Janet screamed, though her cries were muffled by the brutal hand over her mouth. She thrashed and kicked, desperate to free herself from the beast’s iron grip, her mind frenzied, every nerve spun taut with fear. But when the man thrust the point of a dagger at her throat, she froze. Panting, unable to control her breath, Janet shifted her eyes from side to side as she searched for an escape.
“Shut your bloody gob,” he growled, pulling her away from the flames creeping from the fallen oil lamp. Janet’s blood ran cold at the sound of Lieutenant Cummins’s voice. “You ruined my life, and now we will burn together in the fires of hell.”
She shied away from the knife, her head pushing into him. “Noooo,” she garbled through his fingers. A bead of sweat bled from her forehead as the flames climbed up the coverlet and ignited the bed-curtains. Dear God, she was going to die at the hand of this madman. Smoke billowed around them. Her eyes burned and watered as she panicked, pressing her body against the devil. In a rush of courage, she stomped on his instep.
“Bitch!” Cummins staggered and shoved her to the floor.
Janet’s head hit the chair leg hard. She winced. “Ow!”
“Whine all you want, wench. I prefer a woman who moans.” Tottering toward her, he began to loosen his falls. “I will take my plunder whilst we burn.”
“Stop!” she shrieked, scooting away and dragging her feet beneath her.
“Yes, it pleases me to see the terror in your eyes. Fear me, wench!” He dropped to his knee, his peg leg scraping the wood behind while he grabbed for her shoulders.
Janet ducked away from his hands. She sprang to her feet and dashed toward the door. “Help!” she cried, lunging for the latch. Cummins caught the hem of her shift and yanked so hard Janet’s head whipped back. As she thudded to the floor, the blackguard launched himself atop her. “You will be mine!” He yanked up her hem, the smoke choking her while the flames leaped from the canopy to the ceiling.
“Help!” Janet screamed, praying for a miracle, fighting to slide out from under the madman. Tears flooded her eyes. She sputtered and coughed while struggling with all her strength.
An ember fell beside her head. “Help!” she yelled over and over, while she wrenched a hand free and slammed her fist against the lieutenant’s temple.
“You shrew!” he bellowed, swinging his arm back with an open hand.
Janet winced, protecting her head with her arm.
The door flew open. She sucked in a whoosh of air while the fire behind them leaped.
Lunging inside, Robert stopped Cummins’s hand in midstrike and dragged the brute off her. “I’ll kill you for this, you ragged-arsed fiend.” The silver of His Lairdship’s eyes gleaming with rage, his voice low and deadly, he swung at the scoundrel’s jaw.
The dragoon ducked, wrenching his arm way and skittering toward the flames. “You! Just the man I wanted to see.” Cummins cackled like a madman. “The pair of you will die here this very night!” Gnashing his teeth, he drew a flintlock from his holster. The blaze leaped behind the viper as if he were Satan incarnate.
Robert kicked the pistol as it fired. Still coughing, Janet scooted toward the door, gasping for air while Robert drew his dirk. “Come at me.”
“No!” Cummins’s eyes were wide and crazed. “We burn!”
Bless the saints, Lionel and the servants barreled inside with buckets and blankets, racing for the flames. Hissing filled the air as the men emptied their pails.
The lieutenant lunged to the floor, reaching for his dagger. “You’re traitors, the lot of you!”
“Watch out!” Janet warned as Cummins slashed the blade through the air, hobbling toward the servants. As he raised the weapon over his head, Robert grabbed the brute’s wrist and stopped the attack as he wedged himself between Winfred and the men battling the fire with blankets.
The two men faced each other, snarling in a bout of strength while the razor-sharp blade shook between them. Scowling, Robert gained the upper hand, shifting the point of the dagger toward the madman. Slowly, torturously, the knife inched toward the weaker man until, in a heartbeat, Robert overpowered him, striking the blade straight across Winfred’s gullet. The evil man dropped to his face, the water from the buckets mingling with his blood and pooling red.
“Miss Janet!” Robert dashed to her side and wrapped his powerful arms around her. “Did he hurt you?”
“I-I-I—” Heaven help her, she curled into his warmth, his strength, his security while she caught her breath. “Nothing but a bruise or two.”
Lionel and the others doused the remaining flames with blankets, snuffing the fire.
