She shook her head again. Gabriel decided to take a different approach. It seemed as though an hour had passed since he'd joined her on the steps, yet he knew less than a few minutes had actually gone by. The length of time didn't matter to him. He didn't care how long it took for her to regain her control. The bastard MacInnes soldiers would have to wait. Gabriel could have taken the weapon away from her, of course. He didn't want to. He wanted her to give it to him.
'Very well then,' he said. 'I'll order my men to kill every one of them. Will that suit you?'
'Yes.'
He couldn't mask his surprise. He let out a sigh, then turned to give the order. He wasn't one to bluff. If she wanted him to kill the infidels, then he would accommodate her. Hell, he'd been looking for an excuse anyway. Pleasing his wife would do well enough.
'Calum,' he shouted.
'Aye, MacBain?'
'No,' Johanna blurted out.
Gabriel turned to her. 'No?'
Tears gathered in her eyes. 'We can't kill them.'
'Yes, we can.'
She shook her head. 'It would make us no better than they if we let our anger control our actions. Make them go away. They turn my stomach.'
The strength was back in her voice. Gabriel nodded, satisfied. 'Give me your bow and arrow first.'
She slowly lowered her arms. What happened next so surprised her, she didn't even have time to react. Gabriel snatched her weapon out of her hands, half-turned, took aim, and dispatched the arrow with incredible speed and accuracy.
A howl of pain followed. The arrow found its target in the shoulder of the same MacInnes soldier she'd injured. Robert, the laird's son, had slipped his dagger from his belt and was just about to hurl the weapon when Gabriel spotted the movement. Neither Calum nor Keith had even had time to shout a warning.
Laird MacInnes went into a rage on his son's behalf. Gabriel's fury was far worse. He shoved Johanna behind his back, tossed the bow to the ground, and reached for his sword.
'Get the hell off my land, MacInnes, or I'll kill you now.'
The MacInnes soldiers didn't waste time leaving. Gabriel wouldn't let Johanna move until the courtyard was clear.
'Keith, send ten Maclaurin soldiers to follow them to our border,' he ordered.
'As you wish, MacBain,' Keith shouted back.
The minute her husband moved, Johanna skirted her way around him and ran down the steps. She crossed the clearing, untying her belt as she ran. She had her plaid off before she knelt down next to the battered woman and used the material to cover her. She placed her hand on the side of the woman's neck, felt the pulse beating there, and almost wept with relief.
Father MacKechnie put his hand on Johanna's shoulder. 'We'd best get her inside,' he whispered.
Calum bent down on one knee and leaned forward to lift the woman. Johanna screamed at the soldier. 'Don't touch her!'
'She can't stay here, m'lady,' Calum argued, trying to reason with his distraught mistress. 'Let me carry her inside.'
'Gabriel will carry her,' Johanna decided. She took a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself. 'I didn't mean to shout at you, Calum. Please forgive me. You shouldn't be lifting her anyway. You'll tear your stitches.'
Calum nodded. He was surprised and pleased his mistress had offered him an apology.
'Is she dead?' Keith asked.
Johanna shook her head. Gabriel pulled her to her feet then and bent down to lift the MacKay woman into his arms.
'Be careful with her,' Johanna whispered.
'Where do you want me to put her?' Gabriel asked. He stood up, cradling the sleeping woman in his arms.
'Give her my room,' Father MacKechnie suggested. 'I'll find another bed tonight.'
'Do you think she'll live?' Calum asked as he followed his laird across the courtyard.
'How the hell do I know?' Gabriel asked.
'She'll survive,' Johanna announced, praying she was right.
Calum ran ahead to open the doors. Johanna followed her husband through the entrance. Hilda was just coming down the hallway from the back door. She spotted her mistress and called out to her.
'Might I have a word with you about our menu for tonight's dinner guests?'
'We aren't having guests,' Johanna said. 'I would rather eat my supper with the devil or King John himself than suffer the MacInnes' company.'
Hilda's eyes widened. Johanna started up the steps after her husband, then stopped. 'I seem to be snapping at everyone, Hilda. Please forgive me. I'm not myself today.'
She didn't wait for Hilda to accept her apology but hurried on up the steps. A few minutes later, their guest was settled in bed. Gabriel stood by his wife's side while she checked for broken bones.
'She appears to be intact,' Johanna whispered. 'The blows to her head worry me. Look at the swelling above her temple, Gabriel, I don't know how severe the damage is. She might not ever wake up.'
Johanna didn't realize she'd started crying until her husband ordered her to stop. 'It won't do her any good if you fall apart. She needs your help, not your tears.'
He was right, of course. Johanna mopped the wetness away from her cheeks with the backs of her hands. 'Why did they cut her hair like that?'
She reached down and touched the side of the woman's head. Clare MacKay had thick, dark brown hair. It hung straight down but barely covered her ears. The MacInnes men hadn't used scissors. The edges were too jagged. They'd used a knife instead.
Humiliation, Johanna decided. Aye, that was their reason behind the foul deed.
'It's a miracle she's still breathing,' Gabriel said. 'Do what you can, Johanna. I'm going to let Father MacKechnie come inside now. He'll want to give her the last rites.'
Johanna wanted to shout a denial. The sacrament of extreme unction was given only to those poor souls hovering at death's door. Reason told Johanna it was the logical thing to do. Yet the woman was breathing, damn it all, and Johanna didn't want to consider the possibility she wouldn't recover.
'Just as a precaution,' Gabriel insisted to gain her cooperation.
'Yes,' she whispered, 'just as a precaution.' She straightened up. 'I'm going to make her more comfortable,' she announced then. She crossed the room to fetch the pitcher of water and the bowl from the chest and carried them back to the bed. She was going to put them on the floor near her feet, but Gabriel thoughtfully moved the chest close to her. He started for the door as she hurried across the room again to collect a stack of linen cloths.
Gabriel reached for the latch, then suddenly stopped. He turned around to look at his wife. She wasn't paying him any attention now. She hurried back to the bed, sat down on the side, and dipped one of the cloths into the bowl of water she'd just poured.
'Answer a question for me,' he ordered.
'Yes?'
'Were you ever beaten like this?'
Johanna didn't look up at her husband when she gave her answer. 'No.'
He hadn't realized he'd been holding his breath. He let it out after she gave him her reply.
Then she qualified her answer. 'He rarely struck my face or my head. Once, though, he was less careful.'
'And the rest of your body?'
'Clothing hid those bruises,' she answered.
She didn't have any idea how her explanation affected him. Gabriel was shaken. It was a wonder to him she'd ever agreed to marry again. Hell, he'd demanded she trust him. He felt like a complete fool now. If he were in her position, he sure as certain wouldn't have trusted anyone ever again.
