Clymer rode hard to the MacGreagor Keep to tell Kevin what had happened. He knew his laird would be enraged, but not as enraged now as he would be when he saw her. The beating of a defenseless woman was a specific insult to MacGreagors, and Kevin's worries about an English bride fitting in would be trifle now.

The tall, two-story MacGreagor Keep was made of sod and gray stones. Behind the keep, a web of paths led to dozens of cottages and a stone wall surround both the keep and the cottages.

As soon as he was spotted riding swiftly toward them, one of the guards let out a long, low whistle and others lowered the drawbridge across the moat. Clymer hurried over the bridge and covered the distance of the wide courtyard before he halted his horse near the steps of the keep. A crowd was beginning to gather, each wearing plaids the same color as his.

Kevin heard the whistle and was standing on the landing with a concerned expression on his face. He knew something was wrong or Clymer wouldn't have come back alone. He watched as his soldier took the steps two at a time to reach him.

Clymer blurted it out, "She has been beaten."

Kevin's head jutted forward. "What?"

"She wants to die, Kevin. She said it is the only gift she has to give."

He spread his legs apart and crossed his arms preparing to hear the details. A rage was beginning to build in him. "But she is still alive?"