Highland Rake (34 page)

She smiled at the lad's words, but she said to Connell, "Too risky to go through that room. Let us find another."

"I dinna know what our uncle is planning. I hate to tell you, but they didna have a guard posted at their door."

"No guard? Why would
they
have no guard?" She waved at him to not speak. "I dinna need to know. We free Dougald, gather his men, and leave at once for Craigly Castle."

"How will we get the MacNeill men out of the barracks without the Cameron and MacDonald men knowing?" Tavis asked. "I assumed we would only be facing one guard in the dungeon and Callum and I can take care of him. But taking on all of the other men would be hard to do."

"Dougald will come up with a plan," Alana said. She was not the military commander of troops. She'd leave battle plans like that to the men who knew how to manage them.

Connell went through the hidden door at another room, and she paused, expecting this time they would find an unguarded chamber. She had hoped they'd be out of here by now, yet she felt some comfort in being hidden in the passageway, and some apprehension at being discovered and still being stopped.

Connell quickly returned. "This chamber belongs to Turi, but he is not within."

She thought it odd. Why would he not be in bed at this late hour? "No guard?"

"Nay."

Not that she thought he would have anyone guarding his room. "All right. We will use his chamber." Though she hated to. She'd always cared for the man, who had been like a father just as her uncle had been with her. Everyone was fond of him, which was why when her da died, his advisor became her uncle's advisor and no one questioned it. So she didn't feel comfortable sneaking through his chamber like a thief.

When she and the boys were in the room, she hurried to the door, but Tavis quickly moved in front of her. "Allow me." He was armed with his sword and dagger, as was Callum, though she didn't want either of the boys fighting her battles.

He opened the door and seeing no one, motioned for her and Callum to go with him.

After they entered the corridor, Callum shut the door, and they hurried off to the stairs that would lead them down to the kitchens and then to the dungeon.

In all the years she'd lived here, she had not once left her chamber in the middle of the night to roam through the keep, and it felt eerily spooky. Particularly when she saw two maids who had died from a fever this past spring near the kitchen, and they both watched her curiously.

Please don't speak to me
, she pleaded silently to them, tearing her gaze away from them as if she didn't see them. Connell glanced at them and smiled and winked.
Och, Connell.

Even now her brother couldn't quit flirting with the lasses.

"Where are you going?" Seana asked behind them, giving Alana a start.

"Seana," Alana said in a hushed voice as they neared the dark kitchen, surprised to see Dougald's ghostly sister following them. Had she come to check on Alana in bed and found her gone? Or had she been searching for Connell to see what he was up to? "Connell thinks Dougald is in the dungeon."

Seana's brown eyes grew round. "Where is it?"

"We are going there now."

The two ghostly maids were still watching them, and Seana cast them a narrow-eyed look like they'd better leave or else. They quickly curtseyed to her—the word must have gotten out she was a lady and even in the spirit world rank must have counted, or they were used to such courtesy—then they vanished.

Now if they could have used all the ghosts roaming around tonight to help free Dougald from the dungeon—if that's where he was—they'd have no trouble.

Callum whispered, "Who are you speaking to now, my lady?"

"These are your guards?" Seana asked. She glowered at Connell. "Dinna think I didna see you making eyes at the maids." She shook her head.

"Lady Seana has joined our party," Alana said to Callum.

Connell said, "I only smiled at the lasses. Did you want me to scowl at them? Why should I?"

Seana frowned at Connell. "There is smiling and then there is smiling. The kind you do is the kind that gets you into trouble, Connell Cameron."

Alana rolled her eyes. How was she to rescue Dougald if she had to quell the bickering between her brother and
his
sister?

They'd barely passed the darkened kitchen and had quite a ways to go before they reached the stairs leading down to the dungeon, when a force of several men dashed out of the room, startling Alana. She cried out. Men rushed up the dungeon stairs, as evidenced from their heavy tromping boots on the stone steps as they moved in their direction and quickly surrounded Alana, Callum, and Tavis.

Her uncle was among them and stared down at Alana, then looked at the lads and scowled deeply. He folded his arms. "How did the three of you get past the guards?"

"Where is Dougald?" she demanded. She had never acted in that manner toward her uncle. She was always very considerate when she was with him in front of his men. She couldn't help herself. If her uncle was in the wrong, or even if he was in the right, she wanted to know what was going on.

Then she spied Turi standing among the men, looking more than concerned. But she was not about to be sent to bed without an explanation, and if Dougald had done no wrong he was retiring to bed with her.

"Come with me, Alana," her uncle said, then motioned for his men to take the boys back to their chamber.

She saw then that they'd quickly been disarmed. She hadn't wanted any harm to come to them, so she was glad they hadn't been given the chance to fight.

"No," Tavis said, bullheadedly. "We stay with Lady Alana. She is one of us now. You canna hand her over to the MacDonalds."

Cameron chuckled. "I didna intend to, lad. Return to your chamber and stay there or I will lock you in a cell down below."

"Go," Alana implored. She didn't want the boys locked in the dungeon, and she was heartened to hear that her uncle did not intend to give her up to the MacDonalds. "Why is Dougald in the dungeon?"

She shouldn't have asked her uncle in front of her clansmen when she was so angry.

"Alana," he said, reaching for her arm.

She stepped back out of his reach.

He frowned and turned to his advisor on battle matters, Bran. "Take her to my chamber and keep her there."

She could have fought her uncle, the men, every one of them. But she knew in the end, it would be of no use.

She opened her mouth to speak, but her uncle cut her off and said to Bran, "Now."

