“Good. Now, listen to Stephen,” Theo continued. “I’ve given him clear instructions as to what to do and where to go.”
“What if I never see ye again?” Lavina whimpered, realizing this might be the last time she would ever see him alive.
He was, after all, going against the most ruthless man she’d ever known. The challenges he would face, she couldn’t fathom. All she could do was pray he’d come back to her.
“Dinnae talk like that. Of course I’ll see ye again,” Theo affirmed, his voice fading down the hall as Stephen took off with her.
“Dinnae fash yerself,” Stephen said. “The Laird will come back.”
“And how can ye be so certain?” Lavina asked, trying to hold on to a sliver of hope.
“The man is in love with ye,” Stephen answered as he set her on her feet. “He’ll come back—ye’ll see. And he’ll have yer sister with him. But right now, ye have a role to play. We’re about to turn the corner, and the servants will be lookin’ to ye for guidance. Can ye be the one to give them that light?”
Lavina swallowed hard and bobbed her head.
Stephen tilted his head and shot her a glare.
She rolled her shoulders back and stood straighter. “I’m ready,” she declared, just as the sound of chaos reached her ears.
Stephen nodded and grabbed her wrist. “Hold me hand and dinnae let go. I cannae carry ye over me shoulder in front of everyone out of respect. Ye must be able to handle the crowd. Are ye ready?” he asked once more, testing his grip on her wrist.
The keep was waking, and doors were flying open just as fast as questions were being shouted over the madness.
Lavina glanced around, unsure what she needed to focus on. If it wasn’t the guards barking orders, it was the bells clanging through the dead of night.
“What? Lady McGowan, we must make haste,” Stephen hissed when she drifted to the narrow window.
“He’s surrounded us,” she whimpered, despair and defeat stealing the very warmth of her being. She stumbled backward, dumbstruck by the sight before her.
Dozens of fires were burning in the night. The flickering orange flames stretched across the low hills and surrounded the keep in a fiery ring.
Lavina squinted as she spotted shadows moving between the fires. Her uncle had far too many men at his disposal. There would be no escaping it—Maisie would be taken.
The air around her grew too thin as she tried to pull in deeper breaths to no avail. Her mind was a whirlwind of chaos and confusion. But one thing rang out, centering her thoughts.
Maisie.
It was Maisie whom Micah wanted. If he were coming, she was going to need a plan to protect Maisie for as long as possible.
“There are so many,” Lavina mumbled, just as Stephen’s hand came down hard on her shoulder. “He has us outnumbered. He’ll breach the walls in hours. He willnae stop.”
The tears spilled over then, and her knees wobbled under her weight. She reached for the wall to steady herself as she fought down the terror threatening to overwhelm her.
“Ye need to pull yerself together,” Stephen gritted out. “Theo willnae let anything happen to ye or yer sister. Ye have me word on that, and his. Ye’re nae alone in this. We’re yer family now, and we protect what is ours.”
She stared at him, desperate to believe him, to let his words settle into her bones. But it was one little word that jabbed at the center of her being.
“Amber!? Dear God, where’s Amber?” She glanced around frantically.
Stephen’s brow creased. “Theo’s handlin’ that, too,” he answered. “He’ll nay doubt bring them both to the council chambers. But we need to get goin’ if we’re goin’ to meet them.”
Lavina glanced over her shoulder. Her heart pounded fiercely in her chest as she allowed a flicker of hope to sprout within her.
Theo was still out there. He’d get Maisie and Amber.
“But he’s only one man,” she said.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
