Leith fingered a dry plant, “He dinnae use any of it, so what was he using? These should give the brew a golden hue, but the one faither got was dark red.”
Crouching, Leith yanked the cupboard open and reached in. He pulled out a bunch of dried herbs that looked like basil. These could not be the belladonna Magrath had suggested. Shucking them back inside the cupboard, he stood and dusted his hands off. Heading back to the kitchen, he asked, “Where is Mary?”
“I cannae tell ye, Sir,” Nessa said regretfully.
There was a note in her voice that had Leith’s senses of pending crises going off. He spun, “Why?”
“I...we…,” Nessa said with a grim face, “were told to nay mention her name again.”
“But I can,” Rinalda’s voice cut in. “And I will. I dinnae care if I lose me position or be cast as a pariah. Sir, they carted her off to the keep and locked her up. And by they, I mean Me Lady.”
“Mother!” Leith was aghast, “Me mother send her there?”
“Aye, Sir,” Rinalda said. “She even ordered that Mary nay eat anything and that she must suffer for her crimes.”
“Her crimes?” Leith asked. Had the world began spinning backward? Who in their right mind would accuse Mary of a crime much less his mother? Was she losing her senses too? “Bloody hell, what crimes?”
“That I cannae tell ye as I daenae ken,” Rinalda said. “It’s been almost two days now.”
Cursing under his breath, Leith took the stairs to his mother’s room. He knocked and strode in, to see his mother in her bed, looking frail. He sat at the edge, “Mother, what is this madness I have heard about ye sending Mary off to the prison in our keep?”
“She took advantage of ye, Leith,” his mother said sagely. “She kent Aaron was ill and as soon as he was getting better, made sure he wouldnae. She poisoned him, son, she lied to ye, lied to us all about her dumbness, and even more, she’s English. And now, that ye are sleeping with her, she must have felt she would come in and step over our heads to become the top so she set out to poison him.”
Leith began to wonder if his mother has truly gone mad. “Mother, Mary would have never done anything to Faither and I ken she could speak. When I found her, I was the one who told her to play dumb as I dinnea ken how others would react to her kenning she was English.”
“What else are ye hiding from me, Leith?” his mother snapped. “Were ye going to marry her without saying a word to me?”
He stood, “I am going to marry her and aye, I was going tell ye. Pardon me, I’m going to get Mary out of that prison.”
“Leith,” she called as he had reached the door. He craned his neck over his shoulder. “Yer making a mistake, son, this woman is nay good for ye.”
“Mother, I’m old enough to ken what is good for me and Mary is,” he said. “Get some rest, mayhap it’ll get clearer to ye after ye sleep. Magrath is with Faither, he’ll have him back in a few days.”
Striding down the stairs, he swiftly crossed the green and headed to the tall, stone keep. No guard was there. That made him frown. He shoved the door in and crossed the inner room and took the narrow winding stairs down to the dungeons. He still could not believe the foolishness his mother had done and sent Mary to prison.
He jumped down to the lowest level and wrinkled his nose at the dank, rancid smell. There were only three rooms down this deep. He went to the dungeon and two were bolted shut. The third was not shut and he ran to it, as his senses were screaming that something was wrong, clearly wrong! “Mary, I’ve come—”
The room was empty. Leith had to look again, to make sure his eyes were telling him the truth. The room was still empty. Where was Mary? It was dim but he went in and looked to see scuffle marks on the floor and— good god! —he crouched and picked up a clump of hair. It was Mary’s, and it looked like it had been ripped out from her head.
He darted up and ran out, taking the stairs two at a time. He had to find Mary, but where was he going to start looking?
29
Faking unconsciousness this time was even harder than when she had done it before, that day when she had come to the Lenichton castle. She allowed her whole body to be lax and stay that way when Cooper ordered Lachlan to take her off the horse. She allowed her body to bang on the ground, sucking in the pain, just to let them know she was unconscious.
