Branded By a Warrior (39 page)

“I will be okay, I am quicker and smarter than that giant
, I have debt to repay him for taking
Duncan
from me
.
”

“Elisabeth Rosslyn MacMillan, do ye really believ
e Kincaid will let us live
when you win
?” H
e countered, quickly scanning the activity behind her back, the giant Ivan appeared from the
shadows;
he was one of the biggest men he had ever seen.

“I suspect Kincaid and his men will be dead within moments, it was never my intention to barter with him Broderick, I’m simply buying time for your men who are taking position in the woods around us. De ye think I would truly come alone? On my signal the warriors hidden around us will rain hell down upon these scum, see yourself and K
endrix
keep Isobel safe
.
”

Fr
om beside her, she heard Kendrix
, “I told you she had a plan Brother
.
”

Turning to sm
ile quickly at Kendrix
, “Indeed Brother I do.” T
urning back to Broderick, she saw his jaw clench with
anger as she began to whisper to him “Broderick, allow me to seek revenge for Duncan
, a
nd I shall let
you
kill Kincaid. Allow me this
and I’ll hang up my sword after this night
forever
, for you
.
”

His eyes flashed with understanding, she was entrusting
him
to seek vengeance for her,
her offer sounded like heaven to him, the only thing standing in the way was a giant of a man with arms like trees. His heart pounded as he calculated her plan, his heart and head argued. Besting Ivan the Beast would be an immensely hard challenge for him, let alone his slim
and
injured
pregnant
wife.

“Do not fail Elisabeth, I cannae live in a world without you. Slay the giant my love, and let us bring vengeance upon these maggots once and for all
.
”

Kincaid beckoned, “Enough Broderick, send forth your wife so my giant can cut her down in one slice, my men could use some entertainment
for a change.
”

“I love you Broderick Ian MacMillan, I will nae fail you
.” W
inking, she turned to face Kincaid and Ivan, now standing in the middle of the camp.

Behind her, she heard his last words to her before she walked forth to conquer the giant, “
Remember
who
you are my love. Y
ou are
the
goddamn
fucking Warrior Queen of Scotland
, no mercy
Elisabeth
!
”

Smirking, she faced Ivan as she slowly focused on
him;
unbuckling h
er sable she let it fall
upon the snowy ground.
Pulling her shortsword and
broadsword from her belt she saw Kincaid sitting in his throne beside the dead body of Siobhan, smiling with anticipation.

Shutting out the others, Elisabeth walked forth with determination on her mind and vengeance in her heart, the man before her had taken her beloved brother from her, for that, he must die.
Gripping her swords firmly in her hand, she prepared her mind for the battle ahead of her.

Large, with the strength of ten men, Ivan was a notorious warrior among the
H
ighlands;
he was a giant brute, all muscle and power. He towered over her by four heads, at least. Keeping her distance from him, she circled as he brandished his weapon and taunted her as if she were a
mere child
.

“Come on me wee one, I will make this fast so ye dinnae suffer like Duncan did
.” H
e sneered as he bounded towards her.

Stepping easily out of the way of his blade and body, she hardly moved as she landed a blow across his rib as he passed her
with one graceful slash
of her shortsword
. T
urning to face him as he howled
,
she cocked her head and grinned as he touched his gash. Red blood dripped from his fingertips as he snapped his full attention back to her.

Around her she could hear the crowds murmurings, shutting out their voices she readied herself for his next assault, he was now angry and embarrassed, his next pass would be violent and calculated.

As suspected, he twirled his blade in his hand and spat at her feet as he circled once again,
watching him intently she knew what was coming, hearing his battle cry she stood her ground as the giant rushed towards her, blow after blow her sword matched his, the force of his swings pushed her back time and time again.
He was the strongest man she had ever fought in her life.
Purely on defense she countered his powerful blows one at a time, seeing her chance, she once again delivered a blow, across his sword arm.

In one swift movement he reacted and knocked her short sword out of her hand
as he landed a blow to her hand. A
scream slipped past her lips as her leather glove was sliced
through down to her
hand;
he had finally drawn blood from her.

Spinning around he didn’t take time to set up another attack, he pounced forward and swung a barrage of wild slices through the air as he ran at her, she could feel him taking control of the fight, her sword arm stung with each attack. She had never taken such an onslaught from a warrior such as this. He was a damn leviathan. Behind her she heard Kincaid laugh with delight.
Ivan’s constant battering was making her weaker than she wanted to admit.

Regaining her footing after a vicious rebuttal by Ivan, she watched him grin as he dropped his second sword and tossed his broadsword in the air and twirled it, pointing it directly at her.

She had yet to hear the call she was waiting for, for the first time tonight she became worried she might not be able to last
. Readying
herself once again, she focused on the warrior as their swords clashed in the dark night, the sound of metal echoed off the
mountain range.
Ivan moved fast for such a large man, she had underestimated his speed, in horror, she watched as he spun around and swung with his broadsword with both hands, she simply could not match his strength. Her broadsword was ripped from her hands as he swung with his entire force, sending it flying far away.

