Highland Devil (Murray Family #22)(22)

"Ye didnae have to do that. I could have just bundled it into my bag and dealt with it later."

"It would have been utterly ruined by then. Getting to the dirt and the  blood fast is why it looks as good as it does. It also looks verra  comfortable and worth saving."

"Aye, 'tis a country woman's gown. They are nay such slaves to fashion  quirks. And they usually have to work in the gown unlike a titled lady.  My mither made it for me."

"Another good reason to save it." Jolene helped Mora get dressed.

"How is Andrew?"

"He is just fine. He slept in with Fergus and the MacFingal boys. That  has left him feeling quite full of himself. Boy thinks he has slept with  the men like a warrior would. He still clutches his soldier though."

"I would nay be surprised if he always does. His da made it. He did love  Da." She sighed, releasing a little more of the sorrow that clung to  her. "I wouldnae be surprised if, when he is a grown mon and I go to see  him, his wife, and his bairns, if I ask about the Bruce, he will pull  it out."         

     



 

"'Tis a lovely thought. I think he is looking for you, as well."

"Then I best get down there to eat."

Mora hurriedly put some things in her bag. Her injury had kept her from  unpacking much, so it was quick. Then she walked down the stairs with  Jolene. The moment she entered the hall, Andrew ran over to her.

"I was starting to worry about you," the boy said as he gently hugged her.

"Why? Gybbon was here."

"But Gybbon wasnae hurt."

"True, but now I am nearly completely healed, so you can cease worrying about me."

She started to make her way to the table, Andrew clutching her hand.  Gybbon waved her over and indicated room on the bench for her and Andrew  to sit with him. Mora helped Andrew sit next to Gybbon and then she sat  next to Andrew. She saw Gybbon look at the boy and then at her, his  mouth twitching into a smile briefly.

"Why is everyone so big?" Andrew asked softly as she served him some porridge and apples.

"Because they are full grown. Our da was tall."

"Aye, that is what Maman said. But ye are full grown, too."

"Ah, aye, I am. I took after Maman." She reached around the boy and pinched Gybbon on the arm when she saw he was laughing.

"But I am almost as tall as ye are already and I am only seven."

"I suspect ye will grow even taller and be bigger than me."

"Like David and Niall?"

"Aye, like David and Niall."

"Did Robert kill them, too?" he asked softly, stirring his porridge instead of eating it.

"I dinnae ken, Andrew."

"Eat your porridge, laddie," said Sigimor in a gentle yet firm voice.  "Ye have a long trip ahead of ye. No need to chew over sad things by  asking questions no one has an answer for."

"Where are we going?"

"I told ye," said Mora. "We are going to ride to Sir Gybbon's brother's keep."

"'Tis a fine keep, too," said Gybbon.

Mora smiled faintly as Gybbon told Andrew all about Gormfeurach and her  brother ate his porridge, even accepting a small added serving. He kept  Andrew fascinated with his talk of big gates, high walls, and a dungeon.  Mora heard most of it and had to admit she was eager to see it.

Something bumped her arm and she looked down to see Freya at her side.  She scratched her cat's ears and cut up some of her meat to put it on a  small plate for the animal. Mora hoped a three-day journey hidden in the  back of a wagon would not cause the animal too much distress. She was  not so certain how she would endure it, either.

As they left the table and collected up what they needed for their  journey, Mora felt a touch of sadness. This was her family's land, where  her parents had grown up and where she had spent her whole childhood.  She could not help but hope she would be able to return sometimes  without worrying about her cousins.

She stared at the cart Gybbon put her bag in. It would be a crowded  ride, but they had so well padded the bed of it that she suspected it  would not be too uncomfortable. She and Andrew stayed inside the door as  Gybbon and Sigimor told them to and waited.

The way the man was so carefully making sure they were not seen as they  left woke a fear within Mora. It strengthened what she already felt  about her cousins by telling her just how hard they were hunting her and  Andrew. He had even come up with a clever way to sneak both of them  into the cart without much risk of them being seen.