“Set her down near a tree or something until she wakes up,” Cooper grunted. “Go back and erase all set of our tracks; make sure no one will follow us. We’ll take another route back. Me Lady will be pleased with our work.”
“Aye, Sir,” Lachlan said and soon she heard the crunch of his boots on dead leaves and then the thuds of his horse’s hooves fading away.
Mary let her head loll to the side and breathed through her nose. She had hoped for the men to stay and do something that would give her time to work on the loosened ropes. The skin of her wrists were raw red from the rope rubbing against them while she worked them out. During the ride to wherever this was, she had to work them out tortuously slow because her hands were tied on her back, just right under Lachlan’s nose.
Leaned up against the tree, with her arms behind, she forced her face to stay lax while she softly worked the ropes. Pain was stinging her hands, but she kept working. She heard Cooper stomping around but aside from him, she heard the rush of water. They had neared the river.
If she dared wake up—she was dead. She briefly wondered if Cooper needed her awake to kill her or if he needed Lachlan’s help. If the latter, he was bound to come back soon and then she might be overpowered.
Her right hand slipped from the rope’s tie, and she dared to open her eyes to slits and looked around. Cooper was at the edge of what she assumed was the river. She slipped the other hand from the tie and leaned forward to untie her feet.
Fear was clogging her throat as her fingers plucked at the ropes. In her fright, her fingers slipped. She made a mistake looking down and then she heard Cooper snarl, “Yer awake!”
She jerked up and panic rammed itself in her throat and she froze. Cooper pushed her back and looked at her with his cold eyes, “Listen here, woman, I’m inclined the mercy of letting ye choose how ye will die. There are two options. Slow or quick, ye can drown in the river over yonder which be long and agonizing, or I’ll slit yer throat which will be quick. Either way, I must do what is asked of me and remove ye.”
Mary had heard some muttering about Lady Lenichton but she needed to be clear, “W…Who asked ye to remove me?”
“The Lady of the house,” Cooper said, “She was the one who told me to take a hand over the town when the boy couldnae do it. She was the one who put all the responsibilities in me hand when her husband dropped his. Lady Lenichton might look weak but she is more powerful than ye ken. So, I’ll ask again, choose how ye will die.”
Her answer was her lurching away from Cooper. He grabbed after her and she fought him off, but her strength, heightened from this panic, was nothing compared to his.
He grabbed her foot and she lashed out, kicking with both feet. He grabbed her again and boxed her right across the face. “Ye little bitch.”
Just before she fell to the ground, she spotted a stout branch, lunged for it, grabbed it and made a desperate swing for Cooper. It clocked him right on his temple and he stumbled. She sat up and knocked his knee too, and this time he sunk to the ground on one knee. Mary got to her feet and swung the branch again, this time landing it on his arm, clocking his shoulder.
He snarled and reached out to grab the branch. Yanking it from her hands he grabbed her and pushed her up against a tree. “Now I ken why Me Lady dinnae want ye here. She kent ye would be trouble and ye are! I’m going to take such pleasure in removing ye.”
With one hand, he circled her neck and hefted her body against the tree. The bark tore her clothes and her legs dangled. With the other, he covered her mouth, and her lungs were burning. Mary was getting frantic and her urge to live overcame her fear. She was not going to give up without a
fight. Mary bit down, sinking her teeth into Cooper’s flesh so hard that she tasted blood.
Cooper yanked his hand away but came back up with a dagger in his hand, “I was going to give ye the chance once more, go back to England or die right here.”
“I swear on me life, if ye want yers, leave her be,” Leith’s livid voice cut through the air.
Both she and Cooper’s head snapped to the side where Leith was advancing with his sword out. “Let her go, Cooper, I’ve had enough of yer machinations. Let her go or I’ll run ye through where ye stand.”
