Marion needed to escape quickly,now that Angus was safe with Iain. But how? Before she could consider itfurther, her father spoke.
“Sir Thomas will escort you.” Herfather nodded to a knight Marion didn’t know.
“There’s no need,” she replied,striving to sound accommodating though she was feeling desperate.
“There is a need, Marion.” Herfather’s dark eyes bore into hers. “Someone tried to seize you. I will see you defendedat all times.”
It had been years since she’dallowed herself to hope her father might feel any true affection toward her,but that hope had apparently never died as it now flared in her chest. “Father,I’m touched.”
“Don’t be,” he snapped. “I simplycan’t have you disappearing again before I marry you to Froste.”
“Of course,” she replied, her faceheating with anger at herself. Why had she been so foolish to allow any hope?
She followed the knight across thebailey, over the bridge that covered the second moat, and up the stairs thatled to the keep—and her room—while she plotted her escape. She needed to getSir Thomas away from her door.
She paused as he opened the doorand stepped aside for her to enter. “Could you fetch Father John from thechapel for me?” He would normally be there at this time of night, but sheprayed he was already with Iain. However, the errand would occupy the guard fora bit. “I have some sins to confess before I marry.”
“Certainly, my lady,” the knightreadily agreed.
Well, it was certainly easy enoughto send Sir Thomas away,Marion thought as she walked pasthim and into her bedchamber. The door clicked shut, followed by the distinctsnap of the lock setting in place.
“What are you doing?” she demanded,pressing her ear to the closed door, her pulse ticking up several beats.
“Your father ordered you to belocked in, my lady. I’ll return shortly with Father John.”
“Wait!” she shouted, even as sheheard his footsteps carrying him away from her. She gripped the door handle andpulled on it for several seconds before she forced herself to let go.Desperation wanted to overcome her, but she refused to succumb.
This was terrible! She’d notforeseen being locked inside her chambers when she’d decided to provide thedistraction the stubborn Scot needed so he wouldn’t get caught entering thecastle. And though she’d certainly delivered the needed diversion, she now notonly had to escape the castle but she had to escape her room.
Thinking quickly, she decided thatonce she was out of the keep, she’d scale the keep wall, make her way down thebackside of the hill, and swim the treacherous, snake-filled waters to escapeand meet with Iain. That was assuming no guards stopped her.
She gulped at the daunting task. Atleast she knew Iain had Angus, and if he didn’t have Father John—she smiledgrimly to herself—well, then she would not have to be wedded and joined withhim so soon.
She stalked to her bed and rippedoff the coverlet, then dragged the heavy blanket—and two others she collectedfrom her trunk—over to the window, which she threw open. Glancing out thewindow to the ground far below, her stomachknotted.She inhaled deeply, then let it out and muttered to herself as she began to tiethe blankets together. Once they were secured, she fastened one end to the ironof the window and dropped the other out of the small space until it dangledtoward the ground.
She swung a leg over the windowledge and wiggled out of the cramped space. She gripped the coverlet, sweatdampening her brow with the effort to hold on, and shimmied all the way to theend of her rope. With a hopeful prayer, she glanced below to see if she wasclose enough to leap. Her heart sank. The ground was still so far away.Climbing back up was not an option. Not only were her hands beginning to crampbut there was no way for her to escape her room with the door locked.
She squeezed her eyes shut, took adeep breath, and released the material. She dropped with a speed that stole herbreath and made her body tighten in expectation of a painful landing. She didhit something hard, but it was warm, too, and the landing, though jarring,wasn’t agonizing. Her eyes flew open and met an angry—or was thatastonished?—blue gaze.
“You returned for me,” she said insurprise.
“Aye,” Iain growled, setting herroughly on the ground. “And now I’m questioning why.” He gripped her by theshoulders and fairly dragged her against the castle wall. “Ye would have brokenyer neck had I nae caught ye.”
“Nonsense,” she replied, annoyedthat instead of one word of praise for her creating the perfect distraction forhim, he was angry. “I know what I am doing,” she snapped.
He crossed his arms over his chestand glared at her. “Do ye now?”
His voice was hard, and she vowedhe’d made the question sound threatening on purpose. She notched her chin up.“I do.”
His glower became fiercer as hestepped so close to her that his heat overwhelmed her. “Then ye have the priestwith ye?”
“Well, no,” she hedged, not willingto admit quite yet that she didn’t have everything in hand. “We will simplyhave to make haste to the chapel and find him. I thought you would have donethat with Angus and been away from the castle by now,” she snapped.
“Ye thought that, did ye?” Hepressed closer to her, his hands coming to either side of her shoulders.
She could feel the anger rollingoff him in waves of scorching heat that seemed to create steam from his wetbody, hair, and clothes. Fear lodged in her throat, but she refused to show it.She squared her shoulders. “I did. I created the perfect opportunity for you todo what you needed. You should have trusted me to escape and find you outsidethe castle walls.”
“I should have trusted ye?”Incredulity shook every word as his face came very close to hers. “Yeshould have trustedme,”he growled.“I am your laird.”
