Scot to the Touch (The Hots for Scots #7) - Caroline Lee Page 0,30

he’s got access to hot pokers? And he kens where ye go to take a shite?”

Remembering a long-ago prank, Rocque’s eyes widened with terror. “Oh, St. John’s warts, ye dinnae think he’d do that again, do ye?”

Kiergan shrugged. “After what ye just did to him? Mayhap.”

Rocque muttered something under his breath and bolted from the room. “Dunc! Hey, Dunc, wait! Let me apologize!”

Chuckling, Malcolm shook his head. “This will no’ end well.”

“It didnae start well,” said Alistair, waving a parchment like a fan. “We need some cross-ventilation. Check behind that tapestry.”

When he nodded in that direction, Kiergan—who was closest—pushed aside the decorative scene to reveal a painted wooden door. One of the entrances to the secret passages? Humming thoughtfully, Malcolm stepped up beside him.

“ ’Tis remarkable. Painted to look like the stone.” He ran his hand over the door, then reached for the hidden latch. “Have ye always kenned of this?” he asked over his shoulder as the door opened into darkness.

“Nay,” said Alistair, with a secret smirk. “Lara introduced me to it. She—and her brother, Brohn, I suppose—kenned of it from their mother.”

“Aye, it would make sense that the housekeeper would ken of such passages,” Malcolm said thoughtfully. And then he stepped into the passageway.

As the door swung shut behind him, Kiergan cursed and lunged for it, but was too late. With a click, it closed.

“Dinnae fash,” Alistair called out, “that door can open from the inside.”

It sounded as if there were a story there. “Do all the doors open from inside the secret passages?” The one in his room opened in both directions, he kenned. “Or is it possible to get stuck in there?” He was worried about Malcolm.

Alistair stepped up beside him. “Only a few—like the chamber I now share with Lara—cannae be opened from both directions. See?”

Demonstrating, he pushed open the door. When they didn’t see Malcolm there, he opened it wider, then stuck his head into the passage. “Mal?”

There was no answer. He exchanged a frown with Kiergan, then stepped into the passageway.

The door swung shut with finality.

But before it could fully latch, ‘twas yanked open again, and this time, ‘twas Malcolm who stood on the other side, obviously lost in thought. His expression brightened when he saw Kiergan. “I wasnae sure I’d come out in the same room. The mechanics of this is fascinating! Imagine what we could do…”

Impatient, Kiergan reached forward and yanked his brother out of the passage. “Where’s Alistair?” he stuck his head into the secret corridor, which was surprisingly clean, but saw no one. Turning his back to the door, he asked his brother, “Did ye no’ see Ali in there? He went to look for ye.”

“Dinnae call me that.” Kiergan whirled again to see Alistair stepping out of the passageway, scowling. “How’d ye get ahead of me so quickly, Mal?”

Their scholarly brother just shrugged. “ ’Tis a secret passageway. Surely, we should expect some sort of hijinks and madcap adventures? Likely set to catchy music and full of bright colors. And mayhap”—he hummed—“a group of youngsters who jump in and out of doorways, chasing a monster. Only, when they catch the monster, they rip off its head and discover ‘tis really the gamekeeper, who would’ve gotten away with it were it no’ for those wee pesky bairns.”

Kiergan and Alistair both stared.

“What in St. Columba’s gnarled beard are ye speaking of?” Kiergan finally asked, confused.

But Malcolm shrugged, running a hand through his auburn hair. “I dinnae exactly ken. Just…an idea.”

“Ah, an invention,” Alistair said with a knowing nod. “Well, let us ken if ye figure out how to use these passages for our advantage. Preferably without”—he cast a wary glance at the door with a slight shudder—“headless monsters.”

“Aye.” Malcolm sighed. “I’m likely overtired. I still have to learn who taught Liam to say for fook’s sake.”

Remembering his own guilt, Kiergan hastened to point toward the main door, through which Rocque had chased Duncan. “If the lad said ‘twas his Uncle Duncle, I see nae reason to doubt him.”

One corner of Malcolm’s lips curled up. “Aye, but I’ll no’ punish him further. A face full of Rocque’s flatulence is penance enough.”

Alistair snorted. “True.”

As Malcolm strolled out the door, Kiergan’s attention swung back to the hidden doorway, which was now propped open to allow airflow through the room. “How often do ye venture into the passages?”

Alistair shrugged. “No’ often, no’ anymore.” He nudged his brother. “Now that I’m sleeping in Lara’s bed each night.”

“Aye, and ‘tis glad I am to see ye