by Jane Stain
Vange didn’t need to be told twice. If she hadn’t been wearing two long skirts, she would have run to Roisin’s room to get her children. She walked as fast as she could.
Once Vange, Michael, and Gabriel were all safe in the kitchen, Aideen returned. She looked at Vange and spoke matter-of-factly.
“Yes, a great risk I did take in getting you out of that study, Vange, but do it I did. What be the cause you say, Vange? It is pregnant you are again.”
Needless to say, no one wanted to do preschool anymore.
Vange and Cara brought their three kids into Aideen’s kitchen instead.
Vange threw herself into teaching the little ones, and the kitchen turned out to be a good place for that. They were all starting to eat solid food. They liked it, and they would listen carefully to all the words associated with food.
She arranged the veggie bits she chopped up for the stews into letters on the butcher block, and all three children knew all their letters the first week. And then she started in on the sounds the letters made.
Cara, Isleen, and Nora held Emma, Michael, and Gabriel so that they could see the cutting board while Vange arranged her veggies on it.
“Which vegetable is this, Emma?”
“Celery.”
Vange gave Emma a bite of celery.
“Good. What color is celery, Gabriel?”
“Green.”
Gabriel got a bite of celery, too.
“Good. Which two letters are these, Michael?”
“S and H.”
Michael got his bite.
“Good. And now listen. Here’s something new. SH makes the sound ‘shhhh’. Everybody say, ‘shhhhhh’.”
“Sshhbbhhbbhh,” said the children, invariably spitting a bit and bubbling up through their lips.
“Shhhhh,” said the women, grinning at each other over how cute the children sounded.
Vange knew Aideen had a heart of gold, and she truly owed the woman her life twice over now for how she’d been saved from Tam, but the old cook made Vange a bit uncomfortable with her comments about Vange’s teaching.
“A bit surprised I am, to find you learned reading on your island.”
Vange frowned at her.
“Would it surprise you to know we have houses there too, and don’t live in mud huts?”
Although Aideen rolled her eyes, Vange could tell she really had believed the island was that primitive.
Maybe here in 1562 it really was? Oh well.
But inside her mind, Vange was anything but calm, cool, or collected.
She was pregnant again.
She knew she should feel joy about having a new child to love, but she didn’t. All it meant to her was being stuck here away from her real life for another two years.
So then I feel guilty, too, for not being joyful and feeling love for you, baby.
Tam knew she and Peadar were really MacGregors.
Miraculously, he still hadn’t found her secret kitchen hangout. But she lived in even deeper dread of him than before.
Peadar would come home.
This was normally what sustained Vange through the long boring times hiding in the kitchen, but now she dreaded her husband’s return. Emily’s email had warned about the MacGregors being persecuted soon. Would that go on here in Ireland too, or only in the highlands?
As if all that weren’t enough, Vange had another source of guilt.
Her deepest hope was that on finding out they were MacGregors, the O’Neill would ship her and Peadar and their children back to the highlands—so that Vange could find a druid castle healer who would send her back to the 21st century.
So Vange passed the time in this stressful state until Peadar did come home. That day, she was waiting with the other wives of men assigned to the O’Neill’s personal guard. By now, she knew to look for the O’Neill’s flag flying over the hill when the dust started.
There he was.
Vange was three months pregnant. Aideen had been keeping her pretty sedate, advising her it was best she didn’t jar her body. And yet Vange was so full of dread about how Tam was planning to reveal Peadar was a MacGregor that as soon as she saw Peadar coming, she took off running out to meet him.
“Peadar. Peadar.”
The other men laughed as Vange ran by them.
Vange ran headlong into Peadar and nearly tackled him. As it was, she had managed to move Peadar a good ten feet away from the other men. She made a show of grabbing her man and kissing him, but under her breath, she warned him.
“Tam knows you’re a MacGregor, Peadar.”
But it had obviously been too long since Peadar enjoyed one of her kisses. He was really into it—or perhaps into showing her off in front of the other men.
He deepened their kiss until he started drawing wolf whistles from the other men.
Vange ended the kiss and hissed at her husband.
“Peadar. Tam knows you’re a MacGregor.”
Peadar glanced over at the O’Neill.
Vange did too, and she saw the O’Neill nod at Peadar.
Her husband at last focused on Vange as he grabbed her by the waist and started them walking at a distance from the other men.
“Sorry I am, lass. I do not understand this jest.”
Vange was furious with him, and her hissing was hurting her throat it became so vicious.
“It’s not a jest. Tam tried to get me to sleep with him, Peadar, in order to stop him from telling. I’ve been avoiding him, but now that you’re home, he’ll tell, and—”
Peadar put his hand over Vange’s mouth to stop her.
She looked at him to see if he was feverish or something, which was the only way she could explain to herself why he wasn’t as freaked out as she was.
But of all things, Peadar looked … guilty.
“Aye, lass. He has known for a time now, as I did tell the O’Neill in Tam’s presence.”
