“Chain her to the rack,” Kilkern ordered and stood to the side while the men did as instructed.
She did not fight: her efforts would have proven useless, and she would have wasted valuable energy and courage she would need to survive.
“You go willing to the rack thinking Magnus will rescue you.” Kilkern laughed. “He could not rescue his own mother, how then can he rescue you?”
She thought to remind him that Magnus’s mother was his mother as well, but it was better not to enrage an already enraged beast. Discussion with him was her only weapon—or perhaps it was her shield.
“How can you hope to leave here after you are done and not have Magnus’s men slaughter you?”
“Who will lead them once Magnus is dead? Without a leader warriors have nothing. They will pledge their allegiance to me or they will die.”
The metal wrist clamps did not fit her small wrists as they should. When Kilkern’s men stretched her arms up above her head, her wrists rubbed against the metal and continued to scrape as they fastened her to the table.
She could feel her skin being rubbed raw, and she knew it would not be long before her wrists and ankles bled. That would serve Kilkern well, for her bloody and painful condition would infuriate Magnus when he saw her.
“His men will stop you,” Reena said confidently.
He laughed. “Their leader will be dead and they will have no choice but to surrender to me.”
“Thomas will never surrender.”
“That large idiot of a warrior that Magnus calls a friend will be done away with fast enough, and his death will only hasten the cooperation of the other warriors. I will make an example of one or two of the villagers, and fear will then have them obeying me without question.”
Kilkern’s vengefulness knew no bounds. She only hoped he remained the arrogant fool he was, for his plan was doomed to fail. Brigid would make certain Magnus and Thomas knew of her whereabouts and Magnus would come for her. He would rescue her, and she clung to that thought every time Kilkern ordered his men to tighten her chains.
The torture rack was situated so that it caught the eye of anyone entering, which was Kilkern’s purpose. He expected Magnus to lose all sense and reason when he saw her lying there in pain and bleeding.
And the pain came fast and furiously, rushing through her arms and legs and flooding her with a tremendous pressure that felt as if her limbs were about to be ripped from her body.
She attempted to remain silent, not wanting to give him the pleasure of seeing her suffer. Then a thought came to her.
She let out a bloodcurdling scream.Chapter 32Magnus entered the keep, his thoughts on Reena. He looked forward to talking with her this evening, sharing the evening meal and sleeping with her wrapped in his arms.
He suddenly could not wait to see her. He hurried to the stairs and climbed the steps in quick strides, promising himself he would only take a minute of her time. A hug and kiss was all he wanted and then he would leave her to map.
He knocked on her door, and when he got no response, he smiled. She was lost in her mapping as usual. He entered quietly and was surprised to see she was not at her desk or anywhere in her room.
She had mentioned mapping the dungeon, and he walked over to her table and was surprised to see that one of the candleholders that lined the edge sat on the drawing. Reena never sat a candleholder on her maps for fear of wax or flame destroying it. Whatever had made her leave it here?
He studied the map hoping it would give him a clue to her hasty departure when he noticed the metal rings in the one cell. It did not take him long to rush out of the room.
She would hear of her foolishness from him. Whatever had possessed her to go to the dungeon alone? He rushed into the great hall at the same time Thomas entered from the front doors with Brigid close behind, followed by Horace, who was barking and growling uncontrollably.
Magnus had never seen the dog so upset and so ready to attack.
“He started a few minutes ago and I cannot calm him down,” Brigid said. “It is so unlike him.”
Horace jumped up and down in front of Magnus, turned to run, and then jumped up in front of him again.
“He tries to tell you something,” Thomas said.
“Brigid, do you know where Reena is?” Magnus asked, though only to confirm his own thought.
“Aye, she foolishly went to the dungeons insisting she had discovered something of great importance. I told her I would inform you and Thomas as to her whereabouts as soon as you both returned.”