She hesitated a moment before she slipped her fingers into his hand. "Thank you, milord."
"Camden." Awareness rippled across his flesh. He tightened his fingers around hers, unwilling to let her go for the moment.
"Camden," she repeated, her tone breathless.
The sensation had flowed through her as it did him. He released her fingers to brush her cheekbone with a motion that was almost but not quite a caress.
Instead of his fingers, he allowed his gaze to caress her skin. Warmth brought a touch of pink to her cheeks. She leaned toward him, as though drawn to him by the same irresistible force that flowed through him.
Camden held himself back because of Violet's presence, despite the overwhelming desire to kiss Rhiannon. His emotions veered crazily, crackling around him until he realized it was not his emotions, but a loud boom that shook the room.
Violet shrieked and catapulted into Rhiannon's legs. She might have knocked her down had Camden not pulled them both into his arms.
"Violet, what's wrong? " Camden said, stroking the top of her head.
"It's the same noise that came a few moments before the men took my daddy away," she cried.
A cannon? Before Camden could respond, the door to the chamber burst open. Five warriors dressed in full battle gear erupted into the solar — Orrin, Hamish, Travis, Garret, and Hugh. "Milord," Orrin said. "We are under attack."
"From whom?" Camden spun toward the door, leaving the women behind.
"We watched them approach, a small army of fifty men. They were flying the colors of the Lockhart clan so we assumed they were more of the men from Lockhart Castle come to join us here. That was, until we saw the cannon."
"They fired on us?" Camden asked, his thoughts now fully on the coming war.
"Aye, milord."
"Call the men to arms," Camden ordered. "Hamish, take Rhiannon and Lady Violet to the storeroom. No one will think to look for them there."
"You think this attack is targeted at them?" Hamish asked with a puzzled frown.
"I am certain of it."
Chapter Thirteen
An explosion rocked the castle. Rhiannon clutched Violet's arm as the ground shook beneath their feet. She could hear the shouts of the men as they raced through the passageway, preparing for battle. Shrill screams pierced the afternoon air in the great hall below.
Rhiannon's gaze flew to Camden, but he'd turned away, addressing the men.
A violent shiver wracked Violet's small body. "I'm scared." The young girl buried her face in the folds of Rhiannon's dress.
Pushing her own fear aside, Rhiannon gently stroked Violet's back. "I'll keep you safe," she soothed, hoping that she could do just that.
Orrin burst again through the door of the solar. "They are firing cannon balls at the outer wall. We will be breached before we can stop them."
"Who is attacking?" Camden asked, his voice tight.
"We don't know exactly." Orrin's features became strained. "Although we know it's not the English."
Rhiannon fervently prayed that the attackers were not members of her own family.
"Meet me in the courtyard," Camden said to Orrin, then turned back to her. "Go with Hamish to the cellar. You'll be safe there."
Fierce intensity entered his bright blue eyes. Did he know who attacked? He seemed almost as protective of her as he was of Violet. Did he fear her family had come to take her away? Or was it something more? He had accused her of partnership with the bishop. Did he suspect the bishop was behind the attack?
Rhiannon frowned. How would she ever know the truth unless she saw the situation herself?
Camden made his way to the door, but paused before Hamish. "Do not let either of them out of your sight," he said, his voice suddenly fierce.
At Hamish's nod, Camden was gone.
Rhiannon moved to the window. Great curling clouds of black smoke rose to the sky just outside the outer bailey. She could not see who attacked. Yet the brief glimpse left her with the feeling it was not members of her family come to raid. The Ruthvens would not have had enough resources to afford a cannon and shells. Nay, the threat came from someone else; she was certain.
She caught sight of a familiar figure striding through the wisps of black smoke in the courtyard. He still wore a tartan of the Lockhart colors, but his chest was now covered with a leather doublet. His hair was unbound, the thick ebony length curling above his shoulders.
He approached his horse, and checked the tension of the cinches while the animal's long and graceful head turned, nudging him with affection. Camden stroked the beast's neck before he mounted.
