A Love to Discover (Loving in the Highlands 2)

He looks at me expectantly, waiting for me to say something, but I just stay silent, even though I have the urge to say something bad to him.

'You see, when people are sad, they start thinking faster and better, so I did some fast thinking and came to a new idea – an idea that made me happy again,' he says, smiling foolishly.

At that moment, I start worrying more than ever. If he feels happy, it means that something really bad is going to happen. If he is happy, then I or Megan are unhappy. I barely resist the urge to ask him what his new idea is about, when he continues:

'I am going to marry you, Elsie. Then, after we get married, I will ask the king to grant these lands to me.'

'Are you crazy, Uncle Murgan?' I raise my eyebrows. 'You cannot marry me – I am your niece!'

'So what? Megan is also my niece, and I was going to marry her, too,' he says shrugging. 'I need these lands, Elsie, and nothing or no one will stop me in any way,' he says these last words almost in a menacing whisper, bringing his filthy face closer to mine.

'It has never been normal that you wanted to marry Megan,' I say, trying to be as calm as it is possible in this situation. 'It has never been normal for an uncle to marry his niece!'

'I need these lands, Elsie, my dear,' he replies with a smile. 'And I will ask the king about them. After all, I deserve this land as a dowry from you more than your sister Megan.'

'The king will not grant you anything. You will not succeed.'

'You surely remember about Abhainn Brothaigh – the man that was going to marry you after I and Megan got married, right?' He says with a fresh start. 'Well, he is a good friend of mine. I have his support. He has told me that he will do everything so that I will succeed in my plans.'

I look at him in silence. I am getting angrier and angrier, but I need to keep calm.

'Of course, he got very unhappy when he learned that he would not marry you,' he adds. 'He wanted to have you all day and all night. So I suggested something that he agreed to immediately.'

He waits to see my reaction, but I stay silent. My heart is beating faster, as I can feel something horrible is coming soon as an information.

'He will take your virginity after the wedding night,' my uncle says, looking into my eyes. 'Also, whenever he visits us, he will spend the night with you, in your bed. You will be his mistress.'

I feel like I will throw up. I feel sick. How can my uncle be such a horrible man? I cannot believe that he is my uncle. It is too unbelievable. It is too bad to be true. I know that I need to make my uncle see the absurdity of his plan. And I need to do it calmly, so that it will not turn into a shouting match or a fight.

'First of all, the church will not let you marry your niece,' I tell him. 'Second, the king will never grant you this land, because this land belongs to Megan, and not me. It is Megan's responsibility.'

He laughs. 'My friend is a very powerful man and has the king's favor. I consider that problem solved. I think my plan of making you his mistress is fair enough, and he will be happy to help me carry out my plans. It is a reasonable price for his support, and as he is an influential man, I am convinced that I will get the land.'

'I do not understand why you are so obsessed with getting this land,' I cannot believe that he has developed this mad plan because of his desire to own this land.

'I want these lands. And everything will happen according to my plan,' he says, looking away, as if dreaming.

I am getting more and more scared by each second, that all of that is going to turn into reality. But need to stay calm and let him know what the reality is going to be in my opinion.

'Listen, Uncle Murgan,' I say proudly, keeping my head high. 'I am never going to marry you, and I am never going to become that man's mistress. So you will never count on my favor.'

My uncle's face is contorted, and a second later a wheezing slap is planted on my cheek. I turn my head, holding my cheek with one hand, gasping. The pain is real and burning. For a second, everything goes black in front of my eyes, but then I come to my senses and hear him shout to his men: