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Weak-kneed, Aileana scrambled to her feet. Her efforts to replace the cover on the box failed; her clumsy hands only succeeded in knocking the lid to the earthen floor with a thump.

“Don’t be frightened, lass. I’ve not come to harm you.”

Turning to face the speaker, Aileana shielded her eyes with her hand. The man appeared in silhouette, bright morning sun streaming in behind him.

“It’s me, Kinnon. I saw the door ajar and thought to see who disturbed Duncan’s storage chamber with him not about the castle.

” He stepped farther inside, coming into clear focus.

His golden hair waved soft to his shoulders, and Aileana was struck again by the brilliant blue of his eyes.

As ever, he had a kind look about him, though he was clearly wondering at her presence here.

Her gaze drifted to the bandages wrapped in thick layers round his leg from knee to ankle. “What happened to you?” she asked.

“I split my leg in the exercises yester morn.” He shrugged. “It’s a hindrance to be sure, but nothing that won’t heal in time.”

“Is that why you’re here instead of raiding the MacLeods with Duncan?”

He nodded and smiled. “Aye. That’s my reason for being here. But you still haven’t explained yours.”

She felt herself flushing, even though she reminded herself that there was no need to feel guilty.

She had permission to be here, after all.

“I needed some pots for my herbs, and Bridgid had two of the women bring me here to look.” She gestured to the shelves.

“There seem to be a good many to choose from, and I should have no trouble finding what I want.”

“And yet you were not looking on the shelves but in that crate. I don’t suppose you found any pots for your plants in there, now, did you?”

This time guilt gripped her more firmly, deserved, she knew, for the snooping she’d been doing. “In truth, my curiosity got the better of me,” she admitted. “I seem to have an affinity for hidden places and mysteries.”

To her surprise, Kinnon grinned. “A woman after my own heart.” He limped over to the harp.

“It’s quite a find you’ve made here. An old friend from long ago, this is.

” He stroked his hand up the curved neck of the instrument, a wistful smile on his lips.

But as he looked up his expression turned serious.

“I wouldn’t let Duncan see you touching it, though, or any of these things.

” He gestured to the other large crates in the chamber. “It’s better to let them lie for now.”

Aileana shook her head. “Keeping such a fine thing locked away…it seems sinful. If he’s not going to use the harp, then why not trade it for gold or cattle—something to aid the clan’s prosperity?”

Kinnon shook his head and folded the satin around the instrument again before replacing the lid.

“Because it’s a part of Duncan as much as his eyes or his heart.

He will never allow it to be sold or taken.

” Straightening again, he turned and looked at Aileana as if he sought something hidden beneath the surface of skin and bone.

She began to feel uneasy, as if he was somehow capable of seeing into her very soul.

Finally he spoke, his voice softer than before.

“This harp was Duncan’s own pride and joy, lass.

It was near as precious to him as possession of the Ealach was to our clan these hundred years.

Mairi gifted him with it—or her family did, as a betrothal offering—but it mattered not.

He thought of the harp as being from Mairi, and he loved it as he did her. ”

Heat filled Aileana’s cheeks, and a strange, sinking sensation spread through her. She resisted the urge to fidget. Mairi—the woman she’d been told was the love of Duncan’s life…his bride, killed in Morgana’s attack on the MacRaes so long ago.

“Duncan loved this harp better than he loved some of his kin,” Kinnon added, breaking into her thoughts.

Smiling, he shook his head. “He was just coming into his own in those days, Duncan was, a golden lad with a future as laird of our clan ahead of him. Before your sister’s attack, he kept the harp near him much of the time, and, by God, he could wring the soul right out of you with the music that he made.

Aye, those were happy days, with him and Mairi. ”

Staring down at the crate, Kinnon paused, and his expression darkened.

“I managed to carry it off and hide it once we learned that Morgana had sold him to the English. But I couldn’t help what happened after that.

Even in the filthy hell of the Tower, he was so damned stubborn.

