“Don’t worry, miss, there’s another way if you want to leave incognito. I’d do the same after the snubbing you got earlier.”
He seemed to have read my mind. “Oh, Peter, that would be wonderful!”
“This way, then, if you will.” We walked the short distance to the same metal door that Cate and I had come through several nights before. Lifting a thick iron bar, Peter opened the door and stepped out with me onto the road. “Go up that way,” he said, pointing to my left. “Stay to the road. It will curve around to the main gate where you can hire a sedan chair to take you home. The road’s safe enough, but I can find a lad if you’re worried about walking alone.”
“Please, don’t trouble yourself. I really don’t mind the dark.” I gave him my sweetest smile. “Thank you, Peter.”
“My pleasure, miss. Any friend of Lady Dinley’s is a friend of mine.” He saluted, then stepped back into the courtyard and closed the door.
The light from the lanterns vanished, leaving me alone in the darkness. Wasting no time, I lifted my skirts and started along the road, the palace wall on one side and what appeared to be dense woodland on the other. I generally didn’t fear the dark, but no sooner had I gone ten steps than a sense of unease settled in my stomach. The short hairs stood up on my nape, and I quickened my pace, throwing furtive looks toward the woods.
Hell and furies! When had I become such a sniveling coward?
The air felt much colder outside the palace grounds. I shivered, my trepidation growing with every step. The woods were eerily silent, yet I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was not alone. The feeling was so strong, I half expected to see bulky shadows emerging from the trees and underbrush when I turned to get a better look. Rather than shadows, the slightest movement caught my eye, a flicker of white against the darkness, there one moment, then gone. My feet came to a dead stop. I strained my ears, but could hear nothing over the violent thumping of my own heart.
Ice ran along my spine. Trembling, I backed up a step, my hands clenched around two large handfuls of silk. Every muscle taut, I continued this way, unwilling to take my eyes from the woods for even a moment.
A stick snapped in the undergrowth. The sound spun me around, sent me bolting forward, my feet pounding against the compacted dirt. The road curved ahead, and I knew the main gate couldn’t be much farther.
A low rumbling noise came through the night. At first I thought it was thunder, but the noise grew louder and took on physical form as a carriage careened around the corner. It headed straight toward me, lamps lit on either side of the driver who was frantically whipping the horses to greater speed. Merciful God! I’m saved...
Branches cracked and snapped in the woods, a chaotic, terrifying sound that froze me to the bone. I jerked my head around, gasping as an enormous, white hound crashed out of the brush onto the road behind me, its lithe body still for a split second before taking off in pursuit. Shaking with fear, I forced my feet to keep moving, to run as though the devil were after me.
The carriage lurched to a stop and the door swung open. The hound was right behind me. Lunging, its teeth snagged the hem of my dress. The material ripped, and I stumbled straight into Cate. Grabbing my shoulders, she pushed me behind her, placing herself directly in the hound’s path.
No! I tried to scream. It will kill you!
The hound yelped only once. I turned and saw Cate standing over its pale, lifeless form.
“Tá an cailín mianach,” she hissed. “Fill ar ais le do mháistir, cú an bháis.”
I stared at her, the Gaelic words slowly taking shape in my head.
The girl is mine. Return to your master, hound of death.
Chapter Ten
Indifference
My lungs burned from running. I needed air to slow the rapid rise and fall of my chest. Near to fainting, I leaned against the carriage for support, my eyes fixed on Cate’s back. She stood over the hound, watching as the blue flames engulfed the enormous body. It was gone in a matter of seconds, reduced to a pile of white ash.
Return to you master, hound of death.
“Well, that’s that,” Cate said, brushing her hands together as she turned to face me. “The next rainfall will take care of the rest. Shall we go?”
I couldn’t speak. The shock had stolen my words, paralyzed my mouth. Swaying slightly, I pressed myself harder against the carriage.