A Sword Upon the Rose

“Do you? Did you look at the water? Reflect upon it? Pray?”

“Yes, my lord, I did.”

He studied her closely. “Your father has never spoken of you. I had heard years ago about his affair with your mother, and that a daughter had been conceived. But I had truly forgotten your existence, until Duncan brought you here. Would it inspire you if I told you I am eager to help you now that you have my protection?”

Alana somehow smiled, stiff with tension. She was no fool. If she pleased him and had a vision as he wished, he would be helpful to her—he would find her a husband. “I am already inspired, my lord,” she said, when the opposite was true.

“You should be married, with a manor of your own.”

“No man will have me.”

“They will if I say so,” Buchan said.

Alana could not look away.

“Do you wish for a husband? A home of your own? Children?”

She could only recall Godfrey’s bullying and Duncan’s arrogance and advances—and Iain’s courage in the battle for Boath Manor. She suddenly looked at him. “Brodie Castle is my home.”

“Of course it is. Clearly, you are attached. You do know it would not be out of the question to return it to you.”

Alana gasped.

“Would that please you?” he asked.

She knew she was being played and manipulated. But dear God, it would be a dream come true, to have Brodie returned to her. It would be just.

“I see you would wish, very much, to be the lady of Brodie,” he said softly.

Oh, God, she thought, if only I could have a vision—one that will please him! “Yes,” she whispered. “Yes, it would please me so much.” From the corner of her eye, she saw Duncan, who was in shock.

But he did not need Brodie! He had two manors and an estate!

Buchan leaned close. “Bruce murdered my cousin,” he said to her, more softly. “He stole the throne, and even my wife. And now he rapes and plunders Buchan lands. He has destroyed Inverlochy, Urquhart and Inverness.”

Unable to look away, she trembled.

“Will he march on Nairn? Will he march on Elgin, on Banf? Will we defeat him? Will I?”

He was asking for so much! “It is hard enough,” she said, low, “seeking out a vision, much less requiring a specific one to occur.”

He patted her hand. “But you are a Comyn. You are your father’s daughter as much as your mother’s. As a Comyn, you must do your duty to me and mine.”

“I want to do my duty,” she cried. And it was true. Never mind that she had not been raised as a Comyn, or that the entire Comyn family had never considered her one of them, now she wanted nothing more than to have the vision he wished for.

“Good.” He picked up his knife and fork and began to eat.

Alana did not move. Although she had never given any thought to her future, not as a man’s wife, not as a child’s mother, tears arose. Was it possible that she might one day have a husband, children—a family?

“You are not eating,” Buchan said.

Alana was jerked out of her hopes and dreams. She smiled at him, and picked up her utensils. Dutifully, she began to eat.

CHAPTER FOUR (#ulink_219f756b-191a-55bd-928e-772044409aef)

THE MEN WERE leaving the table. Alana made no move to get up, as Eleanor had joined them, but they had had no chance to speak privately yet. “My lord?” she called to Buchan’s back.

In the doorway, the earl turned.

“Dare I ask you about my father?” She trembled as she spoke. She had not heard Sir Alexander mentioned, not even once.

Buchan returned to her. “Your father was on his way here, Alana, but I sent him a missive ordering him to remain in the south—to hold the line against Bruce if Bruce marches north toward Nairn or Elgin.”

Her mind raced. Didn’t Iain always lead Bruce’s army? Would Iain’s army clash with her father’s?

“You seem dismayed,” Buchan said.

She forced a smile. “I was hoping to see him. It has been many years.”

“I am sure you will see Sir Alexander, in time. I will let you know when he is on his way to Nairn.” Buchan turned to go.

“My lord? Could I visit with my grandmother, just for a bit?”

He glanced at her. “You may have a few minutes, Alana, but then I wish for you to return to your chamber and seek out a vision for me.” He left with Duncan and the other men.

Alana stared after him. So that was how it was to be? She would now spend her days closeted in her chamber with a bowl of water? And would she only be allowed a brief moment with her grandmother—her best friend, her closest confidante?

And her father was not on his way to Nairn.

Eleanor took her hand. “Alana?”

She stole a quick glance at the door, but the men were gone. Only a single knight remained—the English knight who had been outside her door since the previous day. Clearly, Sir John was now her guard. “I am fine—but I have not had a vision.”

Eleanor squeezed her hand. “I have been so worried about you! He is keeping you locked up with that glass of water.... Shame on him, to use and abuse you so!”

“Gran! Hush! We must not speak ill of the earl!” Alana shot a glance at Sir John, who was listening to their every word. She flushed, as he did not try to conceal his interest. Although it was not quite true, she said, “I do not feel exactly like a captive, Gran. I think he believes that solitude will aid me in my quest for a vision. I so want to help. He is my uncle.” She pulled her grandmother toward the hearth, farther from Sir John.

She realized she was defending her uncle—and that she wanted to defend him. Was it not inexplicable? Yet he had treated her far better than anyone in the Comyn family had ever done. She did not need a guard—she would obey him if he merely asked. Surely, she was not a prisoner.

“I do not recognize the earl anymore,” Eleanor said. “The young man I once liked has grown up into a ruthlessly ambitious man.”

“He has been kind to me,” Alana began.

“Oh, child! He is tossing you crumbs, and you devour them as if they are an entire loaf! The earl is using you for his own ends. He does not care that you are his niece.”

How her grandmother’s words hurt—and how they rang true. Alana refused to listen to her now. “He has suggested he will return Brodie Castle to me if I please him with a vision.”

Eleanor cried out. She finally said, “And what if your vision is not what he expects? What if the future is not to his liking?”