Chapter Fourteen #2
“I wish to give Caden and Connor each their own horse and I changed my mind. I will keep one of them for myself, the horse I used during my trek here.” Eva smiled at the man who seemed confused by her request but then he nodded and seemed to accept her order.
“I shall tell my brother Alton to pick the horses for ye.”
“My thanks, Aymer. I shall return soon.” Eva waved to Aymer and continued onward on the lane. Ahead, she saw Ise-Olcan who barked in greeting. “Go home.” But the dog wouldn’t heed her command and followed instead. Eva didn’t mind so much that the dog trailed her.
As she passed the encampment of the ailing, she lowered her head sorrowfully because she hadn’t anything to give them.
None of the sick greeted her or waved but hunched over and seemed unaware of her presence.
Many of them covered themselves with tattered cloth, even over their faces.
She suspected they did so to hide the bumps and atrocious evidence of their infirmity.
Eva pulled her tartan tightly around her and hurried past, almost sprinting ahead.
She reached the market and had a single purpose for attending but now, another thought came to her.
She stopped by Master Amos’s building, commanded that Ise-Olcan stay outside the door, and stepped inside.
He was speaking with someone so she didn’t interrupt him.
While she waited for him, she perused the section that seemed to be where the kitchen items were stored.
There were a good many items and she didn’t know where to begin in selecting a pot or other needed objects.
He finished with the person on whom he was waiting, before he turned to her. “Milady Buchanan, ’tis good to see ye again. Can I help ye?”
She explained her dilemma and sighed heavily when she finished. “I need to purchase items for my kitchen but I do not know where to begin… What is needed for cooking and such?”
“Oh, ’tis easy enough, Milady. Ye need a good cooking pot, and some good spoons with long handles. Maybe a long spit to cook meat on. I shall show ye.” Amos walked toward a section of his stall and motioned to items stacked in crates.
“I am going to have a good many items to offer for sale, Master Amos. Can we do a trade or perhaps barter for what I need?”
“Aye, of course, Milady. I can pull some items that will be useful to ye and hold them aside until ye bring your trade.”
“There is another matter… Any items that you sell, I want you to use my share of the coins to buy foodstuff and clothing for the people in the encampment down the lane. Can you do that for me?”
Amos’s bushy eyebrows rose in awe. He shook his head and cleared his throat. “Ye want me to buy foodstuff and take it to them, Milady? I fear no one will go near enough to them, even me because we know not what ails them. ’Tis risky what ye ask.”
“I do and before you reject my offer, I hope that you will do your good Christian duty to those poor people. All I ask is that you buy bread and food items for them. They can use warm blankets and garments too. You can take the items and leave them close by if you do not want to get near them. And if you do, I wish them not to know who gave them the alms. Will you do that for me?”
Amos pressed his hands over his dusty tunic and nodded. “Very well, Milady, but only because ye are the laird’s wife and I cannot refuse to do your bidding. I will buy the items and have them delivered to the needy as ye requested but shall leave them nearby where they can find them.”
“Good. I will be going through my things in the next day or so and shall have them delivered to you for the trade. I shall send a list of the items that I wish to sell and expect an accounting when next I see you. Once I repay for the cooking items, all other coins should go toward the food and items for the ailing. My thanks, Master Amos.”
He bowed. “’Tis a pleasure, Milady, doing business with ye. I will have my lad bring the kitchen items ye asked for after I receive the goods from ye.”
“Wonderful, have them delivered to the longhouse on the island. ’Tis the farthest abode there and cannot be missed. Or ask Aymer, he shall direct you,” she said and gave a quick wave.
Back outside, Ise-Olcan barked and seemingly skipped beside her as she made her way back to the bridge. Halfway along the lane, the dog took off, and Eva assumed she was going home.
When she crossed the bridge, she saw Aymer speaking to Caden.
The poor lad had his head lowered and it was apparent he was being reprimanded for his earlier jest. Eva stopped near them and waited for Aymer to cease his tirade.