"My Sigimor is a very careful planner," said Jolene as she stepped up  beside Mora. "Before he even takes a step he has plotted out every one  of those steps and all that could go wrong so he can be prepared for  that, too."

"Oh, I wasnae doubting that. It was just how all of this made it so  sharply clear that I am in a fight for Andrew's life. And my own."

Jolene patted her on the back. "A hard thing to look straight in the  eye. I was faced with such a dark sight when we fought to keep my nephew  alive. And for much the same reasons. Greedy relations."

"If David and Niall should come back and come here to ask after us  … "

"Oh, Sigimor will ken what to say and tell them how to find you. As well  as giving them a fine escort. Do you think they might appear?"

Mora shrugged. "Who can say? They were going to meet up with some  friends who had gone to France for the same reason, so I can only hope  they had others on their side if Robert went after them there. Since I  have heard naught from them, any of them, and I ken little about France  and its wars, I simply cannae say."

"And so, a tiny spark of hope flares now and then. Aye, I would not wish  to believe the worst without proof, good hard proof, even if it would  make me sad beyond words. But, not to fret, if they do happen to come  and speak to Sigimor, or if he e'en hears word that they have returned,  he will take care of them if it is needed."         

     



 

Jolene looked closely at Mora. "You have not really taken time to grieve for your parents, have you?"

"A bit, but there is Andrew to worry o'er. He grieves and is afraid and I  have to appear strong. Da adored him and was teaching him about the  wood and how to see what could be made in it, what it wanted to be made  into. Andrew actually understood what he was talking about. I see a lump  of wood as nothing more than something ye put on the fire." She smiled  when Jolene laughed. "My older brothers were much like I am. I think  David understood what Da was talking about but simply could not see it  as he did."

"Did the laird get sick long before your da died?"

"Nay, 'twas shortly after. 'Tis why I have nay seen much of him. I would  go with my mother, but he was rambling and near senseless each time we  went. Then my parents were killed. And, aye, I think that was all  planned out that way."

"I think so, too, and so does Sigimor. We just say Robert is mad, and he  most certainly is, but he can plan carefully and that makes him even  more dangerous. And you are mucking about with his plan. Sad to say,  even if he believed Andrew was no longer a problem, Robert would still  come after you."

"The day he burst into our home and tried to kill me, I could see that.  He was furious and then in pain, but the hate still gleamed in his  eyes."

"Men do hate it when women muck about with their plans."

"As they should," said Sigimor as he kissed his wife on the cheek. "Especially if it is a good plan."

Mora laughed when Jolene just rolled her eyes as she slid her arm around  Sigimor's waist. As she watched them she realized no one would have  ever tried to match them. They would have looked at the small, somewhat  delicate, raven-haired Englishwoman and the big, rough-mannered, and  red-haired Scot and never thought of them as the perfect pair, and yet  they were.

Sigimor suddenly left to direct the placement of some barrels of cider  and ale at the rear of the cart. Mora realized she and her brother would  not only be covered by a blanket but have a solid wall of casks behind  them. This was going to be a very long journey.

Sigimor and Gybbon appeared to be having an argument as they walked  around the side of the manor, the cart slowly following them, so Mora  asked, "Is there a problem?"

"Aside from the fact that Gybbon insists he should pay Sigimor for the  cider and ale, no." Jolene took her by the hand and caught Andrew by his  to lead them into the somewhat fancy little sitting room Jolene had set  up for herself and any ladies who happened to come by. "Sigimor decided  to slip you two into the cart out this way as it can be brought closer  to the door, so if you are in sight, it will only be for a very short  time if at all."

"He has really planned this out," Mora whispered in amazement.

"Aye." Jolene picked up a crate but shook her head when Mora reached for  the other one. "You are not to lift anything heavy for a while. Your  wound has closed and looks fine, but the skin is fragile there, so you  must play the invalid for a while. A very annoying pose to hold but,  trust me, just reminding yourself that if you ruin my work you will have  to go through all the mending steps you have done already all over  again can be enough to make you behave."