Chapter 13
“We will reach home before dusk,” Slayer had told her after placing her on her own horse, a mare he called Star, when they had left the cottage earlier today.
Sky had remained silent at the news, her heart aching when she had looked at the cottage for the last time and the garden she would never get to harvest. The further away they had gotten from the cottage the more her apprehension grew, the more she was reminded of what the solitude of the cottage had allowed her to escape and what she would soon have no choice but to face.
Her stomach churned at the prospect of settling into a new home and grew even more upset with the thought of never returning home to Clan Murdock or when she would see her sisters next. She had offered prayers daily for their safety, confident from what Slayer had told her about Cavell that Elsie was safe with him. But she continued to worry about Leora, though she was strong, the strongest out of the three of them. If any of them could survive on their own, Leora could.
Sisters.
She was still finding the news that her parents were not truly her parents or her sisters, blood sisters, difficult to accept. She had avoided thinking about it since it left her feeling troubled. Her sisters and parents would always be just that to her, but she could not help but wonder who she truly was and where she had come from and why had her mother felt the need to give her away. Where was her true home?
Sky glanced at her husband, his eyes intense as he gazed around keeping alert to his surroundings and the troop of warriors that surrounded them. Home was now wherever her husband was, and she so wished that they were back at the lovely cottage in the woods.
He caught her glance and brought his horse beside hers. “Something troubles you?”
“Many things,” she admitted.
“All will go well,” he assured her. “You will have a good, safe home at Clan Ravinsher.”
“People are not very accepting of me,” she reminded, though her heart was touched by how easily he had accepted her affliction. From the first, it was as if he had not noticed it at all.
“They will accept you,” he said as though he declared it an edict.
Her husband might be confident about that, but she was not.
“We are almost home,” he said with a sense of pride and rode off when a warrior shouted out to him.
They entered a narrow path in the forest and Sky watched Slayer turn his horse around and hastily head back toward her. The attack came before he could reach her. Vicious battle roars filled the air as a mixed troop of warriors poured out of the forest.
Sky froze for only a moment, but it was long enough for a man to knock her off her horse. As she scrambled to her feet, she grabbed a sizeable stone ready to throw it at the man, but four ravens had descended upon him stabbing at his head and face with their beaks, keeping him from harming her. She was suddenly grabbed roughly from behind, the foul odor letting her know he was foe not friend, and she swung her hand back smashing the man in the head. He stumbled back and when she turned another raven was already stabbing the man’s head with his beak.
She hurried a glance around and saw Slayer slicing through the barrage of mercenaries to reach her, his face contorted in fury, and her only thought was to get to him as quickly as possible. She dodged and bent past men in combat and jumped over fallen bodies and barely missed hands that reached out to grab her. She was only a short distance away, Slayer having gotten closer in his attempt to reach her, when she was grabbed by the arm, swung around to face a large man who quickly lifted her and swung her over his shoulder and ran into the woods.
Sky battered his back with her fists not that it seemed to do any good, but she kept at it. He was quick for a large man, and she feared he would get too far with her for Slayer to reach her before it was too late. But Slayer would find her. He told her he would always find her, though she would do what she could to make it easier for him.
Her hands stopped their pummeling, and a chill ran through her, hearing a blood-curdling roar. It echoed through the woods like a beast on the prowl and she knew it was her husband. It stopped the man abruptly and she felt him shiver before he continued running. It was only a short time later that he again stopped abruptly.
“REALEASE HER NOW!”
Sky wanted to shout with joy upon hearing her husband’s powerful voice, but how had he gotten in front of the man?
Suddenly Gallowglass warriors descended on them, leaving no room for the man to escape.
“I mean her no harm,” the man called out.
“Then release her,” Slayer demanded.
The man eased Sky off his shoulder but held onto her arm once she was on her feet.
“Let her go,” Slayer warned with an icy anger.
“She must come with me,” the man said.
Slayer walked toward them. “She stays with me.”
Sky knew the forest sounds, what belonged and what didn’t. What sounds were no reason for alarm and what sounds were cause for worry. And she saw in her husband’s eyes that he had caught the sound too. The soft, whirling sound of an arrow. He was on her in a flash, shielding her with his body as he took her to the ground with such force that her arm was ripped from the man’s grasp.
Soon after, she heard the large man fall not far from them and right after that her husband shouted, “Find the archer!”
Slayer braced his hand on the ground to hover above her.
She answered the question she knew was on his tongue. “I am unharmed.”
