Medieval Ever After (123 page)

HIGHLANDER’S RECKONING

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

Daniel barely made
it to his study before breaking the red wax seal on Warren’s missive. Warren’s seal was burned into his mind, for he’d seen the bastard’s coat of arms on the dead bodies in the Galloway forest and had waited four days to see the same seal on the ransom note he now held in his hand.

Four days.

Four long, horrible days had passed since the afternoon Rona had been taken. If it weren’t for his brothers and cousin, Daniel would have ridden to Dunbraes alone a thousand times over by now, but they kept a close eye on him, explaining over and over that they had to wait a little longer before launching their strike against Warren.

On the first full day, they had gone to the woods and found the bloody scene Meredith had told them about. They’d given Patrick and Harold as proper a burial as they could manage, but left the English soldiers to the wild animals. Sure enough, under their chainmail they wore Warren’s coat on their tunics.

He would have charged toward Dunbraes right then if his family hadn’t physically restrained him. They forced him to return to Loch Doon and practically locked themselves in his study with him under the pretense of working on their plan of attack.

The next three days had passed sickeningly slowly as they waited and planned. He trained savagely with his men, barely ate, and couldn’t sleep. His brothers and cousin told him he had to keep his strength up, but food tasted like ash in his mouth.

Jossalyn made him a sleeping draught the second night, and although he slept long and deeply, he didn’t take the potion again. He hated himself for escaping into sleep when Rona was suffering God knew what at Warren’s hands. And he didn’t want to return to the bed he shared with her until she was safely in his arms again. Her scent lingered on the sheets, haunting him.

Robert, Garrick, and Burke trained with him when they weren’t all in his study poring over the maps Jossalyn had made for them. She’d given them more detailed sketches on the castle’s interior, not just its external defenses, which he prayed would help them if they ever got inside Dunbraes.

When
, he told himself firmly, not
if
they entered the castle.

The ransom letter was finally here, which meant that they could set their plan in motion at last. It would all be over soon, one way or another.

As he unfolded the missive, a lock of red hair fell out into his hand.

Rona’s hair.

His thumb rubbed the silky red lock and his throat tightened. He brought it to his nose and inhaled. It still held a faint trace of her unique, intoxicating scent, the one that lingered on the bed they shared. He couldn’t lose her. If he did…

A knock came at the door, and Robert entered a moment later.

“What does it say?” his older brother asked without preamble. They all knew the moment the messenger had docked against the castle’s moors that this was the letter they’d been waiting for, but blessedly, his family had given him a moment alone to open it.

Daniel looked down at his hands. He was still clutching the missive in one hand and the lock of Rona’s hair in the other. He hadn’t even read the letter yet.

He scanned it quickly as he tucked the lock of hair into the sporran at his waist. Then he stepped forward and handed the letter to Robert.

“This seems standard,” Robert said after glancing at the short note inside. “It’s good that he wants to open negotiations a week from now rather than, say, tomorrow morning. That will give us time and the element of surprise.”

Daniel nodded, hardening himself. “We should leave this afternoon.”

Robert remained silent for a moment, eyeing him. “Or tomorrow.”

A spike of rage surged through Daniel’s veins, cutting through the dull anxiety that had shrouded him for the last several days.

“If we leave now, we’ll still be under the cover of night by the time we reach Dunbraes.”

“You need more rest,” Robert said, his tone shifting slightly into the familiar authority of an older brother and Laird.

“Like hell I need rest!” Daniel said, stepping toe to toe with his brother. “What I need is to get my wife back. What I need is to have Rona safe and sound and in my arms again. And what I need is to take the bastard Warren’s life with my own two hands!”

“You’ll have to get in line for that last one,” Garrick said as he stepped into the study. Burke came in behind him and closed the door.

“We are moving—now,” Daniel commanded. “Be ready in an hour.”

He shot a glance at Robert to see if he would challenge his authority, but Robert only nodded.

“Burke, secure us passage to the village with one of the oarsmen. We’ll get horses there,” Daniel said, feeling simultaneously calmer and more energized than he had in days. The waiting was over. They could finally act.

Burke nodded and slipped out the study door.

“I’ll let Alwin know,” Robert said.

Alwin had seamlessly and silently taken over the running of the castle after Rona had been taken. Daniel would have to remember to thank her when this was all over. She had a way of keeping the castle calm and orderly, even while everything else felt like it was falling apart.

“Are you sure you don’t want Jossalyn to come with us?” Garrick said.

“Nay, it’s too dangerous. She’s already been an invaluable help,” Daniel replied.

Even though Jossalyn herself had offered to come with them on their strike against Dunbraes, Garrick visibly relaxed at Daniel’s words. He couldn’t blame him, either. What they had planned was barely anything more than a fool’s errand. At every turn, they’d have to use all their skill, plus a fair bit of luck. It was no place for Jossalyn, despite the fact that she wanted to help.

The three stood in silence for a moment in Daniel’s study. Despite the tension in the room and the nearly insurmountable task ahead of them, Daniel gave each of his brothers a little nod, a wry smile touching his mouth.

“This is it, then.”

“Aye, it’s time.”

They rode through the evening and the night, cutting southeast from the village, through the Galloway woods, and toward Dunbraes. The stars and a sliver of moon were their only light. Luckily it hadn’t rained in a few days so the ground wasn’t as soft, allowing the horses to travel faster.

