The Key (6 page)

“Husband?”

Duncangrimaced. She should not be allowed to call him that. The marriage was not
consummated. But he could hardly take her to task for it in front of the stablemaster.
“Nay, he went to talk to a crofter. What be ye wantin'?”

Duncanheard Iliana sigh unhappily. What was she so put out about? He was the one being
denied his rights.

“I don't have all day, wench,” he snapped, then paused and forced a smile for the
stablemaster's benefit. “What be ye needin'?”

“I was told that the spice merchant crossed our land this mom?”

“Aye.”

“Well, we have no spices and I wondered if 'twould be possible to send a messenger after
the merchant, requesting that he stop here ere he moves on,” Iliana blurted.

Duncanshook his head. So, here was another change she wished to instigate. A fine and
expensive change that would be. He had not known the spice man to stop here in all his
memory. Now she thought he should. He would not have it. “We need no spices. And I'll not
be wastin' a man on sendin' him on such a fool errand.”

Iliana opened her mouth on a protest, but he turned abruptly and headed away.

An hour later,Duncanwas crossing the bailey toward the keep when the stablemaster came
charging up, calling after him urgently. “Me laird! Thank the saints! I been lookin' fer
ye all this past hour and could find ye nowhere.”

“What is it, Rabbie?”Duncanfrowned at the man's obvious distress. “Yer wife, me laird. She
rode out right after ye left us.” “Rode out? What mean ye, sherode out ? Rode out where?”
“After the spice merchant. Alone.”

Cursing,Duncanturned toward the stables. “Fool woman. She kens nothing about this land or
its dangers. I doubt she even kens in which direction Mclnnes land is.”

“I pointed out the direction,” Rabbie admitted reluctantly. When his laird turned a
furious expression on him, he shrugged helplessly. “She ordered me to tell her. She is
chatelaine here now, me laird. I tried to convince her not to go, but she is fair
stubborn.”

Duncangrimaced over that and strode into the stables to fetch his mount. Moments later, he
was heading out of the bailey.

Scotlandwas a wild and lovely land. Unfortunately, it was also damned confusing.
Determined to have the spices the keep needed, Iliana had started out very confident as
she had leftDunbar. The stablemaster had pointed out the direction toward Innes land and
she had thought she would have no problem finding it when she left. She had thought wrong.
It had been close to an hour since she had left the keep and she was no longer even sure
she was still heading in the direction in which he had pointed. Nor was she sure in which
direction she should go to return home.

Bringing her mount to a halt, Iliana peered about. All there was to see were trees,
rolling green hills, and craggy cliffs. They all looked the same. Nothing looked the least
farmliar, but then why should it? She was a stranger here. Deciding she would get nowhere
by sitting about, Iliana urged her horse forward again, but after another hour of riding,
she decided she'd best stop and take the lay of the land again.

She was just slowing her mount to do so when men began dropping from the trees around her.

A startled scream slipped from her throat but then her attention was forced to her mount
as the mare began to rear beneath her. Before Iliana could regain control of the animal,
one of the men did so for her, grabbing the reins and tugging her back to all fours, then
murmuring soothingly to the beast as he eyed her.

Nibbling viciously at her lower lip, Iliana peered at the men surrounding her. There were
six of them altogether. Tall, grim-looking men who were eyeing her in a most unfriendly
manner. Were they from Innes? She hoped so.

The man holding her reins said something in Gaelic and Iliana frowned as the gobbledygook
of words hit her ears. She forced a polite smile. “ 'Tis sorry I am to admit it, but I
fear I have not learned your language yet.”

There was silence as he absorbed her accent, then he murmured, “A Sassenach?”

“Aye.” Iliana managed a smile. “I am Iliana of Wildwood, the new wife of Duncan Dunbar,
and you, I hope, are of the Mclnnes clan?”

There was a moment as the men all shared surprised glances, then the speaker nodded
slowly. “If ye be ofDunbar, what be ye doin' ridin' about on yer own? And why're ye on
Innes land?”

So theywere Innes men. She had gone the right way after all. “I apologize for coming
without an invitation, but 'twas quite important. You see, I have only been atDunbarfor a
few days and the cook told me that we had no spices; then Giorsal said that the spice
merchant had crossed our land this morn on his way to Innes. It seems he gave up coming
byDunbarbecause Laird Angus was never home to make a purchase when he called.”