He stood and helped her to her feet and feeling her a bit unsteady, he braced her against him, keeping his arm firm around her.
“You should not hold me so intimately,” she whispered, reminding him that no one was to suspect that there was anything intimate between them.
He whispered in return. “I have an excuse for my arm to be where I want it to be.”
“I am glad for I want your arm there as well,” she admitted shaken from the incident.
He glanced around as if he was more interested in what was going on around him than the woman he held tucked against him.
“How did you get in front of us?” she asked, his arm snug around her, chasing her fear away.
“I know these woods far better than anyone and besides, I told you I would always find you and I will,” he reminded.
“I am glad I can count on that,” she said and with the last of her fear dissipating, her body went limp against him.
His arm tightened around her waist. “You will ride with me.”
“I believe that would be wise,” she said and remained resting against him as she turned a glance at the dead man. “Who is he?”
“I don’t know, but I do believe there are two different fractions searching for the reddish blonde-haired woman. One who wants her alive and one who wants her dead. We need to get to the safety of the castle, and I need to find out if my warriors suffered any casualties and if any mercenaries were taken alive who could provide some answers.”
“How was it that more of your warriors arrived?” she asked, casting a glance at the unfamiliar men around them.
“Word was sent ahead for a troop to meet us since signs were spotted of mercenaries being in the area,” Slayer said, then called out orders to his warriors.
It was not long after that that they were once again on the path to Clan Ravinsher. Ominous gray clouds began to gather swiftly in the darkening sky, casting an air of anticipation and it was not too long before Sky spotted a village in the distance. As they got closer, she saw that the village sat outside a high stone wall and beyond it loomed a castle.
Slayer gave her waist a squeeze and whispered, “All will go well. But remember no one can know we are husband and wife.”
At that moment, though he held her snugly, she felt him slip away from her and the loneliness that had vanished while at the cottage slowly poked at her.
She took a soft breath and focused on what lay ahead. What she saw impressed and frightened her. Two imposing watchtowers were stationed on the outskirts of the bustling village. Beyond the high stone wall, the upper reaches of the castle peeked through the encroaching darkness. The village, alive with activity, buzzed with the sounds of people engaged in talk and the last chores of the day. Yet, the vibrant scene did not deter them from pausing in their tasks to acknowledge Slayer and praise his victory over the mercenaries.
Hands waved in greeting, smiles were abundant, and enthusiastic shouts of “Welcome home” and “Victory to you, my lord!” echoed through the air. All paid their respect to Lord Slayer and the returning warriors as the group continued their approach to the two large wood doors in the stone wall spread wide open in greeting.
However, smiles soon faded and whispers began when those close enough caught sight of Sky. She was sure word had reached the clan about her affliction and the incident with the stag. News never took long to spread and for trouble to begin. Instinct had her wanting to move closer to Slayer until she recalled that would not be proper with her not being his wife.
“You are safe. Do not worry,” Slayer said without glancing at her, though he once again gave her side a squeeze to reassure her.
They passed through the open doors into another thriving village and in the distance the castle. Villagers once again called out greetings to Slayer and once again smiles faded when glances fell on Sky. She thought to lower her head and avoid looking at anyone, but her husband’s whispered, harsh command stopped her.
“Do not dare hang your head in shame.”
She did as he ordered, though her stomach churned anxiously.
It seemed like it took forever to reach the castle, a large, formidable structure, but once they did, Slayer helped her off his horse and one of his warriors took the reins and led Skell away.
Slayer went to take hold of her hand and stopped himself, muttering, “Bloody hell.”
It was not going to be easy to keep his hands off her. Habits had been formed over the last few weeks and one of those habits he enjoyed was holding her hand. He wanted to declare there and then that they were husband and wife, but he had her safety to consider, and the recent attack had reminded him of that.
He followed alongside her up the stairs, muttering his annoyance and ready to rush her off to his bedchamber where he could do more than hold her hand.
He didn’t mutter this time. He let his annoyance be known. “Bloody hell.”
Sky stopped, worried. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing I cannot fix,” he said and opened the keep door, thinking how he would arrange it so that he and his wife would be able to share a bedchamber without anyone knowing.
“Euniss!” Slayer called out upon entering the Great Hall.
Sky was amazed at the size of the room. It was large and adorned with colorful banners that hung from the wood rafters and beautifully crafted tapestries graced the stone walls. A huge fireplace occupied almost a whole wall, its firelight, along with the candles burning in several tall, iron candelabras cast sufficient light around the room. There were too many trestle tables and benches to count, and none were occupied. A dais that sat six people was at the far end of the room and draped with a pristine white cloth. Tapestries depicting battles graced the entire wall behind it.
