The Key (8 page)

“Well, lad,” Angus murmured now, “I would see your sister married and bearing ere I die.
'Sides, the contractwas made.”

“Aye, but not fulfilled yet. Mayhap he will break it and Seonaid can marry another.”

Angus Dunbar shook his head mournfully. “Nay. If Sherwell is anything like his father,
he'll not be breaking the contract. He'll have too much honor fer that.”

His father turned and strode away, leavingDuncanstaring after him in amazement. All his
life he had heard about the cheating, lying, sneaky Sherwells. Now his father seemed to be
saying the exact opposite. Damn! Everything in his life seemed to have turned topsy-turvy
just now. Since Iliana's arrival. “There ye be.”

“Aye. Here I be,”Duncansaid dryly as Gilley approached. "And what problem wouldye be
havin' fer

me?"

Gilley raised his eyebrows slightly atDuncan's irritation but merely waved toward the
stables. “ Tis not my problem exactly,” he murmured asDuncanfollowed his gesture to Gavin,
one of his youngest guards, chatting up the stablemaster's daughter. The young man had the
pretty young lass trapped between his arms and the stable wall as he murmured to her.

“Ye'd best be havin' a talk with the lad ere her father catches them.”

“Aye.”Duncansighed as the girl giggled and turned her head away when Gavin tried to kiss
her. “He's been workin' pretty hard at talkin' his way under her skirts.”

“He's been doing a lot more than talkin',” Gilley said dryly. “And if her father catches
him at his tricks, he'll be havin' his head.”

“Hmm,”Duncanmurmured as Gavin ducked in for another try and this time, softened by his
wooing, the girl allowed the kiss. Given the chance,Duncanhad no doubt that young Gavin
would woo his way under her skirt. While that meant he should have a chat with the lad and
remind him of responsibilities, bairns, and not seducing nice young girls, it also started
him to thinking about his wife, and the fact that there was more than one way to filet a
fish.

Mayhap he could seduce her out of her belt, he thought. Recalling her heated response to
him the morning after their wedding gave him hope, andDuncanwas just beginning to grin
over the prospect when Gilley suddenly shifted beside him.

“And there be her da now.”

Putting his thoughts briefly aside,Duncanglanced up as Rabbie came charging around the
side of the stable, toward the young couple. Sighing,Duncanpushed his plans aside and
moved toward the stables. He had things to attend to now. He would consider how to seduce
his wife later.

Iliana stared blearily down at the food before her and tried to open her eyes fully. They
were not following instructions. All they seemed to want to do was close and stay that
way. But she knew she really should eat. She had missed breaking fast that day as well as
lunch, then had worked the day through.She really should have taken the time to eat lunch,
she thought now. Mayhap she would not be so weary now if she had.

She had intended on eating, had even sat down with the others to eat. But then Cook had
approached to murmur that the spice merchant had arrived Nodding, Iliana had ignored her
husband's curious expression and quickly left the table, headed for the kitchens, where
the man was waiting. He was a wiry little man with a wide, cheerful smile and a pleasant
demeanor. Iliana had quite enjoyed dealing with him, despite the speed with which she had
felt forced to do so.

In the twenty short minutes that they had haggled, he had managed to spit out more gossip
than Iliana would have believed possible. From what he had said, nearly everyone
inScotlandwas feuding with everyone else. She was interested to learn that theDunbarswere
currently feuding with the Lindsays, Campbells, MacGregors, and Colquhouns. She now knew
her enemies. But that was all she had been able to keep straight. There were so many clans
feuding with each other, and often for such silly reasons, she hardly believed it. It
seemed that refusing a second serving while dining at another keep could cause a feud.
Hearing that, Iliana had immediately retain the evening before in her mind, wondering if
she had said or done anything while dining at the Mclnnes keep that might have been taken
as an insult. She did not

think she had, but supposed she would find out if the clan came charging across the land.
Other than that, there was nothing she could do about it now.

Iliana had also learned the cloth merchant's schedule from the man, and elicited a promise
that he would mention to the other fellow that there was commerce to be done atDunbar.

