Page 31 of Darro

Chapter Eight

Esme hurried downstairs as soon as she heard the horn, and looked up at the night sky, which was rapidly lightening to the strange green color that passed as daylight here. “Something is wrong with the time. Sunset was only a couple of hours ago.”

The old man who worked in the gardens came to her. “You should go to the dungeons with the other females, lass.”

“I don’t like the dungeons,” she murmured absently. How many attacks would there be today? Or was it still tonight? When she saw the laird’s wife stride out of the stronghold she went directly to her. “Is it happening again?”

Watchers on the outer wall began to blow their horns all together as the thunderous sound of horses grew loud on the other side of the gate.

“I don’t know. I think this is different.” Ava looked over at Alec’s wife, who joined them. “Olivia, go and arm the household maids. Ask those who want to fight to go guard the passages outside the laird’s chamber and the infirmary.” She drew her sword and then looked at Esme. “Tasgall warned me that this event in the cycle is going to get ugly once the MacBren makes it through the outer gate. Are you sure you want to fight?”

She nodded. “I don’t run from bullies. The guys need more help.”

Together she and Ava ran for the inner wall gate, and retrieved the bundles of arrows and spears from the weapon storage rooms to one side before carrying them up to each clansman on the wall, assuring they were fully armed.

“You should go into the stronghold, my ladies,” Sawney said after he took four spears from Ava, and a bundle of arrows from Esme. “’Tis the day I shall die defending the stronghold from the enemy. I dinnae wish any woman to witness such.”

“You remember?” the laird’s wife asked, looking shocked.

“Never before this cycle, my lady,” the guard admitted. “I’ve been dreaming of my death for months now.”

Ava touched his arm. “Rory says that if the spell is broken, then Dun Talamh will be returned to the twelfth century before any of this business with the MacBren happened. You have a good chance of getting your life back.”

Esme stared at her. “Is that true?”

“’Twould be a kindness, but I’ve died nine hundred times already, Mistress,” Sawney said. “I dinnae fear the end, for I shall go to the Well of Stars where my lady màthair and her kin await me.”

“Down,” Ava said, pushing Esme behind one of the stone battlements.

A hail of arrows came over their heads, striking two of the guards but missing Sawney. He trotted over to pull one man to cover before taking his place and hurling a spear. Esme almost screamed when a dozen arrows pierced the guard’s face and chest, causing him to topple over the wall and fall to the ground.

The sight of Sawney being killed suddenly made everything very real for Esme. “Ay, Dios mio, Ava, what is this place?”

“We need to retreat to the gardens,” the laird’s wife told her, and kept crouched over as she went with her to the stairs.

Once they descended Ava made a dash for the granary, where they found Una and Elspeth waiting with shields and spears.

“Here, my lady.” The head chambermaid gave the laird’s wife her wooden stave, and offered Esme a sling and a pouch. “Armorer sent this for you, Mistress.”

“He’s a mind reader.” She took an iron nugget out of the pouch and loaded it into the cradle, and then glanced up. “There’s a sky light in the roof. I’m going to climb up there to get a look while there’s still some light.”

Ava and the other women helped hoist her up to the rafters, but by the time she climbed through the hole the sky had gone black. She could see the clansmen on the inner wall, but the outer had been overrun. Then she saw Darro leading a group of the biggest clansmen up to the inner bailey gate, where they formed two ranks as he stood blocking the grates in the portcullis with his own body.

“What are you doing there?” Esme whispered furiously as she sat on the edge of the skylight. Green light suddenly filled the sky as the portcullis lifted, and a big, gray-haired man dressed in red came riding in on a huge white stallion, followed by a dozen men in black.

“MacBren at the front,” Ava called up to her. “You can’t kill him or his men, but he can kill you.”

“Okay. It’s official, I hate this prison,” she muttered as the enemy laird and his entourage halted in front of Darro, who simply stood there. “Why are you doing that? He’ll trample you with that big horse. Get out of there, you idiot man.”

“I shall escort you to the laird, my lord,” the chieftain said to the MacBren. “If you’ll leave your mounts to be watered and fed.”

“I’ve come to give your mule-headed brother a final chance to do right by my Torra,” the laird said, and dismounted before handing his horse’s reins to a waiting stable hand. “If he doesnae agree, many shall die on McKeran soil this day, Chieftain.”

Darro inclined his head and accompanied the laird into the stronghold. When all of the MacBren’s men followed without attacking any of the McKeran flanking them, Esme climbed back down into the granary.

“The chieftain took them into the castle,” she told Ava, and started for the door. When the laird’s wife caught her arm, she nearly shoved her away. “I told you, Agent Travars, I don’t hide from bullies.”

“My lady, they’ll slay you,” Una warned. “Or do such to make you wish they would.”