The MacDougall men and Lady Arline rode up the narrow street that led to Castle Stirling. They passed by the gallows on their way, the sight of it making Wee William shudder. He prayed silently that God was watching over his chief and his friend.
Just as they passed the gallows, a commotion broke out in the crowd. A man cried out, “They found the McKenna! They found the McKenna!”
Wee William pulled his horse to an abrupt stop and tried to find the voice that shouted the news. Murmurs began to spread through the crowd. The people grew excited and louder, making it difficult for Wee William to hear what was being said. He dismounted and handed the reins up to Daniel. “Wait here,” he told them as he set off to learn what he could.
The people had gathered around a middle-aged man who looked as though he enjoyed delivering the news and the attention it wrought. “I tell ye, I just came from the castle. Me wife works in the kitchens.”
“So what?” someone challenged him. “Me son works in the stables. It doesna mean anything.”
The news-bearer rolled his eyes and continued. “They found Angus McKenna and that traitorous son-in-law of his just moments ago. Aye, they’ll still hang this day. Me wife says they’ll hang before sunset.”
Wee William felt his stomach fall to his toes. He resisted the urge to slam his fist into the face of the idiot who had called his chief and brother traitors.
“Is what they say true, Wee William?” Lady Arline asked from behind David.
“They seem to think it is,” he said as he motioned toward the crowd. “We’ll ken more when we get inside the castle.” He prayed they would have an easier time gaining entry than when he was last here. If what the man had said was true and the hanging was taking place before sunset, then it was even more important that he see Robert Stewart. And if they were turned away, he would not hesitate to implement the plan he and Black Richard had plotted just yesterday.
Why they were being treated with more respect this day than the last time he was here, Wee William did not know, but he was grateful. Mayhap it was Lady Arline’s status that helped them get past the guards at the gate of Stirling Castle. As it was, he didn’t rightly care, as long as they could get an audience with Robert Stewart, the High Steward of Scotland. With King David held as prisoner by the English, Robert was the only man who could quash the death warrant issued by Phillip Lindsay.
If there were any truth to the rumors they’d heard in town, then Angus and Duncan were somewhere within these walls. Wee William would feel better if he could see the two of them with his own eyes.
What a sight Lady Arline and her warriors must have looked covered in sweat, blood, and mud. Wee William, Daniel, David, Roy and Ronald escorted Lady Arline into Castle Stirling. Lady Arline somehow managed to walk with an air of grace and refinement even though she was just as road weary and dirty as the large Highlanders who surrounded her.
What the five men could not see was that her insides were shaking. And had she not been holding firmly to Daniel’s arm, she would have fallen more than once. She quietly debated on walking back to the Lindsay keep for she had no desire to ever ride a horse again.
They were taken to private quarters above stairs where three young maids offered a warm bath and clean clothes to Lady Arline. Arline began to protest that there was no time for such frivolities, though inside she was aching to wash away all the grime and filth and put on a fresh, clean dress.
“Mayhap, m’lady,” the pretty little maid with the blonde hair offered with a shaky voice, “ye may want at least to wash up before meeting with his Lordship?”
Daniel and David cleared their throats as the other men tried their best to remain silent.
“Mayhap she be right, my lady,” Daniel interjected. “’Tis been a verra long and trying journey here. Mayhap the Stewart would take us all a bit more serious if we didna look like heathens drug through the mud.”
“Aye,” David agreed. “I think we can take a few moments to at least scrape off some of the mud.”
Arline supposed they were correct. “Fine, but we’ll not tarry long!” she exclaimed. The sooner she met with Robert Stewart, the sooner she could return home.
Although she would have preferred to soak in the warm water until her skin wrinkled, there was no time for that luxury. The maids gave her strange looks when she refused to remove her leather necklace. It held the key to Carlich’s box. She also declined their offer to have her gown cleaned. “Please leave it,” she told the maids. “I shall tend to it myself.”
From the looks the maids gave her she supposed they thought the gown should be burned instead of cleaned. The box Carlich had given her was hidden in a deep pocket.
The tub sat behind a beautifully decorated dressing screen and very near the fireplace. Carefully, she folded the dirty gown and laid it on a stool in front of the screen before sinking into the tub. It took monumental efforts her part not to fall asleep in the magnificently warm water.
Her thoughts were centered on what she would say to Robert Stewart when she finally met him. Would he listen? Would he believe her? Would he believe the authenticity of the documents? Silently she prayed that the documents inside the box were as important as Carlich had made them out to be and that they would prove Angus’ innocence.
Maids came and went. Some brought more hot water while another brought tea and food.