On a sigh she threaded her fingers around Robert’s neck. “I thought I would die for certain.”
“Not this night, lass. Not until you’re old, with great-grandchildren playing about your feet.” He tightened his grip and stood. “I’ll take you below stairs and away from this gruesome sight.”
“Thank you,” she said, then stretched a hand to Lionel. “I will ensure you and the men are rewarded for your gallantry.”
“Bless you, Miss Janet,” said Lionel, walking with them to the chamber door. “The men will indeed be indebted to you for your kindness.”
She rested her head on Robert’s chest as he started down the steps. “I am grateful to you most of all, my love.”
“I only thank God I arrived when I did.”
“The man was insane. I fought as hard as I could. But he overpowered me.”
“Aye. And now he’s headed for Hades.” Robert stopped at the landing and looked her in the eye. “I am amazed by your bravery, your strength. With your fighting spirit, you purchased valuable time. And now you are free of him.”
“I am.” She raised her chin and kissed his lips. “Let us think on him no more.”
“Agreed, though your aunt and uncle are waiting below. They’re worried to death. Are you ready to face them?”
“In your arms I can face an army.”
He kissed her forehead. “That’s my lass.”
She cupped his cheek, the scar making him look all the more gallant. “How did you know I was in peril?”
“I was restless and took a stroll. Somehow I ended up across from this house.” A furrow formed in his brow. “Thank God I did.”
“Oh, thank the heavenly stars! Janet, my dearest,” Auntie Dallis called out as soon as they started down the final flight of stairs. A tear splashed on her cheek as she drew her hands over her mouth. “Are you injured, my poor sweeting? What happened up there?”
“She needs fresh air.” Robert did not set her down as he stepped into the entry. “The smoke had all but overcome her.”
“I’m coming good,” Janet said, coughing. “Thanks to Mr. Grant’s heroism.”
Uncle’s gaze trailed upward. “Is the fire snuffed?”
“Aye, and Winfred Cummins dead.”
“So it was he?” Sir Broden shook his head.
“It was. I’m afraid the bedchamber is badly burned. I recommend all rooms above and below be vacated until reconstruction is completed.”
“I’ve already sent a runner to Sir Donald requesting his hospitality for the night. The liveryman is hitching the horses as we speak.”
Robert nodded. “With your consent, I would like to accompany you to assist Miss Janet. She has had a terrible ordeal. And—”
Before he could utter another word, Kennan bounded through the door with Ciar right behind. “What is the meaning of this? Unhand my sister this instant!”
Auntie blocked his path. “Just one moment, young whelp.”
“Not until Grant sets Janet on her feet. Then I need an explanation for this untoward state of affairs.” He blinked. “Are…are you wearing nothing but a shift?” Sniffing, Kennan turned full circle as he swept a hand across his bloodshot eyes. “Something’s afire.”
“Was afire,” said Uncle. “Miss Janet had a stowaway in her bedchamber, and—”
“You bloody bastard!”
“Kennan,” Janet chided, keeping her fingers firmly laced around His Lairdship’s neck.
Both Sir Broden and Ciar blocked Kennan’s path to Robert, who managed to smile even though her brother was behaving like a boor. He gave her a wink. “Are you well enough to stand on your own, miss?”
“I believe so.” She coughed for added effect.
“Everyone’s tired,” he continued after setting her down. “Let us retire to the parlor, where we can explain the whole ordeal whilst we wait for the coach to come around.”
Once Janet had a cloak secured about her shoulders, Robert sat on the settee beside her while she related exactly what had happened. Kennan stood at the hearth with his arms crossed, frowning and glaring at Robert throughout the soliloquy. Ciar looked on from beside Kennan as if he’d planted himself there to intercede if necessary.
By the time Janet finished, Kennan had resorted to pacing back and forth. “I didn’t think Cummins had it in him to steal into my uncle’s house—up to the third floor with a peg leg, no less. Good God, had I known, I never would have allowed you out of my sight, Sister.” He kneeled before her and grasped her hands. “Can you ever forgive me?”
“Perhaps.” It was her turn to smile as she glanced to Robert’s handsome mien. “As long as you agree to a truce with Mr. Grant.”
