Page 59 of Highland Ruse

The brown-haired woman offered Delilah an apologetic look and ushered the girl away.

Delilah had not realized the whispers had stopped until the hushed silence exploded into a chaos of voices once more.

Self-loathing simmered like a hot coal in her gut.

She’d let them see her cry. Even if it’d been for a young, orphaned girl and not herself, she’d still cried in front of them.

Someone appeared at her side, strong and sure, and while he did not take her hand or offer her the support of his arm, she sensed his encouragement.

“Enough,” Kaid growled at the onlookers. “I’ll speak with ye later, but for now, go on about yer business.”

The crowd begrudgingly dissipated until Delilah was able to make her way without the burden of being watched.

From a distance, the castle had appeared to float atop the loch like some magical apparition, all smooth stone and block construction. Up close, she could now see a tendril of land extending toward it, blanketed with a layer of toppled grass.

They followed the well-used trail to where a shorter wall stood before the three-story structure behind it.

It was not the largest castle she’d seen, nor the most impressive, but its location was by far the most strategic. It was no wonder MacKenzie had attacked the village rather than the castle. It was far more vulnerable.

Kaid gestured for them to enter the opening in the wall to where a narrow courtyard was visible beyond. “Welcome to Ardvreck Castle.”

• • •

Kaid’s people were divided on Delilah’s appearance—there were those who saw her as a savior, and others as a curse. Then again, they only knew Delilah as Elizabeth, MacKenzie’s intended.

Kaid and Donnan made their way to the new part of the castle, where a spare chamber had been readied for their arrival. Hopefully allowing the ladies a bath and a night to rest had eased the offense of their recapture.

“This had better work,” Kaid mumbled under his breath.

Donnan gave him a confident grin. “It will.”

Kaid did not share his friend’s enthusiasm. “It has to,” he said somberly.

Truth be told, he didn’t know if it could. There were too many opportunities for error in his plan.

First he had to convince Delilah of why she should want to help, then he had to actually ask her and hope to God she said yes. Even if he got her to agree to play Elizabeth Seymour, she would have to find MacKenzie’s missing sister.

Laird MacKenzie was only laird regent. His elder sister, Torra, had one day faded from existence, and he had declared himself acting laird in her compromised mental state. There had been no opposition from the people, at least none as far as Kaid remembered. He’d been a boy when it all happened.

No one had heard of Torra since.

If she was alive, if she could be reasoned with, if she could be found and brought to Ardvreck to witness the impact of her brother’s destruction—perhaps she could be convinced to restore the truce which had existed before Seumas’s mother died at Ardvreck.

But if Torra truly was mad, as MacKenzie claimed, all his efforts might be for naught.

So no, he did not have the same confidence in all of this as did Donnan, but he wished like hell he did.

He opened the door to the chamber and found both women as he’d left them the night before, albeit clean and in different clothing. Leasa perched anxiously on the edge of the massive bed and Delilah stalked back and forth like a caged wildcat.

Leasa’s face lit when she saw them, but Delilah’s eyes glittered with something shrewd and calculating.

“Leasa, go with Donnan. He’ll show ye around.” Kaid looked pointedly at Delilah, who had stopped pacing long enough to fold her arms over her chest.

“I’d like to speak with ye,” he said. “Alone.”

Leasa cast a questioning look toward Delilah, who nodded her assent, and the maid slipped from the room with Donnan.

Delilah didn’t move until the door was closed, then she made her way toward Kaid with slow, deliberate steps before stopping directly in front of him.