Chapter 19
They took Mason down to the dungeons, of course. Where else would a traitor go?
Skye shivered as they descended slimy, slippery stone steps, down and down until it felt like they were going down into the bowels of the earth.
Ancient stone walls wrapped around them, pressing in to make the space seem smaller.
In places, the ceiling was so low that Evander had to duck his head to pass underneath. Damp and mold flavored the air.
Torches blazed at intervals along the wall, not brightly enough to stave off the worst of the darkness. Something dripped somewhere. Up ahead, she could just make out the silhouette of two men dragging Mason along. Evander strode behind him, his shoulders tense.
This must be a dream. Surely Mason havenae betrayed me.
A coil of unease tightened in her chest. She was not imagining it. It really had been Mason who took her from her room. Was he the one who’d drugged her? And why?
Stay calm, she reminded herself. Ye will get the answers to yer questions soon.
I hope.
Down they went, until abruptly the stairs stopped and they found themselves in a circular room. Barred cell doors branched off the room, and inside, miserable prisoners shifted listlessly.
She’d seen dungeons before, and they were always slimy, vile places.
A dungeon would never be a pleasant place, but at least this one didn’t seem to be a place where prisoners were left to rot.
There was straw on the floor, not entirely rancid.
The cells were clean enough, with buckets at the corner.
Better than nothing.
Mason was marched over to an empty cell and tossed inside. A low stone bench jutted out of a wall, forming a rough bed. There was a thin blanket, a few handfuls of straw, and what appeared to be a flat pillow.
He stood there for a moment, staring at the back wall of the cell. The door was slammed shut and locked behind him.
The guards melted away, leaving Skye standing alone in front of the cell.
No, not quite alone. When she glanced over her shoulder, she could see Evander lurking in the shadows, watching her carefully. Watching Mason.
She cleared her throat. Mason did not respond, not even to flinch.
“Look at me,” she said. “Mason, look at me. Ye owe me that much.”
He turned, slowly and painfully, as if his feet were fixed to the floor and he had to drag them.
She licked her lips, sorting through the questions queuing up in her mind. Which one to ask first?
Start with the simplest.
“Why?” she asked.
Mason flinched, as if the word had been a slap. “Daenae… Daenae ask me that, me Lady. Please.”
“What right do ye have to keep yer secrets? I thought ye loved me like a sister, Mason.”
“I did! I do!”
She gave a short laugh. “Oh, daenae lie. Who’d treat their sister this way? Ye kidnapped me. For a year. And how did I get away from ye? Did ye release me? Nay, that doesnae sound right. Tell me, Mason!”
He flinched, squeezing his eyes shut. “Ye escaped. I forgot to lock the door, just one time. Ye must have tried the doors and windows whenever ye came to.”
She furrowed her brow. “I daenae remember any of that. Because ye kept me drugged, did ye nae?”
Mason swallowed, glancing away. “I fed ye. I brought ye water. I… I cared for ye, I did!”
“Ye drugged me! Kidnapped me! I keep saying that, and ye blink as though it’s nothing. It isnae nothing, Mason. I will never trust anyone again. How can I? I trusted ye, and ye betrayed me in the worst way. The worst way!”
Silence ensued.
Skye was a little horrified to find that she was breathing heavily, her chest heaving, tears pricking at her eyes.
Mason slowly lowered his head, throwing his face into the shadow. She couldn’t read his expression.
Perhaps I daenae want to. Perhaps I no longer care about him or what he thinks.
A shuffling step drew her attention.
Evander took one careful step forward, his eyes fixed on Mason. “Who did ye work with? What were yer reasons?”
Mason swallowed, tilting his head back to stare at the ceiling. She wondered how slimy and cobwebby the ceiling was.
“I have always loved ye like a sister, me Lady,” he said, his voice thick. “I kent that ye didnae truly want to come here. I kent how ye resented this man, and indeed the whole clan. I… I was trying to save ye! From him!” He jerked his chin toward Evander.
“If I hadnae escaped,” Skye whispered, “would I still be there?”
Mason said nothing.
For a moment, they all stood there, staring at each other. Tension thrummed through the room. A wave of nausea hit her.
“Who else kent about this?” Evander asked, his voice low and even.
Mason pressed his lips into a thin line. “It was only me. I took Her Ladyship for the reason I told ye.”
Liar.
The word rang out in Skye’s head like a false note. She glanced over at Evander, whose eyebrows were drawn together.
Footsteps sounded on the stairs. Without conferring, they withdrew toward the steps.
Fergus descended.
“What is it?” Evander asked, his voice low.
“I found the house. The one where…” Fergus faltered, glancing over at Skye. “The one where we thought Lady Bryden was kept.”
