few who knows of the existence of these particular tunnels. No one will see us. No one will stop us.”
Edward had to school his features into an emotionless expression. He had believed—or rather,hoped—that when Garland had spoken of destroying the government that it had been more of a boast than a full plan of action. But to kill the king and everyone in the House of Lords? Anarchy would ensue. Edward studied the other men in the room, seeing only excitement on their faces. The woman, however, watched him the way a cat would a mouse.
You must be a clever creature, but so am I. He gazed back at her, letting lust fill his eyes. He wanted her to think that his focus on her was for her beauty and no other reason. A moment later, she blinked, surrendering to him in their battle of stares. She turned her focus to another man.
“I know these are trying times for you all. Good men suffer under the yoke of the rich who oppress you. Now is finally the time when you will have your chance to change that. You will each receive instructions the afternoon of the king’s speech. Follow your instructions exactly, and I assure you, we will succeed.”
Edward and the others stood when the meeting came to an end. There was no time to wait. He had to contact Avery. Edward retrieved his hat and coat and slipped on his gloves. His skin prickled as he felt the stare of the woman as he made to leave.
He’d been marked.
She suspected he was not loyal to Thistlewood’s cause. Fear began to eat away at his usual confidence. If she told Garland anything, Edward knew his days—perhaps even his hours—were numbered. He followed the others into the taproom, careful not to rush away. They spoke quaint, false pleasantries in front of the landlord as if they were all old friends simply meeting for dinner and ale. Then one by one, they said their goodbyes and left.
When he was finally able to walk outside, he mounted his horse and rode like the hounds of hell were upon his heels, because something far worse was on the horizon.
Camille waited until the last man left the private dining room before addressing her master.
“It’s him, monsieur. The one who worried me last time.”
Her master reclined in his chair and watched her. “You are certain?” He appeared relaxed, but that was when he was at his most dangerous—when he was still, when he was studying someone.
“Most certain.”
“Then I shall follow him. When I find his den of spies, I will do what is necessary.”
Of that, she had no doubt. Camille saw the shadow of death in his eyes. Death and something else she didn’t quite understand. Remorse? The devil didn’t have remorse, and this man was more devil than anyone she had met.
Letty sipped her wine over dinner to hide her laughter as Angus and Baird teased Adam mercilessly. The two Scotsmen were close to Adam in age, and it was clear that their shared history was long and loving. Letty was full of gratitude for that. Her husband and Caroline deserved such a loving family. It was a pity Scotland was so far away from Chilgrave Castle.
“Ye have to listen to this, Lett.” Angus caught her attention.
“No, no, not another tall tale, Angus,” Adam warned with a chuckle.
Angus winked at Letty. “There’s nothing tall about it. Now, Adam was visiting, along with Caro, who was but a wee bairn back then. Baird and I convinced Adam to ride over to see the MacDougals, a few miles west of here.”
“Oh Christ, no,” Adam groaned.
Angus hushed him. “So he rode over to the MacDougal lands—they have a manor house, ye ken.”
Letty leaned forward and nodded, propping her chin on her hands as she listened.
“And old MacDougal had a daughter, a pretty lass with red hair like a winter fire.”
“And a temper to match,” Baird added.
Adam reached for his wineglass and downed a large portion of it.
“Every man within twenty miles was in love with Nellie MacDougal, but she had eyes for no man, at least none who wanted her. It was rumored that she loved a man from the Lennox clan, but the Lennoxes and the MacDougals had a feud at the time.” Angus settled into his chair, smugly enjoying the attention. “So I dared Adam to steal a kiss from her—mayhap more, if he could.”
“You know, this really is not the best story for my wife