The animal swung about, and Camden's gaze strayed upwards toward the window. Rhiannon flinched, embarrassed to be caught spying on him. She backed away, her throat tight as she realized the danger that lay ahead for him at the gates of his own castle.
"Come, ladies," Hamish called. "We must hurry."
Rhiannon scooped Violet up into her arms and followed Hamish from the chamber. She paused, remembering the sound of men running through the hallway and the clang of metal that sounded as they did. "Hamish, is the armory near here?"
"Just down the hallway, milady."
"Then that is where we will go first." Rhiannon didn't wait for Hamish to agree. If they were at war, she wanted to be prepared. She could not protect Violet without some way to even the odds should they be discovered in the storeroom.
With a renewed sense of urgency, Rhiannon continued down the hall until she came to an open doorway. Inside she found armor in neat rows against the walls and weapons of every kind hanging on the walls, ready to be plucked down from their pegs and put into service.
Her heart racing in her chest, she scanned the room, looking for a familiar weapon. She breathed a sigh of relief when her gaze lit upon a bow hung alongside a quiver of arrows. She snatched them both down. Slinging the quiver over her shoulder, she turned to Hamish. "Now I'll go wherever you lead."
"Hurry," Hamish urged as he motioned for them to go back the way they had come.
Clinging to Violet and the bow with equal force, Rhiannon followed the big warrior through the great hall and into the hallway on the other side, down the long corridor she'd visited the other day on her quest for fabric, and down the stairs leading to the storeroom.
The pungent scent of fermenting grain assaulted her senses as they plunged into the semidarkness. It only took a moment for Rhiannon's eyes to adjust to the dimness. She recognized the chamber from her previous visit. The room was filled with barrels all stacked in neat rows.
She held onto Violet's hand as she searched the room for some place to hide the girl in case they were discovered. An explosion shook the walls, and the barrels groaned from their perches slightly above the floor. "More cannon fire?" she asked.
"Aye," Hamish replied. "I'll stay here and cover the doorway."
"There are two doorways."
"Two?" Hamish asked, clearly startled. "How do you know?"
"Experience," she replied.
Hamish shrugged. "Find a place to hide, and I'll do what I can to cover both entrances."
"May luck be with you," she said, picking up Violet and holding her against her chest.
"I'm scared," Violet whispered against her shoulder.
"Fear isn't always a bad thing, Violet. It keeps us alert," Rhiannon said as she turned into the darkness of the storeroom. It would be wise to hide Violet somewhere close to that doorway if it became necessary for the little girl to escape.
Rhiannon quickly moved through the hazy darkness until she came to the end of a row of barrels. She tried to tip each one, searching for one that was lighter than all the rest. "If only I can find an empty barrel."
"I know where one is," Violet said, lifting her head from Rhiannon's shoulder.
"You do?"
"I accidentally spilled the ale the other day when Uncle Camden and I were playing."
Rhiannon stifled a smile at the memory of Violet's stained dress. "Show me."
Violet wiggled out of Rhiannon's grip and headed down the row of barrels on the far side of the room. "This way," she cried, no longer afraid.
The container stood empty at the end of the last row at the back of the cellar's wall. Rhiannon had hoped for something closer to the doorway, but this would have to do.
"How do we get it open enough for you to slip inside?" Rhiannon pondered to herself.
"Allow me."
Rhiannon startled at the sound of Hamish's voice behind them.
"I will need to know where to lead the intruders away from." He moved around them and with a grunt, lifted the barrel from its shelf before positioning it against the wall. He took several steps back, then hurled himself forward, landing with both feet firmly planted against the wood that formed the bottom of the barrel. A sharp crack filled the air as the wood collapsed beneath his assault. Hamish hit the floor with the force of his blow, but rolled once, and in a fluid motion came up on his feet.
The new opening in the barrel gaped wide enough for Violet to slip inside. Once she was hidden, Hamish placed all the wood slivers inside the barrel as well, then lifted it back onto its shelf with the open side facing the wall.
