Total pages in book: 101
Estimated words: 92771 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 464(@200wpm)___ 371(@250wpm)___ 309(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92771 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 464(@200wpm)___ 371(@250wpm)___ 309(@300wpm)
Quint stepped quickly in front of her, shielding her with his body, and his hand went to rest on the blade of one of the three daggers at his waist.
Shade went to step to his side, intending to see if it was someone who required healing.
Quint’s arm shot out, blocking her. “Stay put.”
“Shade,” a strong and familiar voice called out before a large man came into view.
Shade rested her hand on Quint’s shoulder. “It is all right. Angus is a friend.” She stepped around him to greet the big man with a smile. “It is good to see you, Angus. I hope all is well with you.”
Angus rubbed his bushy beard, its flaming red color the same as his long hair as he kept a keen eye on Quint. “A friend or someone in need?”
“What concern is that of yours?” Quint demanded, annoyed that the man asked.
Angus’s already large chest expanded even more as he drew back his shoulders. “Shade is my friend, and I will not see her harmed.”
Annoyance flamed in Quint’s eyes as he went to step forward, intending to find out just what type of friend Angus was to Shade.
Shade hastily stepped in front of him to prevent a possible altercation. “Quint required healing and is now kindly repaying me by tending to a few things that needed doing around here before winter sets in. So, tell me what brings you here, Angus.”
The large man held out his arm, pushing up his sleeve to show her an extremely dark bruise that covered his forearm. “It’s my fighting arm and I need to know it won’t fail me since I go to join forces with Clan MacLeish against Clan Glencairn.”
“Come with me, Angus,” Shade said, a touch of concern in her voice as she turned toward her cottage. “I will see to your arm, and you will share what news you have heard about this impending battle.”
Quint waited until they both entered the cottage, then he followed in behind them.
One look from Shade and Quint knew she intended to tell him to leave. He spoke before she could. “I want to hear what he has to say about this looming battle.”
“You fight for one of the clans?” Angus asked, his eyes narrowing as he waited for a response.
“Nay. I have no time for battle,” Quint said, “but I have heard that a battle might ensue, and I wish to keep abreast of it.”
“Sit, Angus, and you can tell us what you know as I tend to your arm,” Shade said, eager to hear for herself any new news since she was worried for her friend Ula.
“Lord Torrance has made a false claim to a portion of Clan MacLeish land. He insists it belongs to Clan Glencairn. Chieftain Ryland disputes the claim and rightfully so. His claim is nothing more than a ruse. Torrance’s hatred for Ryland is the true reason he wants to battle with Clan MacLeish. Torrance doesn’t want to claim just the piece of disputed land but the clan itself and all its holdings. Clan MacLeish is a prosperous clan and Lord Torrance wants it to add to his wealth and power while getting whatever revenge he feels he deserves against Ryland. If he isn’t stopped, he will continue to claim land in the area. Besides, he is a cruel, selfish man who enjoys seeing people suffer.”
“Then why do men fight for him?’ Shade asked.
“Fear,” Quint said.
Angus nodded. “He’s right. Men fear what he will do not only to them but to their families as well if they disobey him. He has a fierce temper, and he thinks nothing of unleashing it for all to see, even on his own wife.”
“Does Chieftain Ryland have a chance against Lord Torrance?” Shade asked.
“I don’t know. I heard talk that Lord Torrance hired not one but two troops of mercenaries to fight alongside his warriors. It is why I go and offer my help to Chieftain Ryland. He needs as many warriors as he can get, though if what I recently heard is true, I worry that the battle is already lost.” Angus said and glanced at the hearth, shaking his head. “I pray it isn’t so.”
“What isn’t so?” Shade asked, a dread running through her.
Angus’s voice turned to a whisper as if fearful of speaking aloud. “I heard men say that he hired… The Monk.” He shook his head again. “He is a cold-blooded warrior and a madman, slaughtering those eight monks who took him in and tried to help him.”
A chill ran through Shade, shivering at the thought of what the monks must have suffered. “How can one man kill so many?”
“The devil has a hold on him that’s how,” Angus said.
“It makes no sense to me,” Shade said, and it hadn’t since the day she heard about it.