The Renegade's Heart by Claire Delacroix Page B

the relics, surely he would secure them there, where
none other than he and Anthony went. Even if he held that trunk in
trust for Ross, perhaps unaware of its contents, it might well be
there.
    Isabella returned the missives to the trunk,
ensuring that all looked undisturbed. She went to the door again,
pressing her ear against the portal to listen.
    Silence.
    It would not last in this hall.
    Isabella had to seize opportunity when she
found it.
     
    * * *
     
    It was cursed cold in the treasury, even
though the windows were barricaded against the wind. Isabella
couldn’t recall there ever having been a fire set in a brazier in
this room, and she swore there was frost on the lock.
    It was shadowed, as well. Though there were
three large window openings, they had been barricaded with wooden
planks and little light was admitted to the chamber as a result.
Isabella supposed the wood might block other things, as well. Snow
and rain, not to mention the Fae who were supposed to come through
one of them. Vivienne had adored that old tale of the one window in
this chamber being a portal to the realm of the Fae.
    She did not dare fetch a lantern and risk
discovery, much less waste the time. Fortunately, her eyes were
adjusting to the shadows. The treasury appeared to be fairly well
organized, likely the labor of Anthony. Chests of coin were stacked
to one side, gold sorted from silver, the chests clearly old
themselves. Much of this Isabella remembered as Eleanor’s
inheritance and she knew it was not relevant to her
investigation.
    Isabella moved into the room and stirred a
cloud of dust from the floor. It swirled around her and tickled her
nose, though she fought the urge to sneeze. She moved through the
room as quickly as possible, her nose twitching as she looked.
There was an assortment of goblets and platters, all of which
needed to be polished, but most of which were pieces Isabella
recalled from her childhood. She found a small box containing
jewelry her mother had worn, touched the pearls with a fingertip
and replaced the box in its place with care. There were some
lengths of fine cloth, all wrapped with care and set against the
wall farthest from the barricaded windows.
    Beyond that, there was only a small
collection of trunks that held potential. Not a one of them looked
like the one Ross had possessed in December. Several of the missing
relics had been in jeweled reliquaries, including the one Murdoch
sought. Isabella was certain she could spot any of the items on her
mental list. She crouched down before the trunks and began to
examine their contents. Flipping the lids open launched more clouds
of dust and she held her breath as she worked.
    In the end, the only thing that gave Isabella
pause in her hunt was a collection of teeth secured in a small
velvet sack. For a moment, she’d believed she’d discovered a relic
of import, until she unfurled the note also tucked into the
sack.
    It was a list of the names of her and her
siblings, in their mother’s hand. There were dates beside each
name. Isabella realized with surprise that she held the baby teeth
of herself and her siblings. She grimaced and put them back in the
sack, securing them in their hiding place once more. She surveyed
the treasury one last time and knew there was nothing to be
found.
    If the thief was at Kinfairlie, he or she was
more clever than this. Where else could items of value be
secured?
    The crypt in Kinfairlie’s chapel.
    Isabella moved too quickly across the room in
her haste and kicked up another cloud of dust. This time, she could
not help but sneeze.
    And sneeze three times in succession.
    She held her breath, her heart pounding. It
was then that she heard a stair outside the door squeak in
complaint.
    “For the love of God! Where is that girl?”
Moira muttered and Isabella knew she would soon be discovered. The
stairs creaked as the maid climbed to the third floor. “My lady
waits for her embroidery and she waits for no good reason!