“I tried to help you!” she bellowed at him. “And look what you did! I should have left you unable to walk!”
She swung for him again but Eberwyn’s men grabbed her and dragged her back. Alfred Brewer slowly straightened. She was gratified to see blood pouring from his nose.
“And for the help ye gave me,” he said. “I willnae kill ye for that. Now we are even.”
Eberwyn smirked. “Ye deserved that, Alfred. Lock them up with the others.”
Lily was dragged with Oskar over to the wall where she was quickly chained up next to Emeric and Magnus. Both men looked the worse for wear. Emeric’s head hung down and he seemed barley conscious and Magnus’s face was badly bruised.
“I’ll kill ye for this, traitor,” Oskar growled at Eberwyn. “And it willnae be slow nor pretty.”
Eberwyn just laughed and gestured to his men, who, along with Alfred, went back up the stairs and shut the door with a thud. Lily heard a key turning in the lock.
“Magnus? Emeric?” Oskar asked, turning to his sword-brothers. “Are ye all right?”
Emeric groaned in response, his eyes fluttering open. “Oskar? Is that ye?”
Lily leaned close to Emeric’s ear. “Hey, Emeric, it’s Lily. Can you hear me?”
He managed a nod, his voice barely above a whisper. “Aye, Lily. I can hear ye.”
“What’s happening?” Magnus asked weakly. His eyes flicked to Oskar, and then Lily. “Are we...are we still alive?”
“Aye, we’re alive,” Oskar replied, his voice throbbing with anger. “But we’re trapped.”
“Dinna...dinna trust Eberwyn,” Magnus gasped. “He’s...a traitor...one of them...”
“Aye,” Oskar said. “We noticed.” He leaned forward as far as the chains would allow. “Are ye hurt? What did he do to ye?”
Magnus gave a sour grunt. “Tried to get information about the Order of the Osprey, that’s what. When we wouldnae give him any...well, he wasnae best pleased.”
“But he didnae kill us,” Emeric added, raising his head and fixing Oskar with bleary eyes. “And that was a mistake. When I get out of these chains, I’m going to kill him.”
“Well ye’ll have to get in line,” Oskar said. He glanced around the chamber and Lily could see his mind working, churning overplans for escape. He tested his bonds, arms straining until the muscles in his biceps and neck stood out, but the metal bracket that attached the chains to the wall didn’t budge an inch.
“It’s no good,” Magnus said. “Ye willnae break the chains. It seems our old friends the Brewers have been planning this for a long time.”
“Planning what? Magnus, Emeric, what happened? How did ye end up here?”
Emeric took a wheezing breath. From the way he winced as he breathed in, Lily guessed his ribs were damaged. “After we left ye, we found Alfred and Alice’s trail easily enough. They left in such a hurry that they didnae have time to cover their tracks. They turned north not long after and began to circle back the way we’d come. Can ye guess where they led us?”
Oskar scowled. “Lord Eberwyn’s manor?”
“Got it in one. We thought they were going to attack Eberwyn so we thrashed the horses to get there in time to help. But when we got there, we didnae find a fight waiting for us: we found a trap.”
Magnus continued the story. “We were captured and questioned for days. Then they brought us here under cover of darkness. I’ve lost track of time but I reckon we got here yesterday.”
Oskar shook his head. “I dinna understand any of this. Why would Alfred and Alice Brewer risk coming to Edinburgh? The very place we were bringing Alfred to in the first place? There is a price on both their heads—they must realize if they are caught they will hang?”
Magnus shrugged. “I dinna know, my friend. But if there is one thing I’ve learned about these people, it’s not to underestimate them. I dinna know what they are planning but it’s nothing good, of that ye can be sure.”
Oskar mulled this over in silence for a while. Finally, he spoke. “If they’re planning something, we have to find a way to stop it.”
“Aye, but how?” Magnus replied. “In case ye havenae noticed, these chains are pretty tight.”
Oskar ground his teeth and Lily could see the frustrated rage boiling up inside him. “There has to be something we can do! I’ll be damned if I’m going to sit here and wait like a rat caught in a trap!”
“Why the rescue?” Lily said suddenly.
