Chapter Seven
She didn’t have much time.
In order to make up for losing the sausages last week, Lilia had begged to go to the butcher’s again.
When Lady Currie denied her and sent one of the stable grooms instead, Lilia offered to gather wildflowers for Lady Currie’s bedchamber.
The woman was particularly fond of blooms called “treasure flowers”, which had pale purple petals, and others called “everlasting flowers” because they never seemed to die.
The colors were very bright and Lady Currie loved them.
Therefore, Lilia was given permission to gather flowers for her lady’s chamber and she headed out on a bright, cool morning, her destination the hills to the north. At least, that was what she told Lady Currie and, in truth, she did manage to make it there.
Briefly.
There was a heavily-forested area surrounding a small loch and she picked her way through the bramble, cutting flowers with her knife and quickly tossing them into the basket. Anything with color, she cut.
But she had another destination in mind and flowers weren’t the focus.
Brody was.
It had been three days since she’d seen the man and she could hardly sleep for the thought of him.
With her basket full of colorful autumn flowers, she hurriedly made her way into Edinburgh.
She returned to the alley where it all started and, in truth, she felt some apprehension.
It was a dangerous place but she doubted men would ambush her for flowers.
At least, she hoped not.
The alleys were dark and angled because Edinburgh was built on crags, so everything was sloped. That familiar smell of urine and human despair filled her nostrils as she entered the alley where she first saw Brody.
Lilia didn’t want to spend too much time alone, walking up and down the alleys, because that was asking for trouble, but she wanted to give Brody enough time to find her if he was anywhere near. She was about to head down another alley that had a livery when someone grabbed her from behind.
Terrified, Lilia swung the basket with all her might at the person behind her, hitting him in the head as the flowers went flying.
“Och!”
Brody had his hand up on his head where she’d hit him and Lilia’s eyes widened.
“Brody!” she gasped. “I dinna know it was ye!”
He was grinning. “That’s the second time ye’ve hit me in the head,” he said. “I should have known better than tae surprise ye but I’ve been watching the streets for three days. God Bones, it’s good tae see ye. I’ve missed my angel.”
She grinned, a sweet and dreamy grin because his words brought back that familiar giddy feeling he was so capable of bringing about. But she put her hand on his head, rubbing the spot she’d struck.
“And I’ve missed ye, too,” she said softly. “I’m so sorry I hit ye. Will ye live?”
“Barely.”
“Good. Then ye can help me pick up these flowers. They’re for Lady Currie.”
Brody did as he was told, picking up the flowers, which had fortunately missed the sewage-filled gutter. Everything ended up back in Lilia’s basket and he took her by the hand.
“Let’s leave this place,” he said quietly. “Come with me.”
She did.
*
Brody’s destination was a loch south of Edinburgh, a surprising oasis in the midst of the filth of the town.
It was just a small body of water, with waterfowl swimming beneath the branches of big willow trees, but it was quiet and seemingly a million miles away from the hustle and bustle of the city.
The moment they reached the banks, Brody pulled Lilia into a crushing embrace and kissed her deeply.
The basket fell to the ground again.
His kisses were fierce and passionate, a testament to his longing for her over the past few days.
He pulled her down onto the ground with him, his hands in her hair as he moved from her lips to her cheek, her ear.
He kissed her gently, inhaling deeply of her scent once again, until he suddenly came to a halt.
He was fingering a greenish mark on her forehead.
“What is this?” he asked huskily.
Lilia, dazed and breathless from his attention, had no idea what he was talking about until she put her hand to the spot and realized that was where she’d hit her head when Colly had pushed her down the stairs.
“I fell and hit my head,” she said. “It will heal.”
“How did ye fall?”
She wasn’t going to lie to him. Not only had she always been a forthright person, but she felt something for Brody and she wasn’t in the habit of lying to people she cared about. Faintly, she sighed.
“Do ye remember the woman who found us in the stable yard?” she asked.
He nodded, tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear. “I do. The entire reason I was forced tae leave Hawkhill.”
Lilia nodded. “She and I have a… history,” she said.
“Her name is Colly and she was Lady Currie’s nurse.
She’s a vile, terrible woman. She beats the servants and tells Lady Currie that they’re lying when they complain.
She has a particular hatred for me because Lady Currie likes me and she’s jealous of anyone Lady Currie likes.
