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she would even think Lucais was capable of such crimes and another telling her not to be a fool, that it was something she could not ignore. Edina rubbed her forehead as she struggled to decide what, if anything, she should do. It was hard to decide when she did not even want to believe it.
    Slowly, she sat up, then stood up. What she needed was more knowledge, knowledge about Lucais and about Dunmor and its people. Edina knew the people of Dunmor would never say anything bad about the laird, but what they said could still help her. She could learn about Lucais’s past, about his likes and dislikes, and even about his character by weeding through the things his own people said about him. It was time to stop just standing guard over Malcolm and take an active part in finding out exactly who wanted the child dead. The moment Mary returned, Edina was determined to go and search out a few truths.
     
    It was late before Edina returned to her bedchamber. For the first time since she had arrived at Dunmor she had taken her evening meal in the great hall. Her intention had been to study further the laird and his people. Instead, she had spent most of the meal torn between desire and annoyance over Lucais’s blatant attempts to seduce her. She had wavered between saying yes and wanting to scream at him to stop tormenting her.
    Mary helped her undress, don one of Lucais’s late mother’s nightgowns, and wash. After kissing little Malcolm good night, Edina crawled into bed feeling utterly exhausted even though she had done little more than talk to people. As she listened to Mary settle down to sleep in the little alcove near the fireplace, Edina tried to sort out her confused thoughts.
    She had learned nothing bad about Lucais, which did not really surprise her, but it promised to make it more difficult to come to any decision. Simon was loathed by everyone, but that was not really enough to condemn him either. Everyone at Dunmor thought the man guilty of murder, although no one had mentioned any real proof that the man had actually done the killings. If there was some clue that had set Lucais on the man’s trail, most of the people of Dunmor did not know what it was.
    It all left her very confused. She was not sure what part of her she should listen to—her heart, her mind, or her instincts. The fact that she desired Lucais made her unwilling to fully trust anything except her mind, and it did not hold enough facts to make a decision.
    There were a few things in Lucais’s favor, although they were not hard, cold facts. Gar trusted the man. She simply could not bring herself to fear him. If Lucais was the murderer, then why had he done nothing to hurt her? Why had he even allowed her to come to Dunmor and keep Malcolm by her side? If there was something suspicious about all of that, she could not think what it was.
    What she needed, she mused as she snuggled down beneath the covers, pausing only to pat Gar on the head before he lay down on the floor by the bed, was one strong piece of proof. She needed some act, some word, or some fact that would clear her mind of all doubt about Lucais. It had to come soon too, for instinct told her that this peace could not last much longer. No one questioned that Malcolm’s life was in danger and whoever wanted to kill the child would try again. Edina desperately hoped that she would know exactly who that person was before the next attack came.

Chapter 4
    Malcolm giggled as she stood over him and shook the water from her hair. Edina could not believe she had been allowed outside the walls of Dunmor with the child, but she was not about to question her good fortune too loudly or it could disappear. It was always possible that after staying at Dunmor for two weeks, people had begun to trust her.
    “Gar, get back here,” she called, and sighed as the dog disappeared into the trees on the far side of the brook she had been splashing in.
    As she dressed she decided she needed to have a stern