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She smiled brightly as she turned to face her mother. Her day had started off extremely well. Shehad been extremely supportive of her decision to marry him and sheknew in her heart that since everything was going so well, nothing else could possibly bother her. She was certain that today would be one of the best days of her life.
“Ye look as beautiful as ye always do, my darling,” her mother replied before lovingly stroking her cheek.
“I must go then,” Edna said with a deep breath.
“I will pray for ye.”
With that, Edna turned around and walked out of the cottage. She was going towards the future that awaited her, the man that loved her immensely and a castle that was going to be her home for now and forevermore.
CHAPTERTWENTY-NINE
Edna arrived at the castle and noticed how deserted it appeared at this hour. She had no idea what to expect because she had never been this close to the castle before. There had never been a reason to come this close before, especially given her family's history with the McKenzies. She was here for Ronin today, though, and the thought of it made her happy.
She approached the gate, which was protected by a guard who appeared to be very young. Edna was well aware that he was unlikely to even allow her inside the castle due to her unfamiliarity. The castle was protected by several guards, and the security was higher right now because of the murders that had been happening. Despite that, she decided to give it a try.
"Good morrow," she said brightly as she approached the guard, who stood up from his chair as soon as she neared.
Edna noticed he was trying hard not to stare, but he was clearly failing. It was clear he found her attractive, which gave her confidence. Going inside the castle was critical for her. The only thing she couldn't figure out was why Ronin hadn't met her at the gate.
She expected to find him outside the castle, pacing from left to right, impatiently waiting for her. He was the type of man who paid attention to every detail from start to finish. So, where had he gone? How had he missed meeting her here or at least sending someone else, perhaps Lachlan, in his place? She chose to ignore her concerns and take her chances with the guard. She'd find a way into the castle one way or another.
“Can I help ye, miss?” the guard asked; his tone respectful.
“I am here tae meet Ronin,” Edna said.
“I was not informed of yer visit.”
“It must have escaped his mind,” Edna said calmly; although she could already tell that the guard did not believe a word she said.
“Or perhaps ye are lying tae me just tae get inside the castle for god kens what reason,” he said; sounding slightly annoyed.
“I am not lying tae ye. Ye can ask Ronin himself,” Edna reasoned; trying her best to stay calm.
“I will not ask the laird if he kens ye or not. Please leave and stop wasting yer time and mine,” the guard said. No matter what she said or did, he would never believe a word she said.
“I promise ye I am not lying. It will only take a few minutes for ye to ask Ronin about this. He will tell ye himself,” Edna reasoned knowing her pleas would go unanswered.
“I asked ye to go away.”
“Fine.” Edna huffed; feeling resigned.
She walked away from the gate, making a big show of it, until she was out of the guard's sight. She had just walked away, but she had no intention of giving up. She was adamant about getting inside the castle one way or another. She only needed to think carefully. She was astute, and this would not be a problem for her.
“What should I do,” she whispered to herself as she made her way towards the back of the castle to try and find some other way to enter the guarded walls.
The castle grounds and everything around them were completely empty, and Edna had no idea what was going on. She'd heard that the castle was constantly guarded by a legion of guards. However, no such thing was visible here. She had no idea where the army had gone or why Ronin was not waiting for her. He had to have known she wouldn't be allowed in unless he arranged it.
Edna couldn't scale the walls because they were too high. Even if she managed to scale one of them, the tops were strewn with large shards of broken glass that would undoubtedly cut her. She had no desire to be hurt and knew this plan was doomed to fail.
Just then, her eyes fell onto a small gate that was located at the back of the castle. It was concealed by multiple trees that hid the door almost entirely, and if Edna hadn’t been looking closely, she would have never found it.What is that?she thought to herself as she marched towards the gate. It was a wooden gate with old and rusty hinges, tightly shut from the inside. The only good thing about the gate was that it was not as tall as the walls, and if she tried really hard, she might be able to climb it.
“Let’s do this,” she whispered to herself as she placed both her hands on the adjoining walls to find a good grip and placed one foot on the locked latch of the gate. Luckily enough, she was able to hoist her body upwards and soon enough was sitting at the top of the gate with one leg on each side. She surveyed inside to see if someone was coming this way or if a guard was present. She found no one.
She carefully jumped inside the castle wall, making as little noise as possible. Once inside, she breathed a sigh of relief.
“Where is Ronin?” she said aloud in the empty backyard and started to find a way to get inside the castle. She knew the front gardens would be overrun with guards, and she couldn't risk going there. If anyone discovered she had entered the grounds by climbing the back gate, they would expel her and she would lose all hope of ever finding Ronin.
She moved slowly and deliberately until she came across an unguarded back entrance to the castle. This gave her renewed hope. Everything was still going her way. The morning had begun in the best possible way. This was proof enough that Edna would be able to accomplish anything she set her mind to. She had never been a particularly optimistic person, but today she was. She was certain that nothing could possibly go wrong.