Her skin prickled, imagining a shadowy place in the back of her mind, somewhere she’d spent the last year but had no memory of.
“Well?” Evander prompted.
“Abandoned,” Fergus sighed. “There was a bed, a comfortable-looking one, a chair, a fireplace—all signs that somebody lived there for a while. Somebody could have lived there. The paths to and around the house were well-trod.”
“Nae by me,” Skye said instantly. “I believe that I only left that place once.”
“Well, we searched it for clues. There was nothing. At least nothing that I could identify. I’m sorry, me Laird.”
Evander shook his head. “At least we tried.”
“Have ye questioned him?” Fergus jerked his head toward Mason, who was standing silently in his cell, staring at nothing.
“Aye, but he’s given us very little.”
“He’s hiding something,” Skye insisted. “There’s something he’s nae telling us. I think he’s telling me the truth about wanting to… to save me from ye, Evander. But there’s something he’s holding back.”
“I agree,” Evander said grimly.
The trio stood in silence for a moment, absorbing this.
“What now?” Fergus asked, his gaze flicking to Evander. “We can make him tell us.”
Skye stiffened. “Ye cannae mean torture.”
“As a last resort.”
“Nay, nae as any resort! Evander!” She turned pleading eyes on him.
Evander’s jaw was set, his eyes flat and hard.
“Lass, we must get that information out of him one way or another. I daenae believe he worked alone, which means there could be more people out there who wish ye harm. Ye could be in danger still. And his true motivation remains hidden. If he’s willing to cover for his accomplices, even once he has been caught… ”
“I cannae let ye hurt him. He didnae hurt me.”
“That’s nae the point, Skye. This is more serious than ye understand.”
She narrowed her eyes, folding her arms tights cross her chest. “And why would I nae understand how serious this situation is? I’m the one living it, am I nae?”
Evander missed a beat. “Skye, I only meant—”
“I ken what ye meant. Ye want me to be quiet and ease up, because ye think I daenae grasp the seriousness of it all. Well, I’m telling ye that I do, and I still think that ye shouldnae hurt Mason. A person catches more flies with honey than vinegar, after all.”
“Actually, manure is what attracts flies most,” Fergus piped up.
Skye glowered at him.
In the awkward silence that followed, a faint commotion broke out at the top of the stairs. Presumably, Evander had left guards on duty, and they seemed to be arguing with someone.
A woman.
“… needs looking at,” she said, her voice shrill and angry. “Escort me if ye must, but I am going down.”
“That’s Leah,” Skye murmured, frowning. “What is she doing here?”
“The healers are called down to the dungeons if a prisoner needs care, but I daenae recall summoning her,” Evander responded, frowning. He nodded at Fergus. “Bring her down.”
Fergus disappeared and reappeared a few moments later with Leah behind him, gingerly tiptoeing down the slimy steps. She cast a quick, worried glance around the space.
Looking for something, Skye thought impulsively. Or someone.
Leah reached the bottom and squared her shoulders, tightening her jaw. Was it Skye’s imagination, or was she paler than before?
Maybe.
Her gaze flicked briefly over Skye and landed on Evander.
“I heard that Mason was arrested,” she said tightly. “He’s popular in the keep, ye ken. A friend of mine.”
“Are ye here to lecture yer Laird?” Evander grunted.
Leah shook her head tightly. “I’m nae. I’m nae. I only wanted to look him over, to be sure that he isnae…” She paused, just for a breath. “… hurt. Please, me Laird.”
Evander pursed his lips, glancing over at Skye. What he was looking at her for, she couldn’t have said. Permission? No, impossible.
“Very well,” he relented. “But I have to warn ye, Mason is a traitor. He’s done more harm than ye can imagine. Once ye ken the full story, ye willnae side with him.”
“Be that as it may,” Leah responded, seeming to pale further. “I want to take care of him now. Has he been given food? Water?”
“It’ll be brought to him shortly. Follow me to his cell.”
The small procession crossed the dungeon floor once more. Mason hadn’t moved from his stock-still position in the middle of the cell.
“Mason?” Leah whispered, approaching the cell door.
His head shot up, his eyes widening. “Leah? Why are ye here? Ye shouldnae come down here. The air is foul, and—”
“I’m here to look ye over,” she said firmly. “I’ve brought some powder that I can dissolve in water. It’s a strengthening tonic; ye will need it.” She glanced over her shoulder at Evander. “Will ye let me in, me Laird? Please.”
“I will have to lock ye in with him, lass. I cannae leave the door open. We cannae afford for him to escape.”
Leah nodded. “I understand.”
Evander wordlessly unlocked the cell door.
She slipped inside, and the door was closed and duly locked after her. She showed no fear or discomfort at being locked inside.