Chapter 11 #2
“Aye.” Davina nodded. “Children scattered, and loyalty learned. At least he had that part right. If Neil remained in captivity even when he could have broken free, then he must have thought it would protect his men. That is the kind of man his faither raised.”
Kristen’s breath caught. “Even at the cost of his own freedom?”
Davina nodded again. “Especially at the cost of his own freedom. But then, the only way to truly ken is to ask him.”
They stood quietly, letting the afternoon breeze drift in and out of the room. Below, Neil sent another guard to the dirt and stepped away with his blade up.
The sight made Kristen’s stomach churn and her mouth go dry at once. She hated that her body could not pick a single sense to settle.
“Me Lady,” Finn called from the center of the room, reminding her that the children had been in there the entire time. “Can ye count for us, please?”
She turned around.
Finn and Anna were already hiding behind the long curtains, their little feet sticking out slightly. Maggie sat in the center of the room, panting as if the game had exhausted her, and thumped her tail like a drum.
Kristen lifted a hand to her eyes. “One. Two. Three. I wonder where the bairns have gone. Davina, have ye seen any children?”
“I have seen nay such thing,” Davina replied gravely. “Only a very fine dog.”
Maggie barked once as if in agreement, and the curtains shook.
Kristen peered beneath a chair. “Nothing here. Perhaps they flew out the window.”
Finn squeaked, and Anna giggled. A small shoe tried to pull itself further behind the fabric and failed.
Davina leaned down to study two pairs of small feet. “I see two very suspicious shadows.”
Kristen gasped. “Do ye? I see two very suspicious toes.”
A delighted shriek sounded from behind the curtains. Finn flung them wide. Anna tumbled out after him and rolled into Maggie, who bore the collision with the patience of an old saint.
The room filled with laughter and small voices at once.
“Again,” Finn demanded.
“Just a few more rounds,” Kristen said. “Then we wash and go out for a walk.”
“Can we go to the lake?” Anna asked.
“Aye, that we can do,” Kristen replied with a smile.
The children hid behind the big chair one time, then under the table.
In one of their last rounds, Anna had hidden behind Davina’s skirt.
Davina had pretended not to notice the small body pressed against her side and took three steps with a solemn face until Kristen rescued her.
Maggie spun in three happy circles and sniffed under the bench as if inspecting a troop of thieves.
The door opened at the last round, and Neil and Lachlan strode in. Their shirts clung to their chests, and their hair was damp with sweat.
Neil’s gaze swept over the room, unreadable. Lachlan’s went straight to Davina.
“Ye look like summer,” he murmured, drawing close. “Is that a new oil in yer hair I smell?”
Davina’s mouth softened. She lifted her chin for the kiss he pressed to her temple. “Perhaps. Do ye like it?” she asked softly.
Kristen’s heart clenched. The tenderness of the gesture seemed to tilt the room.
She wanted to be happy for them. She was.
It found a raw edge anyway.
Finn darted out from behind the chair and ran straight into Lachlan’s knee. Lachlan caught him with an easy hand and spun him in a small circle that made him squeal.
“Where is yer partner in crime?” he asked.
“Here,” Anna declared, before running to Davina.
Davina bent and pressed a kiss to her brow. “A fierce lass.”
Neil leaned his shoulder against the doorframe as if wood could steady him for as long as possible.
Kristen could see that the training session still clung to him, as well as something else.
He was not fully here. Part of him must have been where he was held captive.
It was as if he could not trust the safety and softness of this moment, his body tense, alert.
“Finn,” she said, holding out a hand.
Finn ran to her, quick and sure.
“Anna,” she called.
The little girl came at once and tugged at her dress with a solemn nod.
Maggie rose and circled Kristen’s feet as if she had been asked to lead a parade.
“We will go to the lake,” Kristen announced, mustering a smile from somewhere that did not hurt. “If we daenae put our boots in the water, we might find a frog with a crown.”
Finn gasped. “A king.”
“Aye,” Kristen said. “One who cares for his people.”
Anna clapped and chanted, “Lake, lake,” and Maggie barked as if to second the motion.
Davina touched Kristen’s arm as they passed. “Since it rained earlier, take the path by the trees,” she advised. “The ground is kinder there, and the wind is soft.”
“I will,” Kristen said. “Thank ye.”
Lachlan stepped back to give them room. He smiled at Finn and stood aside for Anna with all the respect due to a queen.
Neil did not speak. He shifted as if he might, but then let the moment pass. His gaze dropped to Maggie when she brushed his boot, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
Kristen did not look at him for long. She could not trust what her eyes might see. She guided the children to the door, steady in her steps and voice.
“Come on, me loves,” she said. “Let’s see if the lake remembers us.”
They stepped out into the corridor, where the light fell warm along the floor. Maggie took the front, her tail swaying like a banner. The children ran two steps ahead and then back to take Kristen’s hands. Laughter accompanied them like a lovely ribbon.
Kristen did not turn back. She led her small company down the stairs. She quickly went to grab a blanket, a book, and some snacks, and returned ready for their little trip.
She needed the lake as much as the children did. Hopefully, it would settle the maelstrom of feelings inside her.