“Nay, please. I dinna ken where the stone is hidden.”
“Leave her alone,” shouted Zara, running across the courtyard to try to help her. Coira heard fighting from the battlements, with shouting and the sound of clashing swords.
“Get the old crone,” commanded Philip. “And put them both in these hanging cages until the wench tells us the truth.”
“Aye, milord,” said several of Philip’s soldiers, hauling the cages from the back of the cart.
“Nay!” cried Coira, being dragged by Sir Philip over to the cages. “Please, I dinna want to go in the cage.” Thunder crashed overhead and the sky opened up again, with rain pouring down.
“Get the ropes and hang the baskets. One night out in this storm and I’m sure the girl will start spilling her secrets come morning.”
Coira fought them but still ended up in the cage. As they used the ropes and pulleys to hang the cages in the courtyard, Coira felt her knees wobble and give way beneath her.
“Be strong, Child,” Zara shouted from the other cage. Coira felt sick as the wind blew the cage back and forth and the rain pelted down so hard she was sure it was daggers sticking into her body. All hope vanished as her past came to life once again. She closed her eyes and trembled, being transported back to six years earlier when her life hung in the balance.
“Effie, I’m scared,” Coira told her sister, swinging back and forth in the wind, holding on to the bars of her cage. A crow settled itself atop her cage, reaching its beak through the bars, just waiting to be able to peck her eyes from her body as soon as she was dead and shriveled from the sun. Coira screamed and hid her face in her hands.
“Be strong,” she heard Effie tell her. But Coira had always been sickly and weak. Effie was the strong one, not her.
“Be strong,” Zara told her again. “Lance will be back soon, and he will protect you.”
Coira uncovered her eyes and looked down at the ground. Philip and the guards were heading to the keep. Some of Lance’s soldiers ran out and they all started fighting.
“It’s over, Zara. I’m goin’ to die in this cage after all.”
“Take hold of your thoughts and have faith,” Zara commanded. “Lance will save you. But you’ve got to believe.”
“I believe,” said Coira, squeezing her eyes closed tight, thinking about Lance and the intimate times they’d shared together. He told her he wanted the castle for her and so that she’d be happy. He didn’t know about her past at the time. “I believe,” she said again as the cold rain pelted against her skin. Her body shook. “I b-believe,” she repeated, thinking about Effie and how badly she wanted to see her sister again. Coira didn’t want to die before she had the chance to be an aunt to Effie’s baby. This couldn’t be the end. She refused to believe it. Then she thought about how much Lance must love her to go out in the storm in the middle of the night to look for her dog. Aye, he loved her, she decided, or he would never do such a thing. And now, she realized that she loved him, too.
The sound of a barking dog caused her to open her eyes. She glanced down to the courtyard to see Sweetcakes leading the way and Lance and Jack riding in right behind her.
“Lance,” she said, feeling frightened for him that he was riding right into what could be a very deadly battle. “Lance,” she cried out, gripping the bars of the cage. She had to warn him.
Lance rode into the courtyard, swearing he heard Coira calling out to him.
“Did you hear that, Squire?”
“Hear what?” asked Jack. “Lord Lance, something isn’t right. I don’t see the sentries on the wall.”
“Nay, and I see something else that makes me furious!” Lance directed his horse into a run as he made his way in the dark to the far side of the courtyard where, to his horror, he found Coira and Zara hanging in cages. “Coira,” he called out, drawing his sword. “Coira, are you all right?”
“Behind ye, Lance,” she shouted as Sir Philip came at him with his sword drawn.
“Lance,” sneered Philip. “It seems you lied to me, and I don’t take kindly to being treated that way.”
“You bastard!” spat Lance. “How about the way you are treating my wife? I will not let you get away with this. Men, attack!” shouted Lance, going for Philip. Philip reached up and pulled Jack off his horse, mounting the steed to go after Lance.
“Nay, Lance. Dinna fight,” called Coira, but it was too late. Lance would not let anyone put his wife in a cage and live to tell about it. Uncle or not, Sir Philip had to die.
