He gazed back at her for a moment, unblinking as he tilted her head to the side. “Aye, I ken that now. Ye are one of the only two people in this castle that I can trust.” He pulled her slightly closer, letting go of her arm as he placed his hand on the small of her back.
Their bodies were pressed together so tightly that Eleanor could feel the beating of his heart. She closed her eyes when he suddenly moved her face, pressing a kiss against her cheek before moving up to her eyelid and kissing back down to her mouth.
The softness of the embrace made something deep within her chest stir as his breath tickled her lips.
I want this.
She breathed him in as if it were her very last breath and pressed her body into his.
“Me Laird! Ye must come at once!” Iain called from somewhere beyond the stable doors.
Stepping away from her, Callum let go of her back, leaving that cold void that tugged at her chest. “Go and find Marion, take her to yer chambers and stay there with the door locked. Iain or meself will come lookin’ for ye when the coast is clear.” He began to back away from her.
Her heart clenched at the sight as she raised a hand to her throat and curled the other around her waist. “Be careful,” she whispered to him.
“Aye, I will be back soon.” He nodded and turned from her, running out the stable doors.
“Please come back safe and in one piece,” she whispered again, not knowing why she felt so empty in his absence. She began to walk in the direction of the castle, pausing at the stable doors when she noticed the orange and red hue of the sky on the horizon.
Saints help us.
Her chest clenched painfully as grey smoke began to fill the sky. The sharp scent of sulfur and burning foliage began to permeate the air around her. But nothing shocked her more than the knowledge that someone inside the castle was behind the distraction… except, perhaps, how deeply she worried for Callum as he walked straight into that fire.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
It wasnae an accident.
Callum stalked from his chambers, his hair damp down his back. The fire had raged through the night, and only let up when soft rain had begun to fall from the sky. Some of the men had almost lost their lives, but Callum had been thankful that there were no fatalities despite a few serious burns.
The echoes of farmers’ screaming with their families at their sides still haunted him. Great losses had been suffered when the flames had licked the sky, high and bright with their menacing tongues.
At least Eleanor is safe.
The thought resonated in his chest as he tried to force his thoughts back to the task at hand.
He had called the council meeting before the sun was barely up, and he now strode toward the chambers with a plan in mind. He needed to know for certain who the land agent was. If it was indeed Donald Stewart, then the matter was far larger than even he or Eleanor had considered. Had the man somehow infiltrated his council by corrupting some of his men? He was like a ghost in the halls of the castle. The documents had whispered of his existence, but nobody had ever seen him.
There was something they were missing, but he was not certain what it was. The man was elusive, almost like a phantom that could not be caught. It struck him as strange as well that in all of the years he had been laird, he had never met a single man with that name. He did not know what he would have done if Eleanor had not been by his side, helping him. She had done far more in a short space of time than he could have managed on his own.
As if the thought had summoned her, Eleanor suddenly appeared at his side, jogging to keep up with his brisk pace. “Good mornin’, I am glad to see ye in one piece. Iain said that ye had retired to yer chambers last night, but I wanted to see ye for meself,” she spoke softly.
I cannae be distracted.
Callum kept up his pace. “Aye, I needed to rest after the fires were finally put out.”
Eleanor nodded as she picked up her pace in an attempt to keep up. “Aye, I heard there was a lot of damage to the surroundinglands. And I daenae suppose that the culprit came forward?” Her voice held a note of hopefulness.
Shaking his head, Callum stopped walking and turned to her. “Nay, and I want ye to be careful. It is as ye said last night, the person responsible could have used the fire as a distraction to gain entry into the castle. Ye should remain close to either meself or Iain.”
“Then let me come with ye,” she suddenly blurted out.
Stopping, Callum searched her face and saw the panic building in her eyes.
She feels safe when she is with me.
“Aye, but ye must promise to stay out of the conversations. Ye can listen and watch the men as closely as ye can, but ye are to observe, and observe alone,” he said sternly. “Ye can sneak in the back and stay where I can keep an eye on ye.”
Nodding her head, Eleanor fell back into step beside him as he continued on his path toward the council chambers. “I am nae a bairn, but if keepin’ an eye on me will allow me into the chambers, then so it shall be,” she said determinedly.