"Aye, my laird." Bran grasped her arm and took her away with two men leading the escort and two following behind.

When she was beyond her uncle's hearing, she scowled up at Bran. "You can release me now. I willna be running away."

He smiled down at her. "I agree." But he didn't release her, either.

"What is this all about?"

"When the laird is ready to tell you, Lady Alana, he will." Bran took her to her uncle's chamber, once her da's.

"I wish to be returned to my own chamber so I may sleep."

"It isna your uncle's wish."

"I canna sleep in his bed. I am tired."

He chuckled. "If you hadna
left
your bed, you could be asleep in it."

Two of the men inspected her uncle's chamber before they allowed her to enter. She thought it odd. Why would anyone be hiding in her uncle's chamber?

"Tell me this then," she said, taking a seat on a cushioned bench, when two of the men were posted outside the room and the other two inside along with Bran, "what has Dougald done to earn him a stay in a cell?"

"He hasna done anything wrong, my lady, but continued to be the heroic individual he has been all along with regard to you."

She folded her arms and scowled up at him. "Then why is he in a cell!"

"I canna say for certain, only that your uncle had a plan, and he knew MacNeill would no' go along with it."

She noted then that neither Connell nor Seana had joined her. Where were they now? If only
they
could let Dougald out of his cell.

Still, she was furious with her uncle, and she would let him know it as soon as he came to see her.

***

"Alana! Cameron, God's wounds let me out of here!" Dougald shouted, after hearing Alana scream. He knew she'd been startled, not hurt after he'd heard the words spoken near the kitchen. He'd listened quietly, trying to hear what was being said.

Bran was escorting her to her uncle's chamber, the lads to the one they shared, and guards would be posted. But he'd heard her uncle say he didn't intend to give her up to MacDonald. Which was a relief.

Gunnolf yanked at the bars and said, "I believe we are down here so he could see who would come to rescue us. Seems your lass and the lads were the only ones brave enough to do so."

Dougald should have known Alana would try to free him. He smiled to himself, then he was irate with Cameron all over again.

"Cameron! Release us at once!" Dougald shouted. To Niall and Gunnolf he said, "I believe this is the only time I have ever been used as bait. I dinna like it. Especially when I meant to protect my wife." Dougald stood at his cell door, then called out, "I am ill and in need of a healer!" He swore he heard Cameron chuckle along with a couple of his men.

Even Gunnolf and Niall were grinning at him.

Dougald stalked over to his pallet and sat down. "Who does he believe intended to come down here and rescue us?"

Niall snorted and crossed his arms over his chest. "According to you, if I got naked, a lassie would have appeared."

Remembering when Alana had seen all the men naked at the loch, Dougald studied him for a moment, then shook his head. "'Twas good that you didna if Alana had happened to join us."

"You asked if the lass would come to rescue you if you were locked in the dungeon," Niall said, taking a seat again. "Now you have your answer."

Aye, he did. He loved her.

Dougald stood and walked over to the bars again. "Cameron! It willna work. Whatever your plan was, it didna work! Release us! Now!"

They heard the stomping of boots on the stairs, then several armed men strode toward Dougald's cell and at once he felt relief, anger, and apprehension.

"Dinna cause any trouble," one of the men said, poised to unlock the cell. "Laird Cameron asked that we free you so you can take Lady Alana back to her chamber and stay with her the rest of the eve."

"Because whosoever was supposed to free us didna show?" Dougald asked.

"Aye. His lairdship didna believe his niece would be the one to try and do so." The man chuckled softly and unlocked the cell door.

Dougald was sorely tempted to slam a fist into every Cameron's face there, but he reined in his temper. He had to make peace with these men if he was ever to someday lead them. And he knew his actions and his reactions would always be judged by the rest of the clan.

"Why didna he speak to me first of the matter?"

"He knew you wouldna go along with it." The man turned to unlock Gunnolf and Niall's cell, while another handed Dougald his sword. Then they waited for Niall and Gunnolf to leave their cell. Another man returned their swords.

In a rush to gather Alana up in his arms and sequester her away to her chamber—to his also now—Dougald led the group out.

Cameron had that right. Dougald would never have agreed to be locked up while his wife was without his protection. "Where is Laird Cameron?" Dougald asked.

"He has gone to speak with his niece to explain to her his reasoning. He didna want her to believe you had done anything wrong."

"Too late for that," Dougald scoffed.

"Everyone wishes to know how you do it," the man said.

Dougald glanced back at him. The man was smiling, blue eyes sparkling as he scratched his red beard. "You know. Always have a bonny lass come to your rescue when you are locked in a dungeon. We all were wagering which maid might come to free you, hoping they wouldna spoil the plan. But none of us believed the rumors were true, that a lassie would make the effort."

"Which of you won the bet?"

"None of us. No one thought to bet on Lady Alana. She had guards keeping her in her room. That was another reason Laird Cameron went to speak to her, to learn how she managed to break out of her room without alerting the guard."

"And break out the lads as well?" Dougald asked. He'd heard Tavis defend Alana by proclaiming her to be one of the MacNeills. He was proud of the boy. He assumed Callum, usually the quieter of the two, was ready to do battle as well.

"Aye, and them, too. They also had a guard. If the guards left their posts, they will regret it when Cameron gets through with them. Did you need anything?" the man asked.

"Your name?"

"Duff."

"Well, Duff, ensure Gunnolf and Niall have a chamber to sleep in, and ask two of our men to keep watch outside Alana's chamber door."