Still, Betris sounded irrational.
“Betris –” Eoghan tried to calm her, but it only fueled her ire.
“And look at what happened to our Grant men and the others in the battle with King Donald!Ye heard about how she was the one who told them to attack Dunnottar.If no’ for her, then that battle might no’ have happened, and Kendrick and Ryle and the others would be here!And what of the MacIntoshes – their very laird as well?Or the MacDougal’s own second in command, Brian?She leaves death in her wake, Eoghan!”
Eoghan listened to her plotting words, his mind reeling.Betris had held deep feelings for Kendrick MacIntosh, of that Eoghan and most of the clan were well aware.She had inquired about marriage to him, but he had hesitated, knowing that Kendrick had tight kinship ties to the unfortunate Morays.Before the battle, that association had been an issue.Afterwards ...
Afterward, his hesitation over his sister’s relationship with Kendrick filled him with a wave of regret.
Yet, was Betris so ferocious in her hatred toward Ailith over the death of Kendrick?Or was there more truth to her words than he initially considered?Her words only added to what he had heard, what he kept pushing from his mind.
What he was afraid to admit about William’s beloved wife.
Eoghan tried to keep his wits about him.His cousin and his wife hung in the balance of these accusations.
“She’s no shieldmaiden, aye, but I canna believe–”
“So she must have used magic or witchcraft,” Betris continued, pressing forward again.“Look at all that has happened with us as of late.Shemustbe to blame.”
Betris’s words struck a chord in Eoghan, as he also held sadness in his heart over the loss of his kin.He had been friendly with Ryle MacIntosh, who had also died at Dunnottar, as did too many Grant men to count – clan and kin.The sheer loss of men after the mad king’s attacks on their clans had been salt in an already open wound.
Betris’s fury slowly kindled his own, and he despised that he was also finding issue with Ailith.Especially since she was his oldest friend’s wife.
What might her actions do to William?What might he suffer for her strange ways or an accusation of witchcraft?Might he be held accountable for her?He was Ailith’s husband, after all.
Eoghan’s gaze held Betris’s.She was not incorrect in her assessment of Ailith, regardless of any unfounded accusations of being pagan, fae, or a witch.Whathadthis one woman done?And how was it possible that she,onewoman, had wreaked so much havoc?
‘Twas more than Kendrick, he slowly realized.Betris’s reasoning appeared accurate.Her pain might rise from Kendrick’s death, but her anger and need for revenge came from the death of so many in their clans, and Eoghan couldn’t deny those grave losses.His harrowing emotions were shared by many.
And if Ailith was willing to wreak so much havoc on those clans, what might she do to William?To his very soul?
He had heard the rumors, more gossip than Betris had, probably.This writing William’s wife did, that was new knowledge, but it only added to the fire that burned in his mind and his belly.
Eoghan also had heard of the rumors about how it was Ailith who found the exact way for the MacIntoshes and MacDougals to sneak onto the defended outcropping at Dunnottar and overwhelm the king.It was Ailith who behaved strangely and worried about these small plants that she carried around the Highlands.And it was Ailith who had bested a burly Keith swordsman in defense of the peculiar woman from Eire.
More than all of that, Eoghan knew something few others did.He had watched William with Ailith and knew how obsessed his dearest, oldest friend and cousin seemed with his new wife.The wordsensorcelledandenchantedhad made rounds before the wedding, and William had readily agreed that he was entranced by his wife.Ensorcelled.Enchanted.Eoghan could not get those words out of his head.
William’s wife might be a changeling or pagan witch, no matter what the Church or the abbots or priests or even local chieftains believed.His own abbot had warned the Grants about people with such titles.Witch or not, Ailithwasdangerous.Her actions and behaviors would eventually get William injured or killed, and his soul cursed along with it, and William’s mind was too muddled by