There was nothing openly suspicious about him. He appeared no older than seventeen, with sandy hair and an earnest expression. Yet the moment felt wrong in a way she could not explain.
Too exposed. Too vulnerable.
The memory of the council chamber crept back into her mind like a cold whisper.
The agreement must remain secret.
Her pulse quickened. If the council spoke about the contract, then others within the castle might know of it as well. Servants carried messages, overheard conversations, and passed information through unseen channels. Arianna suddenly realized how little she truly understood about the loyalties within Clan McGuire.
Who can I trust?
Before the servant could take the parchment, Arianna pulled the letter back toward herself.
“Oh,” she said quickly, forcing a polite smile. “Forgive me. I’ve just remembered somethin' I wished to add.”
The boy blinked in mild confusion.
“I’ll need to rewrite the letter,” she continued calmly. “Thank ye, but that will be all for now.”
“Aye, me Lady,” he replied, bowing again before turning down the corridor.
Arianna waited until the servant disappeared around the corner before exhaling slowly. Her fingers tightened around the sealed parchment as though it were something precious. With careful movement, she slipped the letter into the hidden pocket sewn within her skirts.
Her instincts told her not to send it. Not yet.
She began walking again, though she no longer had a destination in mind. Here and there, small groups of clan members stood speaking quietly. Several conversations seemed to fade as she approached.
At first, she thought nothing of it. Yet as she continued walking, the silence began to feel heavier. A pair of warriors glanced her way before lowering their voices. Two servants near the stairwell fell quiet when she passed between them.
Arianna could not tell whether the silence was real or merely imagined.
But every glance felt like scrutiny. Every murmur sounded like suspicion.
For the first time since arriving at Castle McGuire, Arianna felt something she had not known before within its walls.
I feel completely alone.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Ian entered the solar where Flynn and Melissa waited.
“Och, me Laird,” Flynn bowed.
“Good evenin', me Laird,” Melissa curtsied. “Thank ye for this supper.”
“There’s much to celebrate. Me man-at-arms and his lovely wife are expectin' to grace the castle with a bairn, a supper in celebration of that fact is the least I could do,” Ian said.
“Oh, me Lady,” Melissa said as her gaze shifted toward the door.
Ian turned to see Arianna enter the solar. He gulped as his eye roamed over her in a blue gown that brought out the color of her eyes, and a plunging neckline that showed her heaving bosom.
“Good evenin' all,” Arianna said. Melissa hugged Arianna, and the two ladies chatted quietly.
Ian looked at Arianna, but she only looked at him briefly before averting his gaze.
She is still cross with me.
Ian moved to the sideboard and poured a whisky for himself and for Flynn.
