Page 3 of Bride Takes a Charmer (Highland Vows & Vengeance #3)

With that, she scurried about the chamber and found parchment, ink, and a quill.

Sorsha wrote to her dear friend, the only person who might offer help—Queen Margaret was her only hope.

She didn’t divulge that Geoff murdered her husband, but only that her husband had died.

She added that she was in peril and that the queen should send for her.

As the night passed, she awaited the morning.

The night’s darkness subsided, and finally, she heard the sound of the latch on the door being undone.

She stood and waited to see who had come.

She prayed it wasn’t Geoff but then she reconsidered.

If Geoff came, then she could plead with him to free her and allow her to see Gillian.

Instead, Aela entered and approached. The short, stout woman ambled toward her. Her brown eyes beheld fear and they widened at viewing her. “My Lady, are you harmed? You are covered with blood. Oh, I should get my satchel and tend to you.”

Sorsha hadn’t changed out of her overdress and peered down at Rodick’s blood staining the front of her. Her throat thickened with despair and at the wretchedness of her situation. She shook her head but said nothing.

The maid retrieved a clean gown for her and handed her a cup of mead.

Aela had attended to her since she’d been a young lass.

When she’d first married Rodick, her parents allowed the maidservant to travel with her to her new home.

She was grateful to the woman for her care.

Aela went about her chores and checked the chamber pot which was empty.

She tidied the bed covers and fluffed the pillows.

While Aela worked, Sorsha washed at the basin and changed her overdress.

Afterward, the maid returned to her and used her fingers to detangle her hair.

She wound the strands into a long braid then pressed a finger on Sorsha’s lips and kept her voice low, “Geoff has proclaimed himself as the laird. He told me that he had you removed to your chamber when you found the laird killed. Were you harmed, my lady, in your husband’s attack? ”

“It was not my blood on my overdress but Rodick’s.”

“Oh, my lady, I am so sorry. There must be a way to help you.”

Aela was aware of her distaste for Geoff. Many times, she and Aela had shared looks whenever Geoff was present. He was a demanding man, unmannerly, and never thanked the servants for their attention. Now she wondered if the maid suspected that he alone was guilty of their laird’s murder.

“I am well enough but am worried for Gillian. Is she safe?”

The maid lowered her chin. “I know not, my lady. She is not in her chamber and the keep’s servants will not speak to me about whatever happened.”

Sorsha snatched the missive she’d written from the bedside table, leaned close to Aela, and whispered, “I know a way to get help. Will you have this message delivered to Queen Margaret? Ask Lister to take it for me. His absence won’t be noticed by Geoff. ’Tis important that he leave posthaste.”

Aela agreed with a nod. “I will tell Lister to make haste.” She tucked the missive inside her frock and pressed an errant strand of her dark blond hair behind her ear.

“The laird said you are not to leave this chamber for your safety. He says that he means to protect you, bah , but we know the truth of the matter. He means to keep you prisoner, my lady. I worry for you. I shall come with food soon and we will figure out what to do. For now, I will have Lister deliver your message. Take your rest. You look tired.”

“Will you ensure that Gillian is safe?”

“I shall try to find her. Worry not.” Aela approached the door and turned to look at her before she left. “All will be well. We must have faith in that. I promised your dear mother that I would look out for you and protect you if I could—”

Sorsha couldn’t allow Aela to despair. When she had married Rodick, her mother insisted that Aela go with her and sent Lister too.

Aela and Lister were devoted to her care and she hadn’t felt so alone.

They had gone beyond their duty to aid her throughout the years.

She couldn’t put them in danger though because Geoff would not care a whit about a maid or a stable lad.

“You have been so kind to me, Aela. But you must promise me not to put yourself in peril. I could not bear that. I do not know what I would have done without you.”

“My lady, ’tis you who have been kind to me. I have faith that God will aid you.” Aela nodded with vigor. She quietly closed the door behind her and shifted the latch.

Sorsha was beyond the help of prayers and in her faith that God would aid her.

She was at Geoff’s mercy at least for the moment.

Would he accuse her of Rodick’s murder? Or would he continue with the farce that someone snuck into the castle and murdered her husband?

Until the queen sent men to rescue her, Sorsha realized that she had to pretend to support the knave.

For now, she would be docile and make no complaint.

As long as she got to be with Gillian, she would tell Geoff whatever he wanted to hear.

She wished that she’d prayed for good fortune at the festival, but alas, it appeared she and her daughter would suffer for the foreseeable future. The coming new year offered everyone— but her— the possibility of prosperity.