“Ye will learn to, as ye will learn so much more. Ye will learn to.” Max smiled at her; his teeth bared in what looked like a maniacal grin. “Ye daenae get it, do ye? I have waited for ye to mature so we can have this moment, and now that ye have, nothing will stop me from having this. Nae a damn thing, Katherine.”
He rubbed his hand against her cheek, and when she pulled away, he slapped her across it, stunning her. It was a soft blow, but one which she had not expected, and so it sent her reeling.
“Ye will nae behave that way to yer husband, nae under my roof. Ye have to understand the ways which ye have to behave, and ye must behave accordingly, otherwise, there will be con…”
“To hell with ye, Max! Ye flippin’ bampot! I will have nothin’ do with ye! Ye terrible, terrible person!”
“Ye think ye have a choice in this? The date is set and everything is in motion already, Katherine. I will have ye as my bride in a fortnight, and ye cannot do a damn thing about it. I will take this as a filthy wench unable to control yer emotions on one night, but ye behave like this again, and I’ll give ye a proper beating myself. Ye can count on a Laird to put his Lady on the right path.”
Kate stared at him, unable to comprehend what she had just heard. How had this been his plan all this time? How could a man who had raised her suddenly want to go to bed with her? It was wrong, and she would not have it, she could not have it.
“I will leave then. I will leave the McGowan estate, and ye can find yer bride elsewhere! Because I would rather die than agree to lay with ye Max! Ye piece of scum; ye have no shame! No bloody shame!”
Kate turned and began to leave, rushing for the doors. The tears came as she got to them, and just as she began to pull them, Max called out to her again.
“Katherine, if ye leave my estate, I will not stop ye. As much as I want ye to be mine, I do not have the time for such petty chases. Make the right choice now and stay. I will make sure yer well taken care of, and everything ye need will be at yer disposal as my Lady. I promise ye that.”
“I’d rather die, Max.”
“Alright then, but if ye leave, I’ll just have to force yer sister Freya to marry me.”
CHAPTER2
Kate froze,turning back to stare at her uncle. He had asked her because Kate was the oldest of her sisters, but if she refused, he would take Freya as well. The last thing she wanted was to put Freya in the arms of a man like that. They had endured under him for so long because they had no other choice, and he was the only family they had left, but with what he was proposing, it was worse than death.
“Ye leave that wee lass alone, I dare ye. Ye lay a finger on any of my sisters and I’ll make ye regret it.” Kate fired back, baring her teeth in an animalistic rage.
“Ye live under my roof. A few days without food and a place to sleep would make ye change yer mind. In fact, I would leave ye to all of the pleasures ye need, and punish them for yer own refusal. I’m sure that ought to make ye change yer mind, Katherine.” Max added with a smile. He ran his finger across his chair and pointed to the one next to it. “I offer ye the Lady of McGowan, Katherine Sweeney, take it now, or be forced into it.”
Kate spat and rushed out the doors. She grabbed her cloak from the servant by the door, and ran past a shocked Isla. Kate heard her uncle call back to one of the servants and knew what he would tell them. She had to act fast, otherwise there would be no way for her or her sisters to be safe from the wrath of the mad man who sought to have them.
Pushing into their chambers, Freya and Willow quickly sat up and turned to see their eldest sister panting, with rainwater dripping off her cloak and a look of absolute terror across her face. Before they could react to the scene, the rumbling of thunder, followed by the sound of the estate’s bell reached their ears. It was two rings, a sign to lock down the estate and ensure no one got in, or in the case of Kate and her sisters, that no one got out.
“We have to go, right now!” Kate began, yelling at her sisters.
“Are we under attack?” Willow asked, grabbing her little club which she kept under her bed.
Kate stared at Willow for a moment, seeing the brief flash of excitement in her eyes as she believed that the estate was under attack and she needed to defend it with her weapon. All of her sisters were incredibly different, and sometimes, the difference shocked her, but Willow usually stunned everyone from time to time, and this was one such moment. Kate snapped out of it, shaking her head.
“Nae, we are nae! We have to leave, right now. Max is out of his mind, and if we stay, we would nae be able to get away from him. Everyone take a bag and only an extra pair of clothes. Hurry now!” Kate added, turning to look out the door. She spotted a few servants who rushed out of the same door of the great halls which she had just stepped out of.
They ran up to her, each of them exchanging glances with each other as they approached her. Kate stepped out into the rain, putting herself between the servants and her sisters, turning back to Freya, she whispered just enough for her to hear.
“Leave through the back, stay hidden and head to the fence line by the cashew tree, I’ll meet ye there in a moment, hurry!”
Freya nodded and stared at her sister for a moment before shutting the door behind her. Kate knew that Freya would take the lead when it was needed, and she would help Willow and the youngest, Lily to get ready. All they needed were a few clothes and some food. Kate knew that they could not remain in the McGowan estate. As long as they did, they would not be safe until Max had gotten what he wanted
“Kate, Laird says we got to stop ye from leavin’,” came the first of the servants.
“Well tell him to go straight to the healer!” Kate replied.
“Look, we daenae ken what’s this all about, right? But we’re just doing what the Laird ordered, so please, daenae make this hard, okay?”
Kate looked up at the window and saw Max stare down at her from there. She looked up at him with defiance in her eyes.
“Grab her!” Max yelled back down.
The first man lunged at Kate, grabbing her forearm, but she pulled away, and he ripped off the sleeve of her cloak. She rushed for the door to the room, looking to get away, and the men followed after her quickly. Kate waited as the first servant got his head in, and she slammed the door into his head, forcing him back out the way he’d come. She quickly placed the wooden beam in place, locking the door from the inside. Kate turned and saw that they had left, and she threw the cloak off and rushed towards the door at the back, jumping back out into the rain.