Cook had been happy as a pig in mud by the time they were done with the man. It was
obvious that he was now excited at the idea of preparing more interesting fare. He had
chatted away excitedly as he set out some food for the merchant to eat as she had returned
to the great hall. Unfortunately, she had been gone long enough that everyone was rising
to make their way back to work when she returned. Iliana had hesitated, considered
finishing her meal, then shrugged and went back through the kitchen to the gardens. She
had not been all that hungry anyway.

She had worked in the gardens throughout the afternoon, dividing her attention between
what she had been doing and watching the other women as they labored. She had known by the
end of the morning's work that she had hired good workers, and was considering keeping two
or three of them on to work in the castle once the garden was finished. Pondering which
ones she should keep had distracted her throughout the afternoon as she bent to the
backbreaking work of clearing the way for a garden. Distracted as she had been by such
thoughts, and her own anticipation of the first really good meal she had yet been served
in her new home, time had passed swiftly.

Iliana had looked forward to supper all afternoon. With the spices now purchased and
available, she expected it to be quite good. Lunch, as little of it as she had managed,
had already shown a noticeable improvement.Elginhad once again offered a simple fare of
bread and cheese, but this time there had been no sign of mold on the cheese and the bread
had been so fresh it had still retained some heat from the baking. He had also offered
some fresh fruit to add variety.

Her eyelids began to droop again and Iliana concentrated on forcing them open, sighing
wearily at the effort. As much as she had looked forward to it, she had nearly worked her
temporary gang right through the meal. It had taken the cook arriving at her side to
announce that sup was ready for her to realize that the afternoon had flown past. Calling
a halt, she had straightened slowly and frowned over the light-headedness that had
assailed her, then grimaced to herself as various aches and pains followed. Then the
weariness had set in with a vengeance and she had recognized that she might have overdone
it.

Now she sat slumped at the table, a lovely meal of mutton before her, and she too weary to
even raise the food to her mouth. Twas an upsetting turn of events, for she knew Cook was
watching her with distress, eager for a word of praise and fearful of complaint.

Sighing, she tried to push her eyes open again and lifted her dirk to stab at a piece of
meat, grimacing over the aching of her arm. Every muscle in her body seemed sore, tired,
and eager to let her know it, she thought with dismay, tightening her lips and raising the
food to her mouth. She already knew the food was lovely. It smelled so wonderful that it
made her dizzy. Besides, every single person at the three trestle tables were commenting
on its quality.

Angus had taken one bite, closed his eyes, sighed, then turned toElginand shouted, “Damn
me, man! Ye've been aholdin' back all this time! Ye cook like an angel! I'd swear ye had
wings beneath yer plaid had I no witnessed ye swimmin' naked in the loch last month and
seen fer mesel' that ye don't!”

Everyone had backed up the compliment. EvenDuncanhad grunted and managed a reluctant “ 'S
good,” for the man. NowElginstood waiting only for her remark.

Iliana managed to lift her dirk all the way to her mouth, closed her lips around the food,
then dropped her hand with relief and sank back on the bench, releasing an “Mmmm” of
pleasure, aware thatElginwas sagging with relief as she did.

Turning, she forced a smile to her tired lips and murmured “ Tis finer fare than even my
mother's cook has ever supplied. Monsieur Cummin, and that is no small compliment. My
mother is very particular about what is served and went all the way toFranceto bring back
a cook she thought good enough to serve my father.”

The man beamed at that. Grinning and nodding, he finally took his seat at the table and
began to eat. Iliana turned back to her plate with a sigh. Truly, itwas wonderful. She
only wished she could manage to eat, but she very much feared...

A shout of warning from one of the men madeDuncanturn to glance at his wife. He was just
in time to see her drop backward off the bench to land upon the now clean mshes on the
floor.

“Ye've killed her!” Angus Dunbar roared.

Duncanglanced up from exarmning his unconscious wife to see that his father had risen to
his feet and now stood glaring accusingly at the dismayed cook. “Nay, Da. She lives,” he
said quietly. “ 'Sides, we are all eating what she did.”

The old man's gaze moved to Iliana and worry plucked at his brow. “Well then, what the
devil has happened? Is she ill?”