Realizing that she was babbling, Iliana paused and forced a pained smile. “At any rate, I
feared he might not be by again for months, and we are in dire need of his goods, so I
thought to ride over and see if I could persuade him to stop by ere he moves on. After
finishing his business with you, of course,” she added on a winsome smile.

“AndDunbaragreed to this?” The man looked quite doubtful at the idea.

Iliana phased her answer carefully. “Well, now... You see, my new father-in-law was away
from the keep at the time, visiting crofters or some such thing. And my husband claimed to
be too busy for such a task... If you see what I mean?”

“Aye.” His lips quirked upward. “Ye mean ye dinna tell him ye were acomin'.”

Iliana colored slightly but only gave a wry grimace and a shrug as response.

His amusement apparent, the man murmured something in Gaelic, then led her horse forward.
The other men followed at once. “We'll take ye to the keep.”

“Thank you,” Iliana murmured as they moved into a clearing where six horses waited. Still
holding on to her reins, the man mounted his horse and set out in the direction in which
she had been heading.

Worrying her lip, Iliana held on to her mare's mane and peered at the silent, solemn men
about her. They had not actuallysaid they were Mclnnes men. Actually, whether they were or
not might not be a good thing anyway. She had never thought to ask if theDunbarsgot along
with their neighbors. What if the Dunbarswere at war with the Mclnneses?

Now was a brilliant time to think of that, she scolded herself, then supposed she would
know soon enough. If they were Mclnneses they would take her to the Mclnnes keep.
Otherwise, they would take her to another keep. And, if they were feuding with theDunbars,
she would most likely be shackled up and ransomed off to her husband. If he paid for her.
If they even did things like that here. Mayhap they just kept you.

'Twas not long after running into the men that a keep came into view. Iliana relaxed then,
for it could be none other than the Mclnnes keep. They had not traveled long enough to
have reached another clan's keep, she hoped. She was distracted from that thought when one
of the men broke away from the group and rode ahead. Probably with the news of her
arrival, she realized, and began to fret anew over whether theDunbarswere presently
feuding with the Mclnneses.

Before she could work herself up over that worry too much, they had reached the castle
walls. She found herself being led into the bailey and directly up to the steps where what
appeared to be the lord and lady of the manor waited to greet her.

Judging by their welcoming smiles, the Mclnneses were not presently feuding with
theDunbars. Iliana relaxed again and smiled as her horse was brought to a halt.

Lord and Lady Mclnnes were somewhere in their fifties. The man's hair was salt and pepper,
but surely once had been a mantle of pure ebony. Of average height, but well-formed, he
was quite attractive. Iliana returned his smile briefly, then turned to his wife. Her hair
was fairer, a medium brown with a mere fleck of blue-gray here and there. She was also
quite lovely. Iliana stared in bemusement at the smiling woman, then glanced down as one
of the men moved to her side to help her dismount. “Me lady, 'tis a pleasure to meet ye!”

Once again on her feet, Iliana whirled to meet the owner of that bluff, cheerful voice.
“Lord Mclnnes.” She gave a slight curtsy. “Lady Mclnnes.”

“When was the weddin'?” Lord Mclnnes asked curiously. “Three days ago.”

“I am sorry we missed it.” There was a miffed quality to Lady Maclnnes's voice as she said
that, and Iliana offered an apologetic smile.

“ Tis most likely my fault. I suspect we arrived earlier than expected And the wedding was
held a mere hour after our arrival.”

Lady Mclmies blinked. “But we did not even kenDuncanplanned on amarryin'.”

Iliana shifted uncomfortably. “Well, that would be my fault as well. You see, he married
me to save me from my stepfather, and to help save my mother from him as well. 'Twas
arranged quickly.”

Lady Mclnnes's eyebrows had risen with every word she spoke. The woman eyed Iliana with
fascination. “Oh, my dear. We definitely must discuss this. Come along inside and I shall
offer ye a beverage.”

“So ye dinna have time to be aseein' to the task yersel' and let yer wee wife come out on
her own!”

Duncandrew his mount to a halt, his gaze darting around the trees until he spied Ian
Mclnnes perched in the lowest branch of one on his left. “Ye found 'er?”

