“It’s our only chance.”
“What do I do with the torch?” Evie stood inside the doorway still holding the flame.
Chloe stepped back through to glance up and down the walls. “Here’s a bracket.”
Evie handed off the torch. She placed it in the backet, the flame flickering in the drafty, empty corridor. Then she closed the secret door.
“Come on.”
She waved at her to follow. They hurried across the bedchamber to the door. When they reached it, Evie pressed her back against the wall while Chloe cracked the door enough to see into the hallway.
“Looks clear.”
“This is insanity,” Evie said, her voice shaking. “What if we’re caught?”
She turned back to her sister. “Do you want to stay here and wait for Callum and Malcolm?”
“Well…”
“I don’t want to risk that,” Chloe said.
Evie pressed her hand against her abdomen. “But—”
“I know you’re scared. I am, too. I don’t want to wait around for them.”
“How do you plan to get my keystone back from Bruce?” she demanded. Her worry and fear were replaced by irritation.
Chloe pressed her lips together, unable to answer her questions. She hadn’t thought that far in advance and didn’t know the answers to her questions. But she was still determined to go through with this to get out of the keep.
“You don’t know, do you?” Ire flashed in her eyes.
“I don’t, but—”
“Is something burning?” Evie asked, then sniffed the air.
Chloe smelled it, too, then. She glanced around the room. At the secret door, grayish-white smoke seeped around the edges.
“Oh, crap,” she muttered.
She hurried back across the room and pushed open the door. Smoke poured inside. Coughing and covering her mouth with her hand she peered around the edge of the doorway. The rafters—dry and aged from being in the darkened passageway—had caught fire from the flickering torch. And the fire was spreading.
“It’s on fire!” Evie gasped.
“We have to get out of here now.”
Chloe spun back to Evie, leaving the door open. She grabbed her by the hand and dashed to the chamber door, yanking it open. They rushed into the hallway, heedless of any guards or others that might be roaming the area. A man stomped up the stairway and appeared at the other end of the hall. Evie sucked in a sharp breath as they came to a screeching halt.
“Fire!” Chloe shouted. “There’s a fire in the bedchamber!” She pointed behind her.
The man spotted them then, halted, surprise evident on his face. Chloe glanced behind her to see smoke rolling out of the room’s open door. She grabbed Evie by the hand and rushed by him, leaving him gaping at the smoke. Down the curved stairs they went. At the foot of the stairs, she paused to get her bearings.
Men’s voices echoed through the keep, men who were coming closer to them. A door to their right beckoned. Chloe pulled her sister along and burst through the door, banging it open. They ended up in the cool night, the breeze fluttering over Chloe’s damp, clammy skin. Behind her, Evie’s breathing heavy from the exertion.
“I have to rest,” she said.
“No time to rest,” Chloe said. “We have to keep moving.”
She whimpered. Still clutching her hand, Chloe headed across the darkened bailey. The open portcullis gate was in sight. They were going to make it. They were going to get out through the gatehouse.