Kneeling at her mistress's other side, Ebba pulled a pinch of some herb from the bag at
her waist. Waving it beneath the unconscious woman's nose, she sighed as Iliana stirred
enough to turn her head away from the annoying smell.

“She's fainted,” the servant announced grimly, lips tightening as she noted that Iliana's
face was flushed. Reaching out, she touched her lady's heated skin.

“Why? What be the matter with the poor lass?” Angus asked gruffly, moving to stand behind
the woman and peer over her shoulder at Iliana's face.

“Work.”

The older man stiffened at that, eyebrows rising. “Work?”

“Aye. Too much work and most like too much sun,” she said accusingly, then turned to glare
at Laird Dunbar. “Lady Iliana has worked herself like a serf since arriving here. First
she was scrubbing, then today she was working in the garden all day, digging and dragging
heavy plants. 'Twas a fair bit sunnier than she is used to just now. And more work than
she is presently used to as well. Add that to the upset of her father's death, her worry
over her mother since then, as well as the added worry of the trip here and” She shrugged
on a sigh. “I should have warned her to take it easier.”

“I noticed she seemed a mite pale when she arrived here. Scrawny, too.”

“Aye, well, let us lock you up in a windowless tower for near a month, and most oft
without food, and we shall see how hale and hearty you look,” Ebba muttered bitterly,
resenting what she considered to be a criticism.

“Locked up?”Duncanfinally spoke, shocked.

Ebba glanced at him then. “Aye, locked up. Tis how Greenweld punished her when he grew
tired of her trying to escape to rescue her mother.”

“Greenweld?” Seonaid niuŸnŸred, not having been privy to all the reasons behind the
marriage. All she had been told was that the king wished the wedding, not the reasons why.

“Her stepda,”Duncantold the girl now, bringing a sneer to Ebba's lips.

“Nay,” she nearly spit the word. “ Tis true Greenweld forced Lady Wildwood to marry him,
but the king will soon have it annulled. 'Tis why he sent Iliana to you. To get her away
from the man so that he would no longer be able to use her safety against her mother. Now
that she is safe, they have no doubt already petitioned for an annulment.”

Sighing, Ebba felt Iliana's face again and frowned. “I am worried that she has had too
much sun. She was ill with it once as a child and has been kept from the sun since. She
got a fair bit of it today. She knows better.”

“She most like did not realize how much she was getting,” Cook murmured, moving to join
them now that Angus no longer blamed him for her condition. “While 'tis true 'twas sunny,
'twas also chill. She would not have noticed the sun so much.”

Angus frowned. “Aye. She is not used to the ways here. We must remember that. Keep an eye
out fer her. Make sure she gets less sun and plenty o' rest.” He glanced at his son
meaningfully as he added that last bit.

Duncanrolled his eyes. While he was glad no one knew that the marriage was not yet
consummated, it was a bit galling to be blamed for her exhaustion when he had not enjoyed
the benefits of it. And it looked as if he would not be enjoying them again tonight. So
much for the seduction he had planned.

“Did she really get locked in the tower fer tryin' to escape?”Elginasked curiously, and
everyone went silent as they awaited the maid's answer.

“Aye. Greenweld is a devil. After forcing Lady Wildwood to many him, he sent Iliana away
to Greenweld keep to use her safety against her mother. Iliana tried to escape almost
right away. She sneaked from her bed, crept to the stables, took a horse, and tried to get
away, but was heard and caught.”

“What happened then?” Angus asked.

“His man, Chisholm, sent word to Lord Greenweld who sent the message back that he had his
permission to beat her should she try it again.”

“And still she tried to escape again?” Seonaid sounded impressed.

“Three times,” Ebba announced with pride. “Each attempt was better planned than the one
before. The last time she made it as far as Wildwood and nearly reached her mother. That
scared Greenweld into having her locked up.”

“Did he harm her?” The question was asked in unison by Duncan, Angus, and Seonaid. Ebba
met their narrowed gazes briefly, then peered down at her mistress. Iliana would not want
her to speak of the beatings she had received. She had too much pride to want anyone's
pity, as much as Ebba felt she deserved it.

