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Pulling himself away from Josephine and Sully, Andrew’s attention turned to the fight at hand.

The Torridon forces had infiltrated the group, quickly quelling whatever resistance there was.

Two Torridon knights– Etienne and Burl– were on horseback, with their massive war horses snorting and dancing, knocking about men and snapping with their big teeth.

Etienne reined his steed to a halt and dismounted.

“You are injured,” he said to Sully. “How badly?”

Sully shook his head. “It is a scratch,” he assured him. “But I want these people rounded up and sent on their way. They are not to spend another moment on Torridon lands.”

“Wait!” Josephine cried, putting a hand on Etienne’s arm to stop him from following through. “When I was brought to the group, one of the gypsy women took a pendant from around my neck. It belonged to my mother and I want it back.”

The knights all began looking around. “Which woman?” Andrew asked.

Josephine craned her neck, searching the crowd. “I do not see her,” she said, her voice laced with disappointment. “Etienne, collect all of the women into a group. I must find this woman and my pendant.”

Etienne saluted smartly, bellowing orders as he walked away.

Josephine brushed a stray lock of hair from her face, her features etched with concern as she watched her men carry out her orders.

They were not gentle with the gypsy women by any means; any attempt to resist was met by a sharp slap or a pull of the hair.

But that wasn’t Josephine’s concern– she wanted her necklace back and she had yet to see the woman who took it.

Finally, Josephine saw Albert dragging the scraggly young woman from back beyond the wagons.

She fought the tall, gangly knight like a wildcat until the usually gentle man grabbed her hair and pulled her the rest of the way to where the women were now corralled.

As they came nearer, recognition dawned.

“That is the one!” Josephine cried out. “The woman with Albert!”

She dashed towards Albert, and Andrew and Sully followed close behind. Fearlessly, Josephine went up to the rebellious young woman.

“Where is the necklace you stole from me?” she demanded.

The woman gave her a defiant smile, evidently not caring or too stupid to realize that Josephine commanded the army around her.

“I lost it,” she said lazily.

Josephine stepped closer to the woman. “Listen well, you cocky little wench,” she hissed.

“I intend to find that necklace, so do yourself a favor and tell me where it is. Do you see these men around you? They are at my command. I can have them punish you a thousand ways, so much so that you will wish you were dead. Now, where is my necklace?”

The woman looked to the stone-like faces of the men that surrounded her. She did not doubt Josephine’s words for a moment, but she was proud and was not going to let Josephine belittle her in front of her own people. More important than anything, she was not going to lose their respect.

“I do not remember where I put it,” she shrugged, still blatantly defiant.

Josephine flamed. She took a step towards the woman and raised her hands in a most threatening fashion, but Andrew stopped her.

“Wait,” he said. “If you will allow me to reason with her, my lady.”

Josephine, clenching and unclenching her fists, turned her back to the woman. She was so angry that she was genuinely afraid of what she might do. Andrew went to the gypsy girl.

“Rise,” he told her.

The wench glanced over to the other women smugly, as she drew herself up. Her eyes twinkled seductively at Andrew, knowing she had more of a chance conning him than she did Josephine. She would pull out all of her tricks for this big man.

Josephine forced herself to turn and watch what Andrew was doing, but she didn’t like what she saw.

The woman stretched and posed like a cat in heat, and she found herself angrier, but on a different level.

She was appalled to discover that she didn’t like this woman’s attention on Andrew in the least and she didn’t like it at all that he seemed to be eating it up.

He wasn’t even trying to retrieve her pendant.

Instead, he was trading flirtatious looks with the whore.

“Do you know where I can find Lady Josephine’s pendant?” he asked politely.

She stuck out her small chest and batted her lashes at him. “Now, I might,” she said. “If you were to ask me properly, I might.”

He reached up a hand towards her and Josephine was about to burst with anger and outrage. Her breathing became fast and hard, and Sully put a hand on her forearm to quiet her. He wanted to see what Andrew was going to do. But what happened wasn’t what he or Josephine expected.

Andrew smiled at the gypsy woman, who was nearly salivating as she waited for his touch.

Then, quick as a flash, Andrew grabbed the front of the woman’s blouse.

