“Please,” Lavina huffed, her eyes flashing with a warning, daring him to keep her down.
“So ye came to torment me, have ye?” Theo complained as she rose to her feet.
She smoothed the wrinkles on her dress.
“I came to ask about yer library,” she said, finally regaining her wits.
“Library?”
“Aye. Surely ye have books other than the ledgers and journals fillin’ yer half-empty shelves here.”
Theo shifted in his seat and lifted a finger as he turned toward the empty wall.
Lavina’s eyebrows crowded the bridge of her nose in confusion as she watched him disappear behind a bookshelf. She craned her neck to spy around the shelf as a harsh, gravelly sound reached her ears.
Moments later, Theo emerged from the shadows, dragging a large trunk behind him.
“I cannae tell ye what’s in here, but ye can take a gander. It’s all that’s left of the library. But maybe ye might find something useful. I’m curious, though. Why do ye need books?”
“Amber,” Lavina answered, before kneeling by the trunk and throwing open the lid. “She needs to learn to read something other than the dull encounters of people she doesnae ken or care about. I need her engaged, and I need books to do that.”
She peered into the trunk and quickly recoiled from the stench of mold. She pinched her nose and scooted back further.
“Is that all you have?” she asked, holding onto a sliver of hope that she might somehow find something adequate.
“I’m afraid so. The fire destroyed everything and nearly half the family’s history. It was a difficult year. We lost many lands because we were unable to prove ownership.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Aye, well, it showed me who was loyal to Clan McGowan. So, I dinnae hold on to someone who doesnae want to be here.”
“Is that why Amber’s maither isnae around?” Lavina’s chest tightened.
Theo rolled his eyes. “Amber’s maither isnae around because she is with another,” Theo answered without so much as an ounce of emotion.
“What?” Lavina gasped, completely taken aback by the lack of empathy for such a tiny human being.
“The lass was named Melanie, and she never told me about Amber until Amber became an inconvenience. If ye’re worried her maither will come back, I promise it willnae happen. She has moved on.”
“Nay, I dinnae suppose it will,” Lavina agreed, the conviction in his voice ringing in her ears.
She rose to her feet and closed the lid of the trunk.
“Ye might want to air those out. The mold will eat away the pages if ye dinnae dry them.”
“I’m sorry I didnae have something more useful.” Theo let out a long sigh.
“I’ll just have to find another way,” she answered. “Although I dinnae exactly ken how…”
“All right now, Amber. Call the colors as ye see them. Are ye ready?” Lavina asked, pointing to the brightly colored butterfly flapping in the breeze.
Amber’s eyes were alert and eager as Lavina snatched the bug.
“What color are the wings? Did ye see? Orange? Red? Brown?”
Lavina listed the colors and watched Amber nod in agreement with each color she remembered.
Her heart swelling with pride, Lavina opened her hand, revealing the butterfly as the prize.