“We should put her to bed,” Ebba murmured instead of answering the question.

Duncangrabbed the servant's arm and stared into her face, reading the answer there for
himself. His expression tightening, he released her and bent to pick up his wife, then
carried her toward the stairs. His father followed, fretting like an old woman as he
ordered that she must get more sleep, and take things much more easily.

Iliana opened her eyes, stared at the draperies overhead, then glanced to the side,
eyebrows rising slightly as her gaze fell on her husband's sleeping form. She was in bed.

Frowning, she peered down at herself, eyes widening as she saw that she no longer wore her
gown. Raising the bed linens, she peered down the length of her body and sighed with
relief as she saw that she still wore Francesco's belt, then frowned once more. She did
not recall coming to bed. In truth, she did not much recall the day before at all.

Letting the linen drop back to rest against her skin, she briefly searched her mind for
the memory of how she had gotten there. It was the stiffness in her arm as she raised her
hand to rest it above her head that brought back the memories she sought.

Oh, aye, she had worked in the garden all day. Then at dinner she had sat down to take sup
but had been so stiff and sore that she had barely managed one mouthful of food. Exhausted
and light-headed, she had feared fainting. She must have done so, for the next thing she
recalled was waking up as Ebba undressed her. The woman had shushed her questions and
urged her to sleep as she had gone about the chore, and Iliana had given in to the
instructions.

The next time she had opened them 'twas to find her husband crawling into bed beside her.
Iliana had muttered a complaint at him for disturbing her but managed little more before
dropping off again, only to awake in the wee hours of the morning to the sound of his
cursing. Unable to sleep, he had risen to quit the room, had tripped over one of her
chests, lost his bearings, and was having difficulty finding the door. She had listened to
him curse and stumble out of the room, then dropped off again, only to later be awoken by
his return as he muttered and cursed his way out of his clothes and back into bed.

The distinct odor of ale had reached her as he had shifted restlessly about. It was not
surprising really; Duncanever seemed to reek of the stuff. His plaid carried the scent
like the clouds carried rain. Still, the smell had been fresh on him last night, and she
was sure he had slipped below for a tankard or two. Probably to help him sleep, she had
decided, and pretended to be asleep, ignoring the way he had tossed and turned beside her.

She had nearly drifted off again when he was suddenly out of bed once more, dressing
himself and making his way from the room. And so the night had passed for her with her
husband up and down, in bed and out. He could not have slept long.

That thought in mind, Iliana eased carefully out of bed now, not wishing to disturb him.
Grimacing at her aching body, she was as quick as she could manage about her ablutions in
the early morning chill of the room.

She tended to her more personal needs first, careful to be sureDuncanwas sleeping before
seeking out the key to Francesco's belt. After the difficulty she'd had fetching it from
the bed drapes the first morning, Iliana had taken to hiding the key between the upper
mattress of feathers and the lower one of straw. Now she sought it out and undid the belt,
sighing in relief as the cool air hit her skin.

It was with some regret that she replaced it moments later and returned the key to its
hiding place. Iliana had started to straighten from the foot of the bed when she suddenly
paused to take it back out. 'Twas not really a very good place to hide it, she thought
suddenly. She had always found that the best place to hide something was in plain sight.
That being the case, she cast a swift glance at her husband, then quickly and quietly slid
the key onto the ring of keys Laird Angus had given her the day before.

Smiling in satisfaction, she moved silently to the door and eased it open, grimacing over
the squeaking it immediately set up. A glance at her husband showed him stirring and
starting to roll onto his back. Iliana crept quickly out into the hall and tugged the door
closed once more. His exclamation as he realized that the bed was empty beside him brought
a grimace to her face.

Sighing, she shrugged and started down the hall. She had done her best not to wake him,
she reassured herself, then pasted a smile on her face as she spotted Laird Angus stepping
from his room near the top of the stairs.

“Good morn, my lord.” Angus whirled, eyes widening when he spotted her. “Yer awake!”
“Aye.” She raised an eyebrow at his surprise. “Ye should be resting, lass,” he told her,
frowning now. “We would not have ye ill.”