He hasn’t been able to bring himself to touch the harp since coming home last year. ”

Aileana waited, breathless, for Kinnon to explain further, but he brooded in silence.

She knew she shouldn’t care—knew she shouldn’t feel so defensive in response to his memories of Mairi and Duncan—but she couldn’t help it.

Worse, perhaps, was that a strange urgency to hear the rest of his tale consumed her.

More than anything she wanted to know something more about Duncan and the woman who had won his heart, even though it felt like salt on a wound to think of it.

Finally, working up her courage, she asked, “What…what happened to make him hate his music so much, then, that he chooses to secret his harp in here?”

As if shaken from a dream, Kinnon looked up.

She saw the nightmare seep out of his eyes, leaving nothing behind but the hard, bitter truth.

His jaw tightened. “Duncan doesn’t hate his music, lass; the English just made sure he could never have it again.

Of all the tortures they put him through, it was one of the worst they could have conceived for a man of Duncan’s gift; they broke every bone in his hand.

It healed, but the scars took away his ability to play. ”

Horror emptied a pit in Aileana’s stomach. “The gauntlets…?” she whispered.

“Aye,” Kinnon nodded. “He wears them to hide the ruin they made. In truth, he’s fortunate to still possess the ability of grasping his sword.

” Walking to the darkest corner of the room, Kinnon began to unwrap a large, bulky object that leaned against the wall.

“Duncan refused to bend to his keepers in the Tower, and because of it, they looked on him as a challenge.” His voice grated.

“The bastards used the whole of thirteen long years to try out different ways of breaking him.”

Aileana shuddered. She knew little of what happened to those unfortunates captured by enemies, but she could imagine enough to make her want to forget that such places as the London Tower even existed.

Kinnon finished unwrapping the object and stood back. “This went the way of the old times too, thanks to the English. Once we returned home, he had it removed from his chamber and closeted here. Like his harp, he hasn’t used one since, as far as I know.”

Aileana stepped closer to get a better view.

As with her first sight of the extraordinary instrument, this new discovery startled a gasp from her.

The looking glass Kinnon had uncovered was of impressive size—almost as tall and twice as wide as she was.

Stepping closer, she reached out and touched the costly object.

Its surface felt cool and smooth against her fingertips.

Though the elaborate silver frame looked tarnished from years of disuse, such a mirror was an unimaginable luxury.

“Your clan…how came you to own treasures like these? My people claim prosperity, yet I’ve never seen the likes of this before.”

Kinnon’s mouth twisted in a half-mocking smile.

“Though it may not appear so now, before your sister attacked us, the MacRaes had much wealth and power. Our overlords granted us with lands and estates, and we gained our other possessions in successful campaigns and wars.” One blond brow arched in surprise.

“I cannot believe your kin neglected to tell you aught of that. Aside from wanting to steal the Ealach , a desire for our holdings was what incited your sister to attack us—that and her need for revenge after Duncan refused to marry her.”

“Marry her?”

“Aye. She desired the match; he did not. And even if he had wanted Morgana, he was already in love with Mairi by then and pledged to wed her.” Kinnon frowned.

“They did not tell you that bit either?” When she shook her head in stunned silence, he made a scoffing noise.

“You come from strange folk. Did you yourself never question the whys of the feud between our peoples, beyond the possession of the Ealach ?”

Embarrassment made Aileana’s cheeks feel hot as she tried to explain.

“I was but a child when Morgana waged her battle against you. When it was all over, Father brought me to my chamber, telling me that from that day on, I was to become the Ealach ’s keeper.

I was his only remaining daughter, and so it was fitting that I fill the role.

He said that the amulet would bring prosperity back to our clan, as long as I remained confined there to protect it.

A little while after, the council determined that Morgana had committed crimes against our clan, both in practicing the Black Arts and by consorting with the English…

but she saved herself from execution thanks to having retrieved the amulet for our people.

They banished her to the far north instead, where she died a year later. ”

Aileana swallowed and looked back to Kinnon for understanding. “It’s all I know—all I was ever allowed to know.”

