It’s not really eavesdropping. I just want to know what’s going on. I won’ttellanyone what I hear. It’s no harm, really.
Her conscience would not be silenced, of course, but Freya swallowed back the guilt and flattened her ear against the door. The voices were muffled, but still audible.
“… lead them here,” Brendan was saying, his voice gruff and low. “Could be dangerous.”
There was a long pause, and Freya had to strain her ears to hear what the Abbess said in reply.
“We have offered her shelter now. I won’t take back my offer.”
Her heart sank.It is about me.
“I’m not saying ye should do that,” Brendan responded. “But I don’t know what’s coming next, Abbess. There’s already a lot of talk about this place. Many powerful men would be glad to see ye fall. Allowing women from all over Scotland to come and study here is a fine thing to do, but it’s attracting attention. People are starting to talk. And worse yet, disapprove.”
“Why should I care about the disapproval of men? I have the Lord on my side.”
Brendan gave an exasperated sigh. “I know that, but ye know as well as I do that other convents who have stepped out of line have been punished. Severely. It would be naive to think that ye could somehow escape.”
There was a scraping sound, much like a chair being pushed back over a stone floor.
“What will be will be,” the Abbess responded. “Thank ye, as always, for warning us. It is a great blessing to have a man like ye watching out for the interests of the convent. For now, though, there is nothing we can do beyond stay watchful and wait to see how things will play out.”
There was a sound like a sigh.
“Very well, Abbess. May I go?”
“Of course. Oh, and one last thing, Brendan?”
“Hm?”
“Keep an eye on her, won’t ye?”
There was no answer. And then, quite abruptly, the door began to open, and Freya was forced to scuttle backwards, nearly tripping over her own feet, to avoid being hit in the face.
Brendan stepped out, his face dark. He glanced at her, and his eyes narrowed. The door closed behind him with a slam, but not before she saw the Abbess seated at her desk, staring into space with a furrow between her brow. Worried.
“I suppose ye heard all of that, then,” Brendan said, voice gravelly.
Freya cleared her throat, forcing herself to look him in the eye. “I don’t know what ye are talking about.”
He rolled his eyes. “Give me strength, lassie. Ye are a terrible eavesdropper. It’s written all over yer face, and ye wereclearlybehind the door when I opened it.”
“It’s not my fault,” she shot back defensively. “I was bored.”
He folded his arms across his chest. “What, are ye a bairn? Not able to entertain yourself for a moment?”
Freya flinched. That one stung. She heard a furious voice echoing in her head.
Are ye a child, Freya? Are ye a stupid bairn, a stupid weegirl, unable to comprehend anything? Have I raised an idiot? Do ye know what will happen to us, woman, if ye do not go ahead with this betrothal? Do ye know what will happen to Clan McInnes if Laird Grahame turns against us? He’s stronger than us, cleverer than us, more ruthless than us. If ye do not marry him, our clan will burn. The corpses will pile up, and the rivers run with blood, and it will be all. Yer. Fault. Do ye hear me?
She swallowed hard, shaking away the echoes of her father’s contemptuous, accusing voice.
“I’m not a bairn,” she snapped, more strongly than she’d intended.
Brendan peered down at her, a line appearing between her brows.
“I meant no offense,” he said, more mildly than before. “But really, ye should not listen at doors. Eavesdroppers never learn anything to their benefit.”
She bit her lip, raking a hand through her hair. She hadn’t been able to take a bath yet, and found herself wondering what the sisters did to have a thorough wash.
