Chapter 16

Jane and Alistair could see the castle from where they were. It was a dull grey, covered by moss. Its steeple was topped by a rusty staff. Jane and Alistair were in the bushes. His horse was tethered to a tree a short distance behind.

"I wish I could follow ye right up into that damn castle," Alistair said.

"I know," Jane replied. "But it would ruin the plan. I will be fine, I promise, Alistair." She kissed his cheek. "I need to look like I have just escaped captivity in truth. Hand me your knife." Alistair obliged.

"This is just a knife? It is so heavy!" Jane gasped.

Alistair took the knife back and bent over her dress. He pointed to a spot and she nodded. Alistair ran the knife through and tore a piece out of it. He did not throw it away, but tucked it in the waistline of his kilt.

"And here," Jane directed. Alistair tore that bit, too. Jane then tousled her hair. For good measure, she bent down and picked up a few leaves and some twigs. She winced and then put them in her hair. "Convincing enough?" she asked Alistair. He nodded. She noticed his moroseness and touched his cheek. "It will all go to plan, Alistair. Do not fret for my safety."

He turned his head to kiss her palm, and then kissed her on the lips. "Go."

With one last look at him, Jane began to run towards the castle. She sighted movement out of the corner of her eye, and she knew it was the castle's sentries, curious as to why a woman was running towards their stronghold. Fear gripped her: not for herself but for Alistair. She hopes he was well-hidden, unspotted.

"Help!" Jane cried as she ran. "Help me, please. Commander Pierce! Commander Pierce!" She'd gotten to the gate, which four soldiers guarded. A memory of the soldier that had tried to rape her in the forest flashed in her mind but she blinked it away.

"What's all this, then?" one of them asked. "Who are you, chit?"

The others closed around her, and she began to weep.

"I must speak to my fiancé, your master. My fiancé. Commander Pierce."

They murmured amongst themselves, and then one said, "This way," and led her through the gate, They came to a devastated inner courtyard. The walls were almost completely covered by moss. Jane sighted a small pool of brackish water to her right. The air was rank with something. She resisted the urge to cover her nose from the stench. Surely a damsel in distress would be too distressed to notice the odor. She was directed to a chair inside. She shook her head. "I do not want to sit. I want to see my fiancé, Commander Pierce! Where is he? "

The guard who had called her a chit earlier on hissed, "Madam! Lower your voice."

Jane wailed. "I cannot!" She bolted in the direction of the staircase. "Commander Pierce!" The soldier looked like he was confused for a moment, but then he followed after her.

"And who is that unfortunate soul yelling out my name as though it belonged to a nobody?" Jane suddenly heard. She swallowed. The voice made bile rise in her throat. But she quickly recovered. Commander Edward Pierce appeared at the top of the stairs, and it took all of Jane's willpower to run towards him and not away from him.

"Why Jane, my darling!" he exclaimed when he saw her, shock on his face, "I cannot believe that you are here! What has happened to you?" He rushed to her, and because she could not stand the thought of his arms around her, she descended to the floor. He staggered but caught his bearings.

"I suffered untold things at their hands, Commander Pierce!" she wailed. "They made me their prisoner and said I would pay because you did not agree to their terms for my release. I was told that they wanted to exchange me for one of their own, who is in your custody. You appeared to count that as too great a cost to pay." There was the right amount of accusation in her tone, and the commander said, "Now, now, Jane dear, I did not agree to their terms only because I meant to attack them and rescue you myself. One does not make an agreement with a Scot; they are barely men."

"They could have killed me," Jane said. "They would have killed me, had I not escaped. And then it would have been too late."

"But you are here now, aren't you?" the Commander said, a little irritation in his voice. He looked her over. "Savages, all of them. They have decimated your beauty. They shall pay!"

"They are coming!" Jane said, rising to her feet and doing her best to look terrified. "They were on their way here when I escaped. I did not flee to protect my life only, but to save yours!"

The Commander searched her eyes, a small look of satisfaction on his face. "Adversity does bring out the best in women, does it not?" Then, swiftly, he said. "Those bastards! Come, Jane! Show me what direction they are coming in!" He grabbed her hand painfully and practically dragged her to the gate. She pointed in the position opposite to where Alistair was. "From there. If you must attack, you must do it quickly. Their horses are the fastest I have ever seen!"

