All Her Men (The Queen's Men Book 1) (4 page)

Chapter 8

As they exited the room from where she gave her speech, Amelia sighed deeply. All of the members had looked at her so expectantly, some even judgmentally. She felt like a child playing dress up, although she had never played the part of a queen… until now.

Jacob motioned her to him and whispered, “Come. We must go to the tunnels.”

“Tunnels?”

“Aye, the tunnels are safest. They have extra fortifications. Ye must learn to escape should it be necessary.”

“Through the tunnels?” Was he serious? “Tunnels, as in underground, with rats?” His lilting laughter greeted her in response. There was no recrimination for her. His face simply reflected mirth, as if he wasn’t sure what to make of her, but found humor in her words. “No, I’m not afraid of rats.”

“Of course.” He still grinned at her.

“Whatever.” She turned away from him. Her face hot from embarrassment and shame. “A flea on a rat caused the Black Death. I just don’t like being around them.”

“Ye think we would let ye succumb to the Plague?”

“The little slimy man might.” At his questioning look she clarified, “Your nasty little SNP Leader.”

His body tensed and he began looking her over from head to toe. She began looking at herself too. Amelia had been extremely careful not to drop her breakfast on her, but maybe she had missed something. Upon not finding anything she looked back at him. His words sounded gravely and dangerous to her ears as he asked, “Did he hurt ye?”

“Oh! No! He didn’t do anything… He’s just slimy… He makes my skin crawl.”

“Ye will nae be alone with him again, I swear it.” His warm hand grabbed hers. He leaned forward, his breath hot on her neck, “I dinnae break my promises, Amelia MacRory. The world will end first.”

She watched his face as he leaned back. The lines around his eyes were mired with anger, his jaw was taunt. No, this was not a man to break his promises. It seemed that she was stuck with a resolute protector and no way to get free. There was definitely no going back now. Of course, it didn’t mean that she wouldn’t try. “Are all Scots as stubborn as you?”

“Nay, I am special. Now, come. We must meet the others.”

****

He led her to a closet in the basement of Parliament. Upon opening the door, she knew something was different. It was empty; however, the dimensions seemed off. It was too wide to be so shallow. “Amelia, do ye ken what ye see?”

“I’m not sure. It looks odd.”

He grinned at her. “Of course tis. Tis the opening to another world — a world beneath the city.” He pressed a button on the wall and it moved.

She jumped from terror! Was the building caving in? Were they going to be squished!?!

“Relax, ‘tis opening.”

Opening? Sure enough, the wall was moving outward and sliding open. Just enough room for a person to pass through. “What is this?”

“’Tis a secret passage. Be careful, ye’ll find steps just beneath the edge.”

True to his word, there were steps just on the other side of the edge. The wall was an older stone wall, the steps wound their way around and down. “What is this?”

“’Tis an old escape route from Parliament. Learn the routes and ye’ll stay safe.”

“Oh my God! It’s a secret tunnel! You brought me to a secret tunnel!”

“Lass, keep yer voice down. Tis a secret and yer shouting it to the masses.”

“Sorry…” she whispered. “I’ve always wanted to go in a secret tunnel. All the superheroes have them…” Amelia was a geek at heart. She had plans to build secret tunnels and passageways in her house, but hadn’t yet gotten around to it. Now she was queen of a country that had them in spades. “Amazing, absolutely amazing.” She ran her hands along the cool stone as they descended.

The steps ran two floors beneath the Parliament building. Amelia took her time, surveying every inch that she could see. The light within was getting further away from above, and flickered below. “I can’t see.”

A light flared to life behind her. It was a small LED light, but served them well in the enclosed space. There was a slick feel to some of the steps. With the light, she realized it was a light slimy moss that made some of the steps so slick.

“There, ‘tis the last step.” The light from Jacob’s flashlight lit upon it and she was grateful they were done. She wasn’t afraid of enclosed spaces, but there wasn’t anywhere to go should danger appear while in the stairwell.

As they stepped into an open area Jacob pointed to an old torch holder against the stone wall. “That ‘tis the entrance to the entrance. Ye must place something of weight in the holder to get to the opening.” She watched as he picked a small pouch up from the ground. It was shaped just like a small rock, a broken piece of stone. “’Tis a simple trick that none have looked for all these years.”

They missed a stone for years? “What do you do with it?”

“Ye place it in the torch just so.” He lightly dropped it within the center. Amelia watched as it lowered slightly. A slight scratching noise could be heard off to their left. “’Tis the sound of the second entrance. Come.”

He switched off the flashlight.

“What are you doing? We need that to see,” she hissed.

