"'Twas most convenient for Greenweld that Duncan was called away when he was, do you not think?"
Her face darkened. "No one saw the message," she whispered.
"Aye. What if the dead man was the messenger? What if the live one was Greenweld's man? What if the reason the message went missing was that it did not say what they wanted it to?"
"Gor," she breathed, her expression frightened. Then she frowned. "But how could they have been nearby all this time? Laird Angus had the woods searched twice. He even led the first search. And how could the fellow have gotten information to them? The gate is closed tight."
Iliana sighed and shook her head. "I do not know. I have not pieced it all together yet," she admitted, then stiffened at a muffled sound from the door they stood in front of. Exchanging a glance with the servant, she quickly pushed the door open and stepped inside, Janna directly on her heels. Iliana had taken several steps before she realized that, not only was the bed empty, but the messenger was nowhere in sight. Just as she realized that, the door slammed closed behind them.
Whirling, she stared at the messenger. He had been behind the door. Now he stood before it, sword in hand. Raising her chin, she eyed him coldly. "You appear to be well healed, sir."
"'Twas a paltry wound at best," he said with a shrug. "Most of the blood on me came from Lord Rolfe's man when I killed him."
Janna gasped at that, but Iliana merely let her shoulders sag slightly. "You are Greenweld's man."
"Aye, but then, you had all but figured that out, had you not?"
Iliana shrugged. "I presume that Lady Seonaid is all right, then?"
"Aye. Lord Rolfe's message merely explained that they would be delayed. He did not wish her father to worry. Most considerate of him, would you not say?"
Iliana ignored his sarcasm. "So, what do you plan to do next? 'Tis clear that now that you have been discovered, you shall not leave this keep alive."
"'Tis not so clear to me," he disagreed easily. "All I need do is kill you and your companion and my secret is safe."
Iliana ignored Janna's gasp of horror and forced her own expression to remain calm as she murmured, "I fear not. Laird Angus is aware that you were absent earlier. He also knows we came to check on you. Should we go missing you would be his first suspect."
"Then 'tis good that that was not the plan."
Iliana's gaze narrowed on him grimly. "And what exactly is your plan?"
"Well, it was to take Lady Wildwood, and deliver her to my lord."
"Take my mother to Greenweld? How the devil did you plan to accomplish that? The gate is down and the bridge up. There are guards posted."
"I have it on good authority that there is another way out, Lady Wildwood."
"Lady Dunbar," Iliana spat. "And there is no other way out."
"I fear you are wrong. I've already seen it. It is a very narrow, presumably secret passage and opens only one way, from the inside out. 'Tis why I had to be inside, to allow the others in. They cannot open it from the outside."
Iliana glanced sharply toward Janna. 'Twas obvious from her expression that if such a passage existed, the woman had no knowledge of it. She looked as uncertain as Iliana felt.
"I was originally to take Lady Wildwood out. Holding her, it was expected that you would be forced to surrender the keep."
"It would seem then that I have ruined your plans. You shall never get your hands on my mother now."
"Nay, but I am sure you will do just as well. Unfortunately, I see no need to drag your maid along."
Both women blanched at that announcement, but when the man stepped toward Janna, raising his sword, Iliana stepped before her. "I think not. Do you try, I shall surely shriek the stone walls of this castle down. How far do you think you would get then?"
"Most like as far as I would did you not," he answered with vague amusement. "'Tis only women, children, and old men within the walls. Hardly a threat to me."
"Then there is surely no need to kill Janna. We are but two women. What harm could we do?" she argued. "'Sides, should someone find her, they may be alerted to your plans. Angus may figure out where we disappeared to when we are not found in the keep. He could block the passage."
He hesitated at that, then shrugged and lowered his sword slightly. "It matters little, I suppose." Reaching out then, he grabbed Janna and dragged her up to his side, then glanced at Iliana. "We are going to the burned-out room. You shall lead the way. Move quickly and quietly. Do you cry out or attempt to flee, I shall kill your maid. Understand?"
Iliana took in the woman's frightened expression and tried to offer a reassuring smile even as she nodded at the man. She moved abruptly to the door when he gestured with his sword toward it.
She had hoped that someone might find reason to be in, or enter, the hallway as they moved through it. However, they reached the room without incident.
The bedroom she had slept in on first arriving at Dunbar was now mostly empty, and a sooty mess. Her chests were a charred mass at one end of the room, the floor-boards around and beneath them half-eaten through by fire. The other end of the room was empty but powdered with soot everywhere except for a large square where the bed had been, and four small squares where the legs of the bedside table had been.
Pausing, Iliana turned to face the Englishman as he pushed Janna in behind her and slammed the door.
"Over there. Beside the fireplace." He gestured with his sword, and the two women moved dutifully toward the wall. Following them, Greenweld's man kept his sword slightly up and pointed toward them as he felt along the wall. It was only then that Iliana noticed that some of the soot had been brushed away, obviously during an earlier search he had made, and she wondered briefly why he had not simply made his escape then.
"He said 'twas to the left of the fireplace. A stone would move under pressure and the wall would open."
"Who said?"
He opened his mouth as if to answer, then caught himself and turned on her sharply. "Very clever, my lady, but I think I shall keep that information to myself."
He continued his search then, and Iliana glanced at Janna. She wanted somehow to prepare her for an escape attempt, but the other woman was staring wide-eyed at their captor. Before she could get her attention, he gave a cry of triumph that drew her gaze back to him as the stone his hand pressed on began to slide backward with a heavy, low, grinding sound. The wall followed suit a moment later, opening into what looked to be a black hole. Greenweld's man frowned into the darkness unhappily, and Iliana could almost read his thoughts. He had not thought to bring a torch.
Taking the opportunity while he was distracted, Iliana leapt forward and gave him a shove that sent him stumbling into the darkness with a shout. Whirling, she gave a stunned Janna a push as well, this one sending her stumbling toward the doorway leading to the hall.
"Go!" she cried, harrying her forward. Janna regained herself enough to obey. Leaping at the door, she dragged it open and flew through it. Iliana was directly behind her when Janna crashed into her mother and Angus. It appeared Angus was prepared to return to the wall, for he was armed. Despite his weakness and having the woman slam into him, the man managed to keep his feet, and Iliana began to relax, thinking she was safe, but even as they all turned to look at her, she felt a hand catch in the short curls on the back of her head. When that hand yanked viciously, wrenching her head backward, she came to an abrupt halt, wincing as the icy edge of a blade was raised to her throat.
For a moment there was silence. Iliana could hear her captor panting by her ear. She herself was breathing heavily as well but tried to control it, for each time she sucked in air her throat rose slightly with the action, pressing the sharp blade farther into her neck. Angus was the first to regain himself.
"Let her go," he ordered grimly, pulling free of Lady Wildwood's panicked grasp and taking a step toward Iliana and her captor.
Greenweld's man stepped back at once, dragging Iliana with him, and she winced as the sword edge pres
sed tighter to her throat.
Angus stopped at once. "There is no where fer ye to run. Let her go unharmed and I'll make yer death quick."
Iliana closed her eyes at that. Had Greenweld's man not known of the passage, Angus's offer might have held sway, but he did. Death was not his only option. She was not surprised when he gave a dry, breathless laugh and merely pulled her back into the room, cautiously backing toward the passage. Angus followed. Both he and her mother noticed the passage a moment later.
"Nay!" she cried, hurrying into the room. "Take me. It is me Greenweld wants. Take me."