Page 16 of Highlander’s Protector

“Are ye still alive?” It was Dugald MacDowell’s voice.

“Go to hell!” she screamed.

He laughed. The metallic clanking of the chain followed, and the bucket was lowered to her. “Yer last meal, lass. I shouldna bother with ye nae more. Bruce wilna be king for much longer. A ship is sent to Ireland full of gold and armor and weapons to restart an invasion on Bruce while he’s busy playing sieges.”

She barely registered that as the bucket clunked against the floor and she threw herself on it, wild with hunger and thirst, hands searching for the bread and the water that must be inside.

As she shoved the stale, moldy bread into her mouth, the world became dark again. This was the last bread she’d ever have. With darkness came despair. Her stupid mind was going insane, sending her futile hope for a rescue.

Her soul was shrinking, corrupted and dying. Dugald’s torture was working.

Worst was, with every moment she passed here her father needed her less and less. She was only worth something to him if she could marry Philip. So what would be the point of being alive and being rescued if he didn’t need her anymore?

It would be too late once the wedding date passed and the most important castle of Scotland remained in England’s possession, making their victory a terrifying reality.

* * *

Carlisle Castle, the same night

“Well, David of clan Mackenzie,” whispered Colum behind David’s back. “Where is that way up ye talked about?”

David’s real last name was Wakeley, but he was used to the shield of the Mackenzie name that he’d adopted three years ago.

Iàcob hemmed and scratched his chin. The moon peeked out from behind a cloud and spilled silvery light onto the wall. Their horses were hidden, tied behind a bush twenty feet or so away. The town of Carlisle behind them slept. Padean had told him it was on the northwestern side of the curtain wall. He’d said the stones stood out a little bit and formed some sort of…

Steps. He saw them.

“It’s a stairway,” David whispered, watching the pattern in the wall. “Do you both see, the stones protrude out a bit—not much, but just enough to be able to very carefully step on them.”

“Aye,” Colum said. “But they’re tiny.”

“Aye,” echoed Iàcob. “They may support my weight, but Colum’s…and yers…”

David looked up. Twenty feet up, fire from what must be a torch moved. Three or four male voices sounded, then a laugh.

“Sentinels,” whispered Colum.

An owl hooted in a small grove to their right. The town lay about three hundred yards away, its roofs black against the sky. Several church towers loomed over the town. A dog barked and a woman’s voice shouted an angry tirade. The air was sweet with woodsmoke, cow dung, flowers, and plants in bloom. It was a good night, not too dark and not too light. All conditions were perfect for their mission.

Whether they would find Anna and whether David would find Sìneag’s stone was another question.

The voices from above grew quieter and moved into the distance.

“They are gone,” Colum said. “Let us go.”

David nodded. With his stomach plastered to the wall, he stepped on the first stone. Slowly, he moved higher, rock by rock. The rough stone scratched his cheek, the scent of dust in his nostrils. His fingers hurt from trying to grab on to each step but finding little purchase. He looked back and Colum followed him, struggling as much. Iàcob came after.

Dry mortar and crumbled rock fell from under his fingers, skittering into the darkness. With nothing to hold on to, he could rely only on his balance and his legs to keep him from following the rocks. The higher he went, the weaker his knees felt.

Don’t look down.

He kept going.

When he reached the parapet, he stopped and peered over its edge. The sentinels with torches were about fifty feet down the wall. He climbed one more step, jumped over the parapet, and crouched. A few moments later, shoes rustled behind him, and as he turned his head, Colum and Iàcob landed, too.

Behind them, there was an exit with the ramparts leading down into the inner bailey.

“Let’s go,” said David, pointing.