand deception,” Ian said, spittle rimming his lips. His face was red with rage that was only made more prominent by the flames from the torch.
He reached up to insert the torch into one of the sconces over Eveline’s head, and then he yanked her upright until she was straining on tiptoe, his face just a breath from hers.
It was then she saw Ian’s father, Patrick McHugh, standing off in the shadows. He looked uneasy, as if he wanted no part in the entire thing, and when he saw that Eveline was staring at him, he faded back so he was no longer in her line of sight.
Her heart sank. If Ian’s father was an accomplice, what hope did she have? And he seemed frightened of Ian, which made no sense to her. Patrick was larger and stronger than Ian. He was a warrior. What warrior would allow his son to threaten him?
Her glance darted back to Ian when he shook her to gain her attention. Hatred shone like a beacon in his eyes. He was the mad one. He looked crazed.
“Played me for a fool. You act the simpleton to escape marriage and instead marry Montgomery. I cannot allow it. ’Twas supposed to be an alliance the McHughs forged with the Armstrongs. We would have been invincible! You’ll pay for your deception, Eveline Armstrong. No one makes me look the fool and escapes retribution.”
“Nay,” she bit out, interrupting his tirade. “ ’Tis Eveline Montgomery now.”
His eyes widened. “So the simpleton chooses to speak. Kierstan informed me that you found your tongue shortly after arriving at Montgomery Keep. I wondered if the lamb would find the courage to bite with the teeth of a lioness. I think I prefer the new and improved Eveline over the pale, skinny coward who went rigid with fright every time I came into contact with her. It will be a lot more entertaining to break the new Eveline.”
“Why are you doing this?” she demanded as loudly as she could make her voice. “You have to know Graeme will kill you.” Her glance darted to where she knew Patrick McHugh to be standing. “He’ll kill all of you.”
Ian smiled, and it sent a shiver down Eveline’s spine.
“He’ll never know where you are. And your father? Even now, he’s likely riding on the Montgomerys, intent on war and revenge.”
Fear rocketed through her chest, squeezing her, robbing her of air. “What have you done?”
“It doesn’t look good that Graeme Montgomery’s new bride has gone missing. Nor does it sit well with the Montgomerys that a man bearing the dress of the Armstrong clan made an attempt on the Montgomery laird’s life. What think you will happen when the two clans come head-to-head?”
“You were the one who shot Graeme with the arrow,” Eveline breathed.
“Nay, not exactly. ’Twas not me, but a man under my command.” He shrugged. “ ’Tis the same. The result is the same. There’ll be no peace, no alliance between the Montgomerys and the Armstrongs. They’ll be too busy fighting each other and will be branded outlaws by the king. They’ll pose no threat to other clans. Instead, we’ll take them down, one by one, and collect a rich purse as bounty. When I am done, the McHugh name will be the most highly revered in the highlands.”
“You’re mad,” she said incredulously. “At least I only pretended madness. You are truly afflicted in the mind.”
He backhanded her with his free hand, knocking her head back. But he held her in place with the hand he still had twisted in her hair so she had nowhere to go.
He turned her head forcefully back so she had to look him in the eye again. “And you, Eveline, will be thought dead when no one is able to discover your whereabouts. No one will hear your screams. No one will ever find you. You’ll be mine to play with when I need amusement. In time you’ll be grateful for any attention I bestow upon you.”
“Never,” she lashed out.
He forced her face even closer to his, and then he kissed her. It was a bruising, punishing force that so repulsed her, she gagged. She tried to insert her hands between them, but fell short when the chains prevented her from reaching that far.
When he deepened the kiss and she felt the brush of his tongue over hers, she bit down, determined to put an end to the forced intimacy.
He thrust her away, rage in his eyes. He wiped at his mouth, and his hand came away stained with blood. This time when he struck her, he let her fall away, releasing her hair.
She fell to the floor, pain jolting through her limbs when the chains went taut, nearly yanking her arms from their sockets.
“Don’t touch me again,” she yelled with all the bravado she had left.
He stood over her, his mouth twisted into a sneer. “I’ll do a whole lot more than touch, Eveline. You belong to me now. Be a good lass and I’ll come visit you often. I’ll even try to remember to bring you food and drink on occasion.”
Then he reached over, took the torch from the sconce, and stalked away, taking the light with him.