Highland Courage(26)
Pol laughed even harder. “Aye, Oren breaks out in a cold sweat when he sees the lad enter the keep. Duff can be a right menace.”
Ian chuckled too as he helped himself to more venison from the platter. “Speaking of Oren, it’s not like him to miss a meal. I wonder where he is today.”
“That is odd,” agreed Tadhg. He explained to Mairead, “Oren is my steward, and I don’t know anyone who enjoys eating more than he does. By all rights, he should be huge but he is almost painfully thin. His family lives in the village, but he nearly always has his dinner here.”
“If not his breakfast and supper as well,” added Hamish. “He knees were certainly under the table this morning.”
Tadhg chuckled. “I was training with Laird Chisholm when my mother passed away, but for some reason my father gave the responsibility of planning meals to him.”
Hamish, too, piled more food on his trencher. “There is no mystery there, Laird, Oren wanted the job, that’s why your father gave it to him.”
“Well, I guess that explains it, sweetling, but now ye are here, I’m sure ye will want to assume the responsibility.”
“Aye, I would.”
“Have ye met Oren yet?” Tadhg asked.
“Not yet. I had hoped to talk a few things through with him this afternoon.”
“Aye, it is a shame he chose this meal to miss. Elspet will see ye are introduced. Ye will want to meet him soon.”
Mairead didn’t want to accept it, but there really was no other explanation. It seemed Oren was deliberately avoiding her. Still, perhaps it was wrong to jump to such a conclusion and she didn’t want to say that until she learned more. “I understand he has been very busy today.” She left it at that. Hamish’s brow furrowed at her comment, but he said nothing.
~ * ~
When the meal was over, Tadhg and his men returned to the training field, and the servants began to clear the hall. Mairead found Elspet again and said, “I am anxious to speak with Oren, perhaps he has forgotten my earlier request?”
Elspet looked astounded. “My lady, ye don’t mean to say he hasn’t met with ye yet?”
“Nay, not yet.”
“My lady, I apologize. I spoke with him this morning and told him to send for ye as soon as he was available. I assumed he would only be delayed a few minutes. I will go get him immediately.”
“Thank ye, Elspet, I’d appreciate that.”
Mairead decided to wait in the great hall until Elspet returned and thought she would help clean up after the meal. She turned to remove the cloth from a nearby trestle table. Her mother taught her to fold the edges of a tablecloth in first, trapping the crumbs and spilled food in the cloth. Then the cloths could be shaken outside before they were laundered. This reduced the amount of food debris that collected in the rushes, helping to control vermin.
As Mairead started folding the edges in, a servant rushed over and said, “My lady, there’s no need to fold it, it will only need to be washed anyway.” The woman snatched the cloth from the table, crumbs flying everywhere.
“I was—” Mairead began to tell the servant her reason for folding the cloth first but the young woman simply walked away from her.
The servant’s rude behavior shocked Mairead yet again. She glanced around to see if anyone who had seen the interaction seemed surprised by it, but no one else seemed to have paid any attention.
She was still mulling the incident over when Elspet returned, clearly agitated. “My lady, I am so sorry, I’m not sure how Oren could have misunderstood. He should have spoken to ye before he left, but I am afraid he has gone for the day. Ide said he wasn’t feeling well and went home to rest. Apparently they planned tomorrow’s meals just after the midday meal was served.”
Mairead didn’t know what to say. Certainly if he were ill, she wanted him to do what was necessary to get better. However, Elspet was correct. Oren should have spoken to her or sent a message directly to her as he left. Mairead should not have found out the steward had left for the day only after sending a servant to fetch him for the second time. She was angry and confused. She reminded herself this was not Elspet’s fault. “I am sorry Oren is not feeling well. I trust he will be better tomorrow. If he is, when he arrives, please ask him to wait in the great hall until he has spoken to me.”
“Aye, my lady, I understand. Again, I am very sorry.”
Elspet looked embarrassed and Mairead wanted to ease her mind. “Thank ye, Elspet, but I’m sure Oren just misunderstood. I truly appreciate the help ye have given me today, and I will speak with him tomorrow. Please excuse me now. As there seems to be nothing I can help with down here, I will be in my solar. Would ye please send someone up to light a fire in the hearth?”