Chapter 5

Chapter 5

For some reason, the keep seemed ten times as long that night, and by the time Jocelyn got to the hallway where their chambers sat, she was panting and sweating. She stopped for a moment and put her hands on her knees, slowing her heart and catching her breath. The last thing she wanted to do was cause more panic than there was already going to be. Jocelyn was scared, and while she had lived in fear for a long time, the kind of fear she was feeling in that moment was different. That fear was new. It was the fear she had known may someday come, the moment of decision, of the end of the world they knew.

With their uncle gone, every single bit of protection they had was gone, just like that. There was no one to hold Bram back anymore, and no reason or recourse for him not to kill all three of them and then wage war on Blair. Each time the thought repeated in her mind, Jocelyn could feel the anxiety rise up into her chest, making it hard to breathe.

"Take a breath," she whispered to herself. "Every second counts…every second…"

Knowing that they were no longer looking at years or even days of preparation time, Jocelyn pulled herself together and headed for the girl's rooms. Carefully, Jocelyn opened Aoife's door, not wanting to frighten her. Her sister put her arm up sleepily, squinting toward the door and the lamp-lit hallway light spilling in. "Jocelyn? What's wrong?"

"Put on yer dressin' robe and come tae me room. I'm goin' tae get Deirdre and bring her over."

Aoife sat up, shaking her head. "What? In the middle of the night?"

The sound of distant shouting could be faintly heard from inside the castle. Aoife immediately woke the rest of the way up. "What happened?"

Jocelyn walked in and pressed her hand to Aoife's cheek. "Get yer robe and come tae me room. I'll explain what I can."

Aoife nodded as Jocelyn turned and headed to Deirdre's room. As she opened the door, she found an empty bed. Jocelyn's heart immediately began to race and she hurried in the room, shining her lamp around. Sitting across the room, Deirdre was at her sewing table, one she rarely used, making something from leaves and parchment.

"Deirdre," Jocelyn whispered, making her little sister gasp and turn.

"Jocelyn, I…I couldnae sleep and I thought…well there's nay harm in workin' on somethin' in me spare time."

Jocelyn smiled and walked over, handing Deirdre her dressing robe. "It's fine, but I need ye tae come with me tae my room. Aoife is waitin' fer us, and I have tae talk with ye about something."

Deirdre nodded, fear flashing across her eyes. She rarely just stopped working on one of her imaginative projects without a fuss. That night though, she could see that Jocelyn was just barely holding things together, and didn't argue for even a second. Hand in hand they walked to join Aoife, and the girls waited for Jocelyn to unlock her door. As soon as they were inside, Aoife was lighting the lamps and Deirdre was sitting on the end of the bed, nervously kicking her feet.

Jocelyn took a deep breath as she bolted the door, washing the emotion from her face. As she turned, she took Aoife's hand and had her sit beside Deirdre. She gave them both a comforting smile, trying to calm the fears she knew they had. As calmly as she could, she cut straight to the point, not wanting to draw it out. "Something has happened. The Laird is dead."

Aoife's eyes went wide and she jumped to her feet. "What? But…what happened?"

Jocelyn wanted to tell them everything she knew, including her suspicion that Bram was somehow involved, or at least that was what lingered in the back of her mind. He had been far too happy when she ran into him to think otherwise, and there was no way he hadn't heard of what had happened yet. But she couldn't put that fear on her sisters. So, she kept a calm demeanor, giving them just enough information to help them continue to move forward in their thoughts. She didn't want them to freeze.

"I dinnae ken a lot," Jocelyn calmly explained. "I was in the library when I heard a bunch of commotion. I was watching from afar. There was a woman…"

"His mistress," Aoife commented.

Jocelyn furled her brow. "How…why do ye ken that?"

Aoife shrugged. "The ladies in the kitchen talk a bit."

Deirdre jumped up and wrapped her arms around Jocelyn. "If the Laird's dead then Bram will surely come after us."

Jocelyn's heart was beating so hard she could hear it, and though she tried to comfort Deirdre, she was struggling with words. Her eyes shifted up to meet Aoife's. Her sister immediately reached out, turning Deirdre toward her. "Hey. Nae necessarily. Jocelyn's put us in a good place, and made us important tae the clan's future."

Deirdre nodded. "That's right. Bram couldnae possibly harm ye now that yer tae be married tae the richest Laird in this area of the Highlands. Right?"

Jocelyn nodded, almost overenthusiastically. "That's right, and Aoife will soon be engaged as well. I'm sure everything will go as we planned it. We just have tae be more careful until then, and be ready for anything. Bram doesn't like that we have some freedom, but we've been stuck in 'ere before and we can do it a little while longer."