Vigorously she scrubbed away the dirt and grime from her arms and legs. Her frustration and anger was beginning to get the better of her. Questions, most unanswerable at the moment, battered around in her mind. Why had Carlich sent her and not someone with more experience in political matters? Someone with more knowledge, tact, and more practiced in the fine art of diplomacy would have been a far better choice. Amongst her clan she was known for speaking her mind and not always in a thoughtful manner. She worried over saying the wrong thing or insulting Robert Stewart.
Once she was satisfied that she was as clean as she was going to be, she stepped from the tub and wrapped a long drying cloth around her shoulders. With little time to waste, she dried off hurriedly before stepping into a pretty green gown one of the maids had brought to her. ’Twas a bit short and a little tight in the bodice, but it was better than her own muddy and tattered dress. The satchel she had brought from home had been destroyed in the attack the night before. Arline’s mind was on other matters and she had not bothered to ask from whom she had borrowed it.
She declined the offer to have the maid dress her hair and opted instead for a simple braid. She eased her feet into slippers that matched her gown, smoothed down the skirts of her dress and searched for pockets. She sent a prayer of thanks upward, for the dress had pockets and they were deep enough to hold Carlich’s box.
The moment she lifted her dirty gown from the stool she knew something was wrong. It felt lighter. Dread pricked at her senses, sending goose pimples across her skin. Frantically, she thrust her hands into each of the pockets. Empty. She dropped to her hands and knees and searched the floor around the stool then widened the search to the rest of the room. Nothing under the bed, on the other side of the screen or under the chairs.
She knew the box had been in the dress before she stepped into the tub. She had triple checked it before folding it and placing it on the stool.
Good Lord, it was gone! Panic set in as she raced out of the room in search of the MacDougall men.
Wee William was just exiting one of the bedchambers as she ran down the hallway. It wasn’t exertion that had her heart pounding and fighting for breath. It was fear.
“Wee William!” she cried out as she ran toward him.
The smile on his face faded instantly the moment he saw the look of fear on hers.
“It’s gone!” she cried. “The box! It’s gone!”
Wee William looked as though the wind had been knocked from his lungs. “Are ye sure?”
“Aye, I am sure! It was in my dress, not more than a few feet from me. When I finished my bath and went to put the box in t
he clean dress, it was gone.”
“Well one of yer maids may have taken the dress!” Wee William sounded relieved.
“Nay!” Arline shook her head and wiped away tears. “The dress is there, but the box is not!”
Daniel, David and the rest of the men began coming out of the room when they heard the commotion. Arline quickly explained the situation. The dress was exactly where she had left it, but the box was gone.
“Who else, besides us, knew about the box?” Daniel asked to no one in particular.
“I did no’ tell anyone,” Arline told him as she dabbed at her eyes with the sleeve of her dress. “I told the maids to leave it. But there were so many people coming and going while I bathed. I was behind the dressing screen and could not see much.”
“Do ye suppose one of the maids pilfered it, no’ knowin’ what it holds? Mayhap they think it holds jewelry?” David offered.
“I do no’ ken,” Arline said as she tried to settle her breathing. “I suppose ’tis plausible. But no matter who took it or why, we have to get it back.”
The men split up into groups. Daniel and David went in search of all the maids that had entered the room while Ronald and Roy went to find guards who could help in the search. Arline went back to her room to search again. Wee William went in search of Robert Stewart.
He could only pray that Robert Stewart would delay the hanging long enough for them to find the damned box.
Each of the maids had been rounded up and now stood before Robert Stewart in his private chambers. Though the room was quite large and grand, it felt small. Seven maids stood before him while the rest of the room was filled with MacDougall warriors, a few of his guards, and the woman in charge of the maids.
Robert Stewart was of average size and build. Shoulder length, thick brown hair framed his long face with its wide-set eyes. He did not look happy, not at all happy. He sat in an ornately carved chair while he grilled each of the young women who stood before him.
Each of the maids denied any knowledge of the box let alone taking it. Even with his promise not to harshly punish whoever had stolen it, they continued to deny taking it.
After a quarter of an hour of grilling the maids, Robert Stewart reached the end of his patience.
“Fine. If ye canna be honest then each of ye shall be found guilty of thievery.” He gave a nod to his guards. “Take them to the dungeon,” he ordered. “They will stay there until we find the box.”
The seven young ladies started to cry and plead innocence and beg for mercy. Robert Stewart would not be swayed.
The youngest of the maids, a girl of mayhap fourteen, burst into tears when one of the guards took her arm and began to lead her out of the room.
“Wait!” she cried. “I ken who has the box!”
The procession out of the room came to a rapid halt. The six innocent maids hissed their disapproval with the lass as the guard led the young girl back to Robert Stewart.
“The rest of ye may leave and go about yer business,” Robert said to the remaining maids. They left in a hurried rustle of skirts and harsh whispers.
The young girl trembled as she stood in front of Robert Stewart. Tears streamed down her red cheeks.
