Read Online The Witch and The Warrior by Karyn Monk - Free Book Online

MacSweens’ wrath without also permanently stealing their laird’s daughter. She stays here.” He turned his horse and began to ride away.
    â€œNo!” exclaimed Isabella, rising to stand before Brodick. “You cannot just abandon me here. You cannot!”
    â€œForgive me, m’lady,” Brodick apologized. “It was not meant to be.”
    â€œYou cannot leave me!”
    â€œFarewell, sweet Bella,” he crooned. “I’ll not forget you.” He tilted his head in a bow, then turned his mount and rode away, followed by Cameron and Ned.
    â€œThis isn’t over!” Isabella raged. “I’ll make sure my father’s warriors hunt you down and crush every bone in your body, you vile abductor of helpless women! Then they’ll carve out your eyes and mince them into paste…”
    â€œPoor lass, I think you’ve gone and broken her heart,” said Cameron as Isabella’s gruesome ravings continued.
    â€œâ€¦and grind your organs into mush…”
    â€œIf that’s what she’s like when her heart is broken, I’d not want to see her angry,” reflected Ned.
    â€œâ€¦you scurvy, rotten, fulsome bastard!”
    â€œShe’ll get over it,” Brodick assured them.
    â€œAye,” agreed Cameron, laughing. “They always do.”
    Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 
    The air was aromatic with the sun-washed scent of damp earth and the tangy fragrance of heather that burst in purple puffs around them. But Gwendolyn was far too absorbed in considering her situation as they galloped through the meadows and woods to derive pleasure from her surroundings. Every mile took her farther away from Robert and the stone, and so with every mile her resolve to escape grew.
    She was certain MacDunn intended to use her to either strike an enemy or fatten his coffers, or perhaps both. Although she had been fortunate in proving her supernatural powers with her little “spell” last night, she had no hope of faking someone’s death or making riches suddenly appear. The moment she failed to do so, MacDunn would realize he had been duped and his rage would be awesome. After he finished punishing her, he would give her back to Robert in order to prevent war. She would be imprisoned and burned, and Robert’s treachery would go without retribution.
    She could not allow that to happen.
    â€œThe horses need to rest,” MacDunn suddenly announced. “We will stay here by this stream awhile.”
    Gwendolyn wearily let go of Ned. Although MacDunn had said no MacSweens would come after them today, he had led his warriors like a man possessed. It was clear he was most anxious to return home with his prize. Her arms were stiff and her backside aching as she slid off Ned’s horse, only to collapse in a startled heap on the ground.
    â€œAre you ill?” MacDunn asked, racing toward her. He dropped to one knee and laid his rough hand upon her brow. “Do you feel feverish?”
    â€œI am fine, MacDunn. My legs are stiff from being on that horse too long, that is all. I am not accustomed to riding such a long distance.”
    His hand moved from her forehead to each cheek, as if he did not quite believe her. When he finally decided that her temperature was acceptable, he regarded her sternly. “You should have said something if you were finding the ride too difficult.”
    She did not know what to make of that. After all, she was his prisoner, and had assumed her comfort was irrelevant. “You are obviously in a great hurry and—”
    â€œYour well-being is of paramount importance to me,” MacDunn interrupted. “In the future, you will tell me when you are feeling ill or overly tired. Is that clear?”
    She reminded herself that his anxiety sprang from greed rather than a genuine interest in her health. He had told her she was useless to him if she fell ill. Nevertheless, his touch was