Chapter 2

2

" I sobel, run," Emma cried, seizing her sister by the arm and darting out of the room as Geoffrey's cries bounced around them.

"Ye should have let me kill him," Isobel hissed as they bolted around the corner.

Their once familiar home now felt like a deathly labyrinth as the rumble of the guards' footsteps filled the corridor.

"We need to split up. Go get Lydia," Emma instructed, her breath ragged from fear. "I'll find Nora. We need to leave this place. Now."

Emma didn't wait for her sister to respond. The only thing pulsing through her head was the image of her sisters' lifeless bodies sprawled out in the courtyard as a warning for the clan never to defy Geoffrey again.

They split at the next corner, Emma taking a hard left and making a swift exit through a side door as Isobel raced towards the drawing room.

Emma found cover in the thick bushes nearby and stopped to catch her breath. The sounds of the guards racing through the hallways incited terror within her as she struggled to calm her frantically beating heart. She held her breath as a group of men who were once loyal to her father rushed past in pursuit.

Taking advantage of the distraction, she bolted around the corner of the castle, making a beeline for the kitchen door. Keeping to the shadows and sanctuary of the shrubs, she tried to keep her wits about her. But she knew Nora's life was in peril if she couldn't get to her.

The moment the area was clear, Emma rushed through the kitchen door, startling the scullery maid.

"Go back outside," the maid ordered. "I'll nae have ye trompin' through here like a wild boar."

"Where's Nora?" Emma snapped, her urgency leaving no room for rebuttal.

The scullery maid pointed towards the dungeon with a quivering finger.

Emma's heart sank as she glanced out the window at the ominous circular stone building. Without hesitating, she bolted out of the kitchen and raced to the thick oak door, only to spot the hefty lock on it.

"Nora?" Emma called as she pounded her fists against the door, testing the heavy lock keeping her sister inside the dungeon.

"Emma?" Her heart sank the moment she heard Nora's muffled voice from the other side.

"I'm goin' to get ye out," Emma reassured her, though she had no idea how as she struggled with the lock.

"There ye are," a guard shouted as he came around the building, drawing his sword.

Emma reacted instinctively, grabbing the pitchfork from the wooden cart beside the building and swinging it at the man. Her eyes widened as she watched him drop to the floor unconscious the moment it made contact with his face. The jangle of metal against the cobblestone floor rang in her ears as she spotted the ring of keys hanging from his belt. With a victorious grin, she snatched up the keys and unlocked the dungeon door.

"We have to hurry, Nora," she urged, pulling her sister into a brief hug.

The relief was short-lived as she heard the distant sound of shouting guards.

"What's happened?"

"Isobel," Emma answered, although she knew she couldn't put the full blame on her sister's shoulders. It was Geoffrey pushing them to their breaking point. "We've got the guards on us. We have to get out of here."

"But some of those men were Faither's best friends. Surely they'll help us," Nora said as Emma snatched her wrist and hurried past the befuddled scullery maid.

"We cannae trust anyone but ourselves," Emma said, pulling her sister to the tree line.

"What about Isobel and Lydia? We cannae just leave them," Nora said as they took refuge under the brush.

As if on cue, the call of a crow echoed behind them. They turned to find Lydia and Isobel emerging from the shadows of the trees.

"We cannae stay here," Emma declared, her face hardened with resolve. "Geoffrey will have every guard lookin' for us."

"Och, Geoffrey was puttin' his hands on ye," Isobel snapped defensively. "I'll nae apologize for helpin' ye."

"And I'll be forever grateful to ye for that, truly, but we have bigger issues here. Every guard in the keep is after us," Emma said, glancing around for an escape route.

"Emma is right, we dinnae have time for this," Lydia whispered. "If we're to go, we need to leave before we're all caught."

Nora's eyes reflected the fear they all felt. "Where will we go?"

"Anywhere is better than here," said Emma, her voice filled with grim determination.

In the black expanse of the forest, the four women pressed on as day turned into night, each wrestling with her own fear and exhaustion. By the time the moon was high overhead, and their old home was nothing but a dot on the black horizon, the girls paused.

"This is hopeless," Lydia bemoaned.

"We're lost, are we nae?" Nora's voice echoed in the darkness, a tremor evident in her tone.

"We arenae lost," Emma whispered, trying to hide her own insecurities.