Kennan took in a deep breath as he rose. Then his gaze shifted to Robert, a bit heated at first. His lips thinned, then he bowed his head. “I owe you a debt of gratitude for rushing to my sister’s aid. Please tell me, how did you come to be in such proximity to the town house?”
“I couldn’t sleep and stepped out for a bit of air. I was across the street when I saw the flicker of fire from a third-floor window—honestly, I had no idea it was hers until I heard Miss Janet’s scream. And I’ll tell you true, the only other time I’ve heard such a chilling shriek of terror was when she plummeted down the ravine at Finnach Ridge.”
“Thank heavens he was there. After our sweeting shrieked, Broden and I had only just opened the door to our bedchamber, and I’d never seen such a sight,” said Auntie Dallis. “I do not even think Grant’s toes touched the stairs, he was moving so fast.”
Kennan folded his arms, his expression softening. “The words you whispered in my ear this night. Did you speak true?”
“I am an honest man—”
“I’ll vouch for that,” said Ciar.
Robert cleared his throat and stood. “And to further prove my sincerity, if I have ever spoken truer words I know not what they are.”
Kennan gave a resolute nod. “Then we must make haste to Achnacarry afore word of this night reaches my father.”
“So soon?” asked Auntie Dallis.
“A moment.” Janet shoved herself to her feet, swooning a bit. But Robert immediately steadied her. “If it concerns me, I must know what you said to my brother, Robert.”
“Very well, if you insist.” His Adam’s apple bobbed as he squared his shoulders. “I said, and I quote, ‘I aim to marry Miss Janet. When she is mine, I vow on my life I will spend my days making her happy. Is that not what you want for your sister?’” He took her hand in his and dropped to one knee. “Mo cridhe, I planned to propose marriage in a more intimate setting, but I can no longer wait. Will you marry me?”
Kennan placed his hand on Robert’s shoulder. “If our father grants his consent.”
Janet’s heart soared. She’d gone from facing certain death to being the happiest woman in all of Scotland all in one evening. Tears welled in her eyes. “I will marry you, Mr. Grant. And God save my father if he does not agree.”
His smile filled the room with happiness, and as he plied her hand with a kiss, Janet did not care if all of Glasgow witnessed this moment.
Kennan squeezed his fingers into Robert’s shoulder. “The two of you may have made a pact for now, but nothing is settled until my father gives his blessing.”
Robert eyed him. “If I must, I will wait.”
Though the night had gone from terrifying to rapturous, there was still something Janet had to settle. And it couldn’t wait. “Kennan, I need to hear you apologize to Robert for using your dagger against him at the duel. You’re no backbiter, and I shall not tolerate any further jibes against His Lairdship.”
Kennan gaped as if smacked between the eyes. “Ah…” His astonished gaze shifted to Robert, who stood rigid and unsmiling. Without a word the big laird turned his cheek and pointed to the puckered scar. “Jesus,” Kennan cursed, gulping.
“Well?” Janet grasped one of the chairs and sank her fingers into the upholstery.
“It was a rather vicious attack.” Ciar clapped her brother on the nape. “And that’s not like you, even considering the rift between your kin.”
Dropping his shoulders, Kennan gave a nod. “I was wrong. Just couldn’t admit it, is all.” He thrust out his hand. “Truth be told, ye fight like Goliath, and I’d be honored to have you by my side in any battle.”
Robert seized the offering, clamping his fingers around Kennan’s forearm—a Highlander’s grasp, which meant far more than a mere shaking of the hands. “And you, sir. You’re faster than a wildcat. Next time I, too, would prefer to have you on my side.”
“Och, I’m glad that’s settled.” Broden joined them. “I will write a letter to Lochiel and explain the goodwill Laird Grant has shown us.”
Janet clapped her hands together. “Oh, Uncle, that will help us immensely. Thank you.”
“Excellent,” Kennan agreed. He turned to Robert. “Now, sir, I bid you good eve. The repairs to the barque are complete. We will sail for Achnacarry on the morrow, and I aim to ensure you do not take liberties with my sister again until and if you are properly wed.”
“I, ah…Of course.” Robert reached for Janet’s hands. “Will you feel safe with your brother?”
If only she could say no, but they’d just managed to win Kennan over, and to disagree would be unwise. Moreover, she desperately needed her brother as an ally when they faced Lochiel. “Until the morrow.”