Champion of the Heart (33 page)

“I’m here to free you,” Jordan said.

***

Jordan stared up the stairs from the bottom of the dungeon, chewing her bottom lip anxiously. Behind her, the guards all still slept soundly.

Beau stood by Pick’s side near Jordan. Scout had her arm around Smithy who was limping badly. Frenchie moved up to Pick, cautiously stepping over one of the snoring guards. “What are we waitin’ for?” he demanded in a harsh whisper.

“You must be careful and watch out for the changing of the gatehouse guards,” Jordan said. “This is all I can do to help you.”

Michael emerged from the darkness, approaching her.

Beau stepped protectively in front of Jordan.

Michael stopped before him, his stare on Jordan. “You have to come with us,” he said.

Shocked, Jordan stared at him. She should go with them. There was only a life she wanted nothing to do with here. Yet how could she abandon the children? She shook her head. “I can’t leave the children,” Jordan answered.

“We can bring them with us,” Michael said hopefully.

Grateful he was treating her as a friend, grateful he was trying to find an answer, Jordan grinned glumly at him. “They can’t live like that. I can’t force them to go back to scrounging for food.”

“When they find out what happened, you’ll be in danger,” Beau said.

Jordan shook her head. “Evan would never hurt me.”

“You don’t know him as well as I do. I remember everything now. I know what he is capable of. Come with us,” Michael encouraged.

Jordan shook her head. “No. You’d best go quickly. You have to get out of the castle before an alarm is sounded.” She glanced at the guards. “You have to go before they wake up. The sleeping potion will wear off soon.”

Beau squeezed her hand as he passed. Frenchie nodded his head. Jordan watched them move up the stairs, regretting with every fiber of her being that she could not join them.

Michael paused before the spiral stairs and looked back at her. “You’re making a mistake about this, Jordan. Fox cares very deeply for you.”

Jordan shook her head, but she felt the tears welling in her eyes. “I know,” she whispered. “I’ll find him as soon as I see the children to safety. I just can’t leave them.”

Michael returned to her. “Let us help you, Jordan. We can see the children to your father’s castle. Surely there they would be safe.”

Castle Ruvane. Yes. Here, she was a prisoner, but in her father’s castle she and her children would be safe.

“Don’t abandon us again,” Michael whispered. “He wouldn’t be able to stand it.”

And neither would she. Jordan nodded.

Michael took her hand, a grin of satisfaction and approval lighting his face.

“The children are in a cottage on Ruvane lands just north of the Mercer border. It shouldn’t take but half a day to get to them if we can find some horses,” Jordan whispered as they moved up the stairs. “We can get the children and then head for Castle Ruvane.”

Michael nodded.

The others had halted at the top of the stairs, and they glanced back as Jordan joined them. She nodded and the group started out of the darkness and down the hallway. Jordan led the way toward the Great Hall and the large double doors leading to the inner courtyard. She would have the stable boy saddle horses for them. Maybe Beau and Pick could help to hurry things along.

She halted as she heard footsteps echoing down the hallway. She moved back a step and bumped into Michael. The footsteps disappeared into an open doorway.

Jordan waited until she heard the door close and then let out a sigh of relief. She urged them on, motioning for Michael to move past her. They all continued forward until they reached the large double doors and freedom, Jordan bringing up the rear. Scout and one of the men slipped out the door, then Beau and Pick and the cook. Then only Michael and her were left in the Great Hall.

“Jordan!”

Jordan froze and looked up. Evan was strolling toward her down the hallway just before the Great Hall. Panic streaked through Jordan. She instinctively stepped forward to greet Evan, hoping to put enough distance between herself and Michael for Evan not to notice him. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Michael ease out the door and disappear.

“What in heaven’s name are doing up so late?” Evan asked.

“I couldn’t sleep,” she answered softly. “I... I was worried.” She continued walking, forcing Evan to turn and follow her, luring him away from the escaped prisoners.

“About what?” Evan wondered.

“Emily,” Jordan said. “She was sick and... well, I just hope she is doing better.”

“I can send a man to check,” Evan offered.

“No!” Jordan said a little too emphatically. “I mean, I’m sure she is all right. I’ll check on her in the morning. I think all I need is an ale.”

Evan nodded. He held out his hand.

Jordan hesitated for a moment. It was almost as good as a shackle. If she took his hand, she sealed her fate, but she ensured the escape of the others. Jordan nodded and placed her hand on Evan’s.

***

Jordan raced into her room. She had sat with Evan for what seemed like an eternity, waiting for a cry of alarm to ring out. But total silence had engulfed them. There were no shouts, no cry of alarm. She hoped Beau and the others had escaped, and something in her heart told her they had gotten away without being detected.

Jordan knew she had to leave Castle Vaughn before Evan discovered the prisoners were gone. But first she had to get the children out of the cottage so they would be safe. Castle Ruvane was her only hope.

She donned a cloak and moved toward the doorway, planning to sneak out of the castle in the middle of the night. She should have felt horrible. She should have felt devious sneaking around like this. But she didn’t. Not when confronted with someone as untrustworthy as Evan.

Jordan stepped out into the corridor, shutting the door quietly behind her. She moved down the corridor to the spiral stairway and descended toward the main hallway.

Outside, thunder rumbled. Jordan paid the weather no heed as she stepped from the stairway into the corridor. She was already formulating the trip to Castle Ruvane. They would ride in the wagon, using her horse to pull it.

