A Beautiful Lie (The Camaraes) (5 page)

Muira shuddered to remember the feel of his body pressing down upon hers.  The cruel, unyielding hardness jutting into her soft curves...  He
’
d warned her not to scream, to lie still and take it like the filthy whore she was, and she had been going to obey! 

Muira couldn
’
t believe how low Tavish had dragged her, how well he
’
d broken her spirit.  She
’
d lain there, tears rolling down her cheeks, trying to find a corner of her mind in which to hide, listening to the jeer of his voice as his hands groped at her skin.

“
Maybe what I
’
ll do is tell daddy what a little slut you are,
”
he hissed. 
“
I
’
ll go to him the morning after our wedding and tell him how you were already used.  Get him to compensate me for having a whore as a wife by doubling your dowry.
”

“
No!
”
Muira had shrieked.  She hadn
’
t been able to bear the thought of her father thinking badly of her.  Of being ashamed of her!  The force with which she
’
d shoved at Tavish had evidently caught him by surprise, because the weight crushing her into the bed was released just enough to allow her to slip out from under him.

She didn
’
t care that her nightdress was torn, that her skin was bruised or that her cheeks were wet with tears, she had bolted from the room, with Tavish
’
s vicious voice ringing loudly in her ears. 

Muira had run through the corridors of the castle until she
’
d reached the room of her best friend, Cait - the orphaned daughter of Muira
’
s aunt
’
s sister
’
s niece.  A ward of the laird, who, with a pittance of a dowry, had no false hopes of marrying well and had set her sights on becoming a governess.  Cait had comforted Muira as well as she was able, but even she couldn
’
t coax her friend into revealing exactly what had happened.

Muira hadn
’
t meant to run away exactly.  She hadn
’
t planned it.  She had simply gone for her morning ride, (alone as she was fond of doing (to the fear and annoyance of everyone who knew her)), and had just
…
kept riding. 

“
Muira!
”
Ewan
’
s voice dragged Muira back to her current predicament. 
“
Talk to me?
”
he sighed. 
“
What
’
s wrong?
”

“
I- I just rode further than I
’
d realised,
”
Muira mumbled. 
“
Any by the time that I
had
realised Maisie had gone lame, so I tried to lead her back, only then it started to rain and I twisted my ankle, and so we stopped by the roadside to get our bearings, and that
’
s when Mr MacRae rode by,
”
she explained in a rush.  It all sounded so innocent when put like that.

Well, it was innocent
, she argued silently,
minus the running away part, nothing untoward had gone on at all.

Ewan made some sort of grunt, Muira couldn
’
t tell if it was of belief or
dis
belief, but they had finally reached Castle Cameron, and so Muira was granted a small reprieve.

“
Muira Cameron!  There you are!  And looking-  Well!  We
’
ve been so worried!
”
 

Muira hung her head sheepishly as her aunt and Cait rush out of the huge front doors of the castle to greet her.

“
I
’
m sorry, Aunt,
”
she mumbled, being helped out of the saddle by her brother. 
“
I didn
’
t mean to make you worry.
”

“
What-
”

“
She
’
s had a long, trying day, Aunt, I think it would be best if we just let her rest and leave the questions until morning,
”
Ewan said swiftly, and Muira could have hugged him for it. 
“
Cait- ugh- maybe you could help, Muira up to her room?
”
he added, a stammered, awkwardness creeping into his voice that Muira had only ever heard when he was addressing the pretty young governess.  Blushing, Cait bobbed her head in silent agreement and took Muira
’
s arm.

Muira hadn
’
t realised just how tired she was until Cait bundled her up the great stairs and off to bed.  The pain in her ankle had lessened a fraction and she was able to bear a little of her weight on it as she was shepherded to her bedroom.

“
I
’
ll have one of the lads bring up some buckets of hot water so that I can fix you a bath,
”
Cait said, settling Muira in a comfortable chair and then ringing for the help.

“
I just want to sleep,
”
Muira yawned, ready to drop off at any moment.

“
That dirty?  And in those damp clothes?
”
Cait snorted, and rung the bell again. 
“
I
’
d dearly like to know what you
’
ve been up to Muira Cameron,
”
she sighed, her voice clearly worried.

Muira didn
’
t offer an explanation though.  She sat dozing in the armchair, waiting for Cait to fix the bath.  It
would
be heaven to soak her aching limbs, she supposed, and then be able to sleep, snug and clean in her own bed
…
  Muira
’
s grey eyes flew open as she choked.  She glanced at the bed out of the corner of her eye - the bed where Tavish had tried to rape her just that morning.  A wave of nausea rolled over Muira.  Where
was
Tavish?

“
Cait,
”
she said quietly.  Her friend looked up at her.  She was adding a few drops of rose oil to the bath.  The water had arrived without Muira noticing, and been emptied into the large tub by the fire. 
“
Do you think you could stay in here with me tonight?
”
she asked quietly.

Cait opened her mouth to question the request, but in the end she just nodded her head. 
“
Of course,
”
she said. 
“
If that
’
s what you want.
”
 

Cait didn
’
t press the matter any further, whether that was because of her own common sense or out of respect for Ewan
’
s instructions, Muira wasn
’
t sure, she was just hugely relieved.  She undressed and sank into hot the bathwater; letting Cait help wash and then untangle the long tresses of her hair while she soaked.

“
Did you want something to eat before turning in?
”
Cait asked. 
“
You can
’
t have eaten in hours, and your hair won
’
t be dry enough to sleep on for a while.  I can go down to the kitchens and see what
’
s been left in pantry?
”

Muira found that she was nodded her head eagerly.  Just as she hadn
’
t realised how tired she was, she hadn
’
t noticed how famished she was either until Cait mentioned food.

“
Would you?
”
she asked.

Cait laughed and nodded, leaving her friend alone to dry.

Muira lingered in the bath for a little while longer, waiting until the water had cooled and her skin was crinkly before finding getting out.  The soak had done her ankle the world of good.  She was almost able to stand properly as she dried in front of the fire, donning a long nightdress and dressing gown, before sitting down in front of the dressing table mirror to comb out her hair.

Left alone with her thoughts, her mind began to wander.  What was going to happen now?  Muira knew that her brother hadn
’
t wholly believed her tale.  Ewan had given her the night to recuperate, but in the morning he would want answers.  As would her other brother and father, and her aunt and uncle, her cousins
…
and Tavish.

Just thinking about her fianc
é
made Muira want to physically retch.  When she remembered what he
’
d tried to do to her that morning
…
what he
would
do her when they were married, and as often as he wanted
…
it made her flesh crawl.