Free CLAIMED BY A HIGHLANDER (THE DOUGLAS LEGACY Book 2) by Margaret Mallory Page B

situation worse.”
    A shiver went through Sybil. What did William intend to do?
    “Why did she have to come here?” William said. “’Tis bad enough that I can’t rid myself of one of Archie’s sisters, but I must have two of ye?”
    Sybil was sorely tempted to kick William in the ankle.
    “I understand your concern,” Margaret said in a soothing tone. “But Sybil is my sister. Of course we must protect her.”
    “We must do no such thing!”
    Sybil watched his boots as he stomped to the side table, and she heard the gurgle of liquid as he poured himself a cup of spirits. He must have guzzled it, for a moment later he slammed his cup down.
    “I know ye can’t be suggesting we turn her out, dear,” Margaret said. “She has no place else to go.”
    “No place to go? Ha,” William said. “That lass had half the men at court eating out of her hand. Let one of them take the risk of sheltering her.”
    “Ye know verra well that, despite Archie’s efforts to persuade her, Sybil refused to accept any of them for her husband.”
    “None of them will take her as a wife now—but they will take her.” William gave a harsh laugh. “James Finnart has been a fool for Sybil for years. She should have gone to him. With his father in favor with the queen and the regent, Finnart can do whatever he likes.”
    “She despises Finnart,” Margaret said. “She would never go to him.”
    “Finnart would teach her to mind her tongue . Damn it, that lass is troublesome,” William said. “But at least Sybil looks as if she would be a lively bed partner and a good breeder—unlike the sister I got.”
    William wielded his sharp tongue like a blade to pierce Margaret’s heart. Sybil lay helpless under the bed with tears of rage stinging her eyes as the conversation continued its unpleasant course, with his voice loud and angry and Margaret’s soft and placating.
    Marriage. God save me from it.
    As soon as William left the chamber, slamming the door behind him, Sybil crawled out from her hiding place and put her arms around her sister.
    “By the saints, ye shouldn’t allow him to speak to ye that way,” she said.
    “Ye can’t blame William for being disappointed with my failure to birth a child,” Margaret said. “He wants one as badly as I do.”
    There was no point in arguing. If blinding herself to her husband’s true nature helped Margaret tolerate her miserable situation, that was probably a blessing.
    “What do ye think he intends to do about me?” Sybil asked.
    “William is all talk. He would never turn you out.” Margaret laid her palm against Sybil’s cheek and looked into her eyes. “Even if he had a mind to, I would not allow it. I’m not as weak as ye believe.”
    “I don’t want ye to argue with him,” Sybil said, knowing it would do no good. “Ye mustn’t let this upset you, for the babe’s sake.”
    “I’ll speak with my husband again in the morning,” Margaret said, and patted Sybil’s arm. “He’s sure to be in a better mood after he’s had a good night’s sleep and his breakfast.”
    While Sybil believed her sister would do anything to save her, it was abundantly clear that Margaret was powerless in her marriage. Margaret was right, however, about William being all talk. He liked to complain and criticize, but Sybil did not believe he’d have the nerve to actually throw her out.
    And yet she could not shake the uneasy feeling that she had made a grave error in putting her safety in the hands of another Douglas man.
    ***
    Hector rode through the gates of Castle Leod tired, dirty, and in need of a woman. He had ridden for days to reach Eastern Ross.
    “Have the laird’s chamber prepared for me at once,” he ordered as he tossed his reins to one of the servants. “And send that young Maggie to me.”
    He had a fine tower house of his own nearby, but he stayed in Castle Leod, the traditional home of the MacKenzie chieftains, to remind people here that Hector MacKenzie of Gairloch