Page 40 of The Return of the Heir

Chapter Eleven

Alastair and Gwendolyn walked down to the ground floor where the four warriors who had been drugged were recovering from the effects of the laudanum. The chamber was in the servants’ quarters and had a bed in each corner of the room. Alastair was pleased to find the men sitting up and talking when he and Gwendolyn entered the chamber.

Ronald and Lindon were men who had come to the castle with Alastair. Emery and Innis had lived at Dunvegan all their lives. Their fathers and grandfathers had served the lairds MacLeod for years. And yet, no one was above suspicion.

“M’laird,” Ronald greeted as he entered the chamber. He and the others swung their legs over the edge of the bed, intending to rise.

“Remain where you are.” Alastair stilled them with a motion of his hand. “We can speak from here.” He moved to the corner of the chamber and returned with two chairs, sitting them inside the entrance so that both he and Gwendolyn could see each man in his bed.

Ronald settled back against the headboard. Innis sat on the edge of the bed, his expression grim. Lindon’s face was pale as he leaned up on his elbow. Sitting at the edge of the bed, Emery’s eyes were faintly red-rimmed, and he fiddled with the edge of the sheet.

Alastair looked to each man, saying nothing. He wasn’t certain all these men were victims. It would have been easy for one of them to drug the others then drink the altered ale in order to appear as though they had not helped Garrick escape. Yet none of them looked particularly guilty. “I’d like to know what happened. How did Garrick MacDonald manage to overcome four warriors when he was locked in the dungeon?”

Ronald cleared his throat. “If I may, m’laird.” At a nod from Alastair, he continued. “One of the maids brought us the mugs of ale. She said you had ordered the ale be sent to us since we were in for a long shift of guarding the dungeon.”

Ronald lowered his eyes. “We should have known something was up, but we were all very thirsty. It wasn’t until I started feeling a little strange and couldn’t keep my eyes open that I realised the ale had been tampered with. When we were all incapacitated, she must have broken Garrick out of the cell.”

“The rest of you, can you remember anything? Was the girl familiar to you?”

They all shook their heads, except for Emery. There was something in Emery’s expression—something that said he knew more than he was saying.

“If you remember even the slightest detail about the girl, please tell us. Do you recall the colour of her hair, her height, the tone of her voice?” Gwendolyn asked sitting forward in her chair.

“She had brown hair that was pulled back in a braid,” Lindon offered.

“She was pretty,” Innis said as pink tinged his cheeks. “She was of medium height with a narrow waist and,” he paused as his cheeks grew red “forgive me, my lady for saying such, but she had a large bosom.”

Gwendolyn offered the young man an understanding smile. “The more description, the better. Was she young? Older?”

“Young,” they all said in unison.

“And obviously strong,” Alastair added. “For not only did she drug all of you, she somehow managed to cleave her way through the lock on the door with an axe. What woman has the strength to do that?”

Alastair’s gaze narrowed on Emery as the young man suddenly clutched one hand over his mouth. With the other, he grabbed a pot near his bedside and vomited.

Alastair frowned. Was Emery’s body still purging itself of the effects of the laudanum, or was something else at play here? Alastair would have to keep a sharp eye on the lad from this moment forward. “I will gather the serving girls who match that description and bring them here to see if you recognise the one who drugged you.”

Alastair met Gwendolyn’s gaze, read the hint of excitement there. They knew they were looking for a pretty young woman of medium height with brown hair and an ample bosom. It wasn’t a lot to go on, but it was at least a start. “Thank you, gentlemen. We will leave you to rest.” Both he and Gwendolyn rose, then left the room.

Once they’d returned to the first floor and out of earshot of anyone else, Alastair turned to Gwendolyn with a grim smile. “I have no right to ask you to help me.”

She reached out and placed her hand on his arm. “I want to help. Besides, it would be easier for me to visit the kitchen and ask about such a young woman than the laird of the castle. My query will arouse little suspicion since it would be only natural for me to seek a maid to help both my sister and me.”

“Promise you will be careful. Our pretty little nemesis obviously had help from someone else.”

“I promise.” Gwendolyn drew back her hand. “You think it was Emery who helped the serving maid, don’t you? I saw the way you watched him.”

“I will keep an eye on him, to be sure.” His gaze narrowed on her face. Gwendolyn’s cheeks were filled with more colour than they had held earlier today, and her eyes shone with a sense of purpose as they used to in the past. The woman who had suffered unimaginable horrors over the past five years was coming alive once more. His pulse quickened at the thought.

Her lips curved lightly in a genuine smile that was tinged with a hint of challenge. “May we both find the answers we need to hold Garrick and the MacDonalds accountable for their actions.”

“Aye.” Alastair inclined his head, trying not to focus on the curve of her lips—lips that had so easily molded to his earlier today. He stood with his fists clenched as he watched her move down the corridor and vanish from his sight. While he didn’t want to expose her to further harm, he needed her help in finding the maid. To make certain she was not hurt, he would have to stay close, be ready to come to her aid. Which would be easier to accomplish if Beatrice wasn’t vying for his time and attention as well.

He would have to find some way to keep that woman distracted and out of his way until he and Gwendolyn could solve the mystery surrounding Garrick’s escape.

*

As Gwendolyn madeher way to the kitchen, all the thoughts she’d avoided thinking while she’d been distracted with interviewing the men came back to her full force. She and Alastair were still legally betrothed. What did that mean for her and her siblings? Would it help her in her quest for freedom? Or did that mean she still belonged to him, and that she would remain at Dunvegan? Did that thought make her happy?