“I’ll control the rope,” he whispered. “You rappel.”
I hadn’t rappelled much during my training, but Cecil had occasionally had me practice on one of the towers at Ludlow, instructing me on the technique of climbing down a rope while I kept my legs perpendicular to the wall and walked backwards to the bottom.
“Go now.” He hefted me into the window. “The guard will be back in a quarter of an hour.”
I had so little time. As I slipped outside and positioned myself, anxiety pumped through my blood. I held the rope tight and began my backward crawl. Although I wanted to stop and thank Cecil, I didn’t. He wouldn’t want me to waste critical time on sentimentalities. Instead, I concentrated on rappelling as quickly as I could while maintaining my balance. His harness held tight, but the rope burned even through my gauntlet gloves.
Soon enough I left the smooth stone of the castle wall and reached the rocky edge of the cliff. By the light of the moon and stars, I maneuvered through the sharp protruding rocks and brush. As I neared the tree line, I breathed out my relief. If a guard walked past on the wall, I would be hidden from view and safe from any arrows he might shoot. Still, I wouldn’t feel completely safe until my feet were on the ground, and Cecil had pulled up the rope.
As the thick brush and evergreens worked to hide me, they also took away the faint light that had guided my descent. Before I could find sure footing, I felt the rope catch and then tangle in an outcropping of vines. I struggled for a moment, but realized I couldn’t take any more time to free the rope.
I could finish my descent with it tangled, but then Cecil wouldn’t be able to pull the rope back up to hide my escape. Not only would the presence of the rope on the wall put his life in danger, but it would ruin the secretiveness of the mission, for surely my father would deduce that someone had left Wigmore to warn Lord Pitt of the treachery.
I wrenched for another moment, hoping to pull the rope free, but it held fast. In the darkness of the woodland, I glanced down but couldn’t see the ground to gauge how much further I had to go or if the landing was safe. Nevertheless, I knew what I had to do. I needed to cut the rope above the tangle and then drop the rest of the way.
I pulled myself back up, climbing hand over hand. I grunted with the effort, and sweat beaded on my forehead underneath my helmet. Thankfully, I didn’t have to go far before I found the tangle. I unsheathed my dagger and sawed through the rope.
As the last of the hemp strained to hold my weight, I braced myself for the fall and prayed I wouldn’t kill myself in the landing. With a deep breath, I pressed the blade. The rope snapped and sprang upward at the same moment I began my fall.
I attempted to crouch so I would land on my feet and take some of the impact away from the rest of my body. But the ground came too swiftly. I slammed to my back, my head bounced, and my helmet cracked against something hard.
Pain ripped through my body, and then complete darkness took hold and carried me away.
I awoke with a start and sat up only to groan and fall back. I blinked and peered through the branches of the evergreens above me, thankfully shielding me from anyone who might have peered out the south wall tower into the forestland below.
A gentle breeze eased over me, bringing with it the heavy scent of pine and earth. Through the lightly swaying branches overhead, I glimpsed a cloudless blue sky.
For a moment, the silence of the forest and the rustle of the trees brought a sense of peace that made me want to close my eyes and go back to sleep. As my lashes fell, I caught a glimpse of a ray of sunlight breaking through the thick branches.
Sunlight.
My nighttime escape came rushing back, and this time I sat up in a panic. I strained to see past the thick green canopy to the cliff and castle wall far above. The rope was gone. I prayed that meant Cecil had been able to pull it up in time to make his escape.
How long had I been unconscious? What time in the morning was it?
Fighting against the pain ricocheting through my head, I pushed myself to my knees. Nausea rose swiftly and my vision blurred. Underneath my helmet at the back of my head, a warm trail of blood told me I’d sustained a head injury during my fall.
As I forced myself to my feet, I assessed the rest of my body. My left lower arm burned, my hip and thigh were bruised, I’d lost one of my gloves, and my palm was raw from rope burn.
I’d taken serious blows and noted that my head had banged against a log which had likely caused my head injury. But I was alive. If not for my armor, I probably wouldn’t have survived the fall.
As it was, the nausea and dizziness swelled. I removed my helmet just in time and retched into the brush. I didn’t have time to be sick and dizzy. I had to make my way to Lord Pitt’s encampment and warn him to be ready for my father’s probable treachery.
What if I was already too late? What if Lord Pitt had left with a contingency of his men to negotiate? What if even now Isabelle was in the fray of battle and Aldric had been dragged back behind the castle walls where Father could continue to torture him?
A sudden urgency propelled me forward.
Please, God, I prayed, I want to do the right thing this time. I am pledging a loyal heart to You first, to living with honor and integrity, rather than living to please men.
No matter the cost. No matter the outcome. I was shifting my loyalty.
Hunched and dizzy, I tried to get my bearings. And I forced my legs to carry me in the direction I hoped would lead me to Lord Pitt. Desperately, I prayed I hadn’t missed the chance to warn him.
I fought back the pain in my head and arm as I staggered along and stayed under cover of the forest until eventually I made sense of my location. Finally I circled wide so I would be able to approach Lord Pitt from behind and avoid detection from any of Father’s guards who might be surveying the landscape from the castle walls or out on patrol in the surrounding area.
When the forestland gave way to open field, I spotted Lord Pitt’s encampment. I dropped to my belly and began to crawl, shielding my body as best I could behind shrubs. As I drew nearer, I didn’t detect any sounds of battle or fighting. Ahead, I glimpsed some of the knights beginning to mount their horses.
Did that mean I was in time to warn Lord Pitt?
I started to rise, but at the prick of a blade against the exposed back part of my thigh, I froze and hoped my captor was one of Lord Pitt’s knights and not Father’s.
“If you want to keep your leg, then rise slowly and don’t make a sound.”
Chapter
22
I sat upon my steed and watched the iron gate rise. It clanked with an ominous rhythm. For a fleeting second, I considered urging my horse into a gallop the instant we could slide under the gate. But with my hands shackled, I wouldn’t be able to go far, especially since I was surrounded by a contingency of the earl’s knights. With my cuts, bruises, and the broken ribs stabbing me with every breath I took, I wouldn’t be able to fight at my optimum and would be easy prey for recapture.
A short while ago, several guards and Cecil had come to the dungeons for me. When he’d approached Olivia’s cell, I’d made an excuse that she was asleep and not to bother her. He’d watched the darkened corner for a moment as if testing my words.
Then he’d crossed to my cell and tossed me clean garments. Although I was certain he’d helped orchestrate Olivia’s escape, I wasn’t confident that he was truly a friend and not a foe. After all, his cudgel had knocked me unconscious and made me the earl’s prisoner.