Even as the words flowed from Jocelyn's lips she knew they weren't true. She knew that Bram's hatred for the sisters and his fear of the prophecy were far stronger than any possible connections their marriages would bring. She had seen the madness in Bram's eyes, and Jocelyn wasn't even sure that marrying her betrothed would keep her alive. It was obvious the Laird had other ideas, and though he presented with an honest interest in her, at least for future heirs, she didn't believe him to be as kind as he acted. They were where they were because of the prophecy, because of the pain and fear Bram had felt as a small child facing death by Jocelyn and the girls' father. And though Jocelyn loved her father and understood his desperation to keep them safe, part of her could see how Bram had grown to become as evil as he had.

"Fer right now," Jocelyn said, pushing through the fearful thoughts popping into her mind. "Fer right now, we need tae act as if we ken nothing. We need tae act as if there is nay suspicion otherwise. We wait fer the formal announcement of the Laird's death, and most likely my future husband will arrive. That will also give us some protection. Bram is…"

"Evil," Aoife interjected.

Jocelyn nodded. "Aye. But he's nae stupid. He doesnae want war with larger, richer clans over us. We need tae just stay together in our rooms, and wait fer word."

Just then, a loud knock echoed through the room. All three sisters jumped. Jocelyn pressed her hand to her stomach and closed her eyes for a moment, trying to will away the shakes that were inundating her hands. When she opened her eyes, she found Deirdre clinging to Aoife in fear. "Shhh. I'm sure it's nothing. Stand there and if it is a guard, remember yer manners."

The girls nodded as Jocelyn walked slowly toward the door. She was terrified of who was on the other side. It would have been crazy for Bram to already be coming for them, but then again, Bram had been waiting a long time for that moment. Jocelyn knew one thing; she wouldn't let him hurt her sisters without a fight. She would do anything she could to save them.

Her hand shook as she reached for the handle, pausing for a moment and leaning toward the wooden door. Swallowing hard, she closed her eyes. "Yes? Who is it?"

There was a silent pause that felt to Jocelyn like hours and then Maeve's quiet voice came through the crack. "It's just me. I'm alone."

Jocelyn released the pent-up oxygen inside of her lungs and hurriedly opened the door, standing to the side as Maeve entered. They both closed the door quickly behind her, locking it. As they pulled back, Maeve flashed a warning look toward Jocelyn.

"I have more information," Maeve said, walking further in.

She was breathing so heavily and shaking so badly that she could barely keep herself together. Jocelyn hurried over and poured her a cup of water and rubbed her shoulder as she sipped it, calming herself down. Maeve smiled, her shoulders untensing a bit. "Thank ye. I'm sorry, I just ran so fast back here I was a bit out of breath."

Jocelyn backed up and leaned against the bed, taking both of her sisters' hands. She looked between the two of them and squeezed their hands. "We are prepared fer anything. Better tae ken than tae be in the dark. Ye cannae protect yerself very well from the dark."

Maeve gave the younger girls a kind smile, obviously attempting to calm her own nerves. Her voice, though, clearly portrayed the type of fear she was feeling. Jocelyn had never seen Maeve like that before. From the moment she was assigned to the girls she was a pillar of positivity. She kept her head held high and calmed them in their fearful moments. She had become like a sister to Jocelyn, and she could see the other girls viewing her as a mother-type figure.

Standing there though, in the dimmed lamp light, the quiet hum of people outside despite the darkened hour, sweat peppered across Maeve's forehead, Jocelyn could tell that some things were beyond even Maeve's ability to smile through. "After I sent ye on yer way, I headed back tae the servant quarters and listened fer any information. Most of the servants were stayin' rather quiet fer good reason. Outside in the back courtyard there was hollerin' so I went out in the shadows. They were questioning Eila outside away from the ears of the keep. They had allowed her tae at least properly dress before takin' her out there, but I could tell her trip from the Laird's chambers tae there hadn't been an easy one fer her."

"Who was questioning her?" Jocelyn asked. "The head of the guard?"

"Nay, ma'am. It was Bram himself. He ordered her outside away from the servants and such. His beast of a head guardsman and his right hand man took her. He said he would get the truth outta her, but I dinnae ken if he wants the truth tae come out. More like whatever truth he wants people tae hear."

Jocelyn already had a bad feeling about what Maeve was going to say. "What happened? Did she even ken? She was so very upset."

Maeve swallowed hard, looking down at her hands. "Eila says that the Laird was poisoned."

All three of the girls gasped. Aoife stood and walked over to the window, her arms crossed over her stomach. Jocelyn could feel her breath catching in her throat. Deirdre shook her head. "How could he have been poisoned? It was so late, and if she was there, she would have seen someone come in. I remember that he only has five trusted servants, so few around him he would actually trust beyond that."

