"That might work," Jo commented. "Then if she learns ye're no' married, she'll ken ye will marry her if she wishes."

"Aye," the other women agreed together.

Aulay stared at them, and shook his head. He'd known the women wouldn't be able to keep from interfering in his life. This was all their fault. They were the ones who had brought Jetta here to Buchanan, raising the risk of her finding out they weren't married.

"Oh, there she is," Edith warned in a hushed tone.

His thoughts scattering, Aulay glanced to Edith to see her looking toward the stairs. Following her gaze, he spotted Rory descending the steps. His brother was perhaps a third of the way down them, and even as Aulay looked, Rory's eyebrows rose as he noted them all staring his way. Shifting his gaze past the man, Aulay saw Jetta on the landing, walking toward the top of the stairs, and stopped breathing as he took her in. She looked absolutely beautiful.

Aulay had been so happy to see her and so intent on her face earlier that he'd hardly noted the gown she wore. It was a lovely deep green dress that he suspected would have fit her beautifully when he and Alick had first found her, but was presently just a touch too big after the weight she'd lost while unconscious. Jetta had gained back some of the weight, but not enough to properly fill out the dress. Even so, she looked beautiful in it. She was wearing a crispin or caul that gathered the hair from the front and sides and pulled it back behind her head where it hung down, encased and partially hidden in a veil as dark as her remaining hair.

Aulay didn't doubt for a minute that his sister and the other women had either made or given it to her to hide the fact that she was missing a good deal of hair on the back of the head. And he was grateful for it, for while the missing hair hadn't bothered him, it had obviously bothered Jetta. Or perhaps it was a combination of the missing hair and not having proper clothes that had affected her, because she had been tentative and self-conscious at the lodge, but was now walking with much more confidence, and a happy smile claimed her lips as she spotted him.

The corners of his mouth lifting in return, Aulay immediately stood and headed for the stairs. Jetta was still recovering her strength and he worried the stairs might be too much for her. He had just opened his mouth to tell her to wait and he would carry her down, when she reached the top of the steps and a dark figure suddenly came from the side and shoved her.

It happened so fast, Aulay could barely believe his eyes, but an enraged roar burst from his mouth as Jetta fell forward, and Aulay lunged for the stairs.

Rory, who had been descending, paused abruptly at his bellow and turned to see what had upset him. Spotting Jetta tumbling toward him, he started back up the stairs, but even he was not close enough to prevent her slamming her head into the steps at least two or three times before he reached her and brought her fall to a halt.

By the time Aulay reached them, Rory had helped her to a sitting position on the stairs and was crouched down beside her on the steps.

"Jetta?" Aulay said with concern, crouching on her other side.

"I am fine," she murmured, lifting her head and managing a smile. "As I was just telling Rory, my ankle hurts a bit, but my hair and the crispin cushioned my head."

"I still think I should take a look," Rory said with a frown. "Ye're just recovering from a serious head injury, and--"

"Fine." Jetta sounded a bit exasperated, but resigned.

"Let us get ye back up to yer room then," Rory said, and started to help her to her feet.

"Wait here a minute, Rory. I need to go up before ye," Aulay said grimly.

"Ye do? Why?" Rory asked with surprise.

"Because someone pushed her down the stairs," Cam Sinclair said grimly, following Aulay when he moved past Rory and Jetta to make his way up to the landing.

"What?" Rory asked with shock.

"Aye," Aulay heard Jetta say. "Someone shoved me. I did not see who, though."

"Someone did shove her, Rory. I saw someone come up behind her and give her a shove," Saidh growled, sounding angry.

"Who was it?" Rory asked at once.

There was a pause and then Saidh admitted unhappily, "I did no' see. It happened so fast, and the figure was in shadow and wearing dark clothes. All I really got was an impression of someone."

"Me too," Edith announced. "But 'tis dark on the landing."

"The torches are out up there," Uncle Acair commented.

"Aye," Murine put in. "I noticed that as we came down. Why are the torches no' lit?"

Aulay surveyed the upper hall with narrowed eyes as he reached the landing. What Murine said was true. The torches were not lit, at least not the ones by the stairs. There were some still lit at the end of the hall, but the ones that might have revealed who pushed her were all out.

"There's no one in the hall," Cam said behind him and Aulay turned to see that the Sinclair wasn't the only one who had followed him. Dougall, Niels and Greer were behind him as well. Uncle Acair had stayed with Jetta and Rory.