That is why I told ye tae leave – she has a grudge against me and I was afraid she would take it out on ye. ”
“That still doesna tell me why ye have a bruise on yer head.”
“Because she pushed me down the stairs,” she said quietly. “I fear her grudge against me has taken a nasty turn. I’m the only servant of Lady Currie’s who fights back and she doesna like that.”
He frowned. “She pushed ye down the stairs?” he repeated, aghast. “She could have killed ye.”
“But she dinna,” Lilia said quickly. “The old hag canna get the better of me, but she’ll try. ’Tis a daily battle with that one.”
Brody didn’t say anything, but it was clear that he wasn’t pleased. He sat back on the grassy bank, his brow furrowed as he thought of the old cow harassing Lilia.
Nay, he didn’t like that one bit.
“Ye might not be so lucky if she does it again,” he said. “Have ye told Lady Currie?”
Lilia nodded. “She knows that Colly fights with me.”
“And what does she say?”
“She asks me tae not fight with her. I believe she knows that Colly is wicked, but she tolerates it because the woman raised her. She willna send her away.”
Brody’s lips pressed into a flat, unhappy line. “So she lets the woman do as she pleases?”
“Aye.”
He grunted and looked away, his gaze moving out over the loch. “Ye canna remain there, Lilia,” he said. “That old woman will kill ye if given the chance.”
Lilia knew that but she didn’t like to think about it. She believed she was strong enough to protect herself, but incidents like the one on the stairs concerned her. Colly could easily catch her off guard and do some damage.
“I have no choice,” she said quietly.
Brody lay back on the grass, pulling Lilia down with him. He found himself looking up at the sky as she nestled against him, her head on his shoulder and his big arm around her. It seemed like the most natural position in the world.
“I told ye I want tae marry ye,” he said, his lips against her forehead “But I willna wait, not if this woman is on the prowl tae kill ye. I must get ye out of there.”
Lilia was deeply contented, curled up against him. She closed her eyes, feeling his warmth against her and letting the sound of his voice flow through her.
“Not until my da’s debt is paid, Brody,” she said. “I willna change my mind about that. I willna simply leave.”
“I am going tae pay it. I told ye I would find a job and make enough money.”
She didn’t say anything for a moment. He’d said the same thing before, but she didn’t feel comfortable for the man to pay a debt that wasn’t his.
That was the truth. But given how badly she wanted to be with him, and truly not knowing how long Lady Currie might try to keep her, perhaps paying off the debt was the only way she and Brody could be together while they were still young.
If he was serious.
“If ye mean it, then ye’d have tae speak tae Laird Currie,” she said. “’Tis a debt owed tae him and he will tell ye how much.”
“Do ye not think I mean it?”
She opened her eyes and sat up, looking down at him as he lay there in the damp grass.
“I’ve known ye less than two weeks,” she said honestly.
“I dunna know all about ye, Brody. I know ye come from Clan McKay and I know ye fled from the Highlands and ye’ve been living in the streets of Edinburgh.
But beyond that… I know nothing about ye.
Ye could make me promises and then disappear. How do I know ye willna?”
Brody folded a big arm behind his head, laying on it as he looked at her. She had a point; he’d seen plenty of men make promises they never intended to keep, but he wasn’t one of them.
But she was right.
She didn’t know that.
“Because I am a man of honor,” he said quietly. “At least, I used tae be.”
“Then why did ye flee the Highlands?” She jumped on his comment because it was one he’d made before.
She wanted to know why this kind, handsome, and clearly capable man had been living in such self-imposed hardship.
“Ye told me ye were a great warrior, once, so great that they called ye the Highland Protector. What happened, Brody?”
“Before the screeching hag found us in the hay, I was going tae tell ye,” he said. “Do ye know anything about the wars against the Sassenach?”
She shook her head. “Not much,” she said. “My da never fought and I dunna have any brothers or menfolk that have.”
He lifted his eyebrows. “Then ye’re fortunate,” he said.
“Three years ago, the call went out tae fight for Berwick because the English had overrun it. They brought mercenaries with them by the thousands and launched a campaign along the border that destroyed many villages. My da took me, my cousins, and fifty of our best lads and we joined up with Clan Munro. We went south tae the borders but by the time we got there, many villages were in ruins. It was war like I’d never seen before. ”
Lilia was listening intently. “But why did the English attack?”