Except one.
She had been quiet until now, but her eyes were lit with the singular feminine tenacity and also the willfulness that were among the strongest threads of her character. It might have been the mention of the Mackenzies that made her decision. If the Mackenzie army was alerted to our dire situation, that meant that the Stuart army would also inevitably learn of it. Andthatmeant that Wilkie Mackenzie might, very soon, be on his way to Glenlochie. There was no way Maisie would allow herself to be holed up and hidden if even the slightest likelihood of his arrival was upon us. And there, amid her stubbornness and her hope, I could see a realization in her eyes, too. “You love him,” she said.
“Aye,” I told her with utter sincerity. “I’ll do whatever it takes to free him.”
She understood, and against every impulse I knew my sister to possess, there were tears in her eyes as she said, “I didn’t mean what I said, Stella. Of course you deserve each other. You and Kade are a perfect match, ’tis obvious to all of us. I’m sorry for what I said to you. I was jealous and heartbroken. And now I’m going to make amends for my horrid behavior.” My sister was a ball of feminine wiles and urges. But she had a good heart. This, I had to—and did—believe. She continued, her eyes shiny with tears. “I didn’t know, Stella. He just looks so much like...and I thought—”
“It doesn’t matter, sister. I knew why you did it. ’Tis of no consequence now.”
Ann was draping a cape over my shoulders and securing it tightly at my neck. “To hide the weapons and the...evidence,” she said, her voice choked from emotion. “Come back safe to us.”
And so Maisie and I took our leave of our sisters in search of the dungeons.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
THENIGHTWASeerily dark. Thin black clouds veiled the feeble light of a slivered crescent moon. The keep was far from quiet. The sound of men’s restlessness punctuated the darkness. Metal and leather. Footsteps and shouted commands.
I was glad of the darkness and the noise. We could keep ourselves hidden and stay well clear of the gathered clusters of soldiers, whose raucous activity seemed to suggest that they were well stocked in whiskey and were ready to partake now that the sun had gone down. If we were seen, the consequences were too dire to consider. Women didn’t wander alone, out of doors, and in the dark of night. Not unless they were asking for trouble of one kind or another. And especially not on a night like this, when only a few hours ago, an invading army who had allied themselves with an aggressive and mutinous faction of our clan had infiltrated our keep. With the sole purpose of proving their domination of everything and everyone in their path.
The risks were daunting indeed. But I had no choice but to find Kade and to free him. If there was anything I could do to ease or end his agony, I would do it. No matter what it cost me.
So Maisie and I walked quietly, arm in arm, toward the blacksmith’s hut. I feared for her safety as much as my own, yet I was glad of her stubbornness. I was grateful not to be alone.
The tradesmen’s area was located at the near edge of the village, easily accessible by clan members from the manor and the fields, as well as by the soldiers. There were leatherworkers’ huts, wood turners, inventors, weavers, agricultural equipment builders, stonecutters, glassblowers and metalworkers, among many others. We made sure to keep a comfortable distance from the soldiers’ barracks, which was not far from the tradesmen’s huts. Even from a distance, it was easy to see that the barracks were crowded, noisy and well lit.
Our journey was slightly longer than it should have been, because of this detour, but we found our way over uneven ground.
“I have a sleeping potion in my pocket,” I told Maisie quietly. “And three weapons. If we find the dungeons, we can try to drug the guards.”
Maisie glanced over at me as we walked. “’Tis a good plan, Stella. Once we find these elusive dungeons, which are in a top-secret location privy only to the highest-ranking officers in our fractured army, I’ll hold down the guards while you pour the potion down their throats. And if they don’t submit quietly, we’ll wield our weapons, experts as we are, against the most feared, lethal, bloodthirsty rebels in all the Highlands. I don’t see any problem with your plan whatsoever.”
Of course she was right. I was daft to even beconsidering doing what we were about to attempt to do. “I have to try,” I whispered.
“I know, sister. I would try, too, if it were me. That’s why I’m here with you. I want to help you. I want to...make it up to you.”
I’d always loved my sister, despite her complex and sometimes-exasperating character, but I had never loved her so much as at that moment. “You don’t have to—”
“Aye. I do. But after this, consider us even.” She laughed lightly and despite our situation, I couldn’t help smiling back at her. “Besides, I have an idea.”
“What idea?”
“Just leave it to me, when the time comes.” She paused as we made our way over a small stream, stepping on dry, upraised rocks to get across. “What is it that changed your mind about him? About Kade?”
I thought about this. “I don’t know. I realized I’m a better, happier, stronger person when I’m with him.” It took me a moment to try to put it into words. “He makes me feel powerful...yet protected at the same time.”
“I know what you mean.” She fell quiet then, and I understood why.
“You’ll find someone else, Maisie. I know you will. I’m going to help you.”
“We’ll see,” she said. We needed to keep silent then as we drew closer to the buildings.
We had reached the village. At this time of night, few people were around. Most had gone back to their cabins in the residential areas, or to their farmhouses. The occasional window was lit from within by candlelight aswe passed by, and we were able to reach the hut without being seen. It was clear long before we reached it that there were no candles burning in Caleb’s windows. When we tried the door, it was locked.
“What do we do now, Stella?” Maisie whispered.
“We try to find the dungeon on our own,” I replied, not at all sure how to go about doing that.
As if in an answer to my silent prayer, I heard laughter. A man’s laughter. From somewhere afar, over the rise of a large, rounded hill. The sound of it was familiar to me. I knew who it was from the beatings I’d been subjected to at his hand, and Aleck’s.
