Devil of the Highlands Page 0,70
them there, she thought.
Evelinde had noticed that the men tended to find excuses to go to the kitchens on the days that Biddy baked her pasties. Perhaps they could make them more often as a lure to get the men into the kitchens, and in exchange for a pasty, she and Biddy might get them to do a bit of the heavy lifting or some such thing. It could not hurt to try. As for the torches in the hall, if he would not order some set there, then she would bloody well do it herself. He might fuss about it at first, but would surely see the benefit when he could see his way clearly to their door without risking a stumble or fall. At least she hoped he would, Evelinde thought as she finished washing and quickly dressed.
While she was seeing to these things, she would consider how best to show him she was intelligent. Perhaps by solving the mystery of the accidents/murders of his family members, Evelinde thought grimly, aware that she might be discovering the source of her own latest "accidents" that way. This last "accident" in the paddock and Cullen's questions regarding the arrow in the woods made her think someone might be trying to make her husband a widower again, and she wasn't ready to rest in peace.
Aye, Evelinde thought as she headed for the door, solving the matter would surely prove to her husband that she wasn't the weak, defenseless creature he thought her.
Her determination to light up the hall gained some strength as Evelinde stepped out of their room, pulled the door shut, and found herself enclosed in darkness.
" 'Tis not strong or brave to walk around in darkness," she muttered irritably as she stepped carefully away from the door. " 'Tis just stupid."
Shaking her head, Evelinde moved toward the stairs but then paused as a rustling from somewhere behind made her glance around. Her first thought was that it was one of the maids coming from a task in one of the rooms, but the moment she stopped the sound did, too.
"Who's there?" she said, staring into the darkness.
Silence was her answer.
Evelinde peered into the gloom, straining to see. It was possible it was just a mouse who'd taken up residence in the hall or one of the empty rooms. There were five of them on this level. She'd toured them all during the miserable days before Mildrede and Mac had arrived. The three rooms along the hall opposite their bedchamber were smaller bedchambers, one of which was Biddy's. The room next to their own, however, was a large solar. It was empty at the moment, but Evelinde hoped to change that at some. point in the future. It was one of the other things she'd thought to speak to her husband about. Now she decided she'd simply take care of the matter herself. It would be one of the duties she set herself.
No further sound had reached her ears. It seemed it really had been a mouse or something, still her "accidents" had made her wary, and Evelinde was on the alert and moved much more slowly than usual as she approached the stairs. In the end, that probably saved her life when she stumbled over something on the floor. She was only a step from the stairs and had she been moving at her usual bustle, probably would have pitched headfirst down the steps. Although she still fell forward toward the stairs, her slower speed allowed her to cry out and reach for the railing as she did so.
A concerned shout from the great hall below answered her call, but Evelinde hardly noticed, she was grabbing wildly for the railing. Her hand slapped down on the wooden rail, and she clutched desperately at it. While it didn't completely stop her fall, it slowed her further. Evelinde's upper body swung toward the railing, her shoulder slamming into the sturdy wood as the rest of her body kept going. Her legs slid past her to the side, their weight dragging her down several steps so that a squeal sounded as her palm slid along the wood before she was able to tighten her hold again and bring herself to a complete halt.
"Wife!"
Cullen was there almost the moment Evelinde came to a halt, and she suspected that his was the concerned shout she'd heard, but she was stunned and breathless from the scare and merely peered at him with wide eyes.
"Are ye