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After a few moments of silence, the group headed back to the cottage. When they walked in, Fia stopped dead in her tracks. The chair was empty, and the ropes that had bound Alastair were lying in a pile on the floor. Her eyes shot over to the table. His weapon belt and sword were gone as well. They had been careless and because of it, he had escaped.
“He’s gone!” shouted Maira, pulling her sword from the scabbard at her side, holding it with two hands and turning to look around the room.
“I knew we shouldn’t have trusted him.” Branton’s sword was at the ready as well.
“Where is he?” asked Willow.
A horse neighed loudly from outside. They all ran to the door to see Alastair atop his steed, leaving the secret garden without looking back.
“Well, I guess that’s the end of that,” said Maira, sliding her sword into the sheath on her back. “He’s probably on his way back to Scotland right now.”
“I dinna think so.” Fia noticed that Alastair didn’t turn right when he left the garden, but instead went left, heading down the road that led back to the castle. The only reason he would go that way was to try to help his clansmen escape from the dungeon of Rothbury. She should probably tell the others or at least let the earl know, but something made her keep it a secret instead.
“Where do ye think he went?” asked Morag.
“It doesna matter.” Fia didn’t want them to alert Lord Beaufort that Alastair was heading to the castle. If Beaufort knew, he would watch for Alastair and kill him when he arrived. “Imanie is gone now and so is Alastair. We need to keep this to ourselves and put it all behind us.”
As they exited the secret garden, Fia left behind a good friend in Imanie, and a man who she found very intriguing in Alastair. Imanie was gone forever. But something deep down made her feel as if this wasn’t the last she’d seen of Laird Alastair MacPherson.
