With those cryptic words, he pulled out of my arms and left the dance floor.
Couples twirled around me, my head spinning along with them as I tried to make sense of Jamie’s sudden desertion. Kenna waltzed by, spotted me, and stopped so suddenly that Duncan tripped forward. She grabbed his arm to steady him and then without so much as an explanation, headed in my direction still clutching his sleeve. The poor guy appeared completely dumfounded as he stumbled along behind her.
Just as abruptly, the music came to an unceremonious halt. Jamie stepped up on the bandstand, followed by a young steward carrying the wooden box.
My heart began beating so hard it hurt. Had Jamie been trying to tell me he didn’t choose Sofia? I searched the faces gathered around the stage and found Sofia standing with her sister and a group of friends. She met my eyes across the room and smiled broadly. Was she gloating? Or was there a hint of relief in her grin? I couldn’t be sure.
Jamie cleared his throat and the crowd stilled in anticipation. “Thank you all for comin’ tonight to celebrate this momentous occasion.” Applause erupted, but Jamie raised his hand for silence.
“Never before in Doon’s history have a Coronation and the Centennial occurred on the same day. In an attempt to keep with the tradition o’ the Completing, I will declare my choice of bride this evening. So if she’ll consent to have me”—he quirked an adorable grin amidst laughter and shouts—“this ball will be the celebration of our new queen.” The audience erupted in approval.
He couldn’t mean me.
On the verge of hyperventilating, I began to back my way through the crowd. The old king had been right; the people would never accept an outsider suspected of witchcraft as their queen, especially if they learned I was responsible for bringing the witch’s evil into their land. Before I got far, Kenna squeezed my arm in a death grip. “Where are you going?” she hissed.
I met her eyes and shook my head in denial. Terrified to let myself hope.
“Vee, you need to hear this.” She didn’t let go of me as we both turned back to the stage.
Jamie took an ancient key from his jacket pocket and motioned for the steward to bring the box forward. Silence once again descended as he carefully removed the wax-sealed envelope from the box. “Shall I open it now?”
“Aye!” all of Doon cried in unison.
Pulling a small, jeweled knife from somewhere on his person, Jamie cut the wax seal.
“Sire! Wait!” The cry from the back of the crowd caused Jamie to stop and glance up. To my right, people parted like the Red Sea as a cadaverous Gideon pushed his way to the front. Fear caused the fancy pastries I’d consumed to claw their way back up my throat. I swallowed hard as Kenna squeezed my hand, a slight tremble running through her fingers to mine.
“M’ laird.” Gideon stopped at the edge of the platform to catch his breath. “I have proof!”
Jamie’s face darkened. “Proof o’ what, exactly?”
Duncan and Fergus closed in on either side of Gideon, Duncan’s hand on his sword. But before either of them could stop the captain of the guard, he cried out, “Witchery, kidnapping, and murder.”
The crowd’s reaction was sharp and immediate.
“Silence!” Jamie held up his hand. Although muted, the tension in the room felt palpable. “Gideon, now is no’ the time.”
“I found Roddie and the other missing villagers. I’ve left them in the infirmary,” Gideon said hastily as a collective gasp ripped through the room. “They were near death … bound and gagged near the witch’s cottage.”
Chaos erupted. Shouts of fear and demands for justice mingled with weeping. The people closest to us began to shrink away.