Chapter Three #4
Before Fallon could respond to the old man, Hagatha, the wild-haired friend of Laurel’s, approached and said, “Ye heard Lady McTiernay, ye old man. Those two are taking care of it.” She waved to Conan and Seamus.
“Just unhitch the animals, Neal, and the lads will take care of the cart when they’re done. Won’t ye, lads?”
Both made a “humph” sound but did not argue as they finally started to lift things out of the cart. “Which room, Fallon?” Conan grunted.
“Main room on the second floor.”
Mhàiri had been to several castles when she had been young, but only briefly and mostly on market days when merchants were selling their goods. She used to envision what it would be like to live in such a grand place, and the McTiernay Castle was definitely one of the grander ones she had seen.
Just passing through the gates would make a person nervous if unsure they had a right to be there.
The long and broad entry was guarded by a single well-sized barbican tower fortifying the guard gate.
Six round towers and the curtain wall formed a D that housed a substantially large courtyard.
Most were three stories, one was four, but the massive tower on the northwest wall had to be seven stories at least.
Only a rich laird of a very large and powerful clan could afford a castle of this size.
And with such wealth, Mhàiri would have thought that all the staff would act meek and in fear of those they serve.
But that was not the case at McTiernay Castle.
Throughout Conor and Laurel’s fight, the courtyard had remained busy, giving them no privacy.
Even those who had a place to go to like Maegan, Conan, and Laurel’s friends Aileen and Hagatha had just stood around and waited until it was over.
In Mhàiri’s experience, stable masters did not declare what they would and would not do, and midwives did not remind a laird’s brother and elite guard what their duties were. It was starting to be too much.
“I can tell you need to sit down and have something to drink,” offered the pretty tawny-haired woman named Aileen. “We can probably persuade Fiona into giving us some scraps of food. She seemed to be in a good mood during the midday meal.”
Mhàiri furrowed her brow, remembering Conan’s alarming comments about the McTiernay cook. She was not sure she wanted to raise the woman’s ire.
Hagatha nodded. “Aye, ale sounds good.” Then she turned and headed toward two large doors that led to what had to be the castle’s great hall.
She was the strangest midwife Mhàiri had ever seen.
She was large and visually abrasive with wild red hair, but despite that, Mhàiri found the woman comforting.
She suspected Hagatha, when riled, could cause the exact opposite feeling, but right now she was offering friendship and Mhàiri was eager to have as many friends as possible during her hopefully short stay at McTiernay Castle.
Aileen called out to the children to behave, avoid the Star Tower until the evening meal, and stay out of trouble lest they suffer her wrath.
Mhàiri could not envision Aileen mad, but all four of the children obviously could and immediately nodded their heads.
She then rushed to follow Hagatha into the great hall.
Maegan grabbed Mhàiri’s arm, forcing her to come along. “Don’t worry. Seamus will make sure all your things get to your room.” Then she looked back at the cart and murmured, “A shaoghail! You do have a lot of things.”
Mhàiri quickly fell into step. “I . . . uh . . . really don’t,” she said, feeling awkward for the first time about the substantial load she had insisted come with her.
Of course, they probably thought the majority of it was dresses and clothes, although that would have weighed a lot less and wouldn’t have been as difficult to transport.
Mhàiri was not even sure how her father was going to manage adding the chests to his things when he came for her.
He did own a very large wagon that was incredibly sturdy, but just the three large chests were a lot.
“I don’t really have a lot of personal items, such as clothes and things.
Only the small chest has my other dress and undergarments. ”
They were inside the hall and her words echoed in the empty chamber.
The massive hall was a large, open room, and grandly decorated, but it had a warm, inviting feel as well.
The ceiling was covered by a high stone vault, and against the east far wall was a canopied fireplace.
Behind her, another fireplace was situated to allow for heating on both sides of the room when partitioned.
At the far end of the room sat the high table, which was lit by a large window set in the north wall.
All sounds were amplified because the floor was made of timber instead of ground earth.
Aileen waved them to come join her near the fire.
After everyone was seated, she made introductions.
“This is Hagatha, which you probably gathered from Conor’s comments outside.
She is our midwife and healer. She’s crusty and outspoken, but we love her.
