Rowan's Lady by Suzan Tisdale Page A

following Rowan,
Daniel or Frederick. Nay, instead, she felt an overwhelming sense of peace. She
would follow that peace and see where it lead her.
    Archie cursed under his breath, doing his best not
to panic. Garrick had refused to let Archie out of his sight for a good hour
after he and Ona had exchanged their vows. He could only surmise Garrick had
done it because he was still angry that Archie had come to Lady Arline’s aid
earlier, had kept him from killing her.
    As soon as Garrick left to enjoy what remained of
his wedding night, Archie slipped away. His plan was simple: he would hide the
child in one of Arline’s trunks. He would lie to anyone who asked, telling them
the trunk was filled with gifts for a nonexistent lass who lived nearby.
    Archie had endeared himself to most of
Blackthorn’s men. None would question him. He would be able to leave, with the
child, and as promised, he would meet Lady Arline before dawn.
    He hadn’t arrived in time.
    The child was gone. The pillow was the only clue
left that someone had taken her. But whom? He knew it hadn’t been Lady Arline,
for the only thing she had on her person when he escorted her out of the keep
was her satchel. The child was far too big to fit inside that.
    Had Garrick ordered someone to take her? Nay, he
doubted that. None of Garrick’s men would have tucked a pillow under the
blankets. If not them, then who?
    He couldn’t very well ask about the castle. To
raise the alarm now would be the same as issuing a death warrant for Lady
Arline. Garrick would call all his men to arms to search for her. There would
be no way to protect her from all of Garrick’s men.
    So he left the keep on horseback not long after
discovering the child was missing. He had to get to Lady Arline. Her safety was
his main priority.
    Soon afterward he had come upon three rider-less
horses that had been left along the side of the road. Bloody hell! Those were
Blackthorn horses, no doubt left by Gunther and whoever else the man had
enticed to help him carry out Garrick’s orders.
    Anger rose as he left his own horse beside the
road and entered the forest. Mayhap they hadn’t killed the lady yet. Either
way, he’d kill any and all who had touched her.
    It was the sound of tree frogs speaking to each
other that first drew his attention. Anyone else may have thought nothing of
the sounds the forest made at night, but Archie could recognize that those
weren’t real tree frogs talking to one another.
    Carefully, he made his way through the dense
woods, listening, praying, hoping he was not too late. Not far from the road,
he found one man dead. A quick inspection told him it was one of Blackthorn’s
men. Had Lady Arline managed to kill him? The man’s throat was sliced so deeply
it nearly decapitated him. Nay, Archie doubted Lady Arline had the strength to do
such a thing. But who?
    He trekked further into the woods, listening to
the tree frogs. They seemed to be coming from the east. Silently, he headed in
that direction, doing his best not to give away his own position. Who knew who
else might be in the woods?
    Very soon, he came upon another dead body, slumped
against a tree. Another of Garrick’s men, stabbed through the gut and his
throat cut. It made the hairs on the back of Archie’s head stand at full
attention. Whoever else was in these woods knew how to kill a man.
    He kept walking, searching, looking for any sign
of Lady Arline. Damn, what he wouldn’t give for a bit of moonlight! Sweat
trickled down his back as he made his way along, ducking under low lying
branches and going around large old trees.
    Soon, he came upon Gunther. A very dead Gunther,
laying on the ground near a row of thick bramble bushes. Like the others, his
throat had been cut. Blood from the gaping wound was still wet. He’d not been
dead long. ’Twas then that he heard the voices.
    Creeping closer, he heard Lady Arline whispering.
She did not sound as though she were distressed. He strained his ears