“Where is the box, lass?” Robert Stewart asked, his voice calm. His cool demeanor belied the worry that he was actually feeling.
“I dunnae where it is, but…” she choked on a sob.
“But?” Robert asked.
“I ken who has it,” she said, wiping the tears from her cheeks with her fingertips.
“Well?” Wee William chimed in. “Speak up lass!”
The girl jumped when she heard his voice. It all came spilling out in a rush of words, half of which they could not understand over her crying and sobbing.
“He said he would hurt me family if I didna get him the box!” she cried. “He said he kent where me family lived and if I didna get him the box, he’d kill them all and then me!”
Arline’s heart sank. The girl hadn’t taken the box thinking it was filled with jewelry. She hadn’t stolen it for her own gain. She was terrified. Arline imagined she would have done the very same thing had someone threatened her family.
Arline went to her then and wrapped an arm around the poor girl’s shoulder. “Wheesht, lass,” Arline said. “We do no’ think ill of ye. Just tell us who it was that threatened ye and told ye to get ye the box.”
“I dunnae his name,” the girl said.
A sigh of desperation and frustration filtered through the room. The MacDougall men were beyond irritated as evidenced by the scowls etched on each of their faces. Arline’s hope wilted as her shoulders sagged. She had come all this way, had nearly been killed, only to have some stranger take it all away.
“I dunnae his name, m’lady,” the girl whispered. “But I do ken what chamber he be in.”
TWENTY-THREE
Within the hour, Arline and the MacDougall men were taken to a large gathering room below stairs. Dozens of people filled the elegant room. Men were dressed in their finest clothes and women looked as though they were attending a grand dance. The strangers huddled in small groups, whispering in hushed tones. Some cast curious glances at Arline and her warriors when they entered the room.
The MacDougall men surrounded Arline, watching her closely, hands on hilts of swords, eyes scanning the room. They were guarding Arline, on alert for even the slightest hint of trouble.
They had found the box and its contents in the room the young maid had taken them too. It had not taken long for Robert Stewart to learn who had been assigned that room. Aye, they had the box and knew who was behind the stealing of it, but they did not have the fool in custody yet. So the MacDougall men guarded her protectively. They would not let any harm come to the lady they had sworn to protect.
Throughout it all, Arline could not rid herself of the notion that Robert Stewart seemed familiar. She was quite certain that she had never met the man until this day, at least not formally. But there was something familiar in the way he walked and how he spoke. She could not quite put her finger to it and in the end, shrugged it off as nothing more than exhaustion.
She had been given a private moment with Robert Stewart and had explained all that she knew and all that Carlich had told her. He listened intently. Occasionally, he would give a nod of affirmation but not once did he ask any questions. Arline thought it more than a bit odd. Mayhap, she supposed, it was just the way Robert Stewart was and she warned herself not to read anything into his lack of questions.
They had been in the large gathering room for quite some time. Arline and her warriors declined the food and drink that was offered to them by the serving staff. Her stomach was in knots and she had no desire to throw up in front of anyone. The atmosphere of the room was not as somber as one would think. Nay, the people gathered were behaving as if they were at court and not the serious affair of deciding the fate of two men.
A sudden hush fell over the room when two large doors opened and a group of men entered. Some of them she recognized as guards who had helped in the search of the box. She had no idea who the others were. She watched in fascination as the group of men parted like the Red Sea to allow someone to walk through. It was Robert Stewart. He took the steps up to the dais without uttering a word and sat in the opulently carved chair. As soon as he sat, five men came to stand in front of him and faced the crowd.
“What the bloody hell?” Daniel muttered under his breath as he watched the five very familiar men come to stand in front of Robert Stewart. Rowan, Nial, Findley, and Caelen stood facing the crowd. Seamus Lindsay stood among them.
Arline’s heart jumped to her throat when she saw Seamus. She tucked her hands into the pockets of her skirt and patted the box. Through no fault of her own, she had been thrust into this game of cat and mouse. Her role had changed suddenly, less than an hour ago. Now she must hide her fear, swallow it and not let it show. Innocent people were counting on her.
Wide-set eyes scanned the room before s
ettling upon Lady Arline. She stood frozen in place for a moment before remembering her manners and offering her most elegant curtsy to Robert Stewart.
The people who had been milling about the room all came to stand closer to the dais.
Robert Stewart eyed the people for a few moments. His expression was unreadable. Uneasiness began to work its way into the pit of Arline’s stomach.
“Bring them in,” Robert Stewart finally spoke, directing his attention toward someone at the back of the room. The sound of his voice as it broke through the stillness of the room startled Arline, causing her to jump. David offered her his arm and a comforting smile. Gladly, she accepted both.
McKenna's Honor, a Novella, Book Four of the Clan MacDougall Series Page 12