Shadow Music by Julie Garwood Page A

atrocity, but Liam wasn’t much help.
    “Do you remember being taken to the abbey?” he asked.
    “No, but I remember waking up there. I was in a little room. Two priests were with me. One was a healer, and the other wore his stole and prayed over me. I think he thought I was dying.”
    “Who were these priests?” Braeden asked.
    “Father Franklin was the healer. I asked him how I’d gotten there, and he said he didn’t know.”
    “Did you believe him?” Colm asked.
    “Yes, I did, after he explained. He told me that Father Gelroy came to him and asked him for his help.
    Gelroy was the priest praying over me,” he added.
    “And Father Franklin wasn’t curious to know how you’d gotten there?” Brodick asked.
    “Aye, he was curious. He asked me how I’d been injured, and I told him I couldn’t remember. I heard him ask Gelroy the same question, and Gelroy told him it was best if he didn’t know the details.”
    “What about this priest Gelroy? What did he tell you?”
    “He said he was outside unloading a wagon of grain when he happened to look up, and there I was.”
    “There you were? That’s it? No one was with you?” Colm asked.
    “I asked Gelroy that very question, and he couldn’t give me an exact answer. When I asked him to explain what he meant, he said that he couldn’t say yes and he couldn’t say no.”
    “He speaks in riddles,” Colm snapped.
    Liam tried to stand. Bracing his hand against the rock, he made it to his knees before falling back.
    Cursing his weakness, he rested another moment before trying again.
    “This priest Gelroy will not speak in riddles to me,” Colm said. “He will tell me what I wish to know.”
    “Colm, you need to understand. Gelroy sought to protect me. He was concerned that whoever had injured me might come inside the abbey—”
    “To kill you.” Brodick nodded as he finished Liam’s thought.
    “Yes,” he said. “Gelroy believed that the demons, as he called the men who attacked me, would not respect sanctuary. He and Franklin agreed to keep my presence secret as a safety measure until you arrived, Colm, but there was a problem. The two of them could not stand guard over me day and night without raising suspicion, and neither would be very effective against an intruder.”
    “And how was this problem solved?” Colm asked.
    “Gelroy enlisted the help of a few good men he knew to protect me while I slept. He explained to me that he wanted men who understood the ways of fighting.”

    “Priests would have no such training,” Braeden interjected.
    “No, they wouldn’t,” Colm agreed.
    He stopped pacing in front of his brother. “Who did this priest find to watch over you?”
    “He asked soldiers who were there for Laird Monroe’s wedding.”
    “What clan were these men from?” Brodick asked.
    Before Liam could answer, Colm asked, “Were these men Highlanders?”
    “No, they were not, but Gelroy trusted them completely.”
    “Then they had to be Highlanders,” Brodick reasoned.
    All of the warriors listening to the conversation immediately nodded their agreement. Only Highlanders were to be trusted, and even then with caution.
    “I’m telling you they were not Highlanders. I don’t know where they came from, but Gelroy must have known them well to trust them.”
    Colm knew he had to hurry with his questions, for he wanted to get as much information as he could from his weary brother before exhaustion caught up with him. Liam was already drowsy. He could barely keep his eyes open, and he was having trouble concentrating.
    “How many were there?” he asked.
    “How many what?” Liam asked wearily.
    Colm held his patience. “Soldiers, Liam. How many soldiers watched over you?”
    “Four. There were always two either inside the room with me or just outside my door.” Brodick glanced at Colm when he asked, “And these men carried weapons?” Liam actually smiled. “No, they did not.”
    “The question amuses you?” Brodick asked,