Page 37 of To Claim His Highland Bride

The only sounds that came to Rowena’s ears were the dipping of the oars into the water and the swishing of the boat as it glided forward.

Rob Roy sat straighter on the wooden seat. “It sounds like the skirl of a bag pipe deep within the cave.” His face turned ashen. “’Tis warning us tae not go any farther.”

“What are you talking about?” Bryce squinted in the darkness beyond this lantern. “There’s nothing but silence.”

“Nay,” Rob Roy objected. “I hear a piper. The sound is coming from either Fairyland or Hell.” He stood up, rocking the boat from side to side. “We have tae turn around. Go back.”

“Sit down.” Marcus’s authoritative voice cut through the man’s fears.

His gaze shifted to Marcus and colour came back to his cheeks a heartbeat before he returned to his seat.

“There is nothing to fear in this cave, Rob Roy. I won’t let anything happen to any of you. Besides, this is an explorative mission that will help us decide what tools we bring with us to explore the cave further. Only a few more moments and we will turn around. I promise.”

Marcus’s words seemed to ease the tension that had overcome the men in the boat, but Rowena knew there were things even Marcus couldn’t control. She tightened her grip on the side of the boat at the sensation of the earth trembling around them. The water alongside the boat rippled. The impressions were faint and no one else in the boat seemed to notice, but she had. Then as quick as it came, the trembling stopped. Rowena pressed her lips together, deciding not to say anything that might unsettle Rob Roy any more than he already was.

Silence pervaded the cave as they drifted forward until the boat came to a jarring stop. The sound of wood grating on rock echoed around them as they each scrambled to keep their seats.

“We hit a rock shelf,” Marcus said, standing and searching the path before them with his lantern. He stepped from the boat onto the rock and disappeared into the distance for several long moments before he returned with something in his hand.

At the boat’s edge, he handed something shiny to Bryce, who held it up, revealing a golden goblet. “There was only the one piece lying on the rock in the short distance I explored, but it is proof enough that the treasure is here.”

Bryce jumped from the boat with his lantern and disappeared into the darkness.

Marcus turned to the other men in the boat. “This was not meant to be a retrieval mission, so I will leave it up to the three of you, do you wish to keep exploring, or do you wish to go back and send others to recover the treasure?”

Rob Roy, Mack, and Naill shared tense glances before Naill finally replied, “We’ll stay to help take back what we can of the treasure. No sense sendin’ another boat when we are already here.”

The men stepped over the sides of the boat and followed Bryce deeper into the cave. When they were out, Marcus dragged the boat farther onto the rock shelf to make certain it would not dislodge before they were ready, then he offered Rowena his hand. “It is safe enough for you to explore, if you are up to it.”

She accepted his hand and allowed him to help her out of the boat. Together they followed the others. As they walked farther back, Rowena looked around at the basalt pillars that made up the sides of the cave, running as high as the roof of a cathedral, deep into the rock that had been eternally swept by a deep and swelling sea.

Rowena stopped. “Is it safe to go back there?”

Marcus came to her side and took her hand in his. “There are risks, but let us pray it will be fine. Exploring on foot is safer than diving deep in the water with the waves endlessly trying to dash you against the rocks as you retrieve treasure.” He gave her hand a squeeze as excitement filled his eyes. “Come with me.”

With a deep shuddering breath, Rowena shoved her fear aside and put her trust in Marcus. The lanterns created myriad twisting, dancing lights. Golden hues sent the shadows writhing before them into the deeper recesses of the cave. The earthy scent of ancient dirt and wet rocks surrounded them as they kept walking hand in hand. Darkness pressed in on her. She couldn’t see anything but the light-wreathed silhouette of Marcus’s body. The temperature in the cave dropped and she wrapped her free hand about her waist in an effort to keep warm.

The shuffling of their footsteps mingled with the quickened puffs of their breathing as they continued. After another fifty feet or so, light from the other lanterns merged with their own. They continued forward, and when the light touched two treasure chests filled with silver and gold, Rowena’s breath jammed in her throat. “The treasure is real.” The words bounced off the walls and rang back at her.

Bryce turned to greet them. Excitement brightened his eyes. “I’m sorry for every bad thing I ever did to you or said to you, Cousin. You too, Rowena.” He turned back to the chest before him. “The treasure is smaller than I imagined it would be, but that matters not. It is still an amazing find.”

“This isn’t all of it, not according to what Jacob Thorne told me anyway. There has to be more farther back in the cave.”

Excitement pounded in Rowena’s chest as she stared not only at the treasure but also at the men who had previously been so uncertain and were now smiling and laughing, running metallic coins through their fingers. Their fears had vanished in a haze of silver and gold.

“Shall we keep going deeper into the cave?” Bryce asked, his voice animated.

Marcus shook his head. “Let’s focus on getting these two chests loaded onto the boat. Then Rob Roy, Naill, and Mack can take them back to the ship and send others to gather more. The treasure will take up all the extra space in the small vessel so there won’t be enough room for all of us to return. Therefore, you, Rowena, and I will keep exploring.”

Rowena shivered. Staying behind in the darkness of the cave unnerved her even though Marcus would be with her.

The men dragged the chests to the boat, then Marcus and Bryce pushed the laden boat fully into the water once more. The three who would stay behind watched as the lanterns on the boat slowly faded from sight. When silence wrapped around them, Marcus turned to Bryce. “Do you want to take the lead or should I?”

“You would allow that?”

Marcus handed one of the two remaining lanterns to his cousin. “This treasure hunt was what you wanted. Go forward and earn your portion.”

Bryce headed for the ever-narrowing passageway ahead of them.