Page 14 of Taken By her Highland Enemy

Lord Cutler smiled in the best way he knew how. She didn’t understand why he was so willing to believe that his daughter had made so drastic a change in opinion in merely two days, but she was grateful for his ignorance. He nodded, and she left the room, returning to Arya, who opened one eye and then the other after making sure it was her mistress who entered.

Isabelle sat on the bed, her mind whirring with ideas for how to get to Eamon and help him connect with the villagers. She wasn’t sure that there was any way to save the men of Drumnadrochit, but she would have to try. “What is it, mistress?” Arya asked, sitting up in bed as well.

Isabelle slid under the blanket and laid her hands on the top, smoothing out the wrinkles. “Arya, I have an idea.”

“Oh, no. Not another one.”

Isabelle laughed, in spite of the gravity of the situation. “Come now, Arya. You know you secretly love our little adventures. And besides, one day, you are going to find something you really like as we continue my tiny rebellions. You will run into someone you wish to continue meeting or find something you wish to continue doing.”

Arya crossed her arms. “Is that so? Apart from kissing stable boys and sweating through my nightgown, fearing your father’s arrival, I do not see how that could be true.” Isabelle watched her blonde friend stew for a moment, brushing her hair out of her face while she watched Isabelle.

“Well, were there not some very handsome stable boys?” Isabelle’s grin was infectious, and Arya couldn’t help but smile again.

“Fine. That is true, but not all of them were! Go on, tell me your plan.”

“My father intends to execute the men who killed the soldiers in the square tomorrow.”

“Yes, I assumed so.”

“But this time, he wants me by his side. He wants me to watch as he enacts his so-called justice.”

Arya’s eyebrows lifted. “Truly? He thinks you wish to see such a display?”

“You know how he wishes me to become like him and begin to take over leading the men. The King knows about his plans, and while I wouldn’t be working in an official capacity, I would still be allowed a group of men created for dubious purposes.”

Arya nodded. “Well, if the purposes were not so dubious, I would say I was impressed. For a woman to be given that kind of position is incredible. So unheard of.”

Isabelle sighed. “I know. It is totally bewildering why my father thinks that I am the person to do so. I suppose I should be honored in some small way, but you know that I cannot do it on principle. Regardless, I must allow him to think that I am interested, for a time.”

“Then, you will be able to work on your other plans ever more secretly.”

“Right, but that means that for a time, and tomorrow especially, his eyes will be on me. However, I have a plan. I told The Scots that I will be sending and receiving messages by way of the tannery. In the morning, I want you to go there with a message. I hope that Eamon will be wise enough to collect it as soon as he arrives in the village. He has nothing to fear. My father does not know his description.”

Arya smirked. “You doubt your Highlander’s decisions, do you? I hope for your sake that he does go to the tannery.”

“Yes, me as well. I do not doubt him, but I know not what will occur once he arrives. Let me write the message quickly for you now. You can take it to the tanner in the morning.” Isabelle moved to a small side table at the corner of the room and took up ink and paper. She scribbled the words hurriedly. After the conversation with her father, she felt on edge and knew she would get no more sleep that night.

She took the paperback to bed and read aloud, “Create a distraction that my father will not be able to resist dealing with. Then, I will tell Lord Cutler’s daughter to go behind the stables for her own safety. You will meet her there and kidnap her.”

“Pardon me? Mistress, you cannot be serious!”

Isabelle leaned forward. “Arya, you know me better than that. I would do anything to get out of my father’s grasp and stop his tyranny. I will offer myself up to be taken, and then my father will be distracted once more as he hunts for me.”

“But won’t he know it will be The Scots that have taken you?”

Isabelle thought for a moment. “No, I think I will keep that a secret for now. Eventually, I will tell Eamon to let him know, so that the chase begins anew, and it will be farther and farther from The Scots’ home village.”

Arya said, “How will you tell him that? You will be yourself, not the boy this time. Will it not be strange for a kidnapped woman to tell her captor to not tell her father where she is until a very specific time?”

Isabelle laughed. “Perhaps you are right.” She leaned back and thought some more. “But he knows of Lord Cutler’s malice and hatefulness. Surely he would understand if his own daughter did not approve of his actions and wish to be free.”

Arya laughed. “You have an answer for everything, Mistress. Well, as long as you are certain, I shall deliver the message.”

“Thank you. I am forever in your debt, you know.” She folded the paper and handed it to Arya.

Arya grinned. “I shall remember that you know. The next time you ask me to kiss someone to get them out of the way.”

Isabelle smiled and lay back against the pillow. Morning could not come soon enough because not only would she escape her father, but she would finally get to spend time with Eamon Wilson as a woman.

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