Chapter Eighteen
The next morning, the tension hadn’t lifted.
Alpin barely nodded at Torquil as he approached.
He and Eilidh had decided earlier that morn that he should spend some time alone with her brothers whilst she spent time with her sisters.
So, now he found himself outside, walking toward Alpin who was swinging an axe with such force upon logs, that instead of splitting them, they splintered into hundreds of shards.
Torquil wondered if the man was picturing Torquil’s head as the log and this was his way of releasing his frustration.
Torquil understood. He also had taken his anger out during a wood-chopping session, though mayhap with a little less ferocity.
Errol is standing nearby, watching Alpin with a smile tilting his lips, until he spotted Torquil and his smile quickly transformed into a grimace.
Torquil picked up another axe and set up a larger log so that he could assist with the chopping. Alpin threw a glare in Torquil’s direction. He was wondering if he had any other looks he was capable of, since his face seemed to have been frozen in a scowl ever since he and Eilidh had arrived.
Alpin swung the axe again, muttering under his breath, “Women and their foolish mistakes. Ruining their damn lives.”
Torquil stopped mid-swing and addressed Alpin. “Say that again, and we shall settle it properly.” He focused his stare on the eldest Hart brother, not backing down.
Alpin scoffed, and looked like he was going to close the distance betwixt them, but Errol stepped in. “Ye would be wise to mind yer place, MacGregor.”
Torquil fired back. “I have earned my place, same as ye. I married her. I protect her now.” He dropped the axe, squaring up, ready to battle if he had to. “Ye may no’ like her choice, but ’twas hers to make, and she did.”
Alpin threw the axe he was holding to the ground afore turning on his heel and walking away. Errol lingered for a few long moments, staring Torquil down, but then spun around and followed Alpin.
Torquil looked toward the castle and spotted Eilidh watching him, an unrecognizable look on her face. He nodded, giving her a smile and then went back to work to finish chopping the wood. He would prove himself useful one way or another.
After some time, Rory joined him. The man was silent at first, picking up the other axe to help. “I see the look ye give my sister. ’Tis a mixture of pride and love.”
Torquil said naught. Of all the things he expected Rory to say, that was not any of them.
“I understand,” Rory continued. “Ye doonae have to say aught. I just want ye to ken that I understand. I met my wife whilst I was supposed to be escorting her to her betrothed. Which I did, but I couldnae let her go. I went against e’erything that was expected of me.
I had to. I couldnae foresee a future that didnae include Alana. ”
Torquil paused, starting to understand what Rory was saying, in his own roundabout way.
“Our other sister, Moira, also married the enemy. In the end it served to build a bridge to healing and an unexpected alliance. Dinnae give up on Eilidh. She returns yer looks with the same feelings. For a long time she has struggled to be happy. To be wanted. She has found that in ye. Dinnae let Alpin’s dour mood and Errol’s standoff attitude scare ye away.
Although, I believe if ye were going to be scared away, ye would have run already. ”
“I am trying to make this right,” Torquil finally spoke. “I kenned Eilidh was special the verra first moment our eyes met over a crowd of onlookers.”
Rory nodded. “Ye will get there. Errol, Alpin, and e’en our da will also get there. They only need time to process things that have already been done.” He clasped Torquil’s shoulder afore leaving him alone with his thoughts.
He remembered Eilidh telling him that she felt closest to her brother, Rory. Now he understood why. The man was quiet, but his thoughts were deep. Torquil could respect that.
Gathering the chopped wood, he stacked them neatly in rows and then returned to the castle, feeling a little more at ease after he and Rory’s conversation.
Later that night, he followed the sound of music and found Eilidh practicing her fiddle alone. Her song somber, giving voice to her emotions. She paused to smile at him.
“I hoped ye would find me.”
“Nay force could keep me away.”
Eilidh held out her arm, handing him his lute.
“Ye brought my lute with ye to practice?” he asked as he accepted the instrument.
She shrugged. “As I said, I wanted ye to find me.” She gestured to his lute as she tucked her fiddle under her chin and slid her bow across the strings.
Torquil listened for a few moments, getting the melody of the song Eilidh was playing and began to strum alongside her.
Their harmonies returned, a small reminder of why they fell in love.
Of how their music had brought them together.
They played for what seemed like hours. The songs turning away from sad tunes to happier, jovial songs that made his heart light.
As they finished playing, letting the sounds echo through the night, Torquil vowed, “I will win them o’er, I promise ye. And if I cannae, I will stand beside ye no matter the consequences.”
She blessed him with a warm smile, her eyes lighting up in a way he had not seen for days. Better yet, hope flickered in their blue depths, giving him hope that their future was theirs for the taking.
He settled beside her, draping an arm over her shoulders, and drawing her close. He kissed the top of her head and breathed in the scent of her. God, he loved this woman.
“I spoke with Rory earlier today.”
She looked up at him, surprise on her face, with a touch of worry. “Oh?”
He nodded. “Dinnae fash. ’Twas a good conversation. I can see why ye two get on so weel. It seems that out of yer brothers he is the most levelheaded,” he said with a chuckle. “He is far more observant than I believed on first meeting him. And he loves ye verra much.”
She smiled and cuddled into his chest. “There is a reason why he is my favorite sibling.” Her voice grew serious.
“I love all of my siblings, doonae misunderstand me. But ye have brothers. Ye ken how some ye get on better with than others? That is how I feel with Rory. He sees things on a deeper level instead of only seeing things as they are presented to him.”
“That is the impression I got as weel.”
Eilidh shivered, and Torquil sat up straight. “The night grows cool. Let us retire inside so ye dinnae fall ill. I willnae have that happen on my watch. Especially here and give yer family fodder for saying why I doonae deserve ye.”
“We for certs doonae want that to happen,” she said, her eyes bright and cheerful.
And finally, Torquil felt that the darkness that had been hovering over them was beginning to lift.