Ruthless Read Online Free Page A

answer.
    Magnus' teeth clanged together so hard he
near bit his tongue. He stared at his commander for a moment then
forced his face to relax.
    "This morn, I had but one wish. Burn it to
the ground!" Looking around the room, he sighed.
    "You've changed your mind, then?" Sweyn's
solemn face brightened.
    "Aye. 'Twould be a terrible waste. Though we
destroyed much, the next baron can rebuild it. We'll leave enough
men to see to its safety until King David appoints Blackbriar's new
lord. He would not take kindly to us leaving him an empty
shell."
    Satisfied, he used the tip of his sword to
retrieve a deep blue-green kirtle tangled with a soft silver smock
off the floor. The faint hint of spiced apples drifted from the
soft cloth. Ah, the tall, naked lass of his mind had worn it.
    His cock again burst to life beneath his
kilt, shooting pleasure through his battered body. He shook his
head in disgust.
    The long battle had left him brainsick.

Chapter 5
    Kildonan Forest, Five Months Later
    Heat caused Muriele to gather her skirts
between her legs and secure them in front with a thin cord. Leaving
her mother behind in the old hut, she went out to hunt.
    Magnus' wrath had spared Blackbriar's
villages, for they had not participated in the castle's defiance.
Far from it. Lord Baldor had locked the gate and left them to fend
for themselves.
    From the earliest Muriele could remember she
went with her mother to bring extra food, clothing, and medicines
to those who needed it. Her father kept watch over their homes and
farms, and provided aid to repair huts and thatched roofs. Her
parents never ignored any plea for help.
    After Lord Baldor arrived at Blackbriar, he
forbad giving aid to the villagers. It did not stop the women.
Hiding their supplies in a cart, they went as often as they could.
When Baldor kept too close a watch on them, Grunda took their
place. If a warrior came close to her cart, the old spaewife yelled
chants and made spastic gestures, arms and legs flying. They did
not venture closer.
    Now, the villagers did what they could to
help Lady Ragnhild and Muriele. They kept watch, fearing Sir Magnus
would return and find the women whom he'd searched for after the
siege.
    Since he'd taken Grunda to Kinbrace Castle,
her mother was the only woman knowledgeable enough to aid them.
They put aside their fears of Magnus's patrols whenever the fevers,
the bloody flux, or any number of other ills took them.
    Before the sun rose, an elderly woman came on
behalf of her grandson. The boy was careless while thrashing wheat
and suffered a festering wound. Muriele's mother did not hesitate
but grabbed a cloth sack of herbs for healing concoctions and
hurried off to help the boy.
    o0o
    Muriele's arrows had flown true all day, and
she now had more than enough meat for a sennight. 'Twas near dark
when she stepped out into the small clearing before their hut. No
plume of smoke rose from the hole in the thatch. Usually, her
mother had hot water ready for Muriele to prepare the day's
kill.
    Inside, she filled a pot from the water
barrel in the corner, and kindled the fire. By the time she
completed her chores, she had vegetables and a plump hare stewing.
A sickening feeling roiled in her gut. Every crack of a twig or
rustle of leaves caused her to run outside to check the woods
nearby. Her mother always returned at night, using the moon as
guide.
    She did not sleep but waited for the darkness
to fade to gray. Throwing a woolen shawl around her shoulders, she
set out on the paths leading to the village. Halfway there, she
cried out. At a bend in the path, scavenger birds circled.
    Muriele ran. She tripped over a bundle of
herbs and her mother's cloak. Scrambling to her feet, she pushed
through brush until she burst out into a small clearing. Ragnhild
lay naked, on her side with her knees forced up and tied to her
elbows. Blood covered her thighs, her woman's place. Her pale hair,
shoulders and chest, the ground on which she lay, were dark with
blood.