She appeared uncomfortable and risked a glance behind her.‘I went through the hidden passageway from my room.No one saw me, I promise you.’
‘They could have seen me,’ he admitted.After a slight pause, he asked, ‘If itisyour father’s men, do you want to go back with them?’
‘No.’She turned away, resting against him as they continued riding.‘I don’t.’
He kept her in his embrace as he rode towards the roundtower.Having her in his arms was a temptation he wantedto savour.Her head rested beneath his chin, and it was a sweet torment feeling her body pressed close against his.
‘Will we go to Rionallís tonight?’she asked.
He didn’t know.But he sensed the unrest in her tone.‘If it’s safe, yes.But not until I know who followed us.’
‘Why the roundtower?’she ventured.
‘Because it’s safe there.And I want to get a better look at the riders.’He glanced behind them, though it was still too dark to see beyond a patch of moonlight.If he helped her get inside, Mairead could pull up the ladder behind her, and no one could reach the entrance.
‘They’ll know we’re there if they see our horse,’ she warned.
He didn’t share her concern.‘I’m not leaving the horse out in the open.I’m going to find out who it is while you stay here.Then after I return, we’ll continue towards Rionallís.’
Mairead frowned.‘You’re leaving me?’
‘Not for long.I’ll return soon,’ he promised.His tone was grim, and when she turned to look at him, he traced his thumb down the edge of her jaw.‘If the Normans come for you, I won’t let them take you without a fight.’
Liam had likely been taken as a way of manipulating King Patrick into obedience.Their political battle made no difference to him.
But Mairead was another matter.Aye, he knew she was far out of his reach.But he would slaughter any man who dared harm her—and that included the nobility.
His arms tightened around her as he increased the pace of the horse.A stone chapel stood beside the roundtower, and he led the horse towards it.It was a place to tether the animal until he could find out who was hunting them.
He helped Mairead down and took the reins of the horsewhile she stared up at the tower.The entrance was higher than the height of a man.
‘How will I get inside?’she asked.
‘We should be able to find a ladder in the chapel.And then you’ll pull it inside the tower until I return.’
Balor wasted no time in searching, and thankfully, there was a ladder nearby.He leaned it against the stone roundtower and held it steady, but before Mairead climbed up, she turned back to him.
‘Be careful, Balor.’She rested her hands on his shoulders, and for a moment, he wondered if she meant to kiss him.If she belonged to him, he wouldn’t hesitate to claim that kiss.But he already knew they were treading a dangerous line.
Instead, he tucked a fallen strand of hair behind her ear.‘I’ll return soon.And don’t lower the ladder for anyone but me.’
* * *
After she climbed up and pulled the ladder behind her, Mairead watched from the door as Balor retrieved their horse and began riding away.Was he being overly cautious?Or was the threat real?
She closed the door behind her, feeling the rise of fear and uncertainty.Inside, the stone walls were cool, and she shivered against the cool summer night air.
Mairead glanced at the stairs leading up to the top of the tower and the bells that hung there.She had visited her uncle at Rionallís countless times, but she’d never been inside the roundtower.
Exhaustion weighed upon her, but she couldn’t imagine resting—not when Balor was gone.How long would it take him to return?And what would happen if he was followedhere?She didn’t know what to think.For now, she could do nothing except worry and wait.
Mairead gripped her cloak around her, already starting to question her decisions.It might not be the right choice to travel to Rionallís or disappear from her own home.Her father would be furious with her.
But she was tired of following orders blindly.She wanted to be in command of her own future, whatever that might look like.
She started to climb up the stairs to the top of the tower, following them up to the next wooden platform then diagonally in the opposite direction.After two flights of stairs, her legs began to burn with effort, but eventually, she reached the top of the tower by the bells.
From this height, she could see the dim light of torches in the distance.When she turned slightly, she saw a smaller group of riders with two torches.They were riding towards the tower, but then they turned and started in the direction of Rionallís.Perhaps they had followed Balor there.