Smiling slightly at his concerns, Iliana slid her hand through his arm as they moved to
the stairs and started down them. “Thank you, my lord. But I feel quite well now. A bit
stiff perhaps, but much better than yester eve.”

“Ye slept well?” he asked, still looking worried, and Iliana nodded.

“Aye... Well, for the most part,” she added wryly as she recalledDuncan's restlessness. “I
fear my husband had an excess of energy last night.”

His eyes narrowed at once. “He woke ye up last eve?”

“Aye,” she murmured, then seeing the anger begin to cloud his face added quickly, “I do
not think 'twas deliberate. In fact, I know 'twas not. As exhausted as I was, 'tis sure I
am I would not have awoken at all but for the fact that he could not find the entrance in
the dark.”

“Could not find...?”

“Aye. But then there was all that in and out, in and out...” She shook her head as they
reached the bottom of the stairs. "It fair made me dizzy. Oh, my! There isElgin. I must
apologize for dinner last eve

and assure him 'twas good. Excuse me.“ Angus was gaping after her when he heard a footstep
behind him. ”Morning, Da.“ Whirling, he took in the exhaustion on his son's face with
disgust. ”A wee bit tired this mom, are ye?“ Duncan's eyebrows rose at the sarcasm behind
the question, but nodded. ”I was up most o' the night."

“Aye. Iliana told me, ye randy bastard,” he snapped sharply. “As exhausted as she was,
could ye not let her be for one wee night?” On that note, he whirled away and stomped
across the great hall to the trestle tables, leavingDuncanstaring after him in
bewilderment.

“Me lady!”Elgineyed her with some concern as Iliana approached. “Are ye feeling a'right
this mom? Mayhap ye shouldna be up.”

“Thank you for your concern,Elgin, but I am fine. 'Twas just exhausted I was yester eve. I
feel much better now,” she assured him, then offered an apologetic smile. “Actually, I am
more concerned now with you and your feelings.”

“My feelings?” He appeared surprised.

“Aye. You made one of the finest meals it has been my pleasure to sit down to and I fear I
made a poor show of appreciating it.”

“Oh.” He flushed with pleasure but shook his head. “There is no need to worry, me lady. I
understood.”

"Nay. You worked very hard on the meal,

Elgin, and it was lovely. In fact, I am now quite looking forward to this evening's
efforts. If they are half as good, 'twill be a great success."

“Thank ye, me lady. Tis kind ofye to say so.” He hesitated briefly, then added, “Me lady,
I did wonder if...”

Iliana raised her eyebrows at his hesitation, then prompted. “Aye?”

“Well...” He glanced down at his plaid, scratching absently at one of the many stains on
it, then sighed. “Ebba was a'talkin' yesterday about yer mother's cook, and she was sayin'
that he had a... er... fine hat and an apron that helped to keep his clothes clean, and I
was awonderin'”

“You need not say another word,” Iliana assured him, noting for the first time that his
plaid was so speckled with food that 'twas difficult to tell what colors had originally
been used in the pattern. “We will purchase material to make a proper apron from the
merchant as soon as he arrives. In the meantime, mayhap we can find something suitable.”
Her gaze slid to the bloodstained bed linen hanging from the railing at the top of the
stairs as she spoke and she grimaced. It had hung there since the wedding and she would be
more than happy to have an excuse to remove it. Cutting out the stain, cutting up the
rest, and making an apron out of it for the cook was as good an excuse as any.

“Aye,” she said Determinedly. “We shall find something suitable this very day.”

“Thank ye, me lady.”Elgingrinned widely, then began backing toward the kitchen door. “Now
ye best be settin' yerself down an' I'll bring ye some nice pasties. Ye need to be keepin'
yer strength up.”

Smiling, Iliana moved to take her place at the table, her mind distracted by a new worry.
The state of Elgin's plaid had reminded her of her plan to see to new plaids for everyone.
She had spent very few of the coins her parents had put in her chests on the spices and
now had every intention of using what was left on ensuring that her people were garbed in
a fitting manner.