Chapter 4 #2
“I don’t believe it for one instant. I’ve never seen you trip and fall. Not once.”
“Well, you have proof of it now.” She exchanged the dry shift she’d draped over the top of the partition with her wet dress. “Let me change. I’m getting chilled.”
“You’re lying.” Maisie wasn’t budging. She lifted the candle closer to Morrigan’s face, inspecting every bump and scratch.
“Why should I lie?”
“So you don’t lose your freedom. So you can continue to come and go as you please.”
“You’re reading far too much into this.”
“Am I?” Maisie scoffed. “We’ve been here before. You and I had this same conversation in Edinburgh. Except it was you questioning me. And we promised each other there’d be no more lies. Remember?”
Maisie was right. Morrigan had confronted her in the stairwell of the house on Infirmary Street after one of the reform protests this past winter.
They’d had a very similar conversation because she was concerned about the bloodied condition of the other’s clothing.
She’d been ready to tear apart whoever was responsible for hurting her.
Maisie looked ready to do the same for her now.
“We vowed to be sisters and be honest with each other. Have you forgotten?”
It was more than her face that was bruised right now.
Morrigan wanted to tell her the truth. But she couldn’t.
Her past was complicated. The years—and her father—had taught her that silence was the best path.
In order to heal, she had to forget. But Maisie wasn’t going anywhere unless Morrigan could concoct a better story.
“Very well. I didn’t just fall. I was chasing after someone when I fell. But Searc can’t know. You have to promise me.”
“You chased after someone?” Isabella’s dismayed cry came from the far side of the room. “Where was Blair? You were to stay with the Mackintosh men the entire time.”
Morrigan closed her eyes and shook her head. She hadn’t heard the bedroom door open again. Of course, both women would come up here. Here was a lesson learned. From now on, regardless of what kind of day she had, she’d be certain to torment Searc.
Isabella poked her head around the edge of the screen, holding another candle.
“For the love of God!” Morrigan exploded. “Why don’t we invite everyone up from the Great Hall?”
She pushed Maisie toward her older sister.
“The two of you will have to wait until I change.”
They followed her order, but that wasn’t the end of the inquisition.
“Is she hurt?” Isabella asked Maisie.
“I’d say!”
“No, I’m not!” Morrigan denied loudly. She draped the wet shift over the screen. Quickly, she began pulling on the dry one.
“You’ll see, as soon as she comes out of hiding,” Maisie retorted. “Her mouth is bruised, and her lip is badly swollen.”
“You’re exaggerating.” Morrigan tried to make less of it.
“I’m not,” Maisie contradicted. “I think her nose is broken. It looks quite crooked to me.”
“My nose has never been straight, thank you.”
“There was nothing wrong with your nose before,” Isabella replied, her tone rising with concern.
“I think she may have lost teeth, but the swollen lip makes it difficult to tell.”
The wet dress disappeared over the top of the screen.
“This is ridiculous. I didn’t lose any teeth.”
“Whom were you chasing?” Isabella demanded.
Morrigan shoved her arms into the sleeves of the clean dress.
She knew she had only one chance at an explanation.
It had to be believable. Would she chase after a child trying to pick her pocket?
That wouldn’t do. There were too many hungry children on the streets who would do anything to survive.
Was she accosted by a sailor or a tradesman?
No, that would simply get Blair and Searc in trouble.
“Look at all the blood!” Maisie exclaimed.
She must have found the handkerchief in the pocket. Morrigan had to face these two. There was no avoiding it. She stepped around the divider as she buttoned her dress.
Isabella stood staring for a few moments, speechless. Her anger was evident in the scarlet rash spreading from her throat into her cheeks. Unlike Morrigan, the young doctor used to be adept at controlling her temper, but she was a different woman from the one she once was.
“Who did this to you? By heaven, I’m going to make them suffer. They were supposed to take care of you. Protect you. Watch you every minute.”
Morrigan imagined Isabella rushing down to the Great Hall in search of Blair and Searc and the other men with every intention of thrashing them soundly.
“It looks far worse than it is,” Morrigan said calmly. “Let me wash my face first and you’ll see.”
It took a few moments for the young doctor to quiet her temper, but after inhaling a few deep breaths, the protective tigress in Isabella subsided slightly, allowing the physician in her to surface. She sat Morrigan in a chair by the hearth and held the candle closer. “Tell me what hurts.”
“Nothing hurts.” She forced herself not to flinch when Isabella touched the side of her chin.
“I know of no woman who is physically tougher than you, my love. But right now, I need to see how much damage was done.”