Page 84 of Highlander Lord Of Vengeance

She looked up at him,fierce and unyielding. “Aye, I did. I needed to show myself I could be brave.”

“It takes true bravery to go through what you have gone through with Torrance and with me posing as him. You are a courageous woman, Esme. And you must be even more courageous and remain in the hut while I search for the truth.”

Her eyes turned wide, and she stepped out of his embrace. “That is why you confined me, so I could not go and talk with the Old Woman.”

“I must keep you safe whether you like it or not,” he insisted. “I have no time to discuss it with you now. We will talk when I return.”

She let him know how she felt. “I’m disappointed.”

“But you are safe and that is what matters. That is what keeps my heart steady and my stomach from twisting in fear of losing you.”

The truth in his voice, the concern in his eyes, and knowing how much he loved her softened her disappointment.

She smiled softly and in a way of accepting his punishment, said, “I’m hungry.”

Relief showed in his smile. “I will make sure you get food, and I will return as soon as I can if it is only to spend a short time with you. I am not leaving guards outside the door since I trust no one. So, keep the door latched and open it to no one.” He kissed her quickly and hurried out the door.

He was barely gone when the latch rattled, and she opened the door thinking he had forgotten something or had brought her much needed food.

“If you want to meet with the Old Woman, come with me now.”

Esme stared at Breann briefly and didn’t think twice. She grabbed her cloak and followed her into the woods.

The morning air bit sharp,the thin layer of snow crunching under heavy boots as Torrance stepped into the open area in front of the meeting house. The sky hung low, gray and brooding, and smoke from the cook fires drifted like ghosts across the hard-packed ground. Warriors gathered slowly at Brack’s summons, fanning out in a wary half-circle before Lord Torrance.

Silence reigned. Not a sound was heard from the gathered warriors, not even a murmur.

The cold crept into cloaks and stiffened hands, but it wasn’t the weather that made them uneasy… it was him. Torrance’s silence could cut deeper than any blade, and today, it hung over them like a drawn sword.

Brack stood off to his right, arms folded, his posture stiff.

“Gavin has escaped,” Torrance announced, his voice carrying sharp and clear through the stillness. “He did not fly, nor disappear by witchery. Someone helped him.”

Not a word stirred the air.

Torrance took a slow step forward, his gaze moving over each man. “The guards posted at the prisoner’s hut were called off to tend to another matter—briefly. When they returned, Gavin was no longer there.”

Still, none of the men spoke. Their eyes were careful, downcast or fixed on a distant point behind him. No one wanted to be the first.

“You all know what happens to traitors,” Brack added, his voice colder than the wind. “And you know Lord Torrance does not suffer fools or liars.”

One man shifted, his boot scraping the snow. Another adjusted the hilt of his sword with fidgeting fingers.

Torrance let the silence stretch painfully long before speaking again.

“I will ask once more and only once more. If any of you heard or saw something, anything, you will speak up now. If not, every one of you will suffer.”

It took a moment before a voice broke the tension. “There was talk about...”

Torrance’s stare froze the man in place and when the warrior remained silent, he demanded, “Finish what you will say.”

“Lady Esme,” the warrior said carefully, “was seen near the prisoner’s hut, so says wagging tongues.”

Another cleared his throat but did not step forward. “Aye, I heard the same.”

Brack glanced at Torrance, then stepped forward. “Lady Esme has already been punished for whatever, if any, roll she may have played in this. She is confined to her dwelling with only bread and water until otherwise ordered by Lord Torrance. That matter is settled.”

Torrance said nothing, letting that pronouncement sink in.

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