“How bad is it?” Ewan yelled as he looked at the blood running down his brother’s side.

“I’ll survive.”

The brothers cut a vicious path through Cameron warriors. They fought with determination, their attack fueled by rage and an overwhelming desire for revenge.

“Where’s Rionna?” Alaric shouted when they reached the middle of the courtyard.

Caelen glanced around before ducking a blow from an advancing warrior. “I know not. I lost sight of her when you came through the gates.”

“Your wife has lost her mind,” Ewan said as he cut through another soldier. “She has to be the most daft, infuriating, brave lass I’ve ever had the occasion to meet.”

“Aye, she is all that,” Caelen agreed. “And she’s mine.”

Alaric grinned then pivoted and delivered a death blow, his sword coming away bright with blood. “You’re a most fortunate man, Caelen. Clearly your wife is too stubborn to let you die.”

“Where is Cameron?” Ewan shouted in frustration. “I’ll not let that bastard escape me yet again.”

“Rionna thrust a torch in his face. I’ve not seen him since she freed me.”

They quieted as they greeted another onslaught of attacks. They came from every angle and it took all of Caelen’s skill and concentration to block the agonizing pain and focus on the matter at hand.

His concern wasn’t for Duncan Cameron. He searched for Rionna. He feared for her more than he’d feared anything else in his life.

“They’re running!” Hugh McDonald shouted. “Close in! Close in! Don’t let them escape!”

The courtyard was littered with bodies, and what was once a pristine covering of snow was now bathed in scarlet. The blood shone in the sun, stark against the white, and the acrid smell rose and scattered with the wind.

The ranks had thinned enough that Caelen could see more than a few paces and he frantically searched for sign of his wife. When he saw her, his blood froze in his veins.

She was battling her father, and the man fought wildly, with no discipline of a seasoned warrior. He fought like a man who knew he was going to die.

Her back was to Caelen, and she fought valiantly, holding off the frantic blows with her sword, but each forward attack backed her up and her strength was waning.

Caelen broke into a run, ignoring his own pain and overwhelming exhaustion. He was halfway across the courtyard when he caught sight of Duncan Cameron.

Typical of the coward he was, he’d positioned himself behind a wall of his men, but now most had fallen and he was vulnerable to attack.

The left side of his face was blistered and smeared with blood from the burn Rionna had inflicted on him. He had a sword in one hand and a dagger in the other.