Page 37 of A Mountain Man Christmas

Angus’s eyebrows were threatening to achieve liftoff. His eyes bulged out of his skull. “What is…but I…this cannot…impossible,” he spluttered.

“Tristan’s innocent,” Lyla said. “He’s not the one who murdered your sons. He just saved all of us.”

The man’s eyes suddenly narrowed. “Indeed, he is innocent.” Suddenly, he drew his sword. “But the one responsible for my pain must die.”

With that, he rushed downhill toward Tristan, who instantly dropped Lewis onto the snow and stepped out in front of him, arms spread wide.

“Get out of my way,” Angus barked. “I have a score to settle.”

“Angus, no.” Tristan shook his head. “You can’t do this.”

The village chief burst into a mirthless chuckle. “Of course, you’d defend the man who killed my sons. I haven’t forgotten how you attacked me and my men. Give me one reason why I shouldn’t strike you both down right now.”

Tristan’s gaze flickered from Angus to Lyla and back. “You know about the curse. You know how it works. Lewis had no intention of murdering your sons. He’s just a young man.”

“So were my sons,” Angus countered. “Their bodies are yet to be buried back in Elron. You must understand, Tristan, that this young man remains a threat to everyone around him. More people will die. As long as your nephew lives, a blood debt exists, and I’m here to collect.”

Lyla gazed at the unconscious form lying in the snow. She’d known the man for barely five minutes, but it was still gutting to think he was about to meet his demise. She met Tristan’s gaze again and was oddly certain their hearts were pounding in sync.

Thump, thump, thump.

“Angus,” Tristan said, “please.”

“Your pleas mean nothing to me,” the other man spat.

“Then perhaps you’ll listen to reason.”

It was Ariadne. The sword at her throat twitched as she took a step forward, and she cut a sideways look at the man holding it. He stepped away from her without a word.

“I can guarantee that Lewis will no longer remain a threat to us,” she said. “There is a potion that keeps the curse from manifesting. As long as Lewis drinks it, there will be no more transformations. I’ll work on a permanent solution to the curse. In the meantime…no more deaths.”

Angus scoffed, but Lyla saw his expression soften a little. Despite his bloodthirst, he clearly had enough presence of mind to understand Ariadne’s reasoning. “And what about those already dead? Should this murderer go unpunished?”

Thump, thump, thump.

***

“All’s well that ends well,” she muttered, watching Angus and his men as they marched out of sight.

“But it’s not over yet,” Tristan told her.

She flicked her gaze toward the still-unconscious man in the snow. “You’re right about that.”

She still could hardly believe Angus and his men had left them all unscathed. Just minutes ago, the village chief had been ready to drive his sword through Lewis and every other Harrison in sight. But Ariadne seemed to have gotten through to him. Lyla hadn’t figured the woman for a diplomat. She wondered what other talents the healer had hidden up her sleeve.

Angus had agreed, albeit grudgingly, to spare Lewis’s life. The condition? Ariadne had a little less than a year to come up with a permanent solution to her nephew’s problem, or Lewis just might lose his head. It was not exactly an inspiring arrangement, but Lyla had a feeling Ariadne would figure something out. Lewis was still to face punishment, regardless of the pardon. What his punishment would be, Angus had yet to decide.

I’ll be back, the chief had said.Soon.

For now, they could only be grateful Lewis’s head was still attached to his shoulders.

Tristan, covering his nakedness with a coat from one of Angus’s men, took his nephew into his arms, led the way back to Ariadne’s cabin, and set him down in front of the fire. Lewis stirred but didn’t wake.

“He will be okay,” Ariadne said, touching her fingers to his neck. “By the time he wakes, I’ll have a potion ready for him to drink. Then I’ll begin to work on the cure.”

“Thank you,” Tristan told her.

She fixed him with a cold stare, and for a moment, Lyla thought she might say something scathing. To her surprise, the woman’s expression softened.

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