“Aymer, I will see to Caden now. I need you to fetch Connor for me and bring him to the longhouse. We shall spend some time there this afternoon.”
“Aye, Milady,” he said and walked away ahead of her.
She fixed her gaze on the boy. He had an expression of chagrin on his face and wouldn’t meet her gaze until she lifted his chin with her fingertips.
“I heard what you did earlier.” She kept herself from laughing but, truly, it was somewhat humorous.
She was sure her mirth shone in her eyes.
“Let us keep you out of trouble. I need some help at the longhouse and there is something that I want to talk to you and Connor about. Come along.” Eva walked next to him and Caden was oddly quiet.
Of the two brothers, he was the talker and Connor was the silent, pensive one.
But then he surprised her when he said, “Am I in trouble, Eva?”
“Oh, no, not at all. I am going to be setting up the longhouse and want to bring some of my things inside. I need a strong lad like you to help me.” She smiled now to show that she wasn’t disappointed with him.
Caden tugged the neckline of his tunic and nodded. “Aye, I can help ye. What about Connor? He is testy because he has naught to do.”
“Well then, we shall find something for him to do too.” They reached the longhouse and Eva opened the door. “Lawrence said the house was finished. There’s a remarkable difference on the outside. Come and see the inside.”
The boy peeked his head in the door and peered around before stepping in.
She thought, perhaps, he was searching for spiders.
It had taken her a bit of time to feel confident enough that she wasn’t about to find another one crawling on her, but Lawrence and the other workers had cleared them all out when they’d fixed the roof and walls.
Now Caden said, “Aye, ye should have seen it when our uncle lived here.”
She smiled at Caden and meandered through the home. She couldn’t stop looking at all the changes. It was like a different house.
Now, the kitchen area was fitted with a nice-sized hearth and worktable. The floorboards were swept and cleaned, and a wall had been erected to give all of them privacy in the sleeping areas.
Before she got to the additional rooms she’d requested of Lawrence, Aymer entered with Connor on his back. He lowered the lad to the ground and helped him sit on the floor.
“Oh, I am gladdened you are here, Connor. My thanks, Aymer, for bringing him.”
Aymer gave a wave and left the house.
Eva grabbed Caden’s arm and motioned for him to sit next to his brother. Then she sat on the floor and faced them. “Whilst we are here, I wanted to talk to you about possibly living here with me and Breckin. I already spoke to Clare about it and if you want to…”
Both lads appeared pleased by her news and they smiled.
“Ye mean it, Eva? Ye want us to stay here?” Caden asked.
“I do, but you must promise not to pull pranks on me. You must do your best not to cause trouble for your brother. If you want to be part of our family, you must act like good family members.” She paused, letting her words take effect before continuing.
The boys nodded eagerly.
“And I have one more gift for you… My da sent horses, and at first, I did not want them, but I changed my mind. I asked Aymer to arrange to select a horse for each of you and one for me. Perhaps when we are bored, you can teach me to ride properly. Do you know how to ride?”
“Aye, we have ridden but not a lot because Breckin says we must earn it,” Connor said.
“Then I sadly must agree with him. You will earn the privilege of riding the horses by doing good and not getting into trouble. And, of course, you will need to each care for your horse. Make sure it’s fed, watered, groomed and…
whatever else you do with horses. I’m not sure.
But you will have to be.” She chuckled lightly.
“Now, whilst we are here, Caden, will you help me bring in some items from outside?”
He nodded. “But what will Connor do?”
She turned to his brother. “Can you hop outside? You can keep us company while we go through the carts.”
“Aye, Milady.” He grinned.
“Eva. Call me Eva.” She helped him rise and kept hold of his arm as they made their way outside. At the back of the longhouse where the carts were stored, she settled him nearby on a grassy spot.
“I want to go through the carts, look at every item, and figure out what I want to keep.” Eva whipped the tarp from over the first cart. Dust streamed through the air around her. She blinked and sneezed. The boys giggled and she tossed them a grin before she peered at her belongings.
Fond memories came as she went through the objects.
Her dear da had sent many household effects: a dissembled table, two long benches, and a rolled carpet from the small solar next to the great hall.
