Beady dark eyes observed his daughter as she spoke to him in his Solar.

"Tis true papa she claims she is from the future. I fear....I hit her too hard that it has made her daft.," she fidgeted with her fingers as she relayed her news to him.

Marlaude stood and began to pace. He broke out in a cold sweat when she claimed the girl lost consciousness again.

He needed to think of something quick and fast.

Before he could speak, the knock on the stopped him.

A squire stuck his head through the door and nervously spoke.

"Milord, They have set up camp outside the walls."

Marlaude turned away furiously waving the squire away.

"Papa, what do we do?" Erica asked.

Silence followed as she fiddled with her fingers and waited for his answer.

But he said nothing for a while.

"Has she been fed?" he asked grumbling.

"N...no milord," she answered nervously.

"Do so immediately or we will have nothing to negotiate with," he ordered.

He waited for the door to close then suddenly his stiffened shoulder sank and he lowered his head. Defeat. He would claim it if his will could. He has come to realize too late that he was no match for a well-fed, well-rested army.

He could tell the Earl was impatient because he sent another missive.

You have 2 hours to hand over my betroth or I will attack.

***********

Moments had passed that turned into a torturous 3o minutes. He was determined to go through with it he was not going to back down.

The hard knock on the door pulled him out of his thoughts. He turned to watch one of his men enter and pull along his struggling captive.

Tara was shoved towards him and nearly toppled to the floor.
Holding her in his arms he crushed her to him.

She looked up into his bitter gaze as his beady dark eyes rested on her. The guard that shoved her through the door exited and slammed it shut leaving her alone with him.

He let her loose practically shoving her away and began to circle around the room.

"I don't know why you insist on holding me if you know Duncan will come for me," she said.

He said nothing.

"He is here outside my gates, already he sent missives with a demand to release you," Marlaude spoke with a hint of disdain to his tone.

"So what are you waiting for? He won't marry Erica. You know that." she tried to make him understand.

It was no good.

"I have no intentions of releasing you," he informed her.

Tara frowned shaking her head.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean you will remain my prisoner. I will use you to my advantage to assure he marries my daughter as it was planned and when it is done I will send you off," he said.

A knock at the door made him stop briefly what was about to say.

The young squire entered with a pinched face filled with worry.

"Milord what are we to do they have set up camp. The people beyond the walls have fled and there is talk of an attack that has everyone scrambling," he informed Marlaude.

Her heart thudded with panic, growing louder with every passing minute as he stood there and did not answer.

"Ready all the archers and ready the catapults. On my order we attack," he said.

"Please don't do this. Innocent people will suffer because Duncan won't stop until I am in his sight and with him," she pleaded.

Her heart sank with that idea.

They continued on this back and forth.

Another knock at the door stopped him from continuing.

They turned to watch it open. A tall burly man with a grim look stepped forward with a message.

Marlaude yanked it from his hands and dismissed him.

He rolled it out and read it. With a curse, he crumpled it and threw it on the ground.

He faces the man.

"Ready the men we attack in 15 minutes," he ordered.

Frantically Tara bent and rolled it out.
Her eyes fell in his handwriting and her heart sank to the pit of her stomach.

You have 15 minutes to let my betrothed go or we attack with no mercy.

Panicking she looked at him.

"You still have time to reconsider," she said.

Slowly she began to pace along with him as he barely noticed she did so.

"Please you have to let me go. Think of all your people," she begged.

He spun around and stomped off toward the door and bellowed for Erica and a guard.

Shortly after she arrived with the same man that helps her take Tara.

"Take her back to the dungeon stay there until I come for you," he ordered.

Struggling Tara fought the large man as he dragged her along into the corridor along with Erica at her side.

She pleaded with them to let her go but it was useless.

They had gotten as far as the last landing before she tripped. On the floor, she took that advantage out of his grasp and quickly scrambled away and began to run.

The late evening light was her only guide as she ran as fast as she could out of the great hall with the guard shouting after her and Erica screaming for her to stop.

A commotion had begun in the courtyard as she stepped out and saw men scrambling and running from the tower shouting that the west wall had been breached.

Soon all hell broke loose and she found herself in the throng of villagers running towards the gate to escape.

Angry mobs began to yell at guards to let them through but the guards informed angrily to do so would be letting the Earls men through.

"Get back all of you," one guard shouted with a drawn sword.

It only took the angry voice of a man in the crowd to incite the anger more and descended on the soldier and attacked him.

Scared and frightened she looked around at the sea of faces that piled around her pushing forward and crushing others against the closed gates.

On the other side, she could see the clean clearing over the bridge where Duncan sat above his horse with 2 others and frantically paced with stomping steed beneath him.

Her heart grew heavy as she saw practically the cull garrison of men from the keep littered out on the field. All prepped and ready to fight.

This would be no slight squirmish she shook her head in dismay.
But all-out war.

More shouting continued as she was shoved along with those at her side.

Soon the faint scream of a man came from the side as she watched in horror one of the guards tossed off the gate tower.

Tears from all of her emotions began to fall as the gate slowly open. She turned and anxiously began to push through as well to not get crushed. She saw the tall man after her shoving and slicing those down before him to get to her. Shoving past people and jumping over those that fell before her she turned to run.

She watched as Duncan galloped forward through the crowd. She ran as quick as she could the stretch of the bridge that separated them screaming his name.

His eyes searched with panic through the swarm of people running towards him. Angrily he tried to control his horse. His name again came in the familiar scream amongst the sea of people until he spotted her.