” Hagatha was about to interject, but Aileen cut her off.
“I’m Aileen and consider Laurel my closest friend.
My husband is Finn, who is the commander of Conor’s guard.
You cannot miss him. He has a constant scowl on his face that he thinks makes him look fierce.
And it looks like you and Maegan are already on the way to becoming friends. ”
“Did I hear you say you have only one spare dress?” Maegan asked, clearly saddened at the concept.
Hagatha huffed and gestured for some food and drink to a servant who was hovering near the timber partition that screened the hall from the service area.
“An arisaid and a spare is enough for me and most everyone else. To hear Maegan now, you would never know that she grew up running around this place acting more like a boy than a lass, but no one could make that mistake now. Our Maegan believes no woman can have enough gowns and shoes to go with them. And Laurel indulges such whimsy.”
Aileen smiled. “You know that Maegan more than earns those gowns, Hagatha, helping out with Laurel’s three children. Even Braeden listens to her, and with the baby coming, Laurel will need Maegan’s help even more.”
Maegan gave Mhàiri a grin and then shrugged. “I do like clothes. They are the secret to happiness.”
“I thought Clyde was your secret to happiness,” Aileen teased.
“What about baths? Yesterday, a hot bath was your secret to happiness,” Hagatha added as she turned to help the servant put the drinks and food on the table.
“And . . .”
“Enough! You will make Mhàiri think that I am hopelessly spoiled and ungrateful. Besides, I intend to give some of my gowns to Mhàiri just like her ladyship did for me.” She leaned over to Mhàiri and explained, “When my grandmother passed away, Lady Laurel took me in and now I live at the castle. I was here practically all the time anyway, with Clyde and his friend Kam. That was before he left to help King Robert fight the Irish. And since we are getting married when he returns, it only makes sense that I stay here and help with the children.”
Aileen laid a soft hand on Mhàiri’s arm. “Do you know who Clyde is?”
Mhàiri nodded, pulling off a piece of bread. The delicious smell made her realize she was famished. “Conan told me all about his brothers.”
Hagatha spurted out her ale. “Conan talked to you? As in you had an actual conversation during your journey here.”
Mhàiri swallowed and then grinned. “Aye. I get the feeling he doesn’t get the chance to talk to many people because, once we started, we rarely stopped.”
Hagatha put her mug down on the table with a thump. “You’re saying you talked with Conan and he did not insult you, or make you angry?”
“Of course Conan insulted me,” Mhàiri replied with a wave of her hand.
“But that only made it more fun to point out when he was in the wrong.” She chuckled seeing the three sets of shocked, unblinking eyes staring back at her.
“It’s been a long time since I had the chance to really debate with someone who could adequately argue his point.
Plus, Conan didn’t mind when I yelled back and insulted him.
It was rather fun,” she concluded with a shrug.
She did not add that it was only the last day did they get to such a point.
Hagatha, Aileen, and Maegan all shifted their stares from her to one another. “It cannot be that shocking,” Mhàiri finally stated.
Maegan looked at her and bobbed her head. “Oh, but it is.”
“How? I saw everyone’s reaction while Laird and Lady McTiernay argued. No one was worried or cared, so why is it so surprising that Conan and I verbally sparred a little as well?”
Aileen’s eyes grew even larger. She took a deep breath and exhaled. “Well, uh . . .”
Maegan licked her lips. “It’s only that no one likes talking to Conan, and I am certain that he does not like talking to us either. And when I say us, I mean us women.”
“It’s more than that,” Hagatha said with her mouth full and jabbed the piece of bread she was holding at Mhàiri. “She enjoyed it. Just wait until Laurel hears that!”
Aileen bit her bottom lip. “Aye, but you know what Laurel said last summer. She swore that she would never assist Conan in matters of the heart. She doesn’t want to be responsible for the resulting heartache she is certain would eventually come.”
Mhàiri wrinkled her nose. “Conan warned me that Laurel was a matchmaker and to be careful of her. That she had sworn off helping him, which meant I was going to be her next target.”
Again, all three heads looked at her in astonishment. Mhàiri grimaced. “I told you. We talked.”
Aileen shook her head in disbelief. “After Laurel meets you, she just might change her mind about Conan.”
Hagatha jogged her head in agreement.