He must choose his words carefully. “And if ye’d been in my place, dealing with the death of yer brother and the aftermath of an attack from the Sutherlands, would ye not have suspected Keely of being a spy? For God’s sake, she lived with them for five years.”
“Keely a spy?” The laird wet his lips. “I suspect it had nothing to do with her being a spy, Alex. But more to do with a broken heart ye’ve been nursing all this time.”
Alex’s jaw tightened. That hard truth hurt more than a sword wound. More than a burn. More than anything he could compare it to. “And how do ye know what I was feeling?”
The laird snickered. “Because a man of honor wouldna treat a noble woman the way ye did unless he held a grudge against her.”
Alex paused and took a steadying breath. He hadn’t expected an interrogation. But the man had every right to question him. He’d gone behind his back and married Keely. “Aye,” he admitted. “Seeing her again resurrected some old feelings.”
“I doona think those feelings ever went away, lad. And doona lie to me. I’m a father of seven and can tell when anyone is lying.”
“She only spent a couple hours in the cell.”
Laird Oliphant leaned back in his chair. “We are indebted to each other. I signed a marriage contract pledging Keely and her dowry to yer brother. She dinna fulfill her obligations. In turn, ye took something that wasna yers to take.”
“The law…”
“Aye.” His father-in-law held up his hands. “I’ve examined the documents yer scholar showed me. Ye’ve acted in accordance with the law, that much I canna deny. However, other things govern a man’s heart and honor. Ye broke trust with me. Instead of bringing her home and presenting yer claim to me, ye acted selfishly.”
It pained Alex to think of what would have happened if Keely’s father had refused him and married his daughter to someone else. Aye, jealousy and possessiveness had played a huge role in his decision to rush his marriage. So had revenge. “I am guilty of everything ye say and unashamed to admit it. I would do it again if I had a chance.”
One side of the laird’s mouth tilted up. “I like ye, MacKay. That’s why ye’re still standing.”
“I am fond of ye, too.”
“Recompense must be made.”
“Ye doona owe me anything. We are family now.”
Laird Oliphant gave a humorless laugh and slapped his thigh. “Always jesting, lad. I meantye owe mesomething.”
“Ye have my pledge of loyalty, my friendship, and my appreciation.”
“Gold,” the elder laird demanded. “I want some of that money ye earned in Constantinople. I hear ye’re as rich as a king.”
His brows knitted together. The selfish bastard would squeeze everything out of Alex if he let him. “What do ye want?”
“That depends on ye.” The laird stood up. “Now take me to Levi.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Keely said ashort prayer and crossed herself before she stepped outside. The feast had been a somber affair. Alex and her father had been engaged in conversation all night, hardly acknowledging her or their guests. However, she couldna have asked for a better outcome, because it had given her the opportunity to slip abovestairs unnoticed, change her clothes, and take the back stairs outside.
During supper, guards were not posted outside her bedchamber. And at celebrations, unless the soldiers were stationed at the gates or on patrol, every man attended.
Leah had been harder to get away from, for the maid kept a close eye on Keely. She hoped her friend wouldna notice her missing gown. If Keely disguised herself as a servant, she had a better chance of getting through the gates with Petro.
As the scholar had promised, he was waiting behind the stables.
“Milady,” he said quietly. “I started to worry. It is later than I hoped to leave.”
“I left the feast as soon as I could and stopped by Leah’s room to borrow one of her gowns. Mine are too adorned to pass as a maid in.”
With a full moon overhead, she could see Petro’s face clearly. He nodded and looked her over.
“Pull the hood up to hide your face. And if you are not averse to sharing the saddle with me, I think it best to ride through the gates as two lovers escaping to their private place.”
A brilliant plan she wouldna have thought of herself. “I trust yer judgement,” she said.
