Page 60 of Highland Jewel
He wanted desperately to go to her. “Maisie!” She shouldn’t see this. He didn’t want her to suffer whatever these men were going to do to him.
Blair’s forearm struck him like a hammer, stunning Niall momentarily. He wasn’t about to fight back or struggle against them. The Highlander had a grip on his coat, and Niall raised his hands as the man continued to move him toward the wall. Directly behind Blair, Searc had a pistol pointed at him.
“Niall!” Maisie cried out again.
Her face was flushed, distraught, and she was trying to move toward him. They were holding her back. Finding her here wasn’t part of his plans.
Isabella dragged her back toward the door. He backed up of his own accord until he hit the wall. Blair jammed his forearm across Niall’s throat, pinning him there.
“Not in front of Maisie,” he growled at Searc through gritted teeth. “Take her out. Believe me, I mean no harm.”
A moment later, Isabella had succeeded in pulling Maisie out of the study, and the door was shut.
Searc motioned to Blair. “Take him out. Lock him in the dungeon for now.” He glanced at Niall’s travel companions. “We’ll talk to these two first.”
Unto His Majesty the King
From the hand of The Right Honorable, The Viscount Sidmouth
Sir,
My humblest apologies for appearing to be unresponsive to your deeply felt and appropriate concerns for your position and honor. Please be assured, sir, that I hold your interests dearer to my heart than my own. All of us are well aware of the growing civil unrest that has been occurring, and the Home Office is taking steps to rectify the situation. We share your growing apprehension regarding the matter of the “son of Scotland,” and we are taking steps to resolve that matter.
Sir Rupert Burney has been dispatched to Inverness to take charge of affairs there. Please be assured that we are determined that the meeting will not occur, and the rebel threat will be eradicated, whatever the cost.
I shall keep you immediately informed of further developments.
I remain, Sir,
Your Most Obedient Servant
CHAPTER22
Niall wasn’t fighting them. He was taking the blows. The look of betrayal on his face for what she’d done nearly killed her.
“No! Don’t hurt him.” She tried to reach him, but someone grabbed her from behind, holding her back.
“Maisie!” His shout rang out as another blow fell.
Pain and misgivings flooded her brain. Perhaps she’d acted before thinking it through. Perhaps she’d made a false assumption.
It was too late. She should have somehow waited. Asked him to explain. Now the damage was done.
“Niall!” A heartbroken sob escaped her lips, and Maisie was pulled from the room. “No, please. Let me talk to him. Please.”
What had she done? The Mackintoshes would surely hurt him. Perhaps kill him. They’d give him no chance to explain.
Maisie had seen how these men watched over their own. In this fierce place, they were proud masters. Violence was a way of life here, and she’d seen their toughways. When she’d been hiding with Morrigan in Inverness, waiting for John Gordon and Isabella, a band of Mackintosh riders had arrived at their door and given them no choice. The men were firm, and they were soon on their way into the mountains, to Dalmigavie. Since then, she and Morrigan, as well as Isabella and Cinaed, had been protected with care and vigilance. That was their way.
But Niall was now the enemy. How could she do this to him?
“Stop! I need to go back there. I think I made a mistake.”
Isabella had her arm around her, pulling her into the darkness of the chapel near the laird’s study. The heavy oak door swung shut with a bang, and Maisie felt the vibration in her bones.
“He’s a good man. An honorable man. They don’t know him. God, I did this all wrong. I keep hurting the people I love. I should have explained.” She’d done it to Fiona. She was responsible for what had happened to her friend. And now, she’d done it to Niall. She’d spoken rashly, prematurely. She knew nothing of what he’d gone through since the last time they were together. “I just was worried, and now… let me go back. I should have said more. There is so much that I should have said in his defense.”
Maisie tried to pull open the door, but Isabella pressed her back against it, stopping her.
