“Oh?” She didn’t think she could handle another surprise.
With a quick kiss, Malcolm left her and returned to the fields. Her mind reeled. No matter what happened or how everything played out, she was in for heartbreak. Either she’d lose her family for all time, or she’d lose Malcolm, Hunter and everyone else she’d come to care for in this time and place.
She watched Malcolm walk back to the fields, memorizing the way he moved, the breadth of his shoulders, his strength and the confident way he carried the authority he’d been born to. She blinked several times to ease the sting in her eyes.
Damn that old witch.
Dazed, Alethia wandered down to the lake and offered to help with supper. After dropping the ladle into the stew twice and nearly setting herself on fire, the cook sent her away with a disdainful snort. She sat down on a bench to brood by herself.
“What ails you, True?” Elaine took a seat next to her, placing freshly baked bread and two steaming bowls of lamb stew in front of them. “You have been staring at naught by air for a good while.”
“Tired, I guess.”
“Is that all? You look as though you’ve seen a ghost. Has my lout of a brother been ticking you off again?”
She shook herself out of her blue mood to smile at Elaine’s use of twenty-first-century vernacular. “No. I’m fine.”
“You dinna look or sound fine.”
“I used to spend most of every day playing my violin.” She sighed. “I haven’t even touched it for days.”
“This concerns you?” Elaine dipped a piece of bread into her stew and took a bite, all the while eyeing her intently.
“Yes. No. I don’t know.” Alethia put her elbows on the table and rested her chin on her fists. “It’s just that things have…changed, become more complicated.” She glanced at Elaine.
“Aye, being in love will do that to a lass.”
She covered her face with her hands and groaned. “Is it so obvious?”
“You think no one notices when Malcolm pulls you behind a tree to steal a kiss?” She nudged her. “Or when you put your arms around his neck and kiss him back? Today’s kiss is no’ the first. He stole another in the bailey, aye? Our people do love to gossip.”
“What am I going to do?” she mumbled into her hands.
“What is there to do? ’Tis a good thing.”
“It’s not that simple.” She raised her head to look at her friend. “This isn’t my home, or my…” She pressed her lips together, and for the first time she longed to tell someone the whole story.
“Dinna vex yourself.” Elaine gave her arm a squeeze. “It pleases everyone to see my brother so content. He canna keep his eyes off you, or his hands.” She laughed at the expression of shock Alethia gave her.
“Elaine, can you keep a secret?”
“Of course.” Her expression serious, Elaine studied her.
“I know your brother and father believe I was drugged and sent here by ship, but that’s not what happened at all.” She tried to read Elaine’s reaction and detected only curiosity and concern. “I never ate or drank anything when I was in Giselle’s tent. Things happened that I can’t explain. One minute I was in my own land, and the next I was here. She used magic.”
Elaine’s eyes widened, and several seconds passed before she replied. “It matters no’ how you came to us. We are a clan steeped in tales of such happenings. This land is ancient, peopled first by beings capable of doing great magic. Mayhap Giselle harks back to that ancient race.”
“You believe me?” Relief washed through her. Until that moment, she hadn’t realized how much she needed to tell someone what had really happened.
“Aye. I believe you.” Elaine reached for Alethia’s hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. “You dinna strike me as one to tell falsehoods. It must have been frightening.”
“To say the least. If Giselle could send me here without my consent, she can also send me back.”
“Malcolm would never allow her to take you from us,” Elaine huffed.
“How can he prevent it? Giselle isn’t what she seems to be at all. I don’t even think she’s human. What can Malcolm do to prevent magic?” She played with the bread in front of her. “Nothing can come of what I feel for your brother. Giselle sent me here for a specific reason, and once I’ve completed the task, I’m sure she’ll send me back.” She struggled to keep from crying. “Besides, what Malcolm feels for me is only lust and a misguided sense of responsibility.”
“You dinna know him as I do,” Elaine admonished.