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The king didn’t answer “Do you see how ently turned the knapsack over and let the contents pour out onto the floor An old rusty, iron hinge spilled out first, and then stones of various shapes rolled out A clump of dirt splattered, and a cracked wooden cup splintered in half when it struck the ground The king shouted A dirty piece of rapped into a ball dropped onto his knees As he unfolded the cloth, a man’s tunic took shape, and when the last fold was turned over, the jewels atop the linted up at them
Tears flooded John’s eyes, and he was filled with memories of his sweet Arianna Lost for the moment in the past, his head bowed, he mourned anew the death of his true love
“My lord, is the treasure there?” Horace shouted again
The king was too overwhelmed with emotion to notice the soldier’s impertinence and insolent tone
Brodick had noticed and was in the process of turning around so that his back was to his wife and the king when Horace gave the other soldiers a signal with his hand His three cohorts quickly fanned out to for between thehlander, and fools that they were, they actually believed the odds were in their favor
Brodick knew exactly what their plan was His voice was low and filled with loathing when he said, “Your king is unarmed”
John, still down on his knees, looked up as the soldiers drew their swords His eyes widened in disbelief, and for an instant he thought that the Highlander was in so him Then he saw that Brodick’s hands were still at his sides and his sword still sheathed Where, then, lurked the threat that would make the soldiers draw their weapons?
Forgetting for the er?” he demanded
The soldiers remained silent
“Gillian, tell your king his soldiers mean to kill him,” Brodick said
The leader of the soldiers smiled “And ill be honored for our deed Aye, we hlander and his wife as well” Nodding to Brodick, he added, “You’ll be blamed of course”
John reached for his sword and only then realized he was defenseless
“One shout fro”
Horace snickered “You’ll be dead before they get here”
Brodick shook his head “I cannot allow you to kill your king because it would upset et near her Have I made my intentions clear?”
They caave Brodick an added advantage In their haste to get him, they stumbled into one another
Moving with the speed of a predator, he beca to kill hilea sound as the warrior swung it doard His blade cut through two soldiers as he lashed out with his foot and broke the arround He then arched back to avoid the last soldier’s blade and, twisting, sla his jaw
Gillian had grabbed hold of the king’s arm and tried to pull hiallantry wouldn’t retreat He pushed her behind him and shielded her
Before she could suood scream, two soldiers lay dead at Brodick’s feet and the two others were doubled over in pain Brodick wasn’t even winded He casually wiped his blade on one of the dead to rid it of English blood, then slipped the weapon back into the sheath and turned around He couldn’t hide his surprise at finding the king protecting his wife
John was stunned He stared at the traitors, then looked at Brodick “Four against one,” he hoarsely whispered “Most impressive, Laird”
Brodick shrugged “You’ve yet to see impressive”
A fire from a dropped torch crackled in the debris behind theently lifted the treasure with both hands Cautiously he pressed in sequence the hidden springs, and the box snapped open For a long silent moment he simply stared down at as inside
And then a low guttural sound erupted frorew into a tortured, h the decay of years
And the cry of anguish for as lost beca fury
The sound paralyzed Gillian, and it all became too much for her to bear, the heartache, the treachery, the deceit, the fear She couldn’t block the screa there at the top of those slippery steps in the dark passageway The dragon was uncoiling fro out at her as she and Christen were hurled down into the black abyss She was once again that terrified little girl, abandoned and all alone She heard the anguished screa up at her with such sorrow and regret in his eyes He couldn’t save her She reached out
And suddenly Brodick was there, standing in front of her, calling out to her
“Gillian, look at me”
The tenderness in his voice and the touch of his hand against the side of her face cut through her terror, and with a sob, she fell into his arms
“I want to go home,” Gillian cried
“Soon,” he proet behind me and stay there”
The harsh command jarred her, and she quickly did as he ordered, for she could hear the shouting soldiers running toward the stable The s fire her, and she knew that when the king’s men raced inside and saw the dead soldiers, they would attack Brodick
Turning to the king, she saw him wipe tears from his face and then snap the box closed He wrapped the treasure in the tunic, stuffed it into the knapsack, and then staggered to his feet
He, too,because he moved to stand by Brodick He raised his hand as his men closed in
“Are these your men or his?” Brodick asked
“Mine,” the king answered
His voice was deathly calm “Come with me,” he ordered Brodick, and then he left the stable
Brodick dragged Gillian behind him, but when they reached the courtyard, he stopped and let out a shrill whistle Dylan and Robert rode forward
“Get her out of here,” he ordered Dylan “Robert, wait for Bridgid and take her with you”
She wasn’t given tied his stallion into a gallop
“Let the Highlanders inside,” John shouted to his soldiers, and then he motioned for Iain and Ramsey to follow Brodick and him inside
Alford hadn’t been idle while he had waited He’d used the tiathertogether near the buttery Brodick and Iain stood behind the king, but Ra in the corner and irabbed her hand, jerked her to her feet, and without saying a word, pulled her along
She was afraid to speak to him She’d never seen Ramsey in such a fury before, and it scared her allish barons did He didn’t say a word to Robert either, just id away, and then he turned and, head doent back inside
The king was speaking in a low voice to Iain Maitland when Ra asked if it was Iain’s son as captured Iain responded with a curt nod, and then the king put his hand out and requested the laird’s sword
“May I borrow it?”
Iain reluctantly let hi the sword in one hand, he dangled the knapsack in the other as he slowly approached the table where Alford waited
The baron started to stand, but John ordered him to stay seated “This day has been filled with disappointments,” he remarked, h
is voice as cold as a winter’s eve
“Then you didn’t find the treasure after all?” Alford asked, and the smile was there in his eyes When John didn’t answer hihlanders be here, my lord?” he called out
John noticed how agitated Hugh and Edere They kept giving the lairds furtive glances, showing their obvious trepidation The king glanced at Iain Maitland but the laird wasn’t looking at hiaze, like Laird Buchanan’s, was locked on his prey
“Do they frighten you, Alford?” John drawled as he tilted his head toward the Highlanders
They didbecause he knew they couldn’t do him any har’s guard would strike them down
“No, they don’t frighten me, but they areuncivilized”
“Don’t be inhospitable,” John chided
Gripping the knapsack in one hand and Iain’s sword in the other, John began to slowly circle the table “Today has brought back all the pain,” he said then, and turning to the lairds, he offered an explanation “I’ve only loved one woman, and her naht her to me and I fell instantly in love with her I believe she loved me too,” he added “And I would have found a way to marry her”
He stopped pacing and dropped the knapsack on the table in front of Alford
“Open it,” he commanded
Alford turned the knapsack upside down and watched the contents spill out on the table The box rolled out of the tunic
John told hier is on the bottom I sent it with the squire for Arianna to cut a lock of her golden hair Do you remember, Alford?”
Before Alford could answer, John continued “On top of er is a lock of her hair Tell me, Alford, what’s on top of the hair?”
“II don’t know,” Alford stuttered
“Yes you do Your dagger”
“No, it’s not mine,” Alford shouted
John slowly began to walk around the table “No? Your crest is on the handle”
“SoerGillian’s father must have”
John’s voice lashed out like a whip “Her father wasn’t in court, but you were, Alford You killed her”