For the thousandth time, she wished her father were here. He would see to it she was safe. He would protect the children. But he still might very well take Evan’s side about the marriage.

Jordan moved past the Great Hall quietly, hoping Evan had retired for the night, and toward the large double doors of the castle. She opened the door, pausing to gaze out at the sheets of rain pelting the earth. The storm had arrived so quickly.

“A very nasty night for a stroll, wouldn’t you say?”

Jordan whirled to find Evan standing behind her. Fear gripped her in its taloned fist. For a moment, she couldn’t say anything.

“Tell me why you find it necessary to go out in this horrible weather.”

Jordan straightened slightly. “I was worried about the children.”

“Always the children, isn’t it?” He shook his head and took hold of her arm, pulling her back into the castle. “They are safe.” He closed the door behind her.

Jordan swallowed hard, watching with growing dread as her escape route was cut off. She pulled against Evan’s hold. “You can’t be sure. I –”

“There is another matter I would speak with you about.”

Jordan’s heart hammered in her chest. She allowed him to lead her into the Great Hall, knowing there was no escape.

Evan led her to the hearth. The dancing firelight flickered over her body, but she felt none of its warmth. Evan released her and leaned his arm against the mantel, staring into the fire for a long moment. He reached in and picked up a stick burning on one end. “The prisoners have escaped,” he said quietly.

Jordan waited for the accusations to come, waited for his rage to surface.

“They had an accomplice.”

Was he mocking her? Testing her? “Evan,” she said, taking a step forward. “Why have you felt the need to lie to me all these ten years?” She had to take the opportunity to go on the offensive before he did.

“Lie?” he asked, turning to her. His eyes were strangely alight.

“The letters...” she began.

He rolled his eyes. “We went through all that before.”

“But you never gave me a real answer. Why didn’t you take them to Fox? Why weren’t they sent to the king? They should have known –”

“Known what?” he demanded, stepping toward her with the glowing stick clenched in his hand. “That you were a murderer?”

Jordan gasped. “You read them!”

Evan began to pace. “That you should have been stripped of your title, your lands?” He stopped suddenly. “Never.” He tossed the stick back into the fire. He stared into the fire for a long moment. “Don’t you see, Jordan? I was protecting you. I couldn’t marry some commoner. Some peasant woman.”

“How dare you make that choice for me?”

Evan looked over his shoulder at her. “You were emotional. You were incoherent. You were feeling guilty. I couldn’t let you make that choice. The wrong choice.”

“I asked you to deliver the letters for me. I trusted you to do that.” Jordan stepped away from him. “And you lied to me. I didn’t want to believe it, Evan. I didn’t want to think you would do that. How can I marry you now?”

Evan turned to her, straightening. “You would deny becoming my wife because I didn’t send your letters ten years ago?”

Jordan shook her head. She opened her mouth to reply, but Evan held up his hand.

“Think carefully before you answer,” Evan warned.

Something in his voice was dark and scary.

“The prisoners that escaped... they couldn’t have done it alone. We found some ale the guards drank. It was tainted with some sort of sleeping herb.” Evan lifted his eyes to her. “Do you know what the penalty for aiding criminals is?”

Jordan’s hands clutched together. She swallowed.

“The dungeon,” Evan whispered. “Or possibly death.”

Jordan’s mouth suddenly felt very dry. Death. She lifted her chin slightly.

“You see,” Evan said softly, “even now I protect you.”

“Are you threatening me?” Jordan asked.

“Do I have a reason to threaten you?” Evan wondered.

“Don’t do this, Evan,” Jordan retorted. “You know. You know what happened in the dungeon.”

Evan nodded. “Yes. But no one else needs to know.”

If I marry you, Jordan silently finished the sentence. She had abandoned Fox ten years ago. She would not make that mistake again. She shook her head. “I can’t, Evan,” she said. “I don’t love you.”

Evan’s jaw clenched. He looked at the ceiling, at the hallway, at the Great Hall doors. “I’ve waited for you for ten years.” His fist clenched and unclenched. He took a deep breath. He stared at the ceiling for a long moment before facing her. “I have no doubt the prisoners and the Black Fox will return for vengeance.”

He was acting as though he hadn’t heard her. “Evan –”

Evan’s voice rose to override any interruption from her. “I knew you would be worried about the safety of the children.”

Jordan froze, fear spearing through her body.

“So I took the liberty of seeing them to safety.” He swept his hand toward the door of the Great Hall.

Jordan followed his movement to see all of her children standing forlornly in the doorway of the Great Hall. Two armored guards were standing behind them.

Jordan began to shake. She moved to run to them, but Evan bolted forward, his hand capturing her arm, stilling her movement.

“Again I protect your welfare.”

Jordan pulled her arm free and raced across the Great Hall to her children. “Are you all right? Is everyone all right?’ “ She tried to embrace all of them in a protective hold, but they didn’t fit. She couldn’t hold them all. She couldn’t protect all of them against Evan. She looked into their faces.

They weren’t hurt. Maybe scared, but unharmed.

Jordan pulled Emily into her arms and stood slowly.

“What’s happening, Lady Jordan?” John wondered softly. “Why are we here?”

Jordan turned to face Evan.

A smug, if not somewhat disappointed look washed over his face as he watched the tender scene.

He had her exactly where he wanted.

F
ox sat in the darkness staring at the dark silhouette of Castle Vaughn. He had managed to steal a dagger from one of the guards who had carelessly left it on one of the battlements. Fox flipped the dagger in his hand. It wasn’t much aid to him in helping his friends.