Surely, a man who could maintain his dwelling so well could not have lost that much of his humanity.
Bliss clutched the bundle that held all she owned. This was her new home. This was where she was to live with her husband. This was where she would meet her fate one way or the other.
“You will explain who I am to Lord Rannick?” Bliss asked, stopping before taking a step out of the woods and into the clearing where the dwelling sat.
“Unfortunately, that’s left to you,” Lawler said. “If I remain, Lord Rannick will demand I take you with me.”
“He could demand I leave,” Bliss said, fear shivering her.
“True, but you won’t leave. It is your duty to remain here, no matter what he says to you.”
Bliss did not know what to say. Her legs trembled so badly that she feared she would not be able to take a single step.
“Go and be done with it, and may God be with you,” Lawler said and turned and hurried away.
Bliss stared at his retreating back, her eyes not leaving him until he disappeared into the distance, not having glanced back once. She was alone. Completely alone. Alone with a possible madman.
She took a cautious step and was relieved her legs did not collapse beneath her. She forced herself to take more steps until she stood not far from the dwelling’s door. She listened for any sound that someone was inside but heard none.
Thinking he could be asleep, she called out, “Good day. Is anyone there?”
She got no response. She stood where she was not knowing what to do. She dared not enter the dwelling, fearful of being trapped inside when Lord Rannick found her there. At least outside she could run if necessary.
She heard the footfalls then. They were heavy and determined and coming from behind the dwelling. They drew closer and closer, sounding as if they pounded in her ears, and she wondered over his size. He had to be large to have such a heavy gait and thick perhaps, which meant he’d have strength to him. She recalled Lawler telling her that it had taken many men to capture him and return him home. That meant he was beyond strong.
Bliss’s stomach roiled and her legs grew weak once again and she braced herself as best as she could to meet her husband.
CHAPTER 2
Bliss clamped her lips shut to stop the gasp that rushed up in her. She had thought she’d been prepared to meet him, that his appearance would not shock her—she was wrong.
He was a sight, his skin-colored bronze, far different than the fair-skin of his countrymen. The scar she had been told about ran down his right cheek from just under his eye, disappearing into his mustache and short-cropped beard that were lighter in color than his brown hair, though they matched the golden strands that ran through his shoulder-length hair. The scar barely marred his fine features, unlike his scowl that gave a sinister look to his brown eyes dashed with green.
He was tall. Her head would probably reach no more than his shoulders that were wide, as was his chest. He was not broad with muscle but more defined with it from what she could see with his shirtsleeves rolled-up and his chest partially exposed, the ties at the neck of his shirt hanging open. The strip of plaid that usually ran over the chest hung at his side while another part of his plaid hugged his narrow waist tightly.
The one thing that troubled her the most was the axe he gripped in his hand and Lawler’s words came back to warn her.
Lord Rannick told his father that if he forced another wife on him, he would kill her and save her the trouble of whatever heinous death would surely befall her.
“Begone from here,” Rannick ordered with a sharp tongue, caught unaware by the thin, plain woman standing not far from his dwelling and staring at him in obvious fear.
Bliss gathered her courage. She gave a quick thought to keep the truth from him, let him think she had lost her way. But lies only birthed more lies and the deeper the lies, the more difficult for the truth to finally surface. Did she dare begin her marriage on lies? Or did she speak the truth and suffer death?
“I am parched. May I have a drink?’ she asked and so the lie started, but what else was left to her?
“Nay, be on your way,” he ordered again and pointed the axe for her to leave, then walked to stand in front of the dwelling, raising the axe to grip in both hands.
The weapon frightened her. However, the truth of him learning why she was there, frightened her even more. If a lie would save her, then she would let it spill from her lips and worry over the consequences later.