“Aye.” Dropping out of the tree, Ian walked toward him andDuncansank back in his saddle
with relief.

“Ye should keep a closer eye on 'er, Duncan,” Ian chastised mildly, sweeping his long
black hair back from his face as he paused and peered up at where his friend sat his
horse. “She's fair bonnie. Anything could have happened to her out here.”

“I dinna ken she'd left 'til Rabbie found me.”

“I thought it might be something like that,” his friend murmured, holding out his hand.

Leaning fonvard,Duncangrabbed the offered hand, then sat back, pulling at the same time as
the other man leapt. Between the two, they managed to bring him up onto the saddle behind
him. “Where be yer mount?”

“Ahead.”

Nodding, he urged his horse fonvard. Within moments they came across Ian's gray beast.
Reining in beside the animal, he waited until his friend had slung himself off his mount
and onto his own before asking, “She was a'right?”

“Right as rain. She's at the keep now, chattin' with Ma and Da,” he announced, gathering
his reins before straightening to eye him. “Ye dinna mention ye were aplannin' to get wed.”

Duncanshrugged. “ Twas no a plan 'til just afore it happened.” “Hmm” Ian urged his horse
fonvard, waiting untilDuncanbrought his mount into step with his own before

saying, “She mentioned as much. How'd it come about?”

Duncanshrugged. “The English king sent a fellow up to ask me would I do it and I said I
would if he would see to rectifying the situation fer Seonaid.”

“That's all he needed to persuade ye?” Ian looked a bit surprised. “That an' a dowry only
a wee bit smaller than a king's ransom.” Ian grinned. “I kenned there'd be more to it. How
much?”

“Not nearly enough,”Duncanmuttered grimly.

“Nay! Ye've only been wed a few days! Doona tell me ye be complainin' already?”

“Aye.”

“Why? What has she done?”

Duncanglared ahead briefly, then grumbled, “She be acleanin' the keep.”

Ian burst out laughing.

“And she expects me to bathe, too.”

His friend's amusement only deepened at that andDuncanglared at him irritably.

“ Tis sorry I am, friend. But ye must admit ye smell a fair bit rank right now. Should ye
try huntin', the beasties'd smell ye comin' and flee fer their lives.”

“ Tis June,”Duncanmuttered. “I always smell this way in June.”

“Aye, and well I ken it, but it may have been a surprise to yer bride.” He was silent for
a moment, then glanced at him curiously. “I also heard yer wife atellin' me ma that the
marriage was to save her from her stepda?”

“Aye. 'Tis why they searched fer a groom so far north and paid so generously. The king
wished her far and away from her home inEngland.”

“Hmm.” Taking inDuncan's irritation, he murmured, “She seems a fair brave wench.”

“ 'Tis no brave to go riding about a country ye ken nothing about. 'Tis foolish.”

“Aye,” Ian allowed fairly, then added, “But she showed no fear when we stopped her. The
wench simply introduced herself and told us what she was about.”

“That just shows she doesna even have the sense to be afraid,”Duncanmuttered, but had to
wonder himself. Iliana was proving herself to be a bit more than he had first thought she
was. The cold, prissy image he'd had of her did not fit with a lass who went charging off
on her own in a foreign land in search

of spices. She seemed to have one or two surprises up her sleeves... not to mention under
that damn belt of chastity of hers.

“Is there something armss, Lady Dunbar?” When Iliana merely continued to stare at the
servants working across the room, Adina Mclnnes glanced at her husband questioningly. But
he merely shrugged his own uncertainty.

Frowning, Adina turned back to the younger woman. “Lady Dunbar? Lady Dunbar!”

Iliana turned finally at the strident note in her hostess's voice, concern wrinkling her
brow. Then, understanding struck and her eyes widened in surprise. “Oh, you meanme ? Of
course! I am sorry. I fear I am not used to being called 'Lady Dunbar'.” She paused,
flushing brightly, and shrugged helplessly as she admitted, “ Tis the first time I have
been addressed so.”

Lady Mclnnes relaxed and laughed lightly. “Aye, 'tis fair odd to be addressed by one name
all yer life, then suddenly find yersel' with a new one.”

“Aye.”

“Mayhap 'twould help if I addressed ye by yer given name?”

