Unsmiling, he said, “The messenger brought several letters, Alana, and one is from Sir Alexander.”
February 11, 1308—Berwick
My Dear Daughter, Alana,
Terrible news has reached us here in the south. We have learned that Iain MacDonald has taken Brodie and commands it, and that he holds Duncan’s son hostage. But there is more. Gossips claim that you have sworn fealty to the traitor, Robert Bruce, and have been rewarded with Brodie Castle. I cannot believe it.
My daughter, I know well that we are not close. But that does not mean that you are notinmy heart, always. I am concerned for your welfare now. My brother, Buchan, is furious. We must put these rumors to rest.
It is said that Bruce is ill, and is the guest of Christina of the Isles. There will be no war now until the spring. As I write, Buchan has gone to Dundee, and I am returning to Balvenie. My daughter, I am inviting you to join me there, so we can put an end to these vicious speculations. As importantly, you can finally meet your sisters, Alice and Margaret, and at long last, we can be father and daughter for a time, until the war calls me back.
Sincerely,
Your Father, Sir Alexander Comyn
Alana’s hands were shaking as she finished reading her father’s letter. She could not quite breathe, and she hurried to a chair and sat down.
She was alone in the hall. Iain had left her there to read the missive in privacy, ordering everyone away.
Sir Alexander had heard of her treachery, and he did not believe it. But the news was true. And now, he wanted her to join him at Balvenie. Her sisters would be there. He would be there.
He wanted to become acquainted with her, finally, that much was clear!
How could she go? She was a traitor to him, her uncle and their cause!
“Alana?”
She turned to glimpse Iain standing on the threshold of the hall. He was concerned. “I am not very well,” she managed to say.
Iain strode to her. “Ye have finished reading it?”
She nodded and handed it to him. When he had given her the roll, the seal had not been broken. “You may read it if you wish.”
He quickly held it open and read the brief missive. Grimacing, he rolled it up and handed it to her. “Ye cannot go. It is a trap.”
She leaped to her feet. “What do you say?”
“Yer father entices ye to Balvenie, where ye’ll be imprisoned fer treason.” He was final.
“I don’t believe that! You read the letter. He doesn’t believe that I am a traitor and he wants me to meet my sisters!” She was breathless. “I think he wants to get to know me, at last!”
“Since when do ye play the fool?” He was cool. “Yer father is dancing to Buchan’s tune. Can ye not see that the earl is behind this?”
Alana gasped, shocked by the suggestion that her father would be inviting her to Balvenie upon the earl’s command so she could be seized and captured. It was impossible. “I do not believe that.”
He clasped her shoulder. “Alana, why, after all these years, does he wish to see ye? Think!”
She pulled away. “People change, Iain.”
“Ye want to go?” He was incredulous.
“I don’t know! But I want to know my father better, before he dies! Have you forgotten about my vision? He will die in this war! I want to meet my sisters!”
“At what price, Alana? At the cost of being thrown in a cage like Buchan’s wife, fer the rest of yer life?”
She knew Iain was trying to protect her from capture or even death, but she could not believe that if she went to her father, he would hand her over to the earl. “You’re wrong, Iain. My father is not trying to lure me into a trap.”
“I forbid ye from going,” Iain said. “And that is the end of it.”
