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“I will kill her,” Reginald bellowed again.

Domhnall had already taken down another of Reginald’s men, but at those words, he spun around, and then stopped dead, his eyes flying wide at the sight before him.

Slowly raising his hands, he said, “Nay. Ye dinnae have tae dae this.”

“Let him kill me, Domhnall,” Katherine croaked. “You have to protect your family. He’s going to kill me anyway.”

“Nay,” Domhnall yelled.

“Once I am gone, there will be nothing to stop you from destroying him. You are stronger than him, and he knows it,” she reasoned. “He killed my father. Avenge my father’s death. Please. Do it for me.”

“Silence,” Reginald bellowed

For a second, there was a stalemate. A moment where no one moved, or spoke, or barely breathed. Katherine gazed at Domhnall, her eyes pleading with him to let her die. But his own showed his denial. With his eyes full of fire and love, she could see he could never let that happen.

“It’s you or her,” Reginald growled. “What’s it going to be? I haven’t got all day.”

“Me,” Katherine and Domhnall said at exactly the same time.

At that moment, the door at the top of the stairs opened, and Katherine gasped, for with more men coming, they had now lost the advantage.

“Finally,” Reginald yelled. “Get down here and tie this monster up.”

CHAPTER THIRTY

“Nae a chance,” Kai said, his voice carrying down into the cellar as he came running down the stairs with great speed.

For a second, Domhnall imagined he was hallucinating, for Kai arriving from nowhere seemed so unreal. How he had arrived, Domhnall could not know. He was just relieved his brother was there.

“Kai,” Domhnall blurted, still hardly able to believe his eyes.

But Kai did not stop for a greeting, and once at the bottom of the steps, he lifted his arm and swiftly punched Reginald in the head with such force, the man stumbled.

Domhnall was certain that Katherine was going to fall with him, but Kai grabbed her arm and yanked her back to safety. Immediately, Katherine threw her arms around him, her whole body trembling.

“Get her out o’ here,” Domhnall yelled.

Kai frowned deeply when he saw the state Domhnall was in. “What about?—”

“I’m fine. Besides, after everything he’s done, the man is mine. Get Katherine tae safety.”

Reginald still struggled to get off the floor while Kai whisked a distraught Katherine up the stairs.

Looking around him, Domhnall spotted the sword they had taken from him when they had captured him, and ignoring the agonizing pain of his wounds, he grabbed it and lifted it high above his head.

“No!” the man cried, his eyes pleading for mercy.

But Domhnall had no mercy left.

“This is fer everything ye have put me men through. Fer everything ye have put me through, but most of all, fer everything ye have put your own flesh and blood through. This is fer Katherine, and fer her faither.”

With swift and deadly precision, Domhnall brought the sword down on Reginald’s head, separating it from his body completely.

Dropping the sword, he then stumbled back against the wall, and feeling the strength leave his legs, he slid down it, ending in a crumpled heap on the floor.

Help would come soon, but for now, he gazed upon the beheaded man who had caused him such turmoil. The man who would have, without any hesitation, taken his own sister’s life without remorse.

Katherine had been so very brave, so very courageous, even willing to sacrifice her own life for his. He couldn’t imagine he would ever love her more than he did at that moment. It was over, the nightmare had finally ended. And the most important thing was, all those he loved were now safe.