There were at least ten candle holders but she only kept five.
The rest she put in a pile for Master Amos.
There were also two oil lamps and a container that held the olive oil used to keep them alight, chamber pots, small crates of candles, ornate jars and jugs, and various other household items that dear Luella must have included for the keeping of her home.
The second cart held her bed and a few small tables, all of which had been disassembled and needed to be put back together.
She hoped with all her heart that the bed fit in her and Breckin’s bedchamber.
There were sacks stuffed with blankets, embroidered tablecloths, small supper cloths, and other material items. She’d have to go through those later when she had time to sort them.
She and Caden moved all the items to Conner.
She found a few cloths in one of the wagons for him to use to clean the road dust from things before they were moved into the house.
He set to work and she and Caden moved all the bigger pieces she wanted to keep into the house.
She placed them where she thought they should go.
Even with disassembled tables and beds, the longhouse was beginning to look like a home.
They tired themselves with all the activity and the heat of the day had them overtaxed.
She brushed her hands together to wipe off the dust and swiped the sweat from her forehead before setting her hands on her hips and looking at the boys.
Exhausted, for once they were still. But they deserved a reward.
“I think that is enough work for this day. Why do we not go to the loch and cool off?”
“How are we going to get Conner there?” Caden asked.
“We shall find him a good walking stick. I will help him too.” Eva gave her hand to him and pulled him to stand. “We shall take it slow, Connor. If it hurts too much, I shall have Aymer come and fetch you.”
She supported Connor on one side and Caden supported him on the other. He seemed capable of hopping along. When they reached the guardhouse, Aymer ceased speaking to the man he stood with and rushed forward.
“Milady, why did ye not send Caden for me? I would have come and got Connor.”
“We are headed to the loch.”
Aymer knelt on his knee and Connor got on his shoulders. “’Tis a good day to be by the loch and many have sojourned there. This has to be the hottest day but fret not, for the heat shall not last long.”
They walked together toward the opposite end of the island where a stream met the mouth of the loch.
Some of the clan’s people had had the same idea and swam in the shallow areas by the bank.
The lads pulled off their tunics and belted tartans at their hips.
Caden ran in a sprint into the water, splashing with force all those nearby.
Eva laughed when he fell and sank beneath the surface.
Aymer carried Connor into the water. “Go easy now, lad, and do not reinjure yourself.”
Eva set the tartan she’d wrapped around her waist earlier on the ground and slipped off her slippers.
She already felt cooler but still hastened to the water.
She was glad that she’d worn one of her less-fancy gowns now because this one was about to get wet.
She hoped it didn’t get ruined. But it was still long and kept her from rushing into the water like Caden.
With slow steps, she moved until the water finally reached her waist. Then she ducked down and thoroughly doused herself.
“Oh, this is pleasant.”
Aymer laughed from the water’s bank. “I need to get back to my duty, Milady.”
When Eva turned back to him, Aymer was gone.
“Now is a good time to practice, Milady. I will show ye some defensive movements,” Caden said and swam toward her. “It will not hurt as much if ye fall in the water.”
“Oh? You think you can make me fall?” She teased him and he chortled loudly. Eva wanted to learn and Caden seemed enthusiastic about teaching her.
“Ye need to come at me like this,” Caden said and showed her how to sneak attack him.
“Try to capture my arms.” As she went for him, he grabbed her and tossed her to the side and she fell into the water.
Repeatedly, they performed the tactic, and still, she was unable to thwart him.
But Eva wouldn’t give up and tried again.
“Ye are getting it, Milady. Have another go.”
Suddenly, she heard Breckin’s voice. He ran into the water, gripped Caden’s arm with force, and flung him away from her, then he grabbed his arm again to keep him from fleeing. His face reflected his ire and Caden cried out.
“Sweet Mary! What are ye doing, Breckin? Why are ye attacking Caden? Release him at once!” Eva stood with her hair dripping on her face and her hands set on her hips. Her glare surely let him know that she was displeased with his abrupt arrival.