Commander Pierce gave the order for his soldiers to ready themselves for attack. She had never seen him in battle mode before. Whenever she'd seen him in England, it was an event of or house call. He was many things, but incompetent did not appear to be one of them. She watched him arm himself and her throat turned bitter. She feared that the plan would go wrong. She feared for Alistair.

"I will lead you to them, Commander Pierce," Jane said.

"Not in the middle of a war, girl," Commander Pierce said.

Jane realized then that she should have capitalized on the element of surprise and led him straight to Alistair's trap before she let him arm himself. What would make a commander leave his army and follow her into the woods right before an attack?

"Commander Pierce, the Scots wanted to kill me not just because you had refused their terms, but also because of the gold."

The commander's eyes lit up. "Gold? What gold?"

Jane, what gold?

The idea had come to her out of the blue. She had not thought of what exactly she would say to get the Commander to follow her alone. Mentally, she kicked herself. That was the most ridiculous angle to come from. Surely there was no way he would believe her! She started to falter, but remembered that her fate, as well as Clan Fletcher's, rested on her ability to pull this off. And so she squared her chin and gave him the most convincing look she could muster. "Their gold," she said. "Buried in the woods. Spoils from their defeat of another clan. I overheard them speaking about it. They mean to attack Loch Lomond, and then retrieve it. They were worried that I had heard about it and sought to keep me from telling another soul."

The Commander looked at her skeptically. "But the Scots are as poor as church mice."

"No, they are not," Jane said. "I lived among them for days, did I not? They used golden goblets and silver cutlery. Their simple mode of dress is only a ruse."

"Then we must get to that first," Commander Pierce said. "Do you remember where exactly they said it was?"

Jane thought for a second. "Yes. Next to a grove of cypress trees within a view's distance from the castle. That is what they said."

Commander Pierce's eyes brightened. "I know of such a grove. Come!"

He instructed his second-in-command to lead the charge as he had more pressing matters to attend to. "Perhaps a few soldiers should come with you?" the man asked, and Jane's heart began to beat quickly.

"Nonsense," Commander Pierce snapped, "Do as you are told."

He threw Jane on a horse and got on his. He urged his horse into a gallop and Jane followed close behind. When they got to the edge of the forest, the Commander lessened the speed to a slow trot. "The grove of cypresses is not far from here," he said to Jane. "With that kind of gold, I will have no need to bend and bow to curry favor from the king and the idiots he made dukes," he said, more to himself than to Jane. "I shall leave this soldier's life behind and become the lord of a grand house. And you, of course, will run that house. In a way, this is for you as well. I am helping you secure your future. You must be grateful."

"I am."

"You must not lie to me," he said, his eyes roving over her form. "Did you lie with any of them?"

Jane's eyes flew open. How could he tell?

"Scots are savages. They could not have a beauty in their camp and resist the urge. Tell me, has that which is mine been taken away?!"

"No," Jane said. "No, Commander Pierce."

He stared deep into her eyes, as though he wanted to unravel the contents of her mind. Jane kept her expression neutral. It was a hard feat, under the man's hard eyes, but she accomplished it all the same. He hissed at her as though she were insignificant, and then fixed his gaze back on the path and said, "We are close. Get off."

Commander Pierce dismounted his horse and tethered it to a lean tree. Jane dismounted as well, unaided by him. The commander took a few steps forward and Jane followed.

A form jumped down from a tree to their near right.

Alistair.

Jane nearly leaped for joy.

He was armed with two swords, and there was green war paint on half his face. In this moment, he looked quite savage. "Drop yer weapon," he instructed the Commander.

"I do not take orders from swine," Commander Pierce hissed.

"There are warriors in the trees who will end yer life with an arrow on a single signal from me," Alistair informed him coolly. "Again, drop yer weapons."

Commander Pierce reluctantly did as he was told. His face was a study in changing emotions, and Jane knew that realization just dawned on him. He turned to her. "What is this? What have you done?"

"You will pay for everything you have done or sought to do with Eleonor," Jane said, stepping away from him.

There was a look of pure hatred on his face. "You are a traitor and a whore!" he spat.