"Without light, we're just wanderin' aimlessly," Isobel said.

"We cannae afford to stop now," Emma replied, her gaze fixed on the flickering glow of torches behind them. Through the shadows of the night, she could still see remnants of dim torch lights that were too close for comfort. "We have to move on."

"Look," Isobel pointed out, "lights through the trees. Maybe we can find refuge there."

Emma frowned, uncertainty clouding her features. She questioned whether they had put enough distance between themselves and their old home.

"I'm cold, Emma. I dinnae want to spend the night outside," Lydia mumbled, her voice small and trembling as she clung to the bit of warmth she could.

Their whispered deliberations were interrupted by a low, eerie howl that sent a ripple of fear through them. Emma surveyed their surroundings with a new intensity, her mind made up.

"We'll head towards the lights. If it's a castle, we can ask for refuge there," Emma said.

"Have ye lost yer wits? Nay one will take us in. They wouldnae dare risk a war with Laird Clyde," Nora said.

The girls fell silent, their spirits dampened amidst the grim reality.

"What would ye have me do? Lydia is frozen to the bone, we dinnae have a plan, or even ken where we're at. We can go there and seek shelter just for the night and move on durin' daylight," Emma interjected.

"We need to make a decision, those hounds will be on us sooner rather than later if we dinnae keep goin'," Isobel said, glancing over her shoulder.

With a resolute nod, they pressed on as the unfamiliar sounds of the night fueled their urgency.

As they trudged through the trees and bushes, the lights of the castle grew brighter. Emma couldn't shake the foreboding feeling rising within her.

"Oy, what are ye doin' here?" a hard voice barked in the still night, causing the girls to freeze.

Emma glanced around until she found her mark. Standing at the top of the stone wall, a large figure glared down at them.

"Gotcha."

"Let me go," Isobel called out as Emma whipped around to find several men surrounding them. She stumbled back in shock.

How Geoffrey's men caught up with them so quickly was beyond her.

"Oy, watch it," Nora hissed.

"Unhand me, ye brute," Lydia whimpered.

"Let me sisters go," Emma demanded as the men glared at her defiance.

"Looks to me as if ye're trespassin'," one of the men said with a snicker as Nora struggled against his mighty strength.

"Please, we just need a place for the night. We mean nay harm, truly," Emma implored.

"I'm sure ye do," another guard said.

"I demand to see the Laird," Emma snapped, her voice rising with determination.

"Ye hear that, Coften? The lady demands to see the Laird."

Emma's heart dropped as the men's laughter turned dark. Every cell in her body screamed at her to flee, but with her sisters in danger, she wouldn't leave them.

"Then by all means, let's bring ‘em to the Laird," another said as firm hands curled around Emma's shoulders.

Fear rippled through Emma as the men guided them to the castle. She swallowed hard as she tried to figure out where they were. The crest on the side of the steps sent a new terror rushing through her.

The heavy doors swung open, and the moment Emma stepped inside, she knew they had made a terrible mistake. The foyer was barren, with nothing but a few candles burning to light their way.

"Get movin'," the guard demanded, pushing Emma down the hallway.

He opened another door and shoved the girls into the room. Nora instinctively grabbed hold of Isobel, as if she could shield her from the doom bearing down on them.

The room was much like the foyer and the hallway, barren and devoid of life. Emma glanced around. The room was too bare to be considered a hall, yet far too warm to be a dungeon.

"Dinnae leave this room until the Laird arrives, or ye'll find yerselves in far less accommodatin' circumstances," the guard warned, his voice echoing off the stone walls.

"Where are we?" Lydia asked, her voice barely above a whisper as she huddled close to Nora.

"And I'd keep quiet if I were ye," another guard added with a sinister grin. "Otherwise, the meetin' with the Laird will be far worse than ye could ever imagine."

"At least tell us where ye've taken us," Isobel snapped.

"Isobel," Emma hissed and nudged her head towards the tapestry.

Nora, Lydia, and Isobel turned to see the unicorn on a blue field with the double swords.

"Maybe this wasnae such a good idea, after all," Nora said, shooting Emma a hard look.

The guard's lips curled into a knowing smirk as he stepped to the door. A clap of thunder rang out, causing the girls to jump.

"Welcome to Clan MacRoss."