He threw Jane on a horse and got on his. He urged his horse into a gallop and Jane followed close behind. When they got to the edge of the forest, the Commander lessened the speed to a slow trot. “The grove of cypresses is not far from here,” he said to Jane. “With that kind of gold, I will have no need to bend and bow to curry favor from the king and the idiots he made dukes,” he said, more to himself than to Jane. “I shall leave this soldier’s life behind and become the lord of a grand house. And you, of course, will run that house. In a way, this is for you as well. I am helping you secure your future. You must be grateful.”
“I am.”
“You must not lie to me,” he said, his eyes roving over her form. “Did you lie with any of them?”
Jane’s eyes flew open. How could he tell?
“Scots are savages. They could not have a beauty in their camp and resist the urge. Tell me, has that which is mine been taken away?!”
“No,” Jane said. “No, Commander Pierce.”
He stared deep into her eyes, as though he wanted to unravel the contents of her mind. Jane kept her expression neutral. It was a hard feat, under the man’s hard eyes, but she accomplished it all the same. He hissed at her as though she were insignificant, and then fixed his gaze back on the path and said, “We are close. Get off.”
Commander Pierce dismounted his horse and tethered it to a lean tree. Jane dismounted as well, unaided by him. The commander took a few steps forward and Jane followed.
A form jumped down from a tree to their near right.
Alistair.
Jane nearly leaped for joy.
He was armed with two swords, and there was green war paint on half his face. In this moment, he looked quite savage. “Drop yer weapon,” he instructed the Commander.
“I do not take orders from swine,” Commander Pierce hissed.
“There are warriors in the trees who will end yer life with an arrow on a single signal from me,” Alistair informed him coolly. “Again, drop yer weapons.”
Commander Pierce reluctantly did as he was told. His face was a study in changing emotions, and Jane knew that realization just dawned on him. He turned to her. “What is this? What have you done?”
“You will pay for everything you have done or sought to do with Eleonor,” Jane said, stepping away from him.
There was a look of pure hatred on his face. “You are a traitor and a whore!” he spat.
“Ye will pay fer saying that tae her,” Alistair said and ground his teeth. “And fer holding me braither hostage, as well.” He took a step forward. “Where is he?”
“Not to worry,” Commander Pierce said, “you will join him soon in death.”
Alistair lunged forward, but Jane threw herself in front of the Commander. Alistair came to an abrupt stop. “Do not fall for his lies, he is full of them!” Jane exclaimed. Remember the plan, Alistair!”
Alistair nodded. He whistled, and the forest seemed to surge to life. At the woods’ edge, Scottish warriors appeared. They charged in the opposite direction: towards Loch Lomond. Commander Pierce and Jane turned to witness it. Now, Jane turned back and smiled at Alistair. How his warriors had managed to stay hidden as she and the general passed their midst was a mystery. Looking at Alistair, at the raw power and military acumen he possessed, she felt a surge of pride.
And something else, too. Something warm and sweet and-
Jane felt a sharp pain in her head.
She descended to the ground, unconscious.
* * *
Jane felt as though she were floating in a lake. Her limbs felt like they did not quite belong to her. She tried to form a coherent thought but found that she could not. She was grasping for something that she did not know but had an ingrained knowledge of needing, something that eluded her.
Floating, floating, floating…
“Jane?”
It was Alistair’s voice. She rushed to it, willed her mind to come to it. It did not work. Try as she might, her mind was a thing of its own.
“Jane?”