“Euniss!”
Slayer’s repeated shout gave Sky a start and she watched as a stout woman, her plump cheeks glowing red, a pleasant smile on her aged face, and a head full of short, gray curls entered the room and hurried toward Slayer.
“We need food and see that a bath is prepared and have clean garments made available for Sky,” Slayer ordered. “She is under the clan’s protection and will be staying with us indefinitely.”
“So, the battle was more a skirmish and victorious as usual, I hear,” Euniss said while staring at Sky. “Goodness gracious, your eyes don’t match in color. I have never seen the likes of that before now.”
“Will you never learn to hold your tongue,” Slayer admonished, the few servants in the room halting their tasks to glance at Sky.
Euniss turned a quick look on Slayer. “If I haven’t learned by now to hold my tongue, I never will. And why should it matter.? I say aloud what others will think but will not have the courage to say when they look upon her.” She glanced back at Sky. “Are you a witch?”
“Euniss!” Slayer snapped angrily.
The woman folded her arms over her ample breasts. “I promised your dear mum, God rest her soul, on her deathbed that I would look after you. That is a sacred vow I intend to keep.” She turned a squinting brow on Sky. “Well, are you a witch?”
Sky smiled at the blunt woman, though not without trepidation. “Nay, I know no witchcraft, nor do I know why I was born with two different colored eyes.”
“Well, if you’re not in cohorts with the devil then the good Lord must have given them to you for a good reason.” Euniss shooed her away. “Go sit by the fire. You look worn out and in need of a good soak in the tub. But first you will eat.” She shooed at her again and pointed. “Be off with you, over there.”
Shock had Sky not moving. No one had ever suggested her mismatched eye color came from good and not evil, though her mum had assured her that with her kind heart evil could never exist in her.
Slayer pressed his hand lightly on her back and got her moving to a table nearest to the fireplace.
“Euniss has her say more often than she should, and I tolerate her because of her word to my mum. She also oversees the keep and does an excellent job. She is a good soul, and you can trust her.”
“I appreciate you telling me that,” Sky said as he sat down beside her on the bench, pressing his leg against hers beneath the table. She kept a soft smile on her face as she spoke with a whisper to him. “I miss the intimacy of the cottage already.”
He missed it as well, yet he never had any intention of it turning out the way it did. It had simply been part of a plan conceived out of duty. But somehow that had changed, and he was not sure how to adjust to it.
He let her know he felt the same by pressing his leg firmer against hers and she graced him with a lovely smile and damn if it didn’t tug at his heart.
Bowls of food and jugs filled with ale and cider were placed on the table in front of them. Sky wasn’t sure she had an appetite. She had been so anxious about her arrival here that she feared her desire to eat had all but vanished. But the delicious aroma of the food made her think twice and she eagerly reached for a small meat pie.
As soon as Slayer speared a piece of meat with his knife, one of his warriors approached the table. “A few mercenaries survived, my lord, though for how long is questionable. They will be here soon, and there is no word on the archer yet.”
Slayer nodded. “Let me know when they arrive. I will question them.”
Sky hurried to swallow the little food in her mouth and looked anxiously at her husband as the warrior nodded and hurried off.
Slayer responded without Sky saying a word. “Nay, you cannot come with me.”
“It may concern me and my sisters, and perhaps he knows something about Leora’s whereabouts. I truly would like to hear what he says,” she said, hoping to change his mind, though knew the likelihood of that was bleak. He would not risk her safety.
He turned to her. “You will not want to see what I do to him to get those answers.” He raised his finger to silence her. “Not a word. It is done.”
She did not want to think about what the men would suffer, but she did want to know what they had to say. “Will you at least share with me what he reveals to you?”
Slayer was ready to deny her when he caught the concern in her eyes. She did not worry about herself. It was her sisters’ safety that concerned her.
“I will consider it,” he said.
Relieved that he did not completely refuse her, she smiled appreciatively though she would have preferred to lean against him and give his hand a squeeze. Instead, she simply said, “I am grateful, and I will gladly do my share of whatever chore you set for me while I am here.”
While I am here.
Those words irritated Slayer even though they were meant for the servants nearby to think she was nothing more than a guest willing to do her share.
Another warrior hurried to the table. “One prisoner has arrived, my lord, and I do not believe he has much time.”
