Chapter 2
Chapter
Two
The gates of Loch-Gaar slammed behind Riona. Usually, she found their closing comforting, but today the noise was oppressive. She wanted to turn around, push the large wooden panels open, and run.
Run where? To Aiden?
Riona almost snorted out loud at that thought. Despite what Aiden had said earlier, she had nowhere to go except this village. She wasn’t willing to chance her fate with the Fae. Besides, if she were lucky, she would be on good terms with everyone very soon thanks to her talk with Aiden. She would be known as the person who spoke with their angry patron and suggested a solution that could possibly save the village.
No need to run away. If anything, she needed to run forward to find the village Elders. She waved at John, the gatekeeper, in an attempt to calm her nerves. He waved back with a small smile.
Entering the village after Riona went to the forest took courage. Courage that Riona had to dig deep to find. The oppressive weight that had left her when she’d gone to forage settled back on her shoulders.
Hostile eyes burned into Riona as she wound her way through the village. She hated the way the villagers looked at her now. Mistrust. Distaste. Hate even shone in some of their eyes.
Hopefully, that would change soon. After her father’s death, people she had thought were friends or at least respected her began to treat her differently. At first it was a cold glance or a scowl, but soon after came the open hostility.
Riona would never forget the day that she’d been in the square and a gang of young boys attacked her. The first piece of rotten fruit had hit her in the temple. Surprise and pain had sent her falling to the ground only to be hit again and again. Their cruel laughter and insults echoed in her ears. No one aided her. Many of the villagers were present, but they had just ignored what was happening or, worse, watched with a strange sense of satisfaction etched on their faces. That was the day Riona learned how much her father’s good reputation had shielded her.
No one was ever violent toward her again, but that day marked a turning point. Hopefully today would be a new turning point. It had to be. Riona didn’t have any other options.
“Riona!” a reedy young voice called out. Small feet clomped in the mud toward her. She couldn’t hide the smile at the sight of Connal. The young boy, fast teetering on the edge of adulthood, rushed toward her.
“And how are you today, sir?” Riona asked. She ruffled his sandy-colored hair affectionately. Connal shrugged. His eyes drifted to the basket and at the sight of its emptiness, his shoulders drooped a little. Seeing his dejection tugged on her heart.
She rifled through her dress pocket and pulled out a small handful of berries. The boy smiled and immediately began stuffing the berries in his mouth with his dirt-stained hands.
The berries were going to be her dinner, but she couldn’t leave Connal without something. He looked thinner than when she’d seen him last, and based on how he was scarfing down the treat, he might have missed a meal himself. She eyed his dirty fingers. He’d been out foraging too, dark crescents under his nails.
Riona realized she hadn’t seen his mother in a few days either. Where was Meg? Why was her son foraging for food?
“Con, where is your mother?” she asked.
“She’s sick.” Connal stuffed three more berries in his mouth, and Riona scowled. He clearly hadn’t eaten today, and she had a pretty good idea why. There wasn’t a bigger miser in the land than Connal’s great-uncle Dolan. Clearly, he was not treating the child well while his mother was sick.
“Has he fed you?” Riona asked. She tried to keep the edge from her voice.
“Not since yesterday.” Connal wouldn’t look at her when he spoke.
“Why not?”
“Uncle says if my ma can’t work, we’re not worth feeding.”
Connal’s words made Riona’s blood boil. Dolan was probably better off than most of the village, but he wouldn’t even provide for his niece and her child when she was sick. She hated the man.
“I’m sorry I don’t have more for you, but I’ll see what I can find tomorrow,” Riona said quietly.
“Thank you,” Connal smiled up at Riona. He tucked away the last handful of berries in his tunic.
“Now go on with you. We will get this sorted,” Riona said. She patted his shoulder. Connal regarded her for a moment with eyes much older and wearier than a boy his age should have and then nodded. Riona watched him walk away until a shadow blocked her path.
“Leave the child alone, half-blood. He doesn’t need your tainted berries,” a rough voice hissed at her. Riona didn’t need to look into the weathered face of the older woman to know who it was. She’d recognized the voice instantly. Before her father died, Merina had been a friend, or so Riona had thought. Merina used to have kind words and a smile for Riona, but now there was only hate. Her betrayal hurt, but Riona’s face stayed implacable.
