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“And I will win, I promise ye,” he said just as soothingly. Reassuring her was certainly not an easy task.
“I ken ye will,” she smiled, although the stress did not disappear from her face or posture. “But what if something happens to ye? Or some other soldier? I will never be able to forgive myself.”
“My army is far better than Eric’s; hence no soldier will be hurt, and I will come back to ye in one piece, I promise,” Christian replied. “I promised ye that I will never let Eric or anyone else hurt ye again, and I will stick to that promise. Do ye believe me?”
“I believe ye,” Keira nodded, staring straight into his eyes.
“Ye remember what I called ye when I saw ye in the forest and picked ye up to carry ye to safety?” he asked suddenly.
“I was too busy fighting ye off and trying to run away, but I would remember ye called me a fox, even if you dinnae call me that every other day too,” Keira laughed.
Christian smiled. “Even that day when I only saw ye and did nae ken who ye were, I could sense a fire in ye. I could sense strength in ye. I knew ye were a fox then, and I ken ye are my fox now. If there is someone who can endure this, Keira, it is ye. And I have immense faith in ye to do so.”
“Ye trust me that much?” Keira asked, smiling fondly at him.
“Even more than that, lioness,” he said honestly, squeezing her hand tightly.
As if on cue, a soldier entered the hall and immediately walked towards Christian. Christian stood up, knowing that the army must have arrived and it was finally time to end what Eric had started. Dressed simply in his shirt, trousers, and kilt, Christian appeared confident as if he already knew the victory was his. More than skill, he had the motivation to make Eric suffer and take revenge for all that he had done to Keira. Christian was angrier than he had ever been.
“Me Laird,” the soldier bowed.
“Are they here?” Christian asked, without wasting any time.
“Yes. They are with Josh, waiting for ye,” the soldier informed Christian, who nodded.
He turned to look at Keira, who simply nodded at him. Christian nodded back, proud to see the warrior in her shining through, and walked out with the soldier. As soon as they reached the gates of the castle, Christian saw Eric’s army laid out in front of him as Eric stood at the front. He looked angry and proud, but Christian knew he was just a meek man who must be deathly scared since he knew he was facing his death.
“Eric,” Christian greeted him.
“Where is my betrothed?” Eric asked without wasting another second. Christian smiled at him as he walked closer and stood just in front of him.
“In the castle,” he replied honestly.
“Ye already ken my wishes. Return her to me yerself, or we will fight ye until I can rescue her from yer cruel hold,” Eric said calmly, even though his words shook just slightly, almost unnoticeable to anyone but Christian.
“She does nae wish to return to ye. She wants to stay here. With me,” Christian stressed at the last word, making sure Eric could see the anger in his eyes. He would never talk about what Eric had done to Keira in front of everyone, but he wanted to make sure that when Eric stared at him, he knew that Christian was aware of everything Eric had done to Keira.
“Ye are lying to me. Keira would never say that,” Eric smirked as if even the thought was absurd. “Ye must have her locked up in yer dungeons. Bring her out. She is my betrothed, and she is going home with me, and that is final.”
“Christian already told ye that I have refused to go with ye. I will nae step foot out of this castle, Eric. Ye need to leave.” Christian immediately turned around as he heard Keira’s voice from behind him, and his heart warmed as he watched her walk out of the castle and straight toward where he stood.
Pride emerged into his chest at her obvious courage, and he knew that her feisty personality had returned. The woman that was standing beside him was not afraid of anything and was finally prepared to face Eric unflinchingly. She looked beautiful, almost regal, and there was no such thing as meekness in her tone. She was a strong woman, and she was all his.
It was natural for him to worry about her as he saw her standing out in the open, directly in harm’s way, but he knew he was there right beside her and would protect her from anything and everything.
“Keira,” Eric snarled, lunging towards her, but Christian immediately blocked his path, stopping him from approaching her. He had promised Keira that Eric would never even come close to her, and Christian was going to stick to this.
“Move out of my way,” Eric roared, getting angrier with every minute, but Christian could not care less.
“Ye will nae go near her, Gilmor,” he said calmly, and Eric must have sensed the firmness in his manner, for he stood back in his position but turned towards Keira.
“Keira, ye are my betrothed, and this man kidnapped ye. I am here to take ye with me. Come,” Eric said, a subtle firmness in his tone as he dug holes into her with his menacing gaze.
“I will never come with ye, Eric. Do ye nae remember? I told you so a while ago, and you did nae believe me,” she replied, anger flashing in her eyes as she backed away, letting Christian handle the matter.
“Gilmor, this matter is between ye and me. I am the one who kidnapped yer betrothed. I will nae drag my soldiers into this. If ye want Keira and wish to defend yer honor, I challenge ye to a duel,” Christian said loud enough for both his and Eric’s army to hear.
The armies broke into hushed whispers, and Christian could see a sudden tension appear on Eric’s face, but he did not give away what he felt. Eric swallowed quickly and turned around to look at his army, who were whispering amongst themselves, perhaps wondering what Eric’s decision would be. Christian knew he had put Eric in a tough position by presenting him with the offer of a duel since his soldiers knew it was the right thing to do. The honorable way that would protect massive bloodshed. Eric would never be able to deny it.
