Page 38 of A Highlander's Bride

“I doona ken, laird. I was asked by Lady Munro to ride to the village and find ye.”

Mayhap she and Beth were planning the wedding and wanted some questions answered. “Thank ye, lad.”

After leaving his horse with the stable master, he took the stairs to the keep, two at a time, to the great hall. He stopped one of the maids and asked after Lady Munro.

“Aye, laird. She is in yer solar and wishes to see ye the minute ye returned.”

The fact that she waited in his solar was unusual. He opened the door to the room to see Lady Munro sitting on one of the chairs, holding papers in her hand. It was obvious she was upset and had been crying.

After closing the door, he walked toward her. Without saying anything, she held out one of the papers to him.

*

Lady Jean Munrohad arisen that morning with a very good feeling. The king’s deadline for Laird Mackenzie to choose a wife had been yesterday. Last night, she’d seen Beth and the Mackenzie strolling around the bonfire together, hands joined.

Jean had watched her other daughters with their husbands before they married and the look in their eyes was the same as she saw in the eyes of her youngest daughter and the laird.

Despite her protests about marriage and her reluctance to reconcile herself to this trip to Castle Leod, Beth was in love. And unless she was mistaken, Laird Mackenzie was in love, also.

Like most mothers, she wanted to see all her children settled with a home and family of their own. She was unhappy that her husband had chosen to go shooting with Lord Chisholm this morning. She asked him to put it off, but was reluctant to share her thoughts with him about Laird Mackenzie most likely wanting to meet with him.

Men were so dense.

With the help of her maid, Bridget, she’d risen, washed, and dressed.

“Ye seem quite happy today, my lady,” Bridget said as she pulled a brush through Jean’s hair, then fastened it in a chignon at the back of her neck.

“Aye, I am, Bridget. I feel today will be a wonderful day.”

The young maid smiled. “Would this have anything to do with Lady Beth?”

Jean smiled. “Aye. Mayhap.”

“I saw her and The Mackenzie strolling around the bonfire last night. They looked verra happy.”

“They did, didn’t they?” She couldn’t help but share a smile with the maid.

Once she was ready to face her—hopefully happy—day, Jean lefther bedchamber. She stopped outside Beth’s room to see if she was ready to go down to break her fast, but decided not to trouble her. She and The Mackenzie might have been out late and the lass needed her sleep.

About two hours later, Jean was still waiting for Beth to join them. Lady Chisholm was unusually quiet, which was quite pleasant, but rare. Lady Alice, sitting next to her mam, was her usual quiet self, spending most of her time staring at her food.

“Where is the laird this morning?” Lady Chisholm asked one of the serving maids.

Jean wondered the same thing. He was generally in the great hall in the morning. But perhaps and most likely he was out on the lists, where he spent most of his time when he wasn’t dealing with clan issues.

And then Bridget came rushing into the great hall, looking upset. She walked up to Jean. “My lady, may I have a word with ye?”

Jean stood and walked around the table and joined the lass who held two pieces of parchment in her hand. “What is it, Bridget?”

Completely against her usual behavior, the young maid put her arm around Jean’s waist. “We must return to Lady Beth’s bedchamber immediately.”

*

Beth awoke coldand confused. She placed her fingers at her throat, which felt exceedingly dry. It was very dark wherever she was. Whatever happened?

Then it all came back to her in a flash. She’d been kidnapped! Lady Chisholm had appeared in her bedchamber with some man who had dragged her naked from her bed.

She could hear water dripping and smell the dampness of something underground. She shivered at the sound of the skittering andsqueaking of rodents who were probably not happy with their new guest.