The Highland Laird (Lords of the Highlands #8) - Amy Jarecki Page 0,44
cannot take a chance on seeing you hurt.”
“But I want to stay. I want to be of use.”
“For now I need you to remain out of sight whilst I visit a crofter in Balliemore.”
“Where?”
“The tenant who tends my sheep on the isle lives two miles north of here. He’ll take a message to Livingstone, and I’ll dispatch one to your brother as well—let him ken you are safe and unharmed.”
“Robert,” she whispered, clamping a hand over her mouth and trying to blink away a tear. “He’ll be angry with me.”
“No, lass.” Ciar scooted up the bed until his big arms surrounded her shoulders. “This is all my doing, and I doubt your brother will ever forgive me. If I had kept riding to Spean Bridge and ignored the crime, I wouldn’t be in this dilemma. Neither of us would be.”
“It isn’t like you to keep riding. You did the honorable thing, and you will prove your innocence. I know it right down to my bones.”
“Thank you, lass. I need such words of encouragement.”
Emma closed her eyes and sighed as Ciar kissed her forehead, his beard a tad prickly but alluring all the same.
He slid his fingers down her arms and grasped her hands. “Before I go, I want to show you the lay of the place.”
“I suppose it sounds awfully crude to call it the cellars.”
He pulled her to her feet. “Mayhap, though that is exactly what Livingstone and I call it—either that or the vault.”
“Who else kens of it?”
“Only Braemar and the crofter, Archie. His wife, too, I suppose.” Ciar gently took her hand and brushed her fingers over a wooden table. “The bed is at the rear of the cellar, and there’s a washstand beside it—chamber pot beneath. The floor is covered with a rag rug that I can roll up if you prefer.”
Emma patted her thigh, telling Albert to follow. “It shouldn’t cause a problem as long as I grow accustomed to it.”
“There are two wooden chairs and a table straight ahead, and to the left there’s a wee hearth with brushed sheepskin on the floor before it.”
“I can feel the warmth on my face. But isn’t it dangerous to have a fire?”
“We’ll need fire to cook over the iron hob, but I use only lignite coal from my mine in Northern Ireland. It burns clear.”
“Truly?”
“Aye, but only in small amounts.”
He led her past the chairs. “On this side you’ll find the cellar door. In the passageway to the right are the vaults with stores, and to the left is the way out. ’Tis a long affair of about three hundred feet, tunneled through earth and rock.”
“We don’t exit into the remains of the keep?”
“That would be far too obvious. The outlet is covered by heather rushes and is only paces away from the eastern beach. I’ve hidden Dicky’s skiff in the gorse just beyond the beach, covered my tracks as well.”
“Heavens, no one will ever find us here.”
“Not likely. But I have no intention of staying any longer than necessary.”
“What do you intend to do?” Emma asked.
“First thing is to notify Livingstone of my whereabouts.”
“And then?”
“And then you shouldn’t worry about how I will bring my accusers to justice. ’Tis nay pretty, but it must be done. You’ll soon tire of this place, as will I.” He pulled out a chair and urged her to sit. “There’s dried meat, apples, and an ewer of water on the table. I ken ’tis not much, but I’ll return with some more substantial fare.”
“Thank you.”
“Is there anything else you need before I go?”
“Ah…” She went through the map of the chamber in her mind, then scraped her teeth over her bottom lip. “Is there but one bed?”
“One large bed, but not to worry. I slept on the sheepskin pelt before the fire. ’Twas by far more comfortable than Fort William’s hospitality.”
“Oh.” A moment of awkward silence filled the chamber. Of course he would have slept elsewhere. She ought to be relieved. “Must you leave now?” she asked, grappling for something to say to encourage him to stay a bit longer.
“I’m afraid I must.”
She brushed her fingers over the table, finding the plate of food. “I’d like to go with you.”
“Not this time. I expect Wilcox to have men combing every inch of my lands, at least at the moment. For the next sennight or so, I do not want you to leave the cellars unless I am with you, understood?”
“Aye.” She nibbled a bite of dried meat. “How long