Shouting and the clashing of swords filled the courtyard as one of Lance’s guards rang the bell and alerted the rest of the men that they were under attack.
“How could you do this?” Lance growled, swiping at Philip from atop his horse. Their swords met with the clash of metal against metal ringing through the night.
“I’ve had a change of mind,” said Philip. “I want you gone now.”
“I’m not leaving without Coira, or at all for that matter.”
“Coira will be my wife now,” snarled Philip. “I will keep her like a bird in a cage. When she finally sings, I’ll get the Stone of Destiny, gain the king’s favor, and have a wife and castle, too.”
“Over my dead body,” yelled Lance.
“My feelings exactly.”
Coira watched in horror as the battle below her took place. She felt so helpless being trapped in the cage and didn’t want to see Lance go to his death while she watched from above.
“Zara, we’ve got to help Lance,” she said, holding on to the bars, the cage swinging in the wind as the rain continued to fall.
“He’s a knight, Coira. He can handle himself.”
“But I have a bad feelin’. Like I am goin’ to lose him.”
“Mayhap we can get out of these cages after all.” Zara reached into her boot and pulled out a dagger.
“Where did ye get that?” asked Coira.
“This is where being a gypsy my entire life comes in handy. We’ve been known to have a light touch on occasion. I stole it from the guard that locked me in here.” Zara fussed with the tip of the dagger in the lock but couldn’t open the cage. “Now I wish I would have paid more attention to the lesson on picking locks.”
“Here. Let me try.” Coira held her hand out through the bars. “Throw it.”
“It’s too far,” said Zara. “Swing your cage closer, and mayhap we can reach through the bars so you don’t drop it.”
They swung their cages, coming closer and closer together. Finally, they touched, and Coira reached through the bars and took the dagger from Zara.
“Hurry,” said Zara. “Philip has managed to unhorse Lance. He is on the ground.”
“Nay!” Coira fiddled with the lock, but she couldn’t open the door either. To her horror, she saw Lance and Philip fighting, and Sweetcakes barking at Lance’s heels. The dog got underfoot, and Lance fell. Philip was able to knock the sword from Lance’s hand.
“Sorry to have to do this, Lance, but I can’t let you have everything that should be mine.” He lunged for Lance. Coira could see Lance’s sword was too far away for him to reach it. She had to do something, and there was only one way she could help right now from her position right above Philip. She looked at the blade in her hand and, without thinking twice, she reached through the bars and flung the dagger at Philip.
Lance rolled out of the way of Philip’s sword, managing to grab his blade and lift it up above his head. However, Philip didn’t continue to come for him. Instead, his uncle dropped his sword and blood sputtered from his mouth. Lance jumped to a standing position just as Philip fell face down at his feet with a dagger embedded in his back.
He scanned the area but saw no one that could have come to his rescue. Then he heard the voice of an angel from above him.
“Lance?” asked Coira. “Are ye all right?”
“Coira,” he said, staring up into the eyes of the woman he loved. “Did you do that?” He nodded to Philip, dead on the ground.
“I am sorry I killed yer uncle, but I didna want ye to die.”
Lance smiled and held his hand above his head, calling off the battle. When Philip’s men realized he was dead, they left quickly.
“Jack, give me a hand,” Lance called out, running over to the ropes that held the cages in the air. He and Jack lowered them to the ground. Then Lance used his blade to break open the locks. He ripped open the door and dropped his sword, pulling Coira into his arms, holding her tightly against his chest. “By the rood, Coira, I never want to see you in this position again.”
“Lance, I love ye,” she told him, looking up with newfound confidence in her eyes. “I ken now that I never need to be afeard again as long as I am with ye.”
“Coira, I am so sorry I deceived you. I was only thinking about myself after all.”
“It doesna matter since I deceived ye, too.”
“I will sell Liddel Castle instead of my manor. We will live at the manor from now on, so you don’t ever have to deal with the dark memories again that this place holds for you.”