Cooper pressed the dagger against Mary’s neck. “Ye are blind, boy, this woman is nay good for ye. Ye ken anyone who will accept ye and this Sassenach woman as their Laird and Lady? I have nay intention of setting her free, and it’s for yer own good. Lay down your sword and let me do right by ye.”
“Ye killing the woman I love is miles away from doing right by me,” Leith swore. “If ye dinnae let her go, I’ll have to cut ye down like I did Lachlan for poisoning me Faither. I followed the trail ye two left in the mud and came across him. He admitted that ye roped him into taking Mary. I cut him down before I even asked what he had to gain from poisoning me Faither, which I now regret.”
Mary gasped. “You…killed him!”
“I did,” Leith said as his eyes flicked to her. “Nay one harms ye and I’ll have nay problem doing the same to ye, Cooper,” Leith added. “If ye want to fight on even footing…” Leith dropped his sword and yanked a dagger from his boot, “I’ll do the same.”
Cooper did not move but Mary met Leith's eyes and held his gaze as a plan formed in her mind. With Cooper’s gaze on Leith’s, she mouthed “Now!” to him just as she slid sideways from Cooper’s knife. The blade cut her skin but it was not deep and she fell to the ground as Leith rushed in.
Cooper surged forward, closing the distance between himself and Leith; his dagger raised and ready for the fight. On the ground Mary’s eyes widened in shock at the two of them fought, weaving in and out, daggers flashing so furiously she had a hard time keep track of who was wielding which.
She counted no less than five close calls where Leith was nearly gutted and fear tightened her lungs so she could not scream. When Cooper’s blade slashed Leith’s arm in a bloody gash she felt paralyzed. Even if she wanted to move or scream, she could not. In a sudden rush, Leith roared, knocked the dagger out of Cooper’s hand and flung himself at him, knocking the older man to the ground. The point of his dagger was an inch away from the pulsing vein in Cooper’s neck.
“Give up, Cooper, if ye want to live in peace,” Leith ordered, “I’ll nay kill ye but be assured yer place in this family is revoked. Ye have done too many abominable things. Ye’ve stolen the people, village and power away from me. Yer undermining of me ends now.”
Mary peeled her hands away from her mouth, “Leith, no stop! I’d be the last person to beg you for mercy for him as he did try to kill me but…” she looked Cooper in a sudden surge of pity, “he did not do all those things on his own. It was your mother who told him to do them. Cooper told me so.”
Gray eyes snapped between Mary and Cooper and Leith’s face was mired in disbelief. “What? Is that true? Did me Mother make ye do all those things.”
“I’ll nay say a word,” Cooper snarled, “kill me if ye will.”
Leith tightened his jaw and pressed the knife down. “Is it worth it, Cooper? Is it worth losing yer life for this?”
“Do ye have it in ye to kill me?” Cooper taunted.
Lieth ripped the dagger from his throat and jabbed into Cooper’s shoulder. The man howled. “When it comes to protecting what is mine, yes, I have it in me to kill ye. Ye will nay die from the wound, Cooper. I have more sense than that; ‘tis only a flesh wound. Now, tell me all or the next one will be through yer throat!”
“‘Twas for yer own good, she said,” Cooper replied, his ice-blue eyes narrowed in pain. “Everything she did was always for yer own good but yer head’s been so far up yer arse, ye never got to see it. She even asked me to save ye from yerself as yer kind, forgiving nature would see ye in ruin.”
Slowly, Leith stood, but Cooper still lay on his back, “What the bloody hell is going on with me Mother. What in the seven hells did she have ye do? Talk quick!”
Stopping at the foot of the trail to his home, Leith paused in spurring his horse forward. The talk he had with Copper about his mother’s actions had sent chills of disbelief along his spine, but with each clod of his horse’s hooves, he began to feel Cooper’s claims were all true.
His mother could be the one to do those things, she had already tried to marry Mary off, and had sent Mary to prison. So, what was there to stop her from ordering Cooper to take control from his father when he was ill. The question of who had poisoned his father was cleared up too; Lachlan was dead.