Riona bristled but didn’t speak. Instead, she stood silently, staring at Merina. There was no point in defending herself. Last time she’d tried, she’d wound up in the stocks. The Elders had deemed her actions disorderly and had sentenced her to a full afternoon in the stocks. Riona shivered at the memory. That wasn’t an afternoon she’d wanted to repeat. All for a few words.
Merina spit at her feet and walked away. A few moments passed, and then Riona began to walk again. She tried to ignore how much the older woman’s treatment hurt, but she couldn’t completely get rid of the pain.
Eyes followed her as she made her way to the center of the village. She ignored them and forced herself to stand straighter. Soon they would all be thanking her. Or at least that was what she told herself once she reached the meeting hall where the Elders were convened.
Smoky darkness greeted her as she pushed the door open. Hesitation marked her footfalls. Her eyes finally adjusted to the hall, and she saw three Elders sitting on the dais. Usually at least one of the Elders was present during daylight hours in case they were needed by the villagers. The six Elders would rotate their days in the hall. Three Elders present outside of court or festival days was unusual.
Gray heads huddled together; their murmurs were unintelligible from where Riona stood. Her feet were frozen to the ground. Gaining the Elders’ attention was something Riona usually tried to avoid, and even though she had news for them, she still didn’t enjoy interacting with them.
One of the Elders turned sharply toward Riona. His eyes narrowed as he realized who had entered the hall. The other two followed suit. Unfriendly eyes rested on her.
“To what do we owe the honor of Riona MacGowan visiting our humble hall?” Bowden’s words rang harshly out across the hall. He was a short red-faced man who had little patience for anything, especially a half-Fae.
Riona swallowed and forced herself to move forward until she was within speaking distance of the Elders instead of shouting distance. “I’ve come from searching the forests.”
“Did you find anything useful, child?” Rada’s grave voice asked. She was the kindest of the Elders. Even after the death of Riona’s father, Rada was still civil. The Elder never treated her cruelly like most of the others. Riona didn’t miss the hopeful gleam in the older woman’s eyes.
“No—”
Bowden interrupted her. “Then leave us. We don’t have time for your prattle.” He waved his short-fingered hand dismissively and turned his head away, Riona already forgotten. The Elders began speaking among themselves again. Rada looked contemplatively at Riona but didn’t press her to speak further. She just kept shooting glances at her when Riona didn’t move to leave.
Riona wanted to leave but needed to tell the Elders what she’d discussed with Aiden. She took a deep breath, and her words tumbled out. “I saw Aiden on my way back.”
That stopped Bowden mid-sentence. He swung back to face her so quickly that he almost fell out of his chair. After the little man righted himself, he yelled, “Well, why didn’t you tell us that in the first place? What did he say?”
“He told me that he might be inclined to forgive and forget should we hold a festival in his honor on the eve of the full moon.”
The three on the dais were silent and then spoke quietly to each other. Riona strained to hear what they were saying but couldn’t make out their words. Each of their faces was etched with concern.
Finally, Rada said, “We’re starving and have very little to offer him. What if we throw this festival with what we have left, and he isn’t pleased with it? Then we’re worse off than before. I don’t think we can take the risk.”
“He said if we are truly penitent, then he will forgive us,” Riona pressed. They had no choice. Riona knew if she convinced them to throw the festival, Aiden would relent. He wasn’t evil—he didn’t want to see them all starve. He would make this right if they showed a little remorse.
“If we’re patient, “Bowden scoffed. “You’d like to see us grovel, wouldn’t you, Fae blood?” he snarled. Riona stepped back. Rada placed a hand on Bowden’s arm and shot him a warning look. The Elder settled.
“We’ll think about this,” Rada said.
Her tone was dismissive, and Riona’s heart sank. This wasn’t the reception she’d hoped to get at all. She’d expected some gratitude for the message but instead received hostility and distrust. Riona thought about pressing the Elders about her soon-to-be homelessness but realized that now was not the time. Her shoulders drooped as she turned to leave.
“Wait.”
Unease filled Riona at the sound of Kendrick’s voice. He’d been silent since she’d arrived. She’d hoped he’d stay that way. Now the tall, gaunt man stared down his hooked nose at her. His dark eyes glimmered with malice and lust.