He shouted her name and pushed his horse through the mob. Some yanked and pulled at him begging for help others trying to topple him to take the horse to escape.

It was pandemonium.

The few feet of their distance was met as he reached her and without a second moment to spare she was yanked up and sat behind. He whirled around and galloped furiously along with the current of the crowd.

Then arrows flew. He needed to seek shelter as she squeezed him tight riding off.

The whiz of arrows passed her ear. They passed her close.
Too close.

She tightened her grip as the jarring of the galloping horse beneath her was too much. She buried her face in his back resting her tear-streaked cheek on it and flinched 6 times.

The last pinch in her back would be the final blow that forced her to breathe deeply. She shut her eyes enduring the pain and succumbing to the dizziness and ringing in her ear that shortly followed.

When he rounded a safe clearing at the distance and met up with his men, he watched as they ran in lightening speed towards him shouting at the others to get clothes and water. He frowned and knew something was wrong when her grip around his waist slacked then slid away. He turned in time to watch them frantically catch Tara's limp body before she hit the ground.

He bounded quickly off his horse and ran to her. In horror, he watched them handle her with care as they tried not to dislodge the 6 arrows protruding from her back.

He shook his head and pulled her close. His heart slammed in his chest as he slumped to her side and eased her into his lap. He looked down at her face and caressed her cheek. He listened as one of his men with a defeated tone in his voice spoke.

"She is losing a lot of blood, m'lord, we can not remove the arrows."

He swallowed the bitter truth before bellowing out loud to find Liora and bring her. If anyone can cure her it was Liora.

"Find her damn you, Now!!!,"  he looked up at the saddened face of one of his men.

"You always shouting," he heard her soft voice and looked down at her.

She looked up at him with a smile.

"Hold on for me my love, help is coming I sent for Liora," he frantically spoke with a soothing tone cradling her closer.

He lowered his lips to her forehead and kissed her.

"I am so sorry...," she began to speak softly.

He shook his head.

"No apologies. This is not the time for them. When you a better we will apologize," he let out a chuckle then a sob as he noticed the beads of sweat forming above her brow.

As the time continued on her breathing became labored.

He refused to accept the possibility of losing her.

She lifted her palm to caress his cheek. Lovingly, he pressed them to his lips noticing how cold and clammy they were.

He held her gaze as he spoke with enthusiasm and assured her that she will be fine. His positive outlook only made her smile. But she knew it wasn't so. She swallowed hard baring the pain at her back as her tears fell.

She lovingly traced his face and his cheek wincing as she spoke.

"I am so fortunate to have met you. You know that?" she whispered with a wheeze.

He shook his head looking away fighting the tears as they came.

"Not as fortunate as I.," he said.

She tightened her eyes shut as another wave of pain shot through her back.

She trembled as his hold tightened and he begged her to hold on.

"Just a while longer my love, please," he begged.

All of his men around him sadly watched at a distance.

"I want you to promise me something," she asked weakly in pain.

"Anything," he held her gaze as his eyes flitted over her skin that slowly began to pale.

"Promise me you will take care of yourself. Find a loving wife and have lots of children," she smiled with a watery gaze.

He shook his head not liking what she asked of him. His tears fell in torrents.
"I will not make that promise. It is you who I will marry and have children with. You are the only one I will ever love," he said pulling her palms to his lips and kissing them.

With his words, her face contorted with pain and tears.

The rumble of hoofbeats could be heard getting close but it did not deter him from speaking.

"You're strong. You can fight this. I know you can. Please," he watched her frown in pain before looking at him and softly shaking her head.

Aidan was at their side and in tears, he begged her to hold on.

"Who am I going to have to help me torment my brother? " he sobbed with a laugh following her tearful grin.

He looked at his brothers pleading gaze to help her but it was out of their hands there was nothing they could do.

"I'm cold Duncan," she whimpered and cried as he pulled her tighter into his embrace and began to rock with her.

Aidan stood giving his men a saddened gaze shaking his head. He watched them all slowly stand and walk away to give Duncan his privacy.
He turned away at a distance and leaned against a tree for support as he could hear her words weakly profess her love to his brother.  He sobbed as he felt Duncan's pain.

"I love you so much," Duncan whispered back sobbing.

She weakly grazed her fingers along his stubbled jaw and pulled his face down to hers. Their lips touched. He passionately took her lips not willing to endure the knowledge of its meaning.

Its finality.

Their finality.

It was a kiss filled with all the love and passion they shared.

On his lips, she whispered her goodbye. He savored the warmth and taste of their softness before sweetly deepening the kiss and cherishing her last breath and will within the kiss. He wept as her mouth stopped moving and he no longer felt her stir in his arms as her fingers fell away.

He cradled her limp body and sobbed with a violence that shook him to the core.

Aidan lowered his head against the tree and listened in agony as Duncan cried and screamed like a child. And soon the blood-curdling roar that bubbled up from his throat followed echoing across the land.

She was gone.

Tara was gone.

*********

Here we go sooooo sorry for the late update.

😪😪stay tuned for the next update...

Well as you may notice I have another book loaded here on my account...nooo. You are not seeing things. I had another Wattpad account where I posted my other romance novel of BWWM
A Night to Remember...

I feared that mixing the genres would drive my readers away because of their preferences but later after much thought and the advice from a good friend then a very savy follower, I was convinced to place it here with the big reveal.

*****I write more than just historical romance. 😱😱😱*****

So with that said and now that I'm comfortable in my shoes to continue.

Please be informed that this account will be filled with different types of romance novels for everyone to enjoy...

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