Slayer stood and called out, “Euniss! See to Sky!”
“Aye, my lord,” Euniss said from across the large room.
Sky was not surprised or upset when he left without saying a word to her. Whispers could already be heard amongst the servants questioning her presence and that he had even sat with her at one of the tables meant for his warriors and guests. This was not going to be easy being among so many strangers and not one of them knowing she was Lord Slayer’s wife.
* * *
Sky kepther eyes closed and had hoped to be left alone after she had informed Euniss that she required no help bathing. Euniss had thought differently and after much debate, the woman had agreed to leave her alone to disrobe though not to wash.
She had barely gotten into the tub when Euniss returned with two servants, but she cared not since the hot bath water she was immersed in up to her neck felt far too good to care about anything. If only she could linger in it for hours, the heat easing the few aches that plagued her, but the bath water would not stay heated for long. She was relieved that her raw wrists had healed well, and her bruised eyes had long since vanished or it would have made her arrival here that much worse. Gossiping tongues were probably already busy creating a tale about her two different colored eyes that would no doubt embellish with time.
She shook her thoughts aways, wanting nothing more than to enjoy the heated water. The wood tub was a substantial size, far larger than she was accustomed to, a fit more preferrable for Slayer. Though it might be confining for him with the width of his impressive shoulders and long legs. His size alone could intimidate. It certainly had intimidated her and still did at times. Other times, it did not disturb her at all. And his pronounced muscles could cause any man to think twice about challenging him and yet she loved the feel of them, loved feeling his strength when he maneuvered her around in bed with a lift of one arm to fit her perfectly beneath him.
She bit back the soft moan rising inside her along with her passion. There had to be something wrong with her that her need for her husband was so great. She recalled hearing women talking and laughing among themselves, not realizing she was near or perhaps not caring. What was it some of them had said about their husbands?
Mine stirs me to madness.
Lucky you, mine doesn’t stir me at all.
Mine makes me tingle all over.
A simple touch from mine stirs me.
I got myself the wrong husband.
Slayer could certainly stir her to madness, and he made her tingle all over and, Lord, help her, his touch alone could spark her desire for him. She smiled to herself and silently thanked the heavens that she accidentally found the right husband.
Strong whispers penetrated her thoughts, though she was glad for the interruption, needing to quell her passion. She listened to the whispers, loud enough to hear. The two servants were pleading with Euniss to be dismissed. They feared helping her because of her strange eye color.
“I can see to washing myself,” Sky said softly, understanding the servants’ misgivings. “Please let the servants go.”
Sky said no more since it truly was not her decision to make. She was not the lady of the keep. Though she wondered if she was receiving such attention because she was believed to be the widow of the previous lord, the large room alone alerted her to that possibility since it appeared fit for the lord of the clan. Everything seemed large in the room, from the fireplace to the chairs, to several chests, and a huge bed, four thick posts reaching almost to the ceiling from its four corners. She would have to ask Slayer if she was thought to be Warrand’s widow. But for whatever reason, she did not feel comfortable with the attention. She was accustomed to seeing to her own needs and required no assistance.
She repeated herself softly. “Please, let them go, Euniss.”
Silence followed and she realized that please was not something the servants heard from nobles, but she was not a noble. And she could not be something she wasn’t.
“Be gone with you,” Euniss ordered the two servant lasses.
“You need not stay either, Euniss,” Sky said upon hearing the two servants rush out of the room as if the devil was on their heels. “I can see to taking care of myself.”
“Nonsense.”
Her voice sounded as if she stood beside the tub and Sky’s eyes flashed open to see Euniss standing near the rim, folding up her sleeves.
“I will see to washing myself,” Sky said quickly. “I need no help, but I am grateful for the offer.”
Euniss picked up a slab of soap that had been placed on top of a stack of folded cloths sitting atop a high stool. “I will wash your hair.”
Sky thought to argue but when the woman’s hands began working the soap into her hair and scalp vigorously, she sighed with pleasure.
“You must be tired after your long journey,” Euniss said.
Long journey. The woman was curious as to how long she had been with Slayer. Surely word must have reached here about Sky. She did not believe warriors would hold their tongues. Unless Slayer had issued orders.
Sky kept her response simple. “I look forward to some sleep.”
“Sit up some and tilt your head back so I can rinse the soap from your hair.”
Sky did as she asked, almost sighing with the pleasure of the still-heated water running over her head and shoulders.
“Will you be staying with us long?” Euniss asked.
