Sixteen
As the days grew shorter in early November, the Highlands became unusually cold and the winds howled from the northwest, occasionally bringing snow. Katherine envied Niall, who could to stay away from the keep for most of the daylight hours, limiting his exposure to the ever present Eithne. When she could leave the keep to visit an ailing villager, Katherine relished her time away, but it came at a price. On her return she faced disgruntled staff and an even more caustic than usual mother-in-law.
As Niall had instructed, and to Tomas’ delight, each day a different guardsman had the responsibility of keeping Tomas well clear of Eithne. Each of them had different talents, interests, and stories, so Tomas always had fresh entertainment. To Katherine’s amusement, so did the rest of Duncurra. This was especially true on “Turcuil days,” as Tomas called them. Turcuil could strike terror into the hearts of lesser men with a simple scowl, but Tomas adored him. On “Turcuil days” he learned to wrestle and spar with a wooden sword. He also rode all over Duncurra on the shoulders of a bear, or a dragon, or whatever beast Tomas wanted Turcuil to be.
This alone provided rich entertainment for those witnessing it, but the real show came when the weather was bad or some other reason forced them to stay in the keep. Katherine finally saw why Fingal first described him as a changling, because on those days it was impossible for Turcuil to avoid Edna. Fingal and Niall hadn’t exaggerated.When Edna entered a room, Turcuil watched her like a smitten puppy becoming absolutely tongue-tied if forced to speak to her. When she spoke to him, he turned several shades of red and mumbled or grunted something unintelligible.
After several “Turcuil days,” Katherine realized the rest of the castle staff actually enjoyed the sport of “Turcuil baiting” and created opportunities to engage in it. One morning Katherine heard Bridie say, “Edna, I’m just taking some sweet buns out of the ovens, go tell Turcuil to bring Tomas to the kitchen.” But then Bridie followed her to the door of the great hall, with a grin on her face, to watch the show. Katherine mistakenly thought his fellow guardsmen might have more pity for him, but if anything they relished “Turcuil baiting” more than the castle staff. Whenever possible, the men created errands forcing Turcuil to cross paths with Edna simply for the sport of it.
It was obvious that everyone watching found the whole comedy even more amusing because while Turcuil clearly adored Edna, she seemed sublimely unaware of his affection for her. Perhaps because of this, Edna treated him with the same terse efficiency she did everyone else, and the inexplicably shy giant could not push beyond her brusque demeanor.
Katherine supposed she really shouldn’t interfere, but she liked both of them immensely. Not only did she hate to see Turcuil suffer, but she also believed Edna might welcome his affection if she knew about it. Edna had been a widow for a number of years, and even with two children and a castle full of people, Katherine frequently thought she seemed very lonely. Armed with this knowledge, Katherine decided to give the oblivious woman a little push if she had the chance to do so.
Such an occasion did arise one day when Edna planned to visit the cooper. Seeing the opportunity, Katherine decided not to pass it up, so she joined Edna, ostensibly for some fresh air and a walk. As they walked, Katherine asked, “Edna, how long do ye plan to torture Turcuil?” knowing full well Edna did not know the effect she had on the guardsman. Still, Katherine had learned the element of surprise had value in any battle.
“Turcuil? What—what are ye talking about?”
“Turcuil. Ye know, the great bear of a guardsman.”
“I know who Turcuil is, my lady,” she said in exasperation, “why do you think I am torturing him?”
“I don’t know why ye are torturing him, that’s what I asked ye.”
“Nay, that’s not what I meant and ye know it. I am not torturing Turcuil, as if anybody could. What makes ye think I am?”
Katherine stopped walking and looked her in the eye. “Edna, ye needn’t be coy with me, ye can’t have missed it. Anyone with eyes can see that man is mad about ye. I am just wondering how long ye plan to lead him along like a bull with a ring in his nose.”
“My lady,” gasped Edna. “I have never—surely you don’t think that I—why would—he what?”
“He is mad about ye. Edna, he absolutely adores ye. He can’t take his eyes off ye. If ye so much as twitched your little finger in his direction, he would fall at your feet.”
“My lady, ye are mistaken,” Edna said, blushing profusely, “the oaf rarely even speaks to me except for the occasional grunt.”