“Nay,” said Coira, looking over at the cages and shaking her head. “We will stay here. After all, it is every man’s wish to have his own castle, and I willna try to keep that from ye.”
“But why would you want to do that?” asked Lance. “After all, you were a prisoner here twice now.”
“I decided that my past no longer matters. Instead, I am goin’ to face my fears and look to the future from this day on. I want to have a celebration, and invite the MacKeefes and the MacDuffs if ye dinna mind.”
“I don’t mind at all,” he said, kissing her on the head. “They are your family. I would like to know them better. But tell me, what will we be celebrating?”
Coira glanced over to the iron cages once again. “We will be celebratin’ the fact I am no longer a prisoner of my fears and emotions. And there is just one other thing I want to do at the celebration that will help me to release my past.”
Scottish Rose
Elizabeth Rose
Chapter 12
A sennight later
“Stand back, Effie, and keep the bairn’s head covered,” said Coira.
The day had finally come when the MacKeefes and the MacDuffs all joined together along with Lance and his knights at Liddel Castle. Everyone crowded around the bonfire in the middle of the courtyard. Next to it was a pile of iron rubble.
Coira gripped the wooden handle of the axe and swung it hard at the remains of the two cages. The men had destroyed her former prison, and now she wanted her chance to demolish the bad memories of her past as well.
“Coira, that’s heavy. Let me do it,” offered Lance, reaching out for the axe.
“Nay. I want to do this,” she told him. “I need to prove to myself as well as my sister that I am strong now.” She brought the axe down on the wooden platform of the cage, but didn’t have the muscles to remove it from the wood.
“That’s enough,” said Lance, taking the axe from her and handing it to his squire.
“Oh, is it my turn now?” asked Jack, looking at the axe.
“Effie, dinna ye want a turn as well?” asked Coira.
Effie smiled down at the newborn babe in her arms. Her husband, Aidan, looked over her shoulder at the baby as well, holding the hands of their daughters, Elspeth and Arabella. Aidan’s squirrel, Reid, sat on his shoulder, chattering away.
“Nay, Coira, I want to stay with little Gavin,” Effie told her. “Every minute with our new son is worth more to me than even demolishin’ bad memories of the past.”
“I agree,” said Aidan, reaching down to kiss his son on the nose. “And someday, little Gavin will be big and strong like his da. And then I will teach him how to throw a caber.” He made silly faces and obnoxious noises talking to his son.
Storm MacKeefe’s head popped up from the crowd when he heard this. “So, will it be Gavin who finally beats me at the caber toss?” asked Storm with a smirk. “After all, we ken ye, nor anyone else of the clan, has ever been able to do it.”
“I can no’ only toss a caber better than ye, Storm, but I am stronger in every other way,” bragged Aidan.
“Prove it,” said Aidan’s good friend, Ian, from next to him. He had his arm around his wife, Kyla, who was also Aidan’s sister. She held their baby, Grant, while the twins, Finn and Quinn, chased Ian’s wolfhound around them in a circle.
“Och, do I hear a competition comin’ on?” The third of the MadMen MacKeefe, Onyx, rushed over, holding his son, Creighton, in one arm and his daughter, Davina, in the other. “Charles,” he called to his stepson. “Start collectin’ the bets. I say whatever the challenge, Aidan is goin’ to lose.”
“Lose? Ye think I’m goin’ to lose?” squawked Aidan, not at all happy at hearing his good friend was betting against him. “I’ll show ye that I willna lose and then ye will eat yer words.”
“Onyx, give me the children,” said Onyx’s wife, Lovelle, hurrying over to collect them. “I am going to take them to check on your wildcat while you boys make fools of yourselves again.”
“Let me help with the children since you’re pregnant.” Zara rushed over to take Davina from her.
“If you men want to prove your strength, how about tossing the rest of these cages into the fire?” asked Lance.
“I can do that.” Aidan gave his squirrel to his daughter to hold and bent down, picking up several of the iron bars at once. Instantly, the rest of the Scots were there to try to prove that they were stronger than the others.