“Oh, aye. That would be fine,” Iliana agreed at once. “You must call me Iliana.”

“And I am Adina and my husband is Robert,” Lady Mclnnes announced, then lifted an eyebrow.
“Ye seemed preoccupied by our servants... Iliana. Is anything armss?”

“Oh, nay. Tis just... Well, truthfully, I was noticing how well dressed they are.” Her
gaze slid around the room again, running over the impeccably clean plaids on every servant
present.

“Ahhh.” There was a depth of understanding in that drawn-out word. “Then no doubt ye are
wondering why yer own servants are not so well garbed?”

Biting her lip, Iliana nodded reluctantly. “Well, me dear, 'tis no from lack o' coins, I
can tell ye that,” Robert Mclnnes announced, joining the conversation. “ Tis a well-kept
secret, but what with his sheep and the plaids their wool produces, yer husband is rich.”

“Duncanmakes plaids?” Iliana asked with surprise.

“Aye. Well, no hissel'. But his people do. They make a muckle coin from it, too, I can
tell ye. They make some o' the finest plaid inScotland.”

Iliana's eyebrows raised at that. “But then why do they all dress so shabbily?”

There was silence for a minute, then Adina Mclnnes sighed. “My dear, there are a few myths
about the Scots that ye may have heard ere coming?”

Aye, she had heard a thing or two ere coming to this land, Iliana thought wryly, but most
of it was so unflattering she dared not repeat it, so merely nodded.

“Well, there is one myth in particular that says Scots are... er... cheap.” Forcing a
pained smile, she cleared her throat. “ Tis not true.”

“Except inDuncan's case,” Lord Mclnnis inserted with amusement.

Adina whirled on her husband in honor. “Nay, husband. He is simply very frugal.”

“Hah!” Robert laughed. “Don't fret, wife. He be friend to me and would not mind me sayin'
he is cheap... and cheap he is,” he announced firmly with some pride. “He also be muckle
rich from it. There's no doubt in me mind that he has a mountain o' coins hid somewhere.
He must.Dunbarplaids sell like cow chips during a cold winter. We even buy some from him.”

“Then there is his trade in protection,” Adina murmured.

Iliana blinked at that. “Protection?”

Robert nodded solemnly. “Dunbarhas some of the finest warriors around. And the women are
damned prolific. They breed 'em by the bushel.Duncansorta rents them out to those in need
when they can afford to hire 'em. He makes a muckle orcoins that way as well.”

Iliana digested this silently. She was less interested in the fact thatDuncanhired himself
and his men out to those in need of a strong arm than the knowledge that he actually had a
plaid-making enterprise right there atDunbar. “But if his people make the finest plaids
around, then why do they all wear” Iliana began, stopping when Lord Mclnnes waved the
question away.

“Because he sells them all, lass. He gives his own people only one a year. At the New
Year. He sells the rest.”

“I see,” Iliana murmured with a frown.

Adina cleared her throat. “I would like to give ye a proper welcome, lass. Mayhap ye and
Duncan will honor us by staying to take sup with us?”

Iliana's eyebrows rose at that. “Oh,Duncanis not coming.”

Adina arched one eyebrow, her mouth tilting in slight amusement at that. “Oh, I've no
doubt he'll be along. He's hardly likely to leave his wee bride runnin' about on her own.”

“Aye, well... He does not even know I am here,” she confessed with a sigh.

This only seemed to amuse the older woman more. Leaning forward in her seat, she smiled
gently. “My dear child, there is little, if anything, that a laird and his son don't ken,
or learn about, here in Scotland.” She paused and sat back then, a smile of satisfaction
gracing her lips as the front doors burst open.

Turning, Iliana glanced toward the door and felt her heart sink. It wasDuncanentering and
he looked angry. Very angry. Almost rabid. Aye, he looked as if he could not wait to get
her alone. Oddly enough, that simply stimulated an urge in Iliana to avoid such an
occurrence.

Turning abniptly to Lady Mclnnes, she forced a smile and babbled, “Well, surely then if
the invitation is still open, my lord husband and I would be pleased to stay for sup.”

She knew she'd made a mistake the moment the words left her mouth. She could actually feel
her

husband's fury as he moved up behind her.