An expression of disbelief had crept across Kinnon’s face as she spoke. Now he just stared. “Are you saying that until you came here you were kept locked in your chamber to watch over the Ealach for thirteen years?”

Aileana shrugged. “I was allowed to come down to the hall at certain times. It was the way it had to be. I was nearly eight when the Ealach came home. Morgana had been banished, and as the chieftain’s only remaining daughter, it became my charge.

We had been without its good influence for nearly a century, and Father decided that dedicating me as keeper would aid in achieving a quicker reversal of our ill fortunes.

My loss of freedom was a worthy price to pay. ”

Kinnon continued to gaze at her in silence, and she wrapped her arms around her waist, recalling the hours of loneliness and boredom, standing at her open shutter to catch a sniff of the air or watch the people of her clan living their lives.

His obvious pity made her uncomfortable, though, so she added, “It wasn’t unbearable.

I was allowed freer roam of the main keep on certain feast days and Sundays.

And I got out of my chambers at other times as well, mostly when Father was gone; my brothers would sneak up then and steal me out to play. ”

She thought for a moment. “Oh, and Father allowed me my herb beds for a while. During the space of two years, I was given leave to come down for an hour each day to tend them and learn what I could about plants from an old woman who lived in the village; she was getting too frail to give much help to the sick, and so I begged for the chance to be trained to take her place, eventually—to have something more useful to do. That ended, though, when Father learned I was cultivating centaury; he feared I’d use it for practicing the Black Arts as Morgana had done.

” Aileana spoke matter-of-factly. “It is true that if given in the right dosage centaury can cause delusion. I never considered using it in so sinister a way, but Father wanted to take no chance that I might be tempted to darkness as Morgana had been.”

Kinnon remained silent for a few moments more before saying in a somber voice, “You’ve been a virtual recluse, lass. No wonder you caused such a clamor when you came to live here.”

She looked at him in wounded denial. “If I did, it was wholly deserved. I’ve been treated with naught but disrespect and loathing since I arrived at Eilean Donan, though I’ve tried my best to fit in with the whole lot of you.”

Shaking his head, Kinnon spoke more kindly. “Hold, lass, I’ve no wish to kindle your anger. I’m just trying to make sense of it all so that perhaps I can find a way to help Duncan reach an understanding with you.”

“He doesn’t wish to reach any kind of reasonable understanding with me.” She gave an unladylike snort. “The only thing he’s interested in is badgering me into telling him where I’ve hidden the Ealach .”

Kinnon smiled enigmatically. “Perhaps…perhaps not. My cousin isn’t as blustery as he seems. There are many layers to Duncan MacRae; it might not be a bad thing for you to try to uncover a few of them.”

Flushing, Aileana stalked over to the shelves and took down three pots, muttering, “Aye, well I doubt I could penetrate a single layer of that man’s stony hide, even if I was foolish enough to want to,” before adding more loudly for Kinnon’s benefit, “I’m afraid I’ve dallied here long enough.

Would you consent to help me carry some of these pots into the keep? ”

Smothering a grin, Kinnon gave her a feigned bow and murmured, “At your service, lass.”

As they trumped back to the kitchen with her booty, Aileana thought over what Kinnon had told her.

She had difficulty imagining Duncan as anything but a harsh and unbending leader.

Then again, people weren’t always as they seemed; she knew that better than most. Walking into the kitchen with Kinnon close behind her, she gazed boldly at the women who looked up, noticing that, for once, all conversation didn’t cease the moment she entered the room.

Aye, her plan to fit in with the MacRaes and make them like her was progressing well.

The future remained unknown, but one thing was certain. She was going to be using her new, commanding persona to full advantage from now on and as often as possible, practicing the skill until the moment the irascible, enigmatic leader of the wild MacRaes finally returned home…

Because she knew that when that time came, she’d be put to the test like never before—and she’d be damned if she was going to fail in it.