Page 58 of The Mad Highlander
The footsteps stopped. Cayden didn’t dare look up. Then, the footsteps began to recede. Cayden slowly pulled himself up the wall until he could see over it. He saw movement at the far end of the rampart walkway. The two guards rounded the corner and were gone.
Cayden gave it a second before he pulled himself over the wall. He crouched down as low as possible, looking in both directions. Then, he jogged silently to the corner around which the guards had disappeared. He peeked around to see their backs receding from him. They both carried spears taller than themselves.
The Laird made his way quickly back to the wall, looked over, and signaled to his men. He helped them one by one as they climbed up the human ladder, and two of the men hung over the wall to lift the final soldier to join them, leaving the other two men outside the castle. If the Laird and the other four men didn’t make it out, the two soldiers were to ride back to O’Brien Castle and inform Hunter what had happened when he returned.
I will make it out, nay matter what happens inside. I made a promise to Iris, and I cannae let her down. I want to taste her lips again, touch her body, look into her eyes.
Cayden nodded to the four men with him, and they all nodded back: they were ready to move into the next phase. The Laird led them in the direction the two guards had gone—it was unlikely they would double back. They moved single file, keeping close, and crouching behind the short wall on the interior side of the walkway to avoid being spotted by any other patrols in the ramparts.
Cayden’s heart beat quicker as they moved through the castle. If they were caught, he had no doubt that Laird Murdoch would not hesitate to kill them, and he would be fully justified—they had snuck into the castle under the cover of darkness.
I willnae do that to her. I cannae leave her brother in the dungeon and die meself. It would break her heart, and I daenae want to bring her that pain.
The Laird held up his fist to stop the men. He pointed to the archway on his left; the stairs led down. Cayden gestured for them to follow. He took the stairs slowly, listening for noises down below and watching for light. There was no light in the stairway itself, and one wrong step and he might fall.
When they got to the bottom of the stairway, the Laird peeked out to find the stone walkway empty. They had followed the guards’ direction after they had scaled the wall, but they didn't have that luxury now—they did not know where the guardshad gone or from where more might appear. They might hear footsteps coming and have ample warning of approaching danger, but the silence had Cayden on edge.
He led the men in complete silence, looking up once to see a shadow cross between him and the stars—likely a bat. He led them down staircase after staircase, not seeing a soul. He stopped and took a moment when they were on ground level. He looked back to check on his men and received four nervous looks in return.
The five of them looked through an archway leading to the main courtyard. There was no one within, but to venture that way through the castle would be certain death. Someone would spot them, and once they were spotted, they would not get out alive. They skirted around the courtyard, remaining under the cover of the ceilings until they came to another set of stairs leading down.
When the air became cooler, Cayden was sure they were on the right track. Thick candles lit the way as they ventured down into the castle’s bowels, another detail that put Cayden’s mind at ease—the stone hallways were lit for a reason.
Cayden suddenly raised his fist again. The four men stopped behind him. He could sense someone close by, and there was a sound. Cayden stood in the cold stone hallway and listened. It was almost as if there was thunder coming from farther down the hallway.
Cayden smiled.
The guard is sleepin’. That makes it a little easier.
They moved as one unit again, infiltrating the lower corridors like the wind: light on their feet and without noise until Cayden raised his hand one more time. He could sense it: they had reached the dungeons.
Cayden moved as if in slow motion to peek around the corner just enough to get a look at the sleeping guard. He cursed their luck when he saw there was not only one guard but two. One of them was asleep in a chair, but the other was not. He held a spear and stood to the left of a large oak door.
Cayden pulled back around and pointed to Brodgar. He then pointed to himself and around the corner. Brodgar nodded. Cayden then pointed back up the corridor and gestured for Brodgar to follow him. They walked back the way they had come, leaving the three men at the corner of the hallway.
“We only need to get close enough to disable him,” Cayden whispered. “We act as if we are in the middle of a conversation and we belong down here. Do it confidently enough, and they’ll be too confused to think straight enough to stop us.”
Brodgar nodded again.
Cayden lifted three fingers and counted down to two and then one.
“I’m tellin’ ye,” Cayden said in hushed tones as he walked back toward the dungeon door. “Ye shouldnae pay more than a shillin’ for that much feed for yer cattle.”
“Aye, and how can I pay that now when I have already paid for it?” Brodger replied in an equally hushed tone.
They rounded the corner, and the guard was reaching out toward his sleeping companion when he shifted his stance and held his spear pointed toward the two oncoming men.
“Ye should talk to him about givin’ ye some of yer money back,” Cayden continued.
“Ho! Who goes there?” the guard asked, ready to stab both of them.
“Do ye really think he will give me money back?” Brodgar asked, ignoring the guard.
“Halt,” the guard ordered.
The Laird quickly took two steps forward and grabbed the spear just below the point. He jerked it backward, pulling the guard toward them, and Brodgar swung a large fist, connecting with a crunch and sending the guard crumpling to the ground.
The noise woke the second guard, but Cayden was too quick and unsheathed his sword, striking the sleepy guard on the top of the head with the hilt. The second guard collapsed to the ground.