As he and Ian joined them at the table his expression promised that she would regret
accepting the invitation. Sighing inwardly, Iliana listened as Ian repeated what he had
learned fromDuncanregarding their marriage. The news that it had been arranged to protect
Iliana and her mother was not new to them, of course, but what she had not told them quite
simply because she had not known was the exact amount of the dowry that the king had
provided to ensure that the wedding took place.

There was silence for a moment after the young man revealed the amount. His parents were
obviously staggered by the size of it. Iliana was shocked herself and was not sure whether
to be flattered that the king would offer so much to keep her and her mother safe, or
insulted that so much had to be offered for Duncanto marry her.

She got little chance to ponder that, however, as Laird Mclnnis snapped out of his
surprise to ask, “And what will ye be doinrwith the coins?”

Iliana turned curiously toward her husband, amazed at the sudden change that overcame him.
All the stiffness and anger slid from him like water off a duck's back and his eyes, his
face, his very person seemed suddenly aglow with excitement.

“I'm plowing most o' it back intoDunbar. Between that and the coins I've stored away over
the years, there is much I can finally get done. I plan to start by reinforcing the wall.
Tis in rough shape and constantly threatens to crumble about our very ears. Then there is
the moat; I would have it deeper, I think, and wider. Then I thought I might enlarge the
castle itself, and I also wish to increase our flock o' sheep...”

Iliana stared at her husband's animated expression. 'Twas like seeing an entirely
different person, someone completely foreign from the sullen, grim-faced man she had
married. She rather liked this character. He was ambitious and enthusiastic. Energy seemed
almost to be pouring off his body as he spoke. Iliana could actually feel the heat of him
warming her side as she sat beside him. It was a pleasant feeling. Almost a tingling that
danced along her left side, energizing her.

Duncansmiled suddenly at a comment from Laird Mclnnes, and Iliana found her breath
catching in her throat. She had seen that smile once before. On the day she had arrived
atDunbar. It had taken her by surprise then and managed to do so again now as she realized
that her husband was truly an attractive man beneath all that grime. Very attractive.

“Mclnnes ends here. Ye're now onDunbarland.”

Iliana took in her husband's grim expression, then turned to peer at their surroundings.

They had dined with the Mclnneses, enjoying far better fare than had yet been served at
Dunbar, then sat on for a while, the women chatting about various things as the men
continued discussing Duncan's plans for his home. Iliana had learned a thing or two about
her husband while listening to the conversation flow back and forth. First, beneath all of
that dirt and gruff behavior, was a very intelligent man. It had become obvious as he
spoke that a lot of the plans he had outlined had been well thought out. It had also
become obvious that he was not simply cheap. At least not when it came to updating and
reinforcing Dunbarkeep. His miserly manner when it came to dressing and feeding his people
was merely a matter of necessity to save the coins he needed to ensure their future.
Something she found herself admiring deeply. He was very disciplined. Far more so than she
herself.

Iliana had also concluded that evening that her husband was very ambitious. She actually
found herself in awe of the grand plans he had forDunbar. Plans he had already set in
motion, she had realized at one point asDuncanhad explained the renovations already
underway. He'd been accomplishing it bit by bit over the years, and now the large dowry
had made it possible for him to do much at once. It seemed that while she had been busy
scrubbing the great hall,Duncanand his men had been working diligently on the moat and
wall. Deepening, expanding, reinforcing...

'Twas a large undertaking, involving heavy work and long hours. This had been something of
a relief to her. It explained the air of weary satisfaction that had hung over him these
last three days, and why he had not pestered her unduly over his husbandly rights. Iliana
had fully expected there to be a nightly battle over the matter, so she had been
surprised, mayhap even a bit insulted, that he had seemed so indifferent to her. He had
not even bothered to come to their room since their wedding night. That had truly annoyed
her at first, for she'd feared that he had turned his attention to one of the village
women.

Iliana was not sure why she was bothered by the idea ofDuncan's taking a mistress. 'Twas
common for husbands to do; besides, she did not want the great, smelly oaf in her own bed.
Still, she had not been pleased at the possibility. In fact, the thought of it had plagued
her, making her most irritable the first morning after he had not joined her in their
chamber. But Ebba had informed her that her husband had spent the night sleeping in his
sister's empty room. Alone. He had done so every night since then, much to her relief.