"Ye will pay fer saying that tae her," Alistair said and ground his teeth. "And fer holding me braither hostage, as well." He took a step forward. "Where is he?"

"Not to worry," Commander Pierce said, "you will join him soon in death."

Alistair lunged forward, but Jane threw herself in front of the Commander. Alistair came to an abrupt stop. "Do not fall for his lies, he is full of them!" Jane exclaimed. Remember the plan, Alistair!"

Alistair nodded. He whistled, and the forest seemed to surge to life. At the woods' edge, Scottish warriors appeared. They charged in the opposite direction: towards Loch Lomond. Commander Pierce and Jane turned to witness it. Now, Jane turned back and smiled at Alistair. How his warriors had managed to stay hidden as she and the general passed their midst was a mystery. Looking at Alistair, at the raw power and military acumen he possessed, she felt a surge of pride.

And something else, too. Something warm and sweet and-

Jane felt a sharp pain in her head.

She descended to the ground, unconscious.

* * *

Jane felt as though she were floating in a lake. Her limbs felt like they did not quite belong to her. She tried to form a coherent thought but found that she could not. She was grasping for something that she did not know but had an ingrained knowledge of needing, something that eluded her.

Floating, floating, floating…

"Jane?"

It was Alistair's voice. She rushed to it, willed her mind to come to it. It did not work. Try as she might, her mind was a thing of its own.

"Jane?"

She tried again, more strongly this time. She felt herself apprehend the elusive thing. She could feel warmth on her skin. She felt pressure on her hand and, slowly, turned in that direction, her eyes still closed. They had refused to cooperate with her mind yet.

"Come back tae me, Jane," she heard Alistair say. "I cannae bear tae be without ye again."

She wanted to tell him that she would never leave him, that she was with him even now.

"I am sorry fer nae protecting ye as I should have. Me heart fell tae the ground afore yer body did. In only moments, several thoughts raced through me head. Me Jane. Me love. Oh, I am so sorry." Jane felt the pressure on her hand become a little firmer. "I love ye, Jane. Please come back."

He loved her!

Jane felt her heart leap with joy. "Ye need to wake up," Alistair said, "because I must make ye a proposition. Tae stay with me, Jane. Tae stay with the clan. Tae be me lady." And she heard a quality that she had never before heard in his voice. Shyness. "I want tae ask… if perhaps, ye wish tae marry me."

"Yes."

Jane opened her eyes. Above her, Alistair's eyes were so earnest, so pure, so blue. Jane nodded. "Yes, Alistair, I will marry you."

Alistair looked surprised. "Ye are awake?" he asked, and she nodded again, a smile on her lips. "How long have ye been awake fer? How are ye feeling?"

Her limbs were cooperative now. She moved a bit and settled into a more comfortable position. "I am fine. It is only…"

"Only what, Jane?" Alistair asked apprehensively.

"My head," Jane replied. "It is a little sore." She regarded him more carefully. There were little wounds on his shoulder and his chest, and his right cheek had a purple bruise. He was also a little sweaty, despite the air in the room. "Alistair, are you fine?"

He smiled reassuringly. "Aye, Jane, I am."

Jane sat up and put a hand to her head. "What… what happened? Where are we?"

"We defeated the English an hour ago."

Jane exhale in relief at this. "We are in the Loch Lomond castle. As tae yer head, it was that bastard Pierce. When I gave the warriors the signal tae attack the English, he hit ye on the head and fled. We had tae move ye here."

"It was very foolish of me to turn my back to him," Jane said, the memories coming back.

"It was me duty tae protect ye, and I failed," Alistair said.

"But that is not true, is it?" Jane said with a tender smile. "You saved me. I am alive, I am well. I'd say you did your duty quite spectacularly."

Alistair said nothing.

"While I slept, I heard you profess your love for me." She smiled up at him. "And I love you too, Alistair."

"In truth?"

"In truth."

Alistair took her in his hands, careful because of her head, and planted a kiss on her lips.

There was a knock on the door and Douglas came in. He too had battle wounds, one appearing to be more serious than Alistair's. It was on his shoulder, and even though it had been wrapped, Jane could see that it was not small at all. He looked straight at Alistair. "We have found Ramsay. He is in one of the cells in the basement."