"Nay," Aulay said finally, casting another glance along the hall. "But this is the only way below so whoever pushed her is still here. 'Tis why I did no' rush right up, but first stopped to see that Jetta was all right."

"Ye want to search the rooms?" Greer asked.

"We'll all help," Dougall put in.

Aulay nodded. "But I want one man to stay at the top o' the stairs so whoever pushed Jetta does no' slip from an unsearched room, to one already searched to avoid us."

"I'll wait out here and watch the stairs," Niels offered. "And I'll check the chests of dresses the men left in the hall while I do."

"Thank ye," Aulay murmured. "Then Dougall and Cam can take the rooms to the right o' the stairs, and Greer and I'll take the rooms on the left."

He waited just long enough to see the men all nod, and then turned to head to the left. Greer followed, but continued past him when he opened the door to the room where Katie was resting with Geordie watching over her. Aulay's gaze slid to the woman in the bed with her long, black hair fanned out on the pillow around her pale face and for a moment it was like being back at the lodge, peering at Jetta in her sickbed.

Shaking the thought away, he glanced to his brother and his expression softened slightly as he noted the way Geordie sat sprawled in the chair. His eyes were closed, his head nodding and soft snores slipping from his lips. Aulay had no doubt Rory had walked in on exactly this scene several times at the lodge before Jetta had regained consciousness. Only he had been the one sprawled asleep in the chair.

Shifting his gaze away from his brother, he surveyed the rest of the room just to be sure whoever had pushed Jetta hadn't risked slipping in here to hide, and then eased the door silently closed and moved on to the next door just as Greer stepped out. His brother-in-law met his gaze and shook his head to indicate he'd found nothing in the chamber and they moved on to the next rooms. They made quick work of their end of the hall. Even so, Cam and Dougall were quicker and came to join them as they reached the last door on their end of the hall.

"Nothing?" Aulay asked as Greer opened the door and entered the room he and Saidh had been given to sleep in. They normally stayed in Saidh's old room when they visited, but that was where Katie was at the moment, so they had taken one of the guest rooms.

"Nothing," Cam Sinclair confirmed solemnly.

That made Aulay turn narrowed eyes into this, the last room. Pushing away from the door, he followed Greer inside and then paused to look around, but could tell at a glance that there was really nowhere to hide.

"I see our Saidh still keeps her room a mess," Dougall said with amusement behind him.

Aulay didn't comment, but did peer around at the gowns tossed everywhere.

"Saidh's maid, Joyce, usually tidies up after yer sister at home, but we left her behind to watch Rhona, Sorcha and Ailsa," Greer explained, moving around the bed and then bending to look under it. "Saidh was loath to leave them behind, but me squire, Alpin, insisted the triplets should no' be exposed to the ri

gors o' travel at only six months old," he added dryly, and then straightening from looking under the bed, smiled grimly and announced, "So we left him to help Joyce with the lasses while we're gone."

"I'm sure he was no' well pleased by that," Dougall said with amusement.

"Actually, I think the opposite is true," Greer admitted wryly as he shifted some of the dresses to be sure all they were was dresses. "I thought he'd be upset, but he's taken quite a shine to the girls. He's verra protective o' them and often volunteers to entertain them. He seemed content to remain behind with the lasses."

"Alpin's a good lad," Cam murmured, moving another pile of dresses aside. "And he had it right. Traveling with bairns is a trial. 'Tis why we left Bearnard with me mother and father. Jo and I are missing him, but while he's out o' nappies now, he's teething and fussing with it, which is a terrible trial for him when traveling. Fortunately, me mother enjoys her grandson, teething or no'." Glancing to Greer, he added, "I can no' imagine three bairns teething at the same time though. Ye're in fer a treat, me friend."

"Every day with me lasses is a treat," Greer said. He sounded sincere, and they knew he was. Greer adored all four of the females in his life. Saidh, and the three beautiful little girls she'd given him.

"There is no one in this chamber," Dougall said solemnly, once they'd searched every possible hiding spot in the room.

"Then we must have missed something," Aulay said grimly. "Someone pushed Jetta down the stairs."

"Aye," Cam said, and then raised his eyebrows. "We search again?"

"Aye," they all said as one.

"I'm thinkin' we should switch sides this time," Aulay said as they left Saidh and Greer's room. "Greer and I'll take the bedchambers Dougall and Cam searched the first go round, and they check the ones we did."

"That sounds a good idea," Cam said with a nod. "One o' us might catch something the other missed."

Greer and Dougall murmured agreement and they broke up again to search the rooms.

Tags: Lynsay Sands Highland Brides Romance
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