"She'll have plenty of air to breathe, yet be fully concealed," Hamish said with a note of satisfaction. "Excellent idea."
"Thank you," Rhiannon said, deeply touched by the compliment.
"Now, where do we hide you?"
"There is no time," she said as a thunderous crash filled the air. The sound went on for what seemed like an eternity. Just as silence settled, the sounds of battle emerged as the roar of men's shouts mingled with the thunder of hoofbeats.
"The wall has been breached." Hamish put into words her greatest fear.
Rhiannon clutched the bow in one hand and drew an arrow from her quiver with the other. "You take one doorway, and I will cover the other."
"Only if you promise that if we are discovered, you will run and hide yourself among the barrels."
"Agreed."
At her consent, Hamish turned away to head for the doorway that led to the storeroom from inside the castle. Rhiannon positioned herself near the other door. She aimed her bow at the doorway and waited, her heart thundering in her chest.
She had to protect Violet. After several long minutes, the door on Hamish's side slammed open. Bright light and the shouts of men followed. Rhiannon spun toward the sounds. She kept her aim on the shapes moving within the hazy darkness, until a single figure broke away from the others, heading her way. She waited. Prayed he would turn. But nay, he continued toward her. Halfway across the room, she loosed her arrow and hit her target in the thigh. He stumbled to the ground.
Without thought, she nocked another arrow, allowing it to sail into the same space where the man she'd just hit had been. A cry of agony pierced the air. Her fingers trembling, she set another arrow. The door slammed open behind her. She twisted around and let the arrow fly, missing the man. He surged forward.
With a gasp of fear, Rhiannon plucked another arrow from her quiver and darted behind a long row of barrels.
"She's got tae be here somewhere," a voice called out of the darkness. Could this be the man who had betrayed Violet's presence to the Bishop?
"I watched her go down here with the child and the warrior," an unfamiliar voice said.
A chill moved through her at the realization that these men were after her, and not Violet. Rhiannon crouched behind a wooden barrel as the men ran past. Even if they were after her, she had to lead them away from Violet. She couldn't take a chance like that with Violet's life.
Rhiannon braced herself and bolted for the open door. A shout behind her told her she'd been spotted. She twisted around to see who followed. Two hulking men came at her, their features distorted by the shadows, but she knew their intent from the menacing grins on their faces.
She let another arrow fly. One man fell to the ground. She hurried up the stairs, in the darkness, her heart pounding and her hands shaking. Rhiannon broke through into the light only to hear footsteps coming swiftly up behind her. With a burst of desperation, she sped forward only to be hauled back against the solid wall of a man's chest. He wrenched the bow from her fingers and jerked her hands behind her.
"Going somewhere, my sweetlin'?" he breathed against her ear.
Rhiannon shuddered. He smelled of sweat and fish and rotten teeth. She twisted in his arms. She gasped at the sight of the man who'd fought Camden at the cottage. A scream tore from her throat, only to have his brutal hand clamp over her mouth.
"Yer comin' with me," he said with the look of hatred blazing from his cold, dark eyes.
Chapter Fourteen
Rhiannon struggled against the hands gripping her. Despite her efforts, the man held tight. She twisted and writhed in his arms only to have a large burlap sack tossed over her head, engulfing her in darkness and the stench of dead fish. Her stomach roiled.
She kicked and squirmed, her nails tearing the flesh of his forearm. The man grunted at the assault and pain exploded in her cheek and temple as his forearm connected with her head. He dragged her across the ground, then threw her atop a horse. Her skirts bunched up about her legs. The man mounted behind her a heartbeat later, his rough hands pinning her to the saddle.
They were moving very quickly. The shiver of apprehension that coursed through her body did not go unnoticed by her captor. He laughed, the sound grating.
The sounds of battle echoed all around as they rode for what felt like forever. The air seemed warmer than it had a few days before when she and Camden had been forced to take shelter in the cottage. And by the fast gait of the horse, Rhiannon could only assume much of the snow had melted. As they continued and the sounds of battle faded she became increasingly uneasy.