What he had to do now was find his mother, sit her down and tell her that her machinations were not going to work either. Mary was on his horse and resting on his chest. Her cheek was bruised as was her neck, and Leith was proud of how she had held on to save her life. It turned out that his mother had influenced Cooper against Mary too. And the hateful rumors he had spread had influenced more people like Fiona to hate her.
That’s another person I’m going to let go.
She was dozing on his chest and his eyes dipped to trace the curve of her lashes on her cheek. She was beautiful, even bruised, she was still gorgeous. His chest clenched when he thought of what could have been if he had arrived after Cooper had slit her throat.
I’d have gone mad and slaughtered him like the pig I kent he was. Then, I’d beg God to make me trade places with her. I don’t just love her, I’m in love with her. She’s all I need, she’s brave, insightful, kind, generous, stunning…lovely inside and out. She’s all I need for me wife.
As they got to the castle, Leith slid from the horse and took Mary into his arms. He carried her right to the healing rooms and laid her down on a bed. Rinalda, who had spotted him the moment he came in, looked as though a heavy boulder had been lifted off her shoulders at seeing Mary.
He smoothed a lock from Mary’s face and said, “Take care of her.”
“And ye, Sir?” Rinalda said, seeing the blood on his arm.
“I’ll take care of this meself,” Leith answered. “Just take care of her for me.”
“I will,” Rinalda smiled and went off to get her remedies.
Leith dropped a kiss to Mary’s forehead before moving off. He had to find his mother and confront her on all of what Cooper had told him. He took the stairs to her room but she was not there. He then went to his father’s room and saw the door cracked open. He came closer and heard his mother speak. Her tone was one he had never heard coming from her before—it was downright chilling and cruel.
“Look at ye…as useless as ye were when I met ye. I was the one who built ye. When me Faither died without any brothers or sons, I inherited this place. I married ye, but ye never asked me for advice even as I was raised at the heels of a great Laird. Ye never cared about what me Father would want for the clan; ye never cared about pleasing me nor did anything to make me love ye. I married ye to get a son, but I never loved ye. I’ve been wanting to have Leith rule for years now, but this Sassenach named Mary showed up and took him off his path. Now that Cooper has gotten her out of the way, he is going to marry the Scottish woman I pick out for him and rule as I want him to. It’s time for ye to go too.”
Leith inched the door in and saw his mother holding a vial over a goblet. His father was laying on the bed, asleep. Leith shoved the door in and she startled.
“Leith, what are ye doing here?” his mother asked, her expression stricken with shock.
He crossed his arms, “I should ask ye the same question. What are ye doing here and what is that yer holding?”
“It a draught for calming Aaron’s nerves,” his mother said calmly. “It something yer healer, Magrath, told me to give him.”
“Funny, Magrath also
told ye to make sure he be given those herbs to clean his body and to put his mind back in order, but ye ordered Lachlan to give him poison,” Leith waited for her to deny it, but nothing was forthcoming, instead she only shrugged. “If this is truly a calming draught, I ken I’ll drink it.”
Before she could stop him, Leith grabbed the goblet from her hand and tilted it to his mouth. His mother screamed and slapped the goblet from his hand. It crashed to the floor with a tinny clatter and a dark red liquid flowed out to stain the floor. Dark red—belladonna poison.
His chest went cold, “That wasnae a calming draught, was it? It’s red. It is belladonna poison, Mother?”
Sarah tugged a chair out and sank. She held her head in her hands and sighed. “It isnae fatal, but it makes the drinker see phantasms. I just wanted him out of the way so ye can take up the mantle that is truly yers. And Lachlan was a worthless pawn, more of a sheepdog than a man. I supplied what was needed, and he did it without a question.”
Mesmerized by a Roguish Highlander: A Steamy Scottish Historical Romance Novel Page 25