CHAPTER VIII
SITTING SIDEWAYS WITH her legs over one of his and her hands folded in her lap, Kadick glanced up at Donnahail and kept her voice soft. “Thank you.”
“You are welcome.” He was bringing up the rear, needed to be aware of what was behind them, and did not want to encourage her to talk. Yet he loved having her close. He had not touched her since the day she nearly fell on her face and then it was only for a brief moment. With his arm around her waist now, it felt like heaven and he did not want it to end. His feelings were becoming clear and he could not deny them, but there was a problem—she had not given him any indication that she thought of him as anything other than a friend. Then he realized he had not given her any indication either. In fact, he called her little sister. He closed his eyes. That was stupid.
When he called her little sister, it surprised Kadick. It also bothered her and she was not sure why. She thought of him as a friend, but never as a big brother. Unable to understand what she was feeling, she decided to ignore it.
He glanced at her face and noticed her eyes beginning to droop, “I will not let you fall. You may sleep if you wish.”
Until then, she did not realize how tired she was and it seemed very natural to sleep in his arms. Kadick nodded, turned a little so she could lean against him and closed her eyes. Just before she fell asleep, she thought about how warm his body was and wished he had both arms around her instead of just one.
When they neared the camp, Donnahail slowed the horse and then stopped. He wanted to let her sleep, but he also wanted to avoid a bad reaction to her mark by the new women. Then he realized the man who married her would face a lifetime of trying to protect her from the cruelties of others. It was not the worst that could happen to a man, but it was something another man would have to consider. Of course, he would not have a problem with it. To him it would only be an extra reason she needed and deserved his protection, the same way his little sister had.
In her sleep, she snuggled closer and he realized she was probably cold. He started to wrap his other arm around her just as she woke up. “Are you cold?” He smiled when she nodded. “We should have brought your cape. If you are ready to get down, I will get it for you.”
“Are we back, already?”
“Aye.”
She sat up and began to stretch. “I did not know one could sleep so well on a horse. It must be the rocking motion.”
He was somewhat let down. He wanted it to be the nearness of him that helped her sleep, not the movement of the horse. Donnahail waited until she had a firm hold on his arm and then carefully lowered her down. He made sure her legs were firmly under her before he let go and dismounted.
“I did not find you a wife today. I was enjoying the festival so much I forgot. Perhaps I can find one among the lasses who came with us.”
“Perhaps.” He started to leave, but when she tugged on his sleeve, he turned back.
“Thank you, Donnahail.”
“What for?”
“For not choosing that lad at the festival to be my husband. I could not imagine letting people stare at my mark all day for their idle entertainment.”
“I could not imagine letting that lad touch you.”
He said it and walked away so fast, Kadick was not certain she heard him correctly. She also felt a twinge of excitement when he said it, and for a moment, she wondered if that was what love felt like. But then she scolded herself. Dreaming of a husband and children was one thing—dreaming of also being in love and happy was, for her, out of the question. While she wished not to, she had already convinced herself to settle for a marriage born of lust instead of love.
AGAIN, GREER EXPLAINED their way of life to the women from the festival, while they ate the abundance of meat and vegetables one of the men managed to barter from a nearby farm. Then they were offered fruit, wine and warm beds to sleep in. Just as the first four women had, they asked a hundred questions, watched the men with a touch of suspicion, and settled in.
When one of the younger ones started to cry, Neil promised to have two men take her back in the morning. However, by morning when she was not attacked in the night as they promised, she changed her mind and decided to stay. It was a frightening time for women with no knowledge of the language or what to expect, but at least Greer and the laird knew English. Besides, they were not guaranteed a good life in England either.
Except when they helped with whatever the women needed, the men stayed away from them the next day, and it went a long way toward easing tensions. Occasionally a man would catch the eye of a certain woman and smile. Occasionally, she smiled back. They played games, ate and rested while Neil tried to decide what to do next?
Greer was kept busy answering the constant questions of the women, and it wasn’t until most drifted off to sleep that she went to talk to Neil.
He was pleased to see her and helped her sit on a log near him. “Suddenly the lads have realized most do not have finished cottages to take a wife to.”
She giggled, “This is a fine time to worry about that.”
“We hardly had sufficient notice. Kadick got us going before we had time to consider all the consequences. I hope Walrick is considering them.”
“I hope Brendan is too. I do not intend to marry a lad who has no home.”
He nodded and offered his flask of wine to her. “‘Tis my fault, I sent him back to collect more of the clan and kept him from building. I will see that he has help when we get home.”
“Do not be too hard on yourself. If you had not sent him back, Bethia would not have come to rescue me.” She took a good long drink and handed the flask back. “I miss him more than I thought I would. How are you holding up?”
“Do you mean, have I thought of anything but Glenna? Not in days. My father once said my mother was like his second heart. Now I know what he meant. God help me if my other heart ever stops beating.”