"Where are you taking me? Why are you doing this? Who are you?" The bag lifted from her head as the man slowed his pace. Rhiannon pulled a breath of clean air into her lungs. Her eyes adjusted to the brightness though she was uncertain of where they were.
"Where we're takin' ye is of nae concern of yers. If ye behave well enough, ye might live tae see it." His grin was a dark, evil slash across his face.
"Lord Lockhart will come after me. You'll see."
The man's face brightened. "I'm prayin' that he does." He narrowed his eyes and let them slide down to the thrust of her breasts. "And if he takes his time, mayhap I can sample what ye have tae offer."
She gasped.
He laughed coarsely. Grabbing a fistful of her hair, he jerked her head painfully to one side. Her cry of pain opened her lips to the revolting feel of his mouth sucking wetly upon hers. She brought her fist up to beat him away.
He caught her wrist and twisted it painfully behind the small of her back. He released a husky laugh. "God's teeth, yer goin' tae be a fun one tae tame."
Two riders edged closer to them. "Stop playin' with yer catch, Axel. We have tae get her out of here and hand her over before we'll be paid."
The man called Axel grunted and replaced the burlap sack over her head, kicking the horse into a faster gait once more.
"We've captured the cannon," one of his men shouted. Camden couldn't see exactly who it was inside the blue-black cloud that had fallen over the crumbling mass of stones that once comprised the outer wall of Lee Castle.
"Then the victory is ours," Camden called to his men. They hadn't been able to stop the breech, but they'd ended the conflict shortly after. Now that the cannon was no longer in their attackers' control, many of the enemy had turned and fled. Yet Camden had seen a group break through to the castle grounds before anyone could stop them.
"Orrin, do we have any idea where the men who breeched the wall were headed?"
"They got into the keep before we could secure the gates."
"Bloody hell," Camden swore under his breath. "They are after Violet."
"Or did they come for Rhiannon?"
Stunned by the question, Camden froze. "Where are Violet and Rhiannon now?"
&nbs
p; As if in answer, the sound of hoofbeats filled the air. A dozen well-armed men raced past the fallen rubble of the wall and out into the open land. As they passed, Camden did not miss the feminine outline of a leg that draped against one of the horse's flanks. The rest of Rhiannon's body was concealed beneath a dark woolen sack.
Camden fought the urge to kick his horse into a gallop and follow. "God's blood, how did they find her so quickly?" His voice vibrated off the fallen stones from the wall. "Did they take Violet as well?"
Camden turned his horse back toward the keep. In the courtyard he dismounted, then raced for the door that led from the courtyard to the storeroom. Orrin followed close behind. In the dim light Camden could make out several men's bodies lying on the floor with arrows protruding from their flesh.
"Violet," Camden shouted into the void. "Hamish, where are you?"
A scraping noise sounded off to his right a moment before Hamish appeared. "My lord, I failed you." He drew closer. "Mistress Rhiannon fought valiantly, but there were too many of them. Four men attacked me. I tried to help her…"
"You did what you could, Hamish," Camden said, noting the trickles of blood that raced down his chin, his arms, his thighs, though nothing looked fatal. "Where's Lady Violet?"
Hamish nodded, his eyes wild in his white face. "She's safe. That I know." He turned toward the back wall and as Camden hurried after him, Hamish grasped one of the huge wooden barrels. Orrin helped gently lower the barrel to the floor. Violet crept out from the back.
Camden threw his arms around his niece, hugging her tightly. She returned the embrace, her small body melting into his. His breath caught in his chest. "Praise the saints you are safe."
A shudder wracked her small body as she pulled away, her wide eyes searching his. "I heard men shouting. And Rhiannon screamed." Tears filled her eyes. "They took her away. Just like my mum and daddy."
Gratitude for her safety mixed with fury at his failure to keep Rhiannon safe. "I'll find her and bring her back," he said, his voice trembling with rage. Camden placed Violet in Orrin's arms, then moved to leave the storeroom.
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