Vange beat her fist on her husband’s chest. It was purely symbolic. She knew she was nowhere near strong enough to actually hurt him.
“You should have told me that you’d told them, Peadar.”
He didn’t stop her from beating on his chest. It couldn’t have made him look any too tough in front of the other men.
“Aye lass, I should have.”
Vange continued her feeble attempt at getting her anger out.
“All these months I’ve lived in dread of him blabbing it.”
Peadar continued walking with his arm around her waist, enduring the humiliation of his wife striking him without stopping her.
“Aye, I can see that now.”
She was no longer hissing, but worse. Vange was crying. Still, she gave him a piece of her mind.
“We have to tell each other when we decide something, if we’re ever going to have a good marriage, Peadar.”
At that he stopped and took her in his arms.
Anger spent, needing him, and all-out sobbing now, she let him hold her close as the sun set behind them over the castle stronghold and the men marched by them with their rattling weapons.
“There’s more, Peadar.”
“Aye, lass?”
“I’m pregnant again.”
Vange had Michael and Gabriel show their father all that they had learned—their colors, the names of different foods, their letters, and the sounds the letters made—and then she put the boys to bed in Aideen’s room off the kitchen so that she and Peadar could spend a good night together. The two of them awoke once more to breakfast in bed courtesy of Aideen and the boys, who enjoyed it with them.
“Aideen, can you watch the boys while—”
Aideen held out her hands, and the boys climbed down off the bed to take them. They stood there smiling.
“Shoo. It is watching them I will be while Peadar is home. I will bring the boys to you now and then to visit, but enjoy your time together. Now go on.”
Vange waved goodbye to their sons as they left.
The boys waved back, but they looke
d perfectly happy to go to the kitchen with Aideen.
Peadar offered Vange a hand up from the bed.
“Let us dress, lass, and then I am going to give Tam another lesson in how to treat my wife.”
Vange was of a mixed mind as she dressed.
Yay. That’s my man.
Wait, is this a good idea?
Are you kidding? It’s a great idea.
Looking very much the highlands lord and his lady in their matching red plaid finery, the two of them went down to the great hall of the castle fortress. The O’Neill sat in a throne, in judgement of disputes. Tam was seated in the throne beside him instead of the O’Neill’s wife, which Vange found amusing.
A long line of petitioners awaited the O’Neill’s attention.
Peadar led Vange to the end of the line and stood with her there.
Vange caught Tam looking at them.
Tam looked curious at first.
And then Vange saw Peadar glaring at Tam.
The arrogant Irishman looked away.
Peadar and Vange moved up in the line a spot.
Tam started to fidget.
Another case done, another move up in line.
The man behind Peadar and Vange laughed a little.
“Sure and you have Tam on edge.”
Peadar turned to nod at the man.
“Aye Diarmuid, and if Tam does know what is good for him, then he will come down here and apologize before I do get up to the front of the line and tell the entire company what he has done.”
Murmurs of Peadar’s intentions spread out from him through the crowd, and everyone watched Tam with interest.
Especially when Tam got up and started slinking toward the door.
Peadar pointed at Tam and shouted.
“Stop that man who does slink away like a common thief. My dispute is with him, and he will hear the O’Neill’s judgement.”
Grinning, some of the men casually moved in front of the door to block Tam’s path.
Vange looked at Shane O’Neill to see his reaction to all this.
Oh no.
The O’Neill looked annoyed, but Vange’s anxiety decreased when he spoke.
“Tam, stay you will, and hear Peadar’s complaint.”
With a hard stare at Peadar, Tam strode back to his throne and sat with his arms crossed.
The O’Neill looked to the next petitioners in line and took care of their complaints while Tam and Peadar glared at each other and the others in the room laid bets on who would win the confrontation.
And then Peadar was before the enthroned O’Neill.
Everyone fell silent.
Peadar nodded a sort of bow, and Shane gestured for Peadar to rise. And then Peadar spoke.
“Shane O’Neill, there lies a dispute between your best man Tam and myself. I do take the blame for my part.”
The men and women in the room made questioning noises.
Peadar turned to face the crowd, and he took off the fine jacket he was wearing and threw it on the floor.
“I did come here under false pretenses. I am not a MacNeal, nay, nor any lord. I am but a simple highlands warrior, from clan MacGregor.”
The men looked confused. Some looked shocked.
Seeing a few who looked angry, Vange inched the two of them closer to Shane, who she felt reasonably sure would protect her and Peadar with a decree.
She also saw Tam gloating there on his throne, with a cruel look on his face.
Shane O’Neill held up his hand for silence. When it didn’t come, he stood.
That worked.
The room quickly fell silent, with all eyes on Shane when he spoke to Peadar.
“On that I have already judged thee, and found thee free from guilt.”
Shane then raised his eyes to the people.
“He is not a MacNeal nor a lord, but Peadar does have more honor than they, for he is here in their place, by their treachery. I will hear nothing against Peadar for it, for even though treachery brought him, he does serve me well, and I am grateful.”
