CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Isadora should havebeen asleep, but she couldn’t seem to shut her mind off enough to relax.
Lying in her bed, she couldn’t shake off the events from the evening. She would never forget the expression on Cam’s face when he was told that Drostan had orchestrated the attack on Netherton. There had been such shock and disbelief, something she found difficult to reconcile.
Whyhad he been so surprised?
Cam had acted like a man who hadn’t know the truth behind the death of his grandfather, which led Isadora to believe that, perhaps, Cam had thought the Keith had destroyed his village just as Drostan had hoped. If that was the case, then why had he agreed to accept the offer from the Keith?
Why had he agreed to fight for them?
So much wasn’t making sense and Isadora fidgeted in her bed until well past midnight. She finally got up, wrapped herself in a heavy cloak, and climbed from her window into the moonlit night beyond.
The Highlands were crisp and cold on this clear night, unusual at this time of year. It was usually raining. Her father’s home was high on a hill overlooking the village, a four-room home that had been built by her grandfather. She could see thevillage below, blanketed in a blue fog of smoke from the dying fires, but in particular she could see the cottage where Cam was staying.
He’d been given an empty shelter near the edge of the village, one that had belonged to an old man up until a few months ago. It sat empty after his death. The cottage wasn’t much—one large room and then a smaller room the old man had used to house his dogs in—but it was all they could offer. That’s where Isadora had last seen him.
Pulling the cloak around her against the icy weather, she headed down the hill.
His cottage was dark and quiet when she reached it, but that didn’t stop her from walking in a circle around it, listening for any signs of movement. If he was asleep, she didn’t want to wake him. Or perhaps she did. In any case, she was debating what to do as she walked a second circle around the cottage. When she passed by the only door, a hand shot out and grabbed her.
Instead of screaming, Isadora went into defensive mode. She brought up a balled fist to break the hold, but another hand shot out and grabbed that hand as well. She was preparing to kick her attacker when she abruptly came face to face with Cam. He still had a grip on her as he came out of the cottage, scowling.
“What in the world are ye doing?” he demanded.
Isadora’s heart was pounding with fright. “I was wondering if ye were asleep,” she said. “I suppose I have my answer.”
He released her. “As if anyone can sleep here,” he said, scratching his dirty, blond head. “’Tis too quiet. I’ve grown used tae the alleys of Edinburgh and the village at The Cal. A thousand snoring bulls and I can sleep like a wee bairn. But I canna sleep when it is this quiet.”
“Ye said ye couldna sleep with my da and brothers snoring away.”
He fought off a grin. “There were only three men. I need more men than that if I am tae sleep properly.”
Isadora laughed softly. “I’ll see what I can do,” she said. “Do ye at least have everything ye need? I made sure they brought in a bed and a fire for ye. Is there anything else?”
He shook his head. “’Tis comfortable enough. Is that why ye’re wandering about in the middle of the night? Tae make sure I’m content?”
His eyes were glittering at her as he spoke, as if he suspected there was something more behind her prowling. “Of course it is,” she said.
“Are ye sure? ’Tis not because ye want tae be alone with me?”
“Is it that obvious?”
“Tae me. But I have high hopes.”
She lifted an eyebrow. “Dunna have such hopes because it’s not what ye think. I came tae ask ye a question.”
“What question?”
“Did ye think the Keith burned Netherton?”
She heard him draw in a long, labored breath and all of the humor went out of the conversation. “Why do ye ask?”
“Because ye seemed surprised by what we told ye,” she said seriously. “I could see it in yer face. Ye looked as if ye were reliving the horror all over again. That caused me tae think that ye believed the Keith was responsible. That is what Drostan wanted everyone tae think, ye know. But my own brothers saw Lindsay men involved in the destruction of Netherton.”
Cam’s gaze lingered on her for a moment before he turned away. He went inside his cottage without a word and, hesitantly, Isadora followed.
Inside, the place was dark but for the a few embers glowing in the hearth. There was a pallet on the ground, the blankets mussed. The cottage itself smelled old and damp, a chill seepingup through the ground. Cam took a stick, stirring the embers, as Isadora stood by the door.
