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Gillian’s heart started pounding, because she couldn’t reiven by the Highlanders
“I’id answered “I much prefer it to Christen”
“She has the sah reht”
“Yes,” Alford drawled, but the furtive look in his eyes said he still wasn’t completely convinced Impatient, he stood up and came around the table “Do you have my treasure with you, Christen?” His beady eyes darted back and forth between the women as he waited for her answer
He was so vile he made her skin crawl She boldly faced hiht the treasure belonged to your king”
“My king?”
Bridgid quickly recovered fro of indifference, she said, “I’hlands forof Scotland I don’t consider England my home”
“What about your Uncle Morgan? Do you consider yourself loyal to him?”
“I don’t re my sister”
His eyes were piercing as he studied her “I plan to see that the king gets the box back,” Alford snapped “Do you have it with you?”
Edwin ca his triple chins, he reht in”
“Search her again,” Hugh called out, snickering “Take her to one of the chah examination, Edwin Start with the neck and work your way down”
Gillian intruded before the situation got completely out of hand “My sister doesn’t have the box, and she doesn’t knohere it is”
Alford slapped Edwin’s hand as he was reaching for Bridgid “You can have her later,” he pro close to Gillian, he asked, “Do you have the treasure?”
“No”
“You may take Christen upstairs noin Do what you ith her Hugh, would you like to join them?”
With a hoot of laughter, Hugh drained his goblet and shoved his stool back as he stood “I believe I will join them,” he called out
Alford atching Gillian closely as he estion She didn’t show any reaction, but when Edwin lunged for Bridgid, shespeed and shoved him back
Incensed by her interference, Edwin lashed out and slapped her across her face The force was enough to knock her into Bridgid, who grabbed her to keep her fro
“If you touch her again, I’ll kill you,” Bridgid shouted
Alford raised his hand to let Edwin knoas to wait
“Please, go and sit down,” Gillian ordered Bridgid
She wanted her out of harid didn’t have to be told twice She backed away froainst the far wall Her heart was pounding from fear and shame because she realized now that she was far more of a deterrent than a help to Gillian Too late she understood what her friend had meant when she’d told Proster that if he ith her, the baron would use hiet what he wanted
“This is between you and an in this hall, and it will end here I knohere the treasure is hidden, and I’ll show you where it is as soon as Uncle Morgan and est you bring my uncle tomore until I see for myself that he is well Do we understand each other?”
“Did you notice, Edwin, that she doesn’t ask safe passage for herself?”
His friend nodded, and realizing he wasn’t going to get Bridgid upstairs now, he rejoined Hugh at the table Reaching for the jug of wine, he called out, “Why didn’t she include herself?”
“Because she knoill never let her go” He stepped closer to Gillian and said, “You and I have been playing our game for years now, and one of us must lose I swear to you the day will come when I will break that spirit inside you and you will learn to cower in my presence”
A shout disrupted his train of thought, and the brute ca in his wake
“You know better than to interrupt, Horace,” the baron snarled at the brute
“We have good cause,” he called out “You’ll want to hear this,to the soldier, he commanded, “Tell him, Arthur”
The pock-faced soldier nodded, sed loudly, and then blurted, “We have just returnedWe went to Baron Morgan Chap to fetch him here for you, milord, just as you ordered, but e—”
Alford cut hio to my home first”
“Yes, milord, but it seemed quicker to us if we—”
“Did you bring me my favorite cloak?”
The question seemed too difficult for the soldier to understand Horace shoved him “Answer your baron,” he commanded
Arthur frantically shook his head “Nono, we didn’t think to look for your cloak”
“Where’s Morgan?” Alford de him inside”
“I can’t, milord I can’t You don’t understand what’s happened We went to his estate, and it waseone”
“What are you staone?”
“The soldiers,” Arthur wailed, terrified because he knew that when the baron was given bad news, he often lashed out at theback to put soan’s home was empty and your soldiers have vanished”
“What do you mean, they’ve ‘vanished’?” he roared
Arthur cringed when he saw theyou the truth Thewas con of attack or struggle Not a chair or a stool was overturned, and we couldn’t find any arrows or blood anywhere It’s as though they all just got up and walked away”
“Where is an?” Gillian demanded
“Silence,” Alford shouted “What did the servants tell you happened?” he asked Arthur
“There were no servants there, milord The place was deserted I tell you We decided then that the soldiers one to your home and taken the servants with them and that you had ordered them to do so”
“I gave no such order,” Alford er barely controlled “And they will pay with their lives for leaving their posts, every last one of them”
Horace cleared his throat and said, “There is more for you to hear, Baron”
Alford squinted at Arthur “Well?” he snapped when the soldier stood there quivering in his boots
“We rode like lightning to your holding, e was downand it was the same Not a soldier was there”
“What say you?” Alford screeched
“Your home was deserted”
“And the servants?”
“They, too, had vanished”
Alford becaid “My own one? Where?” he bellowed “I will knoho is responsible for this” He suddenly stopped ranting His head snapped up and he whirled to confront Gillian “What do you know about this?”
“I know only what I have just heard”
He didn’t believe her He reached for his dagger at his waist, realized it was on the table, and went to get it Then he slowly, deliberately walked back to her and held the blade in front of her face
“I’ll slice your throat, you bitch, if you don’t tell me the truth Where are my soldiers?”
“I don’t know,” she answered “Would you like uess?”
He pressed the point of the blade against the side of her neck, a look of perverted pleasure in his eyes as he deliberately
pricked her skin He took yet another step closer to her and then froze, slowly looking down at the knife Gillian had pressed against his belly
“Shall we find out whose blade is quicker?” she whispered
He jumped back “Seize her,” he shouted to Horace
Bridgid ju and shoved her aside He grabbed Gillian’s arm and tried to snatch the weapon away from her She cut hiet the knife
“I knohat happened to your soldiers,” Bridgid shouted
“Move back, Horace,” Alford ordered
Shaken, Alford poured hie “Tell me what happened to them”
“They’re dead,” Bridgid answered “All of them Did you think you could take a child fro her hands together, she laughed “You’re next You and your friends”
Edwin scoffed “They won’t coland They wouldn’t dare”
“Yes,” Hugh agreed “If it was the Highlanders, they’ve gone back home by now They’ve certainly finished—”
“Oh, they’ve only just begun,” Gillian called out “They don’t care about gold or treasures They want the three of you, and they won’t stop until you’re dead”
“She speaks lies,” Horace shouted “The Highlanders are savages, and our soldiers are vastly superior”