Weaponless save a few hidden daggers in her skirt and boots, she circled as Ivan laughed, he turned to face the crowd, hearing them roar with support.

While Kincaid and Ivan cheered, she
quickly signaled Isobel
who was directly behind her, hoping to God the lass was watching, and steady.

***

Broderick watched his wife take blow after blow from the Douglas warrior, it ripped him apart to watch the vicious assault upon his pregnant wife,
and now
without a
ny
sword
she stood defenseless against the giant. Straining against his ropes, he looked down at Isobel, “Isobel, cut me loose child, now!”

Without looking at him, she shook her head and pulled her Aunt’s bow over her shoulder and pulled an arrow from the quiver, “Not now Uncle, Aunt Elisabeth needs me
.” Isobel
whispered as she notched the arrow, focusing on Elisabeth and the giant.

Beside him, he heard his brother, “Broderick, shh, listen and watch
,
”
nodding to Isobel who was aiming directly at Elisabeth.

No one was paying attention to them, or Isobel, all eyes were focused on the giant as he celebrated disarming the Warrior Queen.

Watching Elisabeth intently, he heard the call drift through the woods, the signal he knew she was waiting
for;
all she had to do was
signal his men.

As Ivan turned around to taunt her, he sauntere
d forward.
Elisabeth’s back was turned when he saw her signal Isobel behind her back.
Broderick watched in slow motion as his niece
responded to Elisabeth’s signal with the call of the hawk. The wee lass
pulled back the string of Elisabeth’s bow and shot the arrow directly at his wife
’s back
just as Ivan descended upon her.

Isobel’s aim was
true;
Broderick watched in awe as Elisabeth
in one smooth movement snatched the speeding arrow from the air just as Ivan raised his sword above her head.
It happened so
quickly
, no one saw it coming, especially the giant. Using all her force, Elisabeth
snatched
the arrow and shoved it directly into
Ivan’s chin
towards his brain, dropping the giant
to his
knees
in one swift movement.
His weapons fell from his hands as he choked.

Before him, stood his wife, the giant kneeling before Elisabeth as she pulled the shortsword she had made him out of Ivan’s belt. Without hesitation, he heard her words, “This is for Duncan!” as she beheaded the choking Douglas warrior with one jerk of her sword. Spinning around, holding the sword she had made him, he locked eyes with his beloved. She was covered in blood and sweat, her gown torn and breathless.

Broderick had never been so scared in his life, the Douglas warrio
rs and Kincaid stood motionless in complete shock
before Kincaid screamed, “Kill all of them!”

Watching Elisabeth move like lightning, she
gave the signal
to unleash hell to the warriors hidden in the woods. She picked up her fallen swords as she ran directly to him, a sea of arrows blocked out the night sky as
closed in on him
. Sliding in next to him, she quickly took the dirk from Isobel,
cut
ting
them l
oose as the Douglas warriors fell victim to MacMillan archers. In the cold distance, the hail of the MacMillan battle cry sounded, hundreds of warriors stormed out of the frozen forest
shadows
and waged war on the Douglas warriors.

Lost in the middle, Kendrix quickly grabbed the short sword from Conn’s back and put Isobel directly between the two great wolfhounds.

Broderick did the same, except he pulled his wife against
him quickly and claimed her
mouth in a passionate kiss as war raged around
them;
time had stopped whe
n their lips touched, “You damn near killed me m
aking me watch that Elisabeth, J
esu
.
”

“Your sword
s
my love.” B
estowing him with his shortsword
she beheaded Ivan with, the sword she made for him for their wedding day
, still covered in the giant’s blood and his broadsword she had recovered.
He squeezed her one last time before stretching his sore arms, being tied to the large post had taken its toll on his muscles. Standing together, Kendrix, Broderick and Elisabeth surrounded Isobel and the hounds as they watched MacMillan warriors easily combat their enemies.

From across the camp, he caught eyes with Kincaid who was arming himself and walking towards them. Broderick quickly looked down at h
is wife and kissed her forehead,
“I love you Elisabeth Rosslyn, watch my back love, I have someone to kill
.” H
e growled as he turned and walked towards the Douglas Laird who was now waiting for him where Ivan’s body lay.

Around them the battle ensued, swords clashed into the night as the MacMillan warriors stampeded into camp
and waged war upon the outnumbered Douglas men.

***

Bloody and injured from fighting with the giant,
Elisabeth watched
Broderick
twirl
his
broadsw
ord, followed by
shortsword. Rolling his neck he made his way towards Kincaid, slashing down Douglas warriors along his way.

Reaching down, she took her bow
and quiver from Isobel
, all while keeping an eye on her intimidating husband. Tucking Isobel between Conn and Isla, Kendrix protected their back against attack. Eyeing the battlefield she scanned the chaos until she saw her husband once again.

Standing in the center of the storm she
began to
systematically exterminate Douglas warriors with her bow, pulling back arrow after arrow she showed no mercy as she struck down warrior after warrior, in her sight
s she kept an eye on Broderick
as
she would not hesitate to put an arrow into Kincaid if need be.