"MacDonald, tie them together, sitting back to back," Haldane ordered.
He entered with the lantern, along with two more men, and did as he was told. First, he bound each of their wrists together behind their backs with strips of wool plaid, then he made them sit on the hard-packed, damp dirt floor, wrapped a rope around their torsos and tied a knot in it.
Torrin couldn't fight them now with Jessie present. Besides, he didn't like the odds. Once Haldane left them there, maybe they'd have a chance of escaping.
"How are you feeling?" Torrin asked Jessie, once the men left.
"Not so good."
He tried to glance around at her, needing to look into her eyes, but that was impossible, tied back to back in the dark. "Are you in pain? He tied the ropes tight."
"Nay, no pain, but… How will we escape?" she whispered.
"We'll think of something."
They listened to Haldane and his men outside, most of their mumbled words too low to hear, then things grew quiet.
"They must have gone," Torrin said, keeping his voice low. "Let's see if we can stand and move closer to the door. That way, we can see how many guards he left. Push against my back."
She pushed back hard, while he did the same, and soon they were standing. Stepping sideways, they inched closer to the door, then Torrin saw him—the man with a scraggly brown beard pacing back and forth on the trail. Was he the only guard Haldane left? Or was another one patrolling behind the structure?
"Let's move to the back wall," Torrin whispered. Once they did, he said, "Now, let's see if we can find a jagged rock to cut this rope with." They rubbed against the rocks, most of which had been laid with the smooth side toward them. But then the rope snagged. "There's one." Torrin placed the rope that was wrapped around his upper arm against the rough rock and sawed against it. "Is this hurting you?"
"Nay. But I don't feel I'm helping very much."
"You are." He rubbed the rope against the rock with all his strength. He had to do this for Jessie. He had to get her free before her unpredictable brother did something insane. The rock was not as sharp as he would've liked. In the dark, he couldn’t even gage his progress. Still, he kept sawing the rope against the rock until he was near worn out from using the same muscles over and over.
"Saints," he hissed.
"Is there something I can do?" she asked.
"Nay." He had to sever the rope, but could he do it before Haldane returned?
***
Haldane and ten of his men quickly crept along the trail toward Dunnakeil.
"Remain quiet," he whispered. "If the portcullis is open, we'll slip in. If not, we'll see how many guards are patrolling the battlements, and we'll ken what we're up against."
They didn't yet know how many men MacLeod had brought with him, two or three, or a whole regiment. He also needed to know if the clan was out searching for Jessie.
'Twas
suppertime and they'd be looking for her soon. Once he had this information and complete darkness fell, so his men could hide better, he'd bring Jessie to the castle and demand entrance… if they didn't want to see her killed before their eyes.
Earlier in the day, Haldane and his men had left their stolen
bìrlinn
at
Smoo
Cave. What grand luck that they'd come across Jessie and her lover frolicking in the bay. Haldane snorted, disgusted with his sister. He'd never known her to be a wanton, nor had he expected that match up.
'Twas
clear MacLeod was besotted with her, considering how he'd helped her along on their journey through the brush and boulders. He might cause a problem when Haldane separated Jessie from him and brought her to the castle.
"You may have to kill MacLeod," Haldane whispered to McMurdo.
"I thought you wanted to hold him for ransom. You're near out of funds, are you not?"
"I'm thinking he'll be too much trouble for that, especially when I separate him from Jessie."
"He's a chief," McMurdo warned. "His death won't go unnoticed. Every MacLeod in
Assynt
will be hunting us down."
"Do you think I care? Once I'm chief of the
MacKays
, I'll have a large fighting force of skilled warriors."
"Won't do you any good if the
MacLeods
attack and kill half of them."
"You let me worry about the rest of the
MacLeods
. All you have to do is kill Torrin MacLeod, and then if Dirk shows up, kill him, too."
"Whatever you say," McMurdo muttered in a resigned tone.
Aye, McMurdo would obey his every command. The old man wanted that tomb inside the church too badly to oppose him.
"Why is it you wish to be buried in the church?" Haldane asked.
McMurdo gave him a dark and deadly look from the corner of his eyes, the menace clear even in the gloaming. "The why of it is not your concern, lad."
Even though Haldane ordered McMurdo around a lot, he didn't dare anger him. He knew the grizzled highwayman could turn against him in a trice. And if that happened, Haldane might be dead in two seconds. Or, if McMurdo let him live but deserted them, the
MacKays
would be much harder to defeat. McMurdo might be ancient, but he was still lethal. Mainly, Haldane needed him to kill Dirk, for his older brother was a formidable opponent, a highly trained and skilled warrior. He had to be taken out before Haldane could be chief.