Vange heard the people murmuring to each other, clarifying what Shane had said, and what that meant. At first, some of them seemed alarmed, but gradually they calmed down.
“So he is not a lord?”
“No, the lords did make him take their place in the fighting.”
“And Shane says he fights well.”
“Sure, and he is a MacGregor, the best fighters of all are they.”
“Tis true. Much of the Norse stock have they.”
Shane let the murmurings die down before he continued.
“If that is all of the dispute on your side, Peadar, then I would hear what you have to say against Tam.”
Peadar did that nodding bow thing again to Shane.
“Well enough.”
And then Peadar faced Tam.
“If I hear one more time of you mistreating my wife or restricting her activities or those of any of the other wives under this roof, so help me God I will kill you.”
Shane made enquiries and got the whole story. He then proclaimed Tam unfit for the position of best man at court and removed him from that duty, demoting him to a common soldier. This meant of course that Tam would go out with all the men to the fighting and not remain behind to oversee the castle fortress as he had been doing.
This made Vange sigh with relief.
It seemed to Vange that the rest of the men looked up to Peadar even more than they had before, after he stood up to Tam so publicly. And her impression turned out to be shared by Shane. The men went out to the fighting, and Tam went with them.
And Shane left Peadar behind to keep an eye on the castle while he was gone.
Vange and Peadar and the boys enjoyed a wonderful two months at home without Tam and with fairly little to actually do besides making sure the boys learned as much as they could from their father, and that the boys got as much love from their father as they wanted.
Shane gathered everyone in the castle courtyard for the afternoon sword practice when his troop of men came home for a break from the fighting, and Shane made a big announcement.
“As a foreign young warrior, Peadar cannot be filling the place of best man at court that Tam left behind. However, you all look up to him. So I have decided to allow him to lead the sword practices here. So Peadar, go on and start them.”
Vange had always enjoyed watching sword practice, and her chest swelled with pride at watching her man lead it. She thought it went exceptionally well under his leadership, too.
A bit anxious, Vange looked around for Tam at the practice, but she didn’t see him.
“He is out with another company of men.”
Vange looked for the owner of the voice she’d just heard, and there was Diarmuid. She smiled at him.
“You mean Tam is out fighting still?”
Diarmuid nodded yes.
“Yay, that he is.”
“Was it obvious I was looking for Tam?”
Diarmuid made a staying gesture and settled in beside her to watch the sword practices until his turn.
“Blaming you I will not be, lassie.”
That evening, Vange and Peadar dressed in the least fine clothing in the trunk and went down to supper in the great hall, taking a place with the common soldiers now that everyone knew they weren’t nobility.
But a page showed up and addressed them.
“The O’Neill insists that you join him at the head table. Follow me.”
Everyone smiled at the two of them as they passed by, and some even toasted them with their tankards.
Vange smiled back nervously. She didn’t want all this attention. Tam was bound to come home sooner or later, and he would be furious. And Peadar couldn’t be by her side every moment…
It kept getting worse until it was ridiculous.
Peadar was invited to stand by while Shane and his new wife held court and heard petitioners. Peadar was shown the study and asked to do the paperwork. In fact, over the next six mo
nths, Peadar was given every honor that Tam previously had, short only of the name of best man at court.
And Tam still hadn’t come home, but he had to eventually.
Vange commented on that one night as they spooned in their room alone, his hands on her gigantic belly and the children as usual happily tucked in bed in Aideen’s room.
“I never expected Shane to give you Tam’s position.”
“Nay, nor did I.”
Vange sighed.
“He’ll be furious when he comes home and sees you in all his old places, but I do like that you’re home all the time now.”
Peadar fidgeted with the tie on Vange’s night dress.
“I do feel cooped up here in the castle, lass.”
As if I don’t. I love my children, but they are keeping me hostage here. You lucky men can have it both ways.
Vange groaned. She knew better than to argue with him. He would just shut down, like her father always did when her mother argued. Ug. It figured that once he had a job he could do right there at home with her, he wished it away so that he could leave again.
She tried the tactic of understanding his reasoning.
“Yeah, that’s why you’ve started taking one of the men with you, huh, so that someone else can do the job and you can go back out with the men?”
Peadar laughed.
“Heh ha ha. Aye, lass. There is naught that does get past you.”
Vange smiled at the compliment at the same time as she inwardly seethed at him for not telling her this plan before he set it in motion. When was he going to learn to treat her like a partner and not just someone who depended on him for protection and a roof over her head? Did he even listen when she talked of that?
Her mind whirled with those thoughts as she tried to think of a new way to make him understand.
And then her water broke.
“Uh, Peadar, the baby is coming. Will you go wake Aideen for me please?”
He did.
And then he was in the great hall being toasted as the father of three. She could hear the laughing and carousing all the way from the kitchen.
No matter, though. She was with her friends. Vange had missed talking with Cara, Isleen, and Nora the past six months, and they caught each other up on their lives these past six months as they walked Vange round and round the kitchen again.