“Coira, now is our time to sneak away.” Lance pulled her over to the side.
“Sneak away? Where are we goin’?” she asked with a smile.
“Just somewhere private where I can kiss you without anyone bothering us.” Lance directed her quickly to the garden. Sweetcakes followed, barking at them.
“Sweetcakes, we’ll be right back. Now go to Zara and play with the bairns.” Coira reached down and petted the dog on the head and sent it on its way.
“Hurry, before anyone sees us,” said Lance, running to the garden, holding her hand.
Coira laughed, having fun. Her heart felt lighter than ever now that she’d faced and released her fears of the past. She had never felt stronger than she did right now.
Lance stopped and pulled her into his arms, kissing her so passionately that she wasn’t sure he wouldn’t have the idea to make love right there in the garden.
A sweet scent of flowers filled the air. Coira took in a deep breath. “Lance, look, the roses are bloomin’,” she said excitedly. They turned to see the rose bush with red roses in full bloom, opening their petals to the sun. Then something caught her eye and she moved closer, taking Lance with her. She gasped when she saw what it was.
“What’s the matter, Coira?” asked Lance. “Is something wrong?”
Tears filled her eyes and she bent down to touch the soft petals of one blue rose, mixed in with all the red ones. “Nothin’ is wrong, Lance. Do ye see this?”
“It’s blue,” he said in astonishment. “I’ve never seen a blue rose before.”
“It’s because it is special and most people never see one in an entire lifetime,” Coira explained. “The legend of the blue rose states that when it appears, enemies turn to lovers.”
“I guess that’s us,” said Lance, pulling her closer and kissing her again.
“I dinna ever want to be enemies again,” she told him, staring into his deep, blue eyes.
“And neither do I,” he told her. “But I would like to be lovers.” He pinched her bottom and chuckled. Coira slapped his hand away and giggled.
“Lance de Selby, what kind of lassie do ye take me for to be pinchin’ my bottom right here in the garden where anyone can see?”
“I take you to be the sweetest, most beautiful, kindest lassie I’ve ever met.” He kissed her between each of the attributes he mentioned. “But most of all, I take you to be my wife, Coira. You are the strongest, most amazing woman I have ever met.”
“I do,” he said. “You are the sweetest and prettiest flower in this garden. I will love you forever because you are the best thing that has ever happened to me, my Scottish Rose.
Scottish Rose
Elizabeth Rose
From Elizabeth Rose
I hope you enjoyed Scottish Rose and will leave a review for me.
In history, someone from Clan MacDuff always crowned the Scottish kings. Isabel MacDuff (in my story, Coira’s grandmother) crowned her cousin, Robert the Bruce, after he killed John Comyn and was excommunicated for it. Later, she ended up hanging in a cage left out in the elements for four years, put there by the English. Records show they don’t know what ended up happening to her. But in my story, I come up with a possible solution.
To find out more about this, please read Aidan – Book 2 of my MadMan MacKeefe Series. You will also read about Coira and her sister, Effie, who were put in hanging cages, just like their late grandmother.
Here is the list of the books of my MadMan MacKeefe Series, preceded by my Daughters of the Dagger Series.
Daughters of the Dagger Series:
Prequel
Ruby – Book 1
Sapphire – Book 2
Amber – Book 3
Amethyst – Book 4
MadMan MacKeefe Series:
Onyx – Book 1
Aidan – Book 2
Ian – Book 3
Elizabeth Rose
Scottish Rose
Elizabeth Rose
About Elizabeth Rose
Elizabeth Rose is a bestselling author of over 70 books, an Amazon all star, a multi-time RONE Award finalist, and consistently in Amazon’s top 100 most popular, bestselling authors of historical romance.
She lives in the suburbs of Chicago, writing from her hammock in her secret garden during the summers. She enjoys gardening and anything that is out of the ordinary or paranormal. To find out more about her books, please visit her website.
Rogues to Lovers: Legend of the Blue Rose Page 19