“I am sure she is fine and missing you just as much.”
He tasted the wine and shoved the wooden stopper in place. “We have twenty lads and nine lasses. What do you suggest we do next?”
“I guess we will have to go from farm to farm again or perhaps we can find a village.”
He stood up and offered his hand. “Get some rest then. I am cured of my need for adventure and am anxious to go home.”
“So am I.”
CHAPTER IX
THEY HAPPENED UPON the Abbey quite by accident, or so Neil thought. Later he wondered if Greer had intentionally taken him that direction. He had four men with him and they sat on their horses at the edge of a forest looking out at a land that was cleared of trees. In the middle of the land stood a brown, stone and mortar building, four stories high and as big as a castle. It had a pointed steeple at one end, a bell tower at the other and slotted stonework along the top where archers could easily kneel down and take out an opposing army.
Surrounding the building was a high stone wall with a wooden gate. A dirt road, wide enough for carts, led from the gate into the forest on the other side of the cleared land.
“‘Tis an Abbey,” Greer explained. “In fact, this is the very Abbey I was sent to as a child to become a nun.”
All the men turned to gawk at her. “You are a nun?” Neil finally stammered.
Greer rolled her eyes, “Heavens no. It takes a year and I was busy trying to get over that wall. Once you are in, ‘tis not easy getting back out, especially if you are too little.”
“I am relieved. What is behind the wall?” Neil asked.
“Everything you can imagine. They could live for months on what they grow and make inside the wall.”
“Why were you sent here?” asked one of the men.
“Families send their daughters to become nuns often. I suppose ‘tis to secure the father and mother’s place in heaven. They even give the church a dowry. The daughter of a wealthy family is spared the more tedious chores and does easy things like sewing. I could not wait to get out of there. They have ru
les upon rules upon rules in that place. Some of the...”
Neil was listening, but he was paying more attention to the construction of the wall—should the clan decide they wanted to build one. He had already made up his mind to get a closer look.
Greer paused long enough to take a deep breath. “Widows come to the convent after their husbands die. Some of the lasses are taught to read and write so they can scribe manuscripts.” Greer quickly glanced at the confusion on each of their faces. “Plays, such as the one they had at the festival. Some lasses do that while others care for the sick and feed the hungry. Some have very good hearts—I was not one of them.”
Just then she spotted a team of horses pulling a cart out of the forest. She watched for a moment and then smiled when the first wagon was followed by four more, each carrying a driver and several riders. “Follow me.” She led them deeper into the forest until they were out of sight and then turned back to watch.
The old and wobbly wagons were long and narrow with three wheels on each side. Just as she suspected, it was a new group of women being brought to the Abbey, probably against their will. The closer they got, the sadder the women looked.
Neil touched her arm and made Greer look at him. “What are you thinking?”
“I am thinking they are no more pleased to be here than I was. I am thinking they are already planning to escape and I am thinking they would make better wives than they would nuns.”
He thought about that. If enough were willing, they could end their search and go home. “If we tempt them away, how much trouble do you think we will be in with God?”
“Well, He has not yet struck me dead. Besides, I cannot imagine God wants followers who are forced, any more than I would want a husband who is forced to marry me.”
Neil had to admit she made sense. Still, he wondered exactly what Greer was up to. “Are you of a mind to tell me yet?”
She rolled her eyes and glared at him. “If you must know, I have a younger sister in there.”
“She is a nun?”
“Perhaps not, there are other things for lasses to become and she was determined not to take the vow. If she has not, I wish to take her with us. If she has taken the vow, then she is happy.”
“How do you intend to get her out?”
Greer reached in her sack and withdrew the golden goblet she took from Bethia’s cousin. She handed it to Neil and then reached in again. This time she pulled out a chalice made of silver with jewels embedded in the sides.
Neil recognized it as being from Jessup’s home and put both in his sack. He watched the carts start to disappear through the Abbey gate and nudged his horse onward.
The gate was about to close when five Highlanders and one woman managed to ride into the Abbey courtyard. The monks seemed shocked at first, but they did not look as worried as the women in the carts did. Greer quickly slid down off her horse and went to calm them.
Just then, a priest opened the huge wooden door to the convent, closed it behind him and began to slowly walk to the Highlanders. He wore a dark brown robe with a floppy hood that seemed too large, and a white cord tied around his waist with a cross on the end. His shoes did not look sturdy, but they were new and he did not appear to be afraid of the Highlanders.
His slowness of walk allowed Neil time to get a good look at the construction of the wall. Then he noticed Greer was looking up at the faces in the windows trying to spot her sister. When the priest finally got close enough, Neil turned to face the man. “We are in need of wives.”
Two of the women gasped and another squealed in delight, but Neil paid them no attention.
The priest smiled and pushed his hood back just enough to see. “Perhaps you might get down before I have a crick in my neck.”
Neil nodded and dismounted, but he did not tell his men to do the same just in case the priest was not as pleasant as he seemed.
