“Rouse as many men as you can find,” he yelled behind him to Alasdair. “And check the stables,” he added, though he knew it was unlikely that she would have been able to sneak a horse past the guards.Nothingshould sneak past his guards. There would be hell to pay if he discovered otherwise.
The castle had two points of entry: the sea-gate and the landward-gate. As the sea-gate led directly to the dock where hisbirlinnssat, well guarded, he realized that she must have left by the other. Still, he’d have someone check the sea-gate and dock, just to make sure.
He exited the keep and strode down the forestairs two steps at a time. A few torches lit the courtyard, enabling him to take quick appraisal of the situation. Nothing appeared amiss, which was a bad sign. If she’d escaped, she’d done so without being noticed.
His arrival immediately drew the attention of the guardsmen scattered around the perimeter of thebarmkinwall.
The porter appeared. “My laird, is something—”
“Are the gates locked?”
The man looked confused. “Yes, my laird. A short while ago at the changing of the guard, as usual.”
By now, a few more men had gathered round. “Mistress MacLeod is missing. I want every available man looking for her.” His voice was firm and surprisingly calm. Detached. Emotionless. He’d always possessed an unnatural calm under pressure, but his iron control had never been stretched so close to the snapping point. “Did any of you hear anything unusual? Anything at all?”
A stream of “No, my laird” came back to him. But for one man. He stepped forward. “The dogs barked not long after I came on, my laird.”
Lachlan fought to stay calm, but he knew. That’s when she’d left. Castigation would come later, once they’d found her. “How long ago was that?”
“A half hour. Maybe a bit less.”
She didn’t have much of a head start. They would find her. Unless the bogs or the cliffs found her first. Bile crept up the back of his throat.Don’t think about it.
“From what direction did the dogs bark?”
The man shook his head. “I can’t be sure, my laird. North, perhaps?”
Consistent with his theory that she’d departed from the landward-gate, as the sea-gate only led west. Alasdair had returned with more men. Lachlan was vaguely aware of the sounds of the castle stirring behind him and of the increased brightness as more and more lanterns and torches were lit.
“All of the horses are accounted for, my laird,” Alasdair said. “She’s on foot.”
Anticipating his next request, Alasdair had ordered his destrier led out of the stable.
Lachlan started issuing orders. Sending a man down to the sea-gate to account for all thebirlinns. Sending others both north and south along the rocky seashore. But most of the men would come with him, on horseback and on foot, to roam the moors.
Within minutes, the courtyard was crowded with men and horses. Mary and Gilly had come down the stairs, dressed in their nightclothes with only a plaid for warmth. He could see the worry in their faces, but he didn’t have time to soothe their fears. Not now. Not when every second he delayed might make the difference between life and death.
He mounted his horse and turned back to them. “Search every corner of the keep.” Just to be sure. But heknewshe’d fled.
“We will,” Mary said.
“Find her,” Gilly said.
He nodded, his face grim. “I intend to.”
The gate opened, and Lachlan led the rest of his men through in a thunderous stampede. Once outside, they disbanded like the spokes on a wheel, radiating out in all directions.
He’d ordered the men to ride for a half hour, then turn around and head back by a slightly different route. Those on foot, he’d sent in a zigzag pattern, hoping to cover more ground. The mist would make it hazardous for all involved. But most of all for Flora, who had no knowledge of the countryside.
Senses honed, Lachlan rode hard for a few minutes, playing everything over and over in his mind to make sure he hadn’t missed something.
Had she learned nothing from her failed elopement? How could she behave so recklessly?
Fear,he realized. Of him.
He couldn’t believe that she wouldn’t recognize the danger in traversing unfamiliar territory in the misty darkness. She’d been outside the gates only once. When he’d taken her down the pathway to the beach.
The scene came back to him so vividly, he recalled every detail. She was seated on a rock by the edge of the beach with her golden hair streaming in the wind, the crystal-clear view to Mull, the white sand, the—
