Arsenic and Old Armor Read Online Free PDF Page B

of
countryside?”
    Iain crouched before her, trying to get
through to her…hoping she would hear him and put an end to her
foolishness. There was duty involved here. Responsibility.
    “ I have been trying to
provide a peaceful existence for my people…and for yours, as well.
The troublemaker in the Borders region has been your dear
cousin.”
    “ Jack
Fitzwilliam?”
    “ The same.”
    “ I cannot believe it. He
was always a little wild, but—”
    “ Well, believe it. Your
uncle William’s illegitimate son has been raiding farms and
attacking travelers. He has gathered other outlaws to his band and
avoided capture by terrorizing Border folk. They have even hidden
him out of fear of his ruthlessness. You probably don’t remember
him well.”
    “ I remember him. He used to
come and visit sometimes…when my father was away.”
    Marion shivered slightly. In her eyes, Iain
could see she didn’t like the memories of her cousin that were
coming back to her. After a moment, her eyes narrowed. “What are
you, a coward? You cannot take care of one outlaw without the
intervention of two royal courts?”
    Iain fought his temper as heat rushed into
his face. “I am no coward, but a considerate man who too many times
listened to two old women’s tearful pleas about sparing the life of
their only nephew. Jack would have been dead a dozen times by now
if it were not for your aunts.”
    Marion considered his words.
    “ He comes and goes,” Iain
continued, “preying on one part of the Borders and then traveling
south into England, only to return later. He is rarely in one place
for too long. He is a creature of darkness, striking wherever he is
least expected.”
    She frowned and shook her head. “My dear
cousin has hated my very existence from the moment I was born. I
hid from him whenever he came to visit Fleet Tower. What makes you
think this marriage would have any effect on him?”
    “ He has been spreading it
across the countryside that he himself is the true heir to the
McCall title and lands,” Iain explained. “He has told your people
that you are really dead. If they do not support him and shelter
him, they shall face his wrath. As it is, I am now just a steward
of your land, and that makes Jack more dangerous. Our marriage at
Blackthorn Hall will put an end to his claims and also assure the
Crown that there is to be continued stability in the
lineage.”
    She shook her head again. “No matter how
grand a ceremony you’ve planned for this wedding, it will mean
nothing to Jack. He will not change. So what are you going to do to
him afterward? Kill him?”
    “ Drive him off,” he said
shortly.
    Iain knew he would surely kill him if need
be. But not before dragging Jack Fitzwilliam before a judge for his
many crimes. After all, this was 1525 and not the age of
barbarians. Modern Scotland had laws. He would be tried fairly his
claims heard.
    Then Jack would be hung from a gallows and
his head placed on a pike at Fleet Tower.
    All Iain wanted was justice and peace for
himself and his people. He had seen too much blood shed needlessly
at Flodden Field. No more. Iain wanted a calm life. A wife,
children, and the clans McCall and Armstrong living in peace and
putting their disputes behind them.
    “ Enough of that.” He stood
up and grabbed Marion’s hands, pulling her up to her feet. “You
need to get ready to leave.”
    She shook him off and sat back down on the
bed. “You have not convinced me.”
    He ran a hand through his hair. “Marion, you
are trying my patience for no reason. What is it that you do not
understand? Your people are being abused. They need you. Your aunts
and uncle are advancing in age and are in poor health. They want
you back, as well.”
    “ They never said any of
that in their letters,” she protested.
    “ How could they? And why
would they, when the last thing they want is to worry you? And what
could you have done from here?” Iain saw the look of doubt creeping
into her