Jocelyn glanced down at Deirdre, surprised at her knowledge. "How did ye ken that?"

Deirdre glanced up at Jocelyn. "I was put on laundry duty several years ago. They were callin' the duties out fer the day tae the servants, and I mentioned I was glad I didnae get called tae work with me uncle. The girl I worked with told me it's always the same five servants. Since all of them are still with us, I figured it was the same."

Jocelyn gave her a slight smile and nod. Deirdre saw and held onto more than most people would think. On the outside she was a dreamy young girl, one with a tendency to play like the boys, but have manners like a lady. Jocelyn wondered what other secrets she held in her little mind, things she had seen or heard when no one had noticed her.

"Aye," Maeve replied. "Only five of 'em but none of 'em had been there in hours. He had sent them off fer the evening since his mistress had arrived. But none of the servants would take that kind of chance, or even be able tae get their hands on a poison that…well…that…"

Aoife turned toward her. "That acted quickly. That was so fast that nae one could help them when they realized he'd been poisoned."

"Aye," Maeve said quietly, lowering her head. "I listened tae Eila describe the horrid scene. But I dinnae think…nar with the younger girls…"

Deirdre shook her head. "Dinnae spare us now. We're facin' an unknown future, and we've seen a lot already. Our uncle killed our father. I want tae ken."

Jocelyn reached out and took Deirdre's hand in hers, for the first time seeing just how grown up her youngest sister had become. When there were no games to play and no forest to explore, Deirdre was hardly the flighty young girl anymore. It was almost a bad thing, though. So far, no one had approached them about Deirdre as a future mate. She was just a child in their eyes. The more grown she carried herself, the more likely it was that one of the rich Lairds would attempt to claim her. Jocelyn had hoped that by that point, she would have gotten her away from the land, and to safety.

Maeve looked at Jocelyn who nodded alright to her. "Well, Eila said that the Laird had just finished…beddin' her and they were laughin' and tellin' stories. He got up and walked over, pourin' two cups of his favorite wine. He handed her one and stood gulpin' his as she finished talkin.' As she put the cup tae her lips, the Laird froze, his face twisted, his one hand scratchin' at his throat and the other droppin' the empty cup tae the floor. She said that he stepped toward her but stopped, collapsin' on the ground. Eila says she ran tae him but when she got tae him, foam was comin' out of his mouth, his eyes were bleedin' where tears come out, and his face was a strange shade of purple."

Aoife sneered, shaking her head. "That's terrible, even fer him."

Maeve nodded. "Eila said she screamed out fer help but it was like the guard wasn't even at the door. By the time someone heard her, he had already stopped convulsin' and had died right there. She grabbed her cup and sniffed it and sure enough, she could smell the poison in it. She said she would have been just like him if he hadnae drunk his cup so fast. Then she just started sobbin' again."

"So, is Bram gonna search fer the murderer then?" Deirdre asked. "They might still be in the castle."

Maeve shook her head and from the way her eyes drifted off, Jocelyn already knew what she was going to say. "Bram immediately accused her of killin' his father. He beat her a few times right then and ordered her tae be contained in the dungeons below."

Jocelyn shook her head. "It doesnae make much sense. She's been me uncle's mistress fer a long time. And she seemed so shocked, so upset. Why would she kill him now? Or at all, really?"

Maeve took a couple of steps forward. "I've spent time with Eila, and so have the rest of the serving staff. She may have been his mistress, but she was nay servant to him. She cared about him. She used tae wish she had met him as a rich Highlander woman and nae his mistress so they could one day be married. She was also very kind. She wouldnae have hurt a fly."

Deirdre furled her brow. "So if it wasnae her, and there was nay one else in the room, and the servants were dismissed, then who was it?"

Jocelyn knew the answer to that as well. Aoife walked forward, staring at Maeve's nervous face. "Just say it. Say it. Ye think Bram had something tae do with it, didnae ye?"

Maeve nodded, moving closer, looking over her shoulder at the door. "I do. I dinnae have any proof, but the look in his eyes. It was like he was…"

"Happy," Jocelyn said. "Like he was as giddy as a young Highlander on the holiday."

Jocelyn's mind was beginning to race faster and faster. She feared that she would lose control, right there in front of her sisters. She closed her eyes, her fingers drifting over the satchel tucked in her waistband, looking for guidance from her kin, from the ghosts of her parents. Jocelyn knew, though, that without her uncle there to protect them, their likelihood of survival was low. She couldn't gamble her sisters' life like that. She knew they only had one choice.

Taking a deep breath, Jocelyn looked at the girls with an overly calm demeanor. "We need tae flee. Tonight.