Once they took possession of Dunnakeil, they could easily accomplish the rest. He would force each member of the clan to obey his command… or die. Their choice.
As they neared the castle, Haldane saw naught out of the ordinary.
'Twas
just as it had been the last time he was here several months ago, except fewer guards were patrolling the battlements. He only saw three at the moment, their dark silhouettes clear against the gray sky.
"Hide in the bushes," he told his men in a loud whisper. They silently vanished. He slipped through the bushes until he had a view of the portcullis.
'Twas
closed. "Damnation," he muttered.
One man's voice echoed within the bailey. That's when he noticed a large number of men assembled. They might be organizing a search party for Jessie and MacLeod.
How many men were gathered there? He saw a few he didn't recognize. He'd seen most of the
MacLeods
several months ago when he'd gone to
Munrick
. For a certainty, they weren't
MacKays
.
Haldane and his men might have to hide out and pick them off one by one as they fanned out in their search. '
Twould
be easier than charging them in battle.
"Come. Let's slip back to the byre," he whispered to his men. "MacDonald and Douglas, you two stay here, well hidden, and count how many men they have. If you get the chance, secretly ambush them one at a time, slit their throats, and hide the bodies."
The two men nodded.
He had to get back to the byre and move Jessie and Torrin further away until they'd thinned out some of the guards. Nay, they'd move Jessie and kill Torrin.
***
Though she didn't want him to be captured, Jessie was glad Torrin was with her. He was working hard to get them loose, and she wished she could help, but she couldn't get to her wee knife with her hands tied.
Torrin's
back was warm, solid, and comforting behind her. "Pull hard against me to tighten the rope," he said. "It's starting to fray and unravel."
She leaned away from him, the ropes pressing tightly into her flesh. He continued scraping the rope against the stone. And then it loosened.
"Aye. There we are," he said, quiet triumph in his voice as the rope binding them back to back unwound and fell away. Now they only needed to remove the tight strips of wet wool plaid that secured their wrists behind their backs.
"I'm going to try to break the strip of plaid around your wrists. Tell me if I hurt you."
"Very well."
Although
Torrin's
wrists were still bound, he moved his fingers over her wrists and the bindings. He tugged at the material from both sides. "Am I hurting you?"
"Nay." It felt tight but not painful.
After a few moments, the material ripped in the silence. "Thank the saints," she whispered. "Now let me get my knife and I'll cut you free."
"What? You have a knife?" Shock was evident in his loudly whispered words.
"Aye.
'Tis
hidden."
"Where?"
"Sewn into the hem of my
arisaid
." She bent and worked at the seam, ripping the thread from the wool material. "
'Tis
not easy to retrieve, but it has come in handy for the first time ever."
"I'm going to have to use that trick."
When he turned his back to her, she cut the strips of plaid binding his hands.
He sighed and rubbed his wrists. "I thank you. I'm beyond glad to have you as an ally."
She smiled in the darkness, wishing she could see his face. She'd never imagined she would feel so safe with him… protected, even. She relished the deep, rich timbre of his voice, more obvious in the darkness.
"Can I use your knife?" he asked.
"Aye." She handed it to him. "What's your plan?"
"
Och
.
'Tis
tiny. I'm going to disarm the man guarding us. Hopefully, I won't have to kill him. Will you hold it against me if I do?"
"Nay. We have to do what we can to escape, else Haldane may kill us both."
They crept toward the door but hung back.
'Twas
lighter outside than inside. Now two men lingered upon the trail.
Torrin drew back. "So, there are two of them. One must have been behind the byre earlier."
"Aye." She bent and picked up a rock. "I'll take care of one of them."
"Are you mad?" Torrin demanded in a harsh whisper.
"I can knock him on the head."
"Nay. You remain in here, in the far corner. If one of them comes after you, then you bash his skull in good."
Typical man orders. "Very well, MacLeod. Have a care, will you?"
"Aye, indeed. How about a kiss for luck?"
Her face burned in the darkness. "Nay. 'Twill distract you."
"
Och
. You're right. We'll save the kisses for later when we're celebrating our escape. Stay over here, then." His strong hands on her shoulders, he guided her toward the corner.
She waited, watching as he halted at the door, peered out, then slipped outside.
She hastened toward the door, crouched low and looked out. Where had he gone? She didn't even see him. The two guards paced along the trail. She drew back and flattened her body against the wall. Where on earth was Torrin?
Seconds of silence dragged by in which she barely breathed. A shrill squealing sound echoed from behind the byre. It sounded like an animal, an injured rabbit perhaps.
"Go see what that was," one of Haldane's guards said.
"Sounded like supper." He strode out of sight and behind the byre. A thump sounded and someone cried out.
"What the devil?" The other guard followed him, sword drawn.