Page 84 of Highland Jewel
“Never stopped.”
Niall brought his knife to Woelk’s throat at the same time as Blair held his blade to Rainey’s.
“Don’t. Please don’t,” Woelk pleaded. “I have valuable information. I’ll give it to you. Spare me. I beg you.”
“What information?”
“I can tell you the names of every spy in the queen’s entourage. Everyone who is on the king’s payroll. Everyone who is passing messages to his men. She is being watched. Spied on every moment, I tell you.”
“By dogs like you,” Niall spat. “A rogue she thinks of as family. Someone she can trust.”
“Family?” A weak smile creased Woelk’s lips. “Queen Caroline’s family has always been her most dangerous enemy.”
CHAPTER34
Maisie was pale and still extremely weak, but Isabella knew how long Niall had waited and how impatient he was to have some time with his wife, so she left the two of them alone.
He sat on a chair next to the bed, feelings of gratitude and love flowing through him. He was willing to do anything for her, but he knew what she wanted most. She wanted the truth. It was time to tell her everything. He’d already told her about Woelk and Rainey’s capture the last time he was here. But she didn’t know what had led to it.
The stretches of time when she felt strong were short. He held her hand and spoke. He started by explaining Henry Brougham’s visit the night they were engaged and how he’d initially refused it.
“Fiona’s arrest was planned by Lord Sidmouth’s dogs in Edinburgh. You, my love, have no responsibility for it.”
“I encouraged her to come to the meeting that day. I almost cost you your sister, and I understood why you wouldn’t want me after that. I thought—”
“Fiona would have been arrested, anyway. They would have taken her at the house if she hadn’t gone out to the meeting.” Niall didn’t want to think how horrible it would have been if Catriona and Briana had witnessed their mother being dragged from their home. “When I went to Glasgow, I was told they were throwing every charge they could think of at her. Sir Rupert Burney dangled her life in front of me. In return for her freedom, I was to join Queen Caroline’s envoy north. And I was to kill the son of Scotland when I arrived.”
Her expression remained the same. She’d guessed at what his mission was when she’d charged into the laird’s study and begged him to not kill Cinaed. He hated that he made her go through all that she had.
“When did you change your mind?”
“I never changed my mind. I neverintendedto keep my end of the bargain. I knew if I accepted that mission and survived it, they would never let me or Fiona go. I would be their puppet. They would pull the strings, and I would have to kill, again and again. But when you and I said goodbye in Edinburgh, I hadn’t figured out what to do.”
“You could have told me that. I’m not weakhearted. I…”
Her voice wavered, and Niall brought her hand to his lips. He kissed it and held it in a tight grasp.
“I was afraid for you. If our news, our connection, our love for each other were to be known, then they could take you too.”
The corners of her lips turned down in sadness. “You and I both thought I was safe at Infirmary Street. The day they arrived, when they attacked, there was no holding them back.”
Niall hadn’t been aware of the attack. At that time, he was in London. “If I’d known what you were goingthrough, that all of you were hiding, I would have returned. I’m sorry that I wasn’t there.”
“Things might have turned out differently then. And I’m not really sure if for the better.” Maisie tugged on his hand. “Tell me about your visit with the queen.”
Niall described the meeting at Duns Castle and when he’d met Woelk and Rainey.
“The queen spoke of her son, and her words found a way into my heart. In that moment I knew she was a woman who understood the value of one’s family… and who had paid the price of protecting hers.” During that meeting Niall decided to trust her. He believed that she spoke the truth. “Later, I went back and met with her privately. I told her everything. That was when a new plan emerged.”
“What was this new plan?”
“I would put my life on the line for Cinaed. I would do whatever I must to protect her son and to make certain the meeting with him finally takes place. And in return she would see to it that my sister was freed.”
“She could do that?”
“She’s queen now, and my sister is just a pawn in this game Lord Sidmouth and his henchmen are playing. While I was still in the Borders, she had Brougham dispatch agents to find Fiona. I’m doing my part, and I trust her to fulfill her promise.”
“This is why you’ve spent so much time in Cinaed’s company. You were protecting him.”