With a loud, ripping noise, she was laid open to the waist and her tunic was in tatters.

Her tiny breasts were exposed to the world and she yelled in surprise, trying to cover herself up, as women around her loudly voiced their protest. But the Torridon soldiers were even louder– voicing their approval.

Whistles and cheers filled the air as Josephine watched the woman’s humiliation, stunned by what Andrew had done. Next to her, Sully couldn’t keep the smile off of his face. He was coming to like The Red Fury, just a little. The man had ballocks, that was for certain.

Andrew heard all of the revelry, but his eyes were fixed on the woman in front of him. And he was no longer smiling. As she yelped and tried to cover herself up, Andrew pulled at the bodice, pulling it off of one side of her body as she struggled. He spun her around as if looking for something.

“It does not seem to be there,” he said. “I wonder where else it could be?”

The men screamed with laughter. In spite of herself, Josephine felt like giggling as well.

The woman was utterly humiliated. Had Josephine not been so angry, she might have felt a twinge of pity.

But she silently applauded Andrew for his application of persuasion without the use of physical force.

That haughty, nasty woman was bound to give in faster this way.

“Has your memory returned?” Andrew was asking politely. “Or shall I help it along?”

The woman’s eyes were black with fury. With a toss of her black hair, she sneered at Andrew.

“Bastard!” she spat. “How dare you…”

She never finished her sentence, for Andrew reached out and grasped a corner of her dirty skirt and yanked so hard, she was tripped by the force of it.

She was screaming, the men were laughing, and Josephine watched in amused shock as Andrew reached down for the bottom of her shift.

Although she was kicking him with all of her might, he barely felt it.

“Very well!” the woman screamed. “Very well, very well! Stop and I shall give it to you!”

Instantly, Andrew stopped pawing at her, crossing his arms expectantly.

Huffing and puffing with humiliation, the gypsy woman rose as carefully as she could without exposing anything.

She looked at Andrew, verging on tears. Then she covered her breasts with one arm and thrust her hand into a hidden pocket in her underskirts.

With her grubby fingers, she drew forth the dazzling pendant.

Josephine charged forward and snatched the necklace before Andrew had a chance to accept it.

Then it was Josephine who smiled smugly at the gypsy woman.

She was twitching and her mouth was working as she formed her final reply.

Her hand itched to slap the little witch, but she didn’t.

She had her necklace and that was all that mattered in the end.

“Thank you,” she said through clenched teeth. Then she spun around, walked away, and spoke to no one in particular. “I want them off my land and out of my sight.”

Andrew smiled sweetly at the shaking, filthy woman before turning to follow Josephine.

He had expected her to flatten the woman, but he admired her for showing restraint.

Given her passionate nature and her fondness of punching, he was proud of her for showing some hard-fought self-control.

As he stood there and watched her walk away, Sully interrupted his observations.

“Take Lady Josephine back to Torridon, if you would,” he said. “I shall make sure the woods are cleared.”

“As you wish,” Andrew said. “I’ll need a horse.”

Sully waved a hand at Etienne, whistling loudly between his teeth. “Your destrier!”

Etienne motioned to the soldier holding his steed, and the man immediately brought the muscular animal to Andrew. Without even using the stirrups, Andrew swung himself onto the horse and, using his massive thighs to guide the animal, he moved it in Josephine’s direction.

But Josephine wasn’t paying any attention.

She’d had enough excitement for one day and her emotions had the better of her.

Moreover, she was trying to put her necklace back on, but it was broken.

She felt a great deal of sadness at that.

She was distracted from the broken chain by a big horse next to her and she looked up to see Andrew riding Etienne’s blond beast. She held up the necklace.

“It is broken,” she said glumly.

He held out his hand. “May I?”

She gave it to him and he examined it carefully. She stared at his actions, alternately watching his face and watching his hands as they moved nimbly over the beads.

“See here,” he held up the broken ends of the necklace. “The silver latch only needs to be repaired. I can do it when we get back to Torridon.”

Her face brightened. “You can?”

“Indeed.”

She smiled gratefully. “You are a man of many talents, then,” she said. “Not only do you fight battles, but you repair jewelry as well.”

He grinned. “It is nothing, really,” he said. “It just needs to be bent back into place. It is simple.”