They wouldn’t get a moment’s rest tonight, and Daniel had barely slept in the last four days, either. Despite that, with each stride of the horses, he grew more energized. The closer they drew to Dunbraes, the closer he was to Rona—his love, his life, his future. Somehow, she’d become a part of him, and he a part of her. If she were taken from him, he could never be whole again.

Thoughts of Rona haunted him throughout the ride. It wasn’t until the dark, early hours of the morning, when they were only a few miles away from Dunbraes, that he forced his mind to focus on the task ahead of them.

Finally, they slowed their horses and guided them slightly to the left so as to approach the castle from the north, as Jossalyn had advised. It was the furthest point from the main gates, which were more heavily guarded. Plus, the castle’s tower keep stood closest to the northern side of the curtain wall, meaning they’d have to cross the least amount of open space to get to the dungeon, where Jossalyn guessed her brother would keep Rona.

About a mile from the castle, they dismounted silently and tied the horses in a densely foliated area of the surrounding forest. They moved swiftly on foot through the forest until they reached its edge, where the trees had been cleared to provide the castle with greater visibility to protect against attack.

Daniel strained to make out any figures on the curtain wall’s battlements. The castle loomed up against the night sky, an almost indistinguishable shadow in the darkness.

Slowly, the four of them crept forward into the open. Daniel, Robert, and Burke were forced to keep their swords sheathed or risk the metal glinting in what little moonlight there was. Daniel felt naked without his blade in hand, yet he willed himself forward. At least Garrick had an arrow nocked in his bow, which he held half-drawn and at the ready.

Just as they were about to reach the rocky terrain upon which the castle was built, Robert threw up a hand. Instantly, they all dropped into a crouch and froze. The curtain wall was a mere dozen yards in front of them. They would be invisible to any guard on top of the wall once they were pressed against it. But as Daniel looked up at the wall, he made out a shadowy figure moving along the battlement.

Even crouched and covered by the night’s darkness, the grasses and scattered rock outcroppings surrounding the castle offered little cover for them. Daniel held his breath, praying the guard on the battlement wouldn’t spot them.

As he watched the figure move toward them at an even pace, he breathed a silent sigh of relief. The guard hadn’t seen them yet, otherwise he would have stopped to look closer or sent up a call for help.

Daniel caught a movement out of the corner of his eye and turned slightly to see Garrick drawing his bowstring back ever so slowly. He had an arrow trained on the figure as it moved directly in front of them. But the figure never stopped. The guard continued around the battlement, and after several tense moments he was out of sight.

When they’d finally closed the remaining distance to the curtain wall, Daniel let himself breathe deeply again. The first challenge was completed. But they would be even more vulnerable than before with their next task.

Burke reached for his belt and unwound a length of rope with a large fisherman’s hook attached to one end. Daniel sent thanks to the heavens yet again for Rona’s willfulness. If she hadn’t told them the story of how she’d escaped Loch Doon using such a rope and hook, Daniel wasn’t sure how they would plan on scaling Dunbraes’ towering curtain wall.

As Burke hefted the hook in his grasp, Daniel could make out its dull outline in the darkness. It was bigger than his spanned hand, with a sturdy fisherman’s knot through the loop at the bottom. With a quick nod to the others, Burke took a step back from the wall and threw the hook upward, aiming for one of the crenels that opened onto the wall’s battlement.

The hook clattered onto the battlement, and all the men tensed at the noise. They remained motionless at the bottom of the wall, waiting for the dreaded sound of guards rushing toward them.

But the castle remained quiet, and after what felt like an eternity, Burke gave a tug on the rope. The hook didn’t fall back down or scrape along the stones—blessedly, it was securely wedged against the lip of the battlement.

Garrick silently released the tension on his bow and slipped the arrow into the quiver on his back. Then he slung the bow over his shoulder and took hold of the rope. They had agreed that he would go first in case he needed to pick off any guards at a distance, but it chafed at Daniel to have to wait for his turn. Garrick braced his feet against the wall and began to climb. In a matter of moments, he’d slipped through the crenel opening and onto the battlement running along the top of the wall.

Daniel took up the rope next, followed by Burke and Robert. As they each reached the battlement, they crouched for fear that their dark outlines would stand out against the starry sky. Once they were all up, Burke silently eased the hook off the lip of the battlement, rewound the length of rope, and secured the hook and rope to his belt.

If all went according to the plan, they’d be leaving the same way they came in. Daniel wouldn’t let himself think about the possibility that they would get separated and be unable to all use the rope—or worse, that they’d have to fight their way out of the castle.

He sharpened his mind on the task ahead instead. Garrick again took his bow in hand and nocked an arrow, though the battlement remained quiet and still. Daniel tapped each one of the others on the shoulder and gestured to the left, silently pointing toward the nearest guard tower. They moved in a crouch toward the tower, pausing every few seconds to listen for movement.

Suddenly, Garrick froze in front of Daniel. Burke and Robert, who were behind him, tensed also. Daniel eased one eye over Garrick’s shoulder, and his stomach dropped.

Standing between them and the guard tower was a dark figure. Daniel couldn’t tell if the guard was facing toward or away from them, but if he saw them, their entire plan would be dashed, and all hope of extracting Rona stealthily would vanish.