“I am not sure,” she said, fearful of saying too much or saying something she shouldn’t.
“I should warn you.”
“Warn me?” Sky asked, concerned as the woman squeezed the water from her hair.
“Lord Slayer is a good man, not always kind, but a good man. The not always good part is thanks to his father who forced him to become the mighty warrior that he is today. Lord Bannaty wanted to assure that no one dared oppose Clan Ravinsher. It left little time for Lord Slayer to know anything other than the constant need to protect his brother and the future of the clan. Now he is the future of the clan and there is no one to protect him.”
Aye, there is… me.
A foolish thought since what could she do to protect Slayer?
Love him.
She did not know how that would help, but since her heart believed otherwise, she would trust it. She would protect him and shield him with her love.
* * *
Slayer was disappointedthat the captured men he spoke with had no new information to give them. It was the same news he had discovered himself. Mercenaries, whether small or large groups, were crawling the Highlands with hopes of being successful in killing the reddish blonde-haired Murdock sister and claiming the sizeable fortune offered to complete the mission. The only lead to who wanted them dead had something to do with the Lowlanders who had entered the Highlands.
He was glad for the late-night hour and the quiet of the village. He often walked through the village at night to check on his sentinels, keeping them alert since they never knew when he might show up. It also left him time alone. Undisturbed time, when he let his thoughts run wild before forcing them into order, into making sense and making decisions. Though some remained stubborn, refusing to comply, refusing to make sense, and that frustrated Slayer. But it always proved only a mere delay in the end since he refused to accept defeat. He was a Gallowglass warrior and the Gallowglass never surrendered.
Once in the keep, he made his way to his bedchamber and approached the bed quietly to see Sky sleeping peacefully. Strands of her reddish blonde hair, much like the colors of the flames that flickered in the fireplace, lay across her cheek, the ends curling slightly. He went to move it aside with his finger, but instead he caught it between two of his fingers. Soft and silky. He favored running his finger through her hair to hold her head still when he kissed her. And he could not get enough of her lovely face. It was flawless, not a blemish on it and pale in color, except for the two, faint pink stains on her cheeks which appeared often, another thing about her that he favored.
He let the soft strands fall from his fingers, hearing the door open slowly.
“A bath is prepared in your mum’s bedchamber. I prepared that chamber for Sky to sleep, but she must have assumed she was to use this bedchamber where she bathed and slipped into bed and fell asleep. I was sure you would not want me to disturb her. So, I had a bath prepared there for you.”
Slayer approached Euniss, standing just inside the room, and ordered, “Out.”
Without speaking a word to her, he walked to the bedchamber that had once belonged to his mother. He hurried out of his garments and into the tub, eager to get done and return to his wife and wrap himself around her in sleep.
He noticed that Euniss was alone with him, no other servants lingered about with more hot water or waiting for further instructions. She had done that on purpose. She had questions for him.
“You can go, Euniss,” he ordered.
“You are not going to get rid of me that fast,” she said and walked to the tub and took a stubborn stance there, folding her arms across her chest. “What is going on? You are far too familiar with her.”
“I do not see how that should concern you.”
“And I do not see how it does not concern you. Do you wish to ruin her reputation, or have you already?”
Leave it to Euniss to notice and be blunt about it. She knew him too well and that was something that might just solve his dilemma.
Slayer looked directly at her. “Sky is my wife.”
Euniss gasped and slapped her hand to her chest.
“My mum trusted you, therefore, I trust you. This is knowledge that cannot yet be made known. Ross knows and now you. No one, not even Sky’s sisters, knows of this. Until I can make certain that Sky will be safe being my wife, no one will know we are wed. But I will also not be kept from my wife’s bed. So, you will be the only one who tends to these upper chambers. Sky is a kind soul, Euniss, and I will not have her treated badly.”
“That might prove difficult, sir.”
“Then let your tongue spread the word that there will be severe consequences to anyone who treats her poorly,” Slayer said with a snarl of anger.
Euniss realized she had said enough. He would tolerate no more from her and with a quick, “Aye, sir,” she took her leave.
Slayer wasted no time in washing. He normally would linger in the heat of the water, but not tonight. Tonight, he wanted to join his wife in bed as soon as he could. With a drying cloth wrapped around his waist, he made his way back to his bedchamber.
He felt his manhood react as soon as he got in bed and wrapped himself around his wife. While he knew he could easily wake her passion, she looked far too peaceful in sleep to disturb her. Tomorrow morning would be soon enough and content with that thought, he fell asleep.