Alistair straightened. He looked at Jane. "I must go tae me braither," he said. "I will be back soon."

He stood up, and Jane scrambled to her feet. "I am coming with ye."

"Nay," Alistair said, "Ye need tae rest."

"I need to speak with him about my sister. I need to do this as soon as possible or it will kill me. Please, Alistair."

Alistair nodded. With Douglas leading, they went out of the room and made their way downstairs. Jane remembered the smell that she was assailed with when she first got here. It seemed like a mixture of mold, dust, and human waste.

The stairs were grimy and steep, and Alistair guided Jane down them. The smell was even worse here. It was almost completely dark and it took a while for Jane to focus on the light coming in from one tiny window. Douglas led them to an open cell with rusted iron bars. It was tiny and seemed designed to cause anyone who lived in it a great deal of discomfort. A man was seated on a chair, a small tray next to him. He was eating bread and drinking water with the gusto of one starved.

Upon seeing them, he stopped. Jane assessed him. He looked very much like Alistair. She could not tell the color of his eyes for the dimness of the light, but the resemblance was plain to see. His bare chest had a network of purpling bruises. His body was covered in sweat. Alistair rushed to him, and Jane could tell that he stopped just short of embracing him because of his bruises. But Ramsay dropped his food and stood up. He threw his arms around Alistair and cried out his name in relief.

Alistair clung to his brother. When he finally let go, he looked at Ramsay's body, his eyes shining with anger. "Those bastard Englishmen."

"I have been better, but I will be fine. It's a little better than it looks." He looked beyond Alistair and stared at Jane. "And who is this, braither?"

"My name is Jane Marsh," Jane said before Alistair could say anything.

"Marsh," Ramsay said, a thoughtful look in his eyes. "I ken that surname."

"I am sure you do," Jane said. "I am Eleonor's sister."

Ramsay's eyes widened. He pushed past Alistair so that he stood in front of Jane. "How is Eleonor? Where is she? I need to get to her at once."

"Why?" Jane said, her eyes firmly on him. Jane needed to confirm his true intentions. Yes, he had been captured by Commander Pierce, but had he really been willing to take responsibility for the child in the first place? Did he really love Eleonor?

"Because" Ramsay said, "she is the love of me life. And she is carrying our child. The real torture during me captivity was kenning that she had nay idea what had become of me. She must be suffering so, thinking that I abandoned her and me child. I need tae see her. Take me tae her. Please."

"She is fine," I assure you," Jane said in a soothing voice. "I promise you. Look." She brought Eleonor's letter out of the pocket of her dress and pressed it into Ramsay's hands. "This is a letter she to wrote me about you. She adores you and still has hopes about you. She will be over the moon to be reunited with you."

Ramsay opened the letter, but Jane could tell that it was hard to read it, as the cell was almost dark. Ramsay persevered, however, moving closer to the ray of light from the window outside so he could use it. His eyes seemed to come more and more alive as he read. When he was done, he kissed it and held it to his chest. "I am coming fer ye, me love," he murmured. He then turned to Alistair. "I am sorry fer nae telling ye about Eleonor, braither. I was worried that ye would disapprove on account of her being an Englishwoman."

"All is forgiven," Alistair said, and pulled Jane to his side. "As you can see, I have been ensnared by one myself."

Jane blushed. Ramsay chuckled. "How did ye two meet?" he asked.

"I am afraid, Ramsay," Jane said, "that it is a long, long story."

Douglas, who had left them as soon as he had brought them there, returned. "The warriors are still searching for the commander," he said.

"What? Did he not die? Where did he go?" Jane said tremulously. With the commander still at large, there was still the possibility of a loss for them.

"Before he fled," Alistair said, deep in thought, "he told me that he would kill me and then ruin the thing that is most precious to you in revenge."

Jane's eyes widened in comprehension. "He means my sister, he is after my sister! We must go after him now!"

"Let us make haste," Ramsay said, rearing to go.

"You must recover, braither," Alistair said. "Jane and I will go and finish what we started with the Commander. We will rescue Eleonor and bring her back tae ye. Ye cannae travel like this."

"I would rather die than let you go without me," Ramsay said with a strong tone of finality. "I shall get ready to leave."

Jane looked at Alistair. "We must get ready as well," she said.