“Since you are here, now is the perfect time to discuss your future. You must be out before the new smith arrives, and he will be here soon. Have you given a thought to your new living situation?” Kendrick tempered his words with a smile meant to be kind, but there was no mistaking the calculating cruelty.
“I am still looking for a situation.” Riona hated the way Kendrick’s eyes lit up at her words.
“Well, I am more than willing to offer you a position in my home.” His smile turned predatory. Kendrick was old enough to be her father, but instead of seeing her in a paternal light, his intentions toward Riona were carnal. She couldn’t imagine what the miller would do if she took him up on his offer.
He’d made this offer before to another young woman in a similar situation, Briana. Less than a year later, Briana had been turned out of his home with a swollen belly. Kendrick denied the baby was his. He cited her immoral behavior as the reason he threw her out, but it was hard to miss how the baby boy had eyes just as black as Kendrick’s.
Before the whispers could turn into talk, Briana and her baby disappeared. Never to be heard from again. If the miller weren’t so wealthy and powerful, some sort of justice may have been sought for the two, but Kendrick quieted or destroyed everyone who spoke against him. He always had and always would.
The thought of living under his roof made Riona’s blood run cold in fear. It was very clear what the miller wanted, and the thought of sleeping with him made her ill.
She wasn’t a virgin, but she wasn’t experienced either. The only amorous encounters she’d had were with a handsome young trader who had passed through last year for a few days. Their lovemaking had been clumsy and a little painful for her the first time. She couldn’t say she’d enjoyed it much the first time, but the few other times they had been together had been fun. It wouldn’t be fun with Kendrick.
“Thank you for the offer, Elder. I will take it into consideration.” Riona pressed her lips into a thin smile. Aiden’s offer echoed in her mind tauntingly. Fun wouldn’t begin to describe what it would be like with him. She let her mind wander down the sinfully dark path of imagining life with Aiden.
“I’ll treat you well,” Kendrick’s voice interrupted her thoughts. No. Never.
Riona met his gaze. “No. Thank you,” she repeated, hoping that would put an end to the conversation.
“We will talk about what you’ve told us today,” Rada said. Her expression was troubled, and she glanced over at Kendrick with disapproval. It was clear that Rada didn’t like Kendrick’s proposal either, but she didn’t say anything against him. Rada’s lack of support hurt. In the end, the Elder was just like the others. She didn’t want to help Riona if it caused her issues, and it would if she said something against Kendrick’s proposal. People who disagreed with him seemed to be plagued with bad luck.
Riona nodded and then scurried from the hall. The meeting hadn’t turned out as planned. Her situation was still bleak. No, it was much worse now. Before the day was over, it would become common knowledge that Kendrick had tried to give her a job with living arrangements. The few who cared about her would ignore the fact that Kendrick was taking advantage of a girl who had no other options and just focus on the fact that she had somewhere to go. It would ease their conscience as they abandoned her to him.
On her way home, no one stopped or interacted with her, which Riona counted as a blessing. She pulled the familiar worn wooden door of her home open. Sunlight filtered into the small house. Riona stopped on the threshold. She would miss this place and its memories.
Her home wasn’t anything special, but it was still her home. A faded blue curtain blocked off her parents’ sleeping quarters, hiding her view of the bed in which she’d been birthed. Her small bed was tucked in a corner. A wooden nightstand that her father had traded for stood beside it. A chipped vase held a bouquet of heather on the table, worn smooth with years of family dinner plates sliding across its surface.
The cupboard against the wall held her lute, long forgotten and unused. She hadn’t picked it up since her mother’s death and that fateful day in the forest when she met Aiden. Instead, she’d placed the lute in one of the cupboard’s dark drawers, forgotten until she thought of it today of all days.
She walked to the window and looked out at the large oak tree in the yard separating the house from the forge. The tree stood tall and majestic. Its leaves whispered in the wind. She would miss the memories and the tree the most.
Her eyes traveled to the forge. The fires had gone out and lay dormant since her father’s death. Soon the new blacksmith would be here. Her time was running out. She needed to devise a plan before it was too late, but nothing came to mind as Riona stared out the window and listened to the leaves singing a song she couldn’t understand.