A short laugh and he retorted, “See with yer eyes. Ye must learn to see even when nothing is there.”

Her eyes took a moment to adjust, tracking him as he began walking away from her. She followed as he walked down the darkened corridor. A tiny sliver of light flickered off the stones under their feet. “Where is this light coming from?”

“’Tis just ahead. Long ago lairds of the land got together and decided to appoint certain families as protectors. Throughout time the protectors were lost as they were not needed. Then a man decided the protectors were needed once again. We are what is left of those first protectors. We are yer men. We shall protect ye with our verra lives. The tunnels we are in are what is left of the ancient formations from long ago. They were once used to get people out of the city and to safety. Should ye ever need it, the tunnels are yers to use.”

As he stopped in front of a small stone that stood slightly out of place Amelia couldn’t help but wonder at the history that the tunnels had seen. If what Jacob was saying was true, then rulers had used these tunnels for various purposes over the years. Centuries even. Yet, here she stood. One of the few privileged enough to see them. If only her friends could see her. If only they could know just how important she was now, even if she did not want to be important.

“Jacob?”

“Aye?”

“Will I ever be able to go home?”

He turned towards her and lightly cupped her cheek. “Lass, ye are home.” As he turned away from her to press the stone in to the wall, Amelia felt her heart break. Even without the words, he had told her that she would never leave Scotland. She had chosen to be their queen. There was no going back. Only forward. She would have to make a new life here in Scotland and forget that her old life had ever existed.

The wall slid silently over to reveal a hidden passageway. Jacob reached in, against the wall, and light flared to life revealing a massive room with intricate detail. “’Tis where we awaited the chance to prove ourselves to Brandir. He’s the one that hired us to protect ye.”

“Brandir? That’s my father…”

“Aye, yer father.”

“My father’s dead.”

“Aye, that he is. Does not mean that he dinnae look out for ye though. He was the last. Even if the SNP had not voted to make ye queen, Brandir would have wanted us to protect ye.”

“My father’s been dead for years. I… I don’t understand.”

“Come. All will be explained in due time.”

As they entered the room, Amelia felt as if her chest was being crushed. There was so much that she didn’t know, so much hidden from her. Her father had been a secretive man, but had he really hired these men to protect her? She couldn’t remember much about him except that he loved her mother very much. Her mother loved him too. They just couldn’t be together. His leaving for Scotland had about killed her mother. Had there been more to it?

“Ye must know that yer father dinnae tell ye everything. He kept many secrets.”

“What else was he keeping secret?”

“Nothing nefarious. Brandir knew the day would come where ye would need us. He had hoped that t’would be many years away. However, he left the means for us to protect ye now.”

“Did he know that Scotland would be my home?”

“Yer father designed it.”

Designed it? Why was he making it sound as if her father had been a mastermind? “Jacob, you’ve lost me.”

“Yer father planted the seed within the SNP when ye were still verra young. He left America to return to his Scottish home many years ago. Did ye not wonder why?”

“I knew why. He was a victim of wanderlust. Never could sit still. Not even after Mom died did he return.” The anger in her words startled her. It was something that she had struggled to hide for so many years.

“Yer father was much more powerful than ye can imagine. We have sworn two oaths. The first to yer father. The second to ye.”

Why would anyone swear an oath to her father? He was just a simple salesman. He wasn’t anyone important. Well, he wasn’t anyone important to anyone other than her. To her, he had been the most important man in the world… He had walked out on her though. That was unforgivable.

“What did he do?”

“Yer father negotiated contracts for the SNP. Contracts are important when a country is on the verge of becoming free. Yer father made a lot of money, all of it now yers.”

Money? Why would she want money? The tiny house, which she apparently could not return to, was paid for. That was the only debt she had ever had. Her college had been paid for by scholarships and hard work. What would she need with her father’s money? She had worked really hard to support herself. There wasn’t a need for anything else. Well, unless she continued to be a queen. Then there might be a need. How expensive was running a country anyways?

Shaking her head to dispel the thought, she glanced about the room again. It seemed slightly off. There was something about it that seemed unusual. The room seemed as if it was made for more than just hiding things. “What was this room for?”

“Once it was a hide away. Now tis used for training.”

“Training?”

“Aye, we are yer men. We train here. And here ye shall learn to fight. Ye shall learn to protect yerself. Here in this verra hall, ye shall get stronger. Ye shall prepare for what may come. The land is verra accepting of ye as queen; however, we are Scotland. Some think us weak in this moment. It shall be up to ye to show our strength. Shall we begin?”

The grin on his face made her stomach flip. Butterflies, such a foreign feeling. The look made her feel as if she was a wanton woman ready to be devoured. Was she truly ready for this? Ready for everything Jacob offered? And exactly what was being offered?

A cough sounded behind her and she spun around. The others stood there. The ones that had, with Jacob, pledged to protect her. Was what he said true? Were they really there to protect her or was there more to it? Could she even trust them? Could she even trust Jacob?

As they stepped into the room she noticed that they had changed clothes. They were once again dressed the same as the men that took her from her home. Once again reminding her of who they were… The kidnappers! They were the kidnappers! “You son of a bitch,” she hissed.

“Before ye get all angry as a seafarin’ witch, allow me to introduce yer men.”

Did he seriously just call her a witch? Fine. She would keep her mouth shut for now, but he would pay for that later. Crossing her arms over her chest she waited for him to continue. She would find a way to kill him later.

Chapter 9

Jacob knew he was in trouble. Her eyes said it all. The blue-green depths had swirls of copper that seemed to leap out as if fire burned from her eyes. Her arms were crossed over her chest, head tilted slightly down, as if asking was he really so stupid as to do what he had done. One foot lightly tapped out an impatient rhythm. She was angry enough to be contemplating his excruciatingly painful demise. If she had Brandir’s spirit then she could do it too. Strength was not necessary when your spirit was of a phoenix rising from the ashes. Determined to burn those that would harm the ones you loved.

He would have to do some fast talking to get her to understand exactly what was at stake. Maybe then he would let him train her. Show her how to protect herself. A storm was coming and it was imperative that she be prepared for it. The news would be out. That Scotland had voted for freedom and now had a queen. A vulnerable, angry, and beautiful queen.

“Lass, yer father Brandir asked us to watch after ye. We are to protect ye from any and all dangers. All of the men in this room have pledged their loyalty to ye. Each will give their life to protect ye. Dinnae take this lightly and dinnae forget this. T’will be a time when t’will be needed.” The men lined up against the wall as they had done many times before. Each waiting their turn to be introduced to their queen.

Jacob walked up to the first one on the far left and placed his hand upon his shoulder. “’Tis Tim, our resident computer expert.”

Walking up to the next one he turned to her. “’Tis Deacon, our weapons expert.”

Moving further down the line. “’Tis Darren, our spy.”

“Spy?”

Stifling a laugh, Jacob casually said, “Aye, he can move into the enemies own forces an’ give him a hug before he realizes it.”

“Queen, dinnae fash. Tis only used fer good.”

She did not seem assured by Darren’s words, so Jacob moved on down the line. It was vastly important that she see them all as good. Amelia needed to have it drilled into her that these men, his brothers, were there to help her. They were there to protect her.

“Will here was among us that brought you here. This lad excels at marksmanship and hand to hand.”

“Dear God… What have I gotten myself into?” Her breathless tone brought him to a halt. She sounded scared; however, the tone struck him. Underneath the fear was anticipation. Strength. Even a hint of excitement…

It was a tone he had longed to hear from her, from the very moment he first saw the woman she had become. From the very first moment he stole Brandir’s wallet as a child. This was the little girl that had stolen his heart. Here she was all grown up. He just wished the reason was for him, and him alone.

“Do ye have any questions for us?”

“One,” she said with a tinge of fire. “What in the Hell did you fools think you were doing by scaring me half to death the other night in my house?”

A cough from Darren caused her to turn back towards him. Jacob tracked all of their movements. She was angry, and if she was like Brandir then anything could happen.

“Queen, we were doing our job. Protectin’ ye is what we were asked to do.”

“Since when has protecting become attempted murder?” She flared back around to Jacob and he knew what was coming next before the words were even out of her mouth. “What are you protecting me from?” Her eyes narrowed and he held his breath. “Or should I ask, from whom are you protecting me?”

“Damn.” It was too soon to have this talk. She’d run if she knew the truth — find the first boat back to America, if she couldn’t find a plane. “First, ye will need to learn how to use a gun.”

“I already know how to use a gun.”

He laughed. This tiny woman knew how to use a gun? He didn’t believe it.

“I had to pay for college somehow.” Her feet were set apart, her stance daring him to disbelieve her. Her arms were crossed over her chest and she leaned slightly back onto one hip. Her entire demeanor screamed at him. She was waiting for him to deny it, waiting for the chance to show him she could.

“I think ye have a few tricks up yer sleeve.”

“Aye, that I do.” She mimicked a strong Scottish Brogue.

No, he was better off not underestimating her. Brandir’s daughter was a strong one indeed.