“You have come at a very bad time. We need all our lasses to tend the farm.”
Greer was having none of it. She remembered this priest, expected his denial and quickly walked to him hoping he did not remember her. Her words were more to convince the women than the priest.
This priest, she recalled, was only impressed by things of value. “The Highlanders offer a good life. The lasses may choose their own husbands, they will have their own cottages and they will have meat to eat.” She glanced back at more delighted shrieks from the women in the wagons.
Smiling on the inside but keeping a straight face, she continued. “We promise to make sure they have enough to eat, a warm bed and protection from all who might hurt them. Most of all, we have a priest who lives with us. He can give comfort, perform marriages and issue last rites.”
The priest tucked his arms inside his opposing long sleeves. “That is all good and well, but we need workers on the farm. As I am certain you are aware, this farm feeds plenty of hungry mouths.”
Neil reached in his sack and pulled out the gold goblet. “Perhaps this might persuade you.” The priest reached for it, but Neil pulled it back. “Gold for wives.”
“How many?”
“All that are willing.”
Greer rushed back to the women and started to help them climb out of the carts. Then one of the MacGreagors got off his horse to help. He was handsome, clean and the strongest man most of them had ever seen. Instead of letting Greer help them out of the carts, each waited her turn for the strong man to lift her to the ground.
It gave Greer a chance to once more look for her sister. She was getting worried. If Clare did not come to the window soon, she would have to go inside to find her, and that might not be easily done. She glanced again at the three monks standing near the gate with their arms folded and their crosses in their hands.
She turned to smile at the women reassuringly. “If you want to come to the Highlands, follow me.” She started for the gate and soon all but one woman followed. She stopped and looked back. “You wish to stay?”
“If I go I will not see my family again.”
Greer smiled. “You may comeback whenever you like, as long as there are lads willing to bring you. ‘Tis not safe for a lass to journey alone in Scotland.”
“But what if we do not like it there?”
It was Neil who answered. “You may leave any time and I will see you are returned safely.”
The last woman let the highlander lift her out of the wagon and went to stand in line by the other women.
“Do we have a bargain?” Neil asked the priest.
“I count forty-three lasses for one small goblet? I do not agree.”
Neil didn’t think the man would and already had his hand in the sack. When he withdrew the chalice, he watched the priest’s eyes light up. “I offer this as well for all these lasses and one more lass besides. We want the one named, Clare.”
“Clare?” the priest wrinkled his brow. “I know of no Clare. How long ago did...”
Abruptly, a woman in the vegetable garden next to the convent began to yell. “Greer? Is it you Greer? Have you come back for me at last?” She threw down her wooden hoe, shoved her brown hood off her head and started to run.
Greer ran too and with the diversion, Neil nodded for the men to take the women outside the gate. He took hold of the Priest’s right hand and put the golden goblet in it. Then he took hold of his left hand and put the silver chalice in it. Yet of the chalice, Neil did not let go. Instead, he watched Greer hug her sister and waited until the two of them were also outside the gate. Then he turned to the priest. “If you send guards after us, I will say you stole these.”
“No one would believe it.”
“The King of England would, he gave that chalice to a friend of his. See for yourself, his mark is on the bottom.” Neil let go of the treasure, allowed the man to turn it over and then saw him gawk at the King’s etched seal. Without another word, Neil got back on his horse and rode out the gate.
CHAPTER X
NEIL WASN’T CERTAIN the two reunited sisters woul
d ever stop hugging each other and he had a hard time getting them into the forest. “Greer, we have to get them away.”
She quickly came to her senses. “You are right.”
Neil had forty-three new women plus the nine they already had and it totaled fifty-two. Adding the MacGreagors, he had seventy-five people and twenty-seven horses. He didn’t take the time just now to think how many unmarried men they left at home, but at least Glenna would be happy with all these perspective brides to fuss over.
Getting them into the forest finally, he kept looking back to see if anyone was following. So far, they were not. Even so, he could not afford to take any chances. He told them all to be quiet and nodded to one of the men. “Bring back three more lads and all the horses. Tell the rest to prepare more food.
Once his man was gone, he led the women deeper into the forest until he felt they were far enough. Under his breath he muttered, “Seventy-five people and only twenty-seven horses? What have we done?”
GREER WAS SO HAPPY; she didn’t care if she had to walk all the way home. Just as she hoped, Clare refused to take her vows, but when Greer took her sister’s hand to lead her through the trees, she could feel the coarse skin from years of tending the fields. “I meant to come sooner, but...”
Clare was beaming when she turned to her sister, “You came just in time. A day later and I might have given up.”
It was all the forgiveness Greer needed and once more, she squeezed her sister’s hand. Then she began to think about which man might make Clare the best husband. It was a fun and fascinating question she would find herself trying to answer all the way home.
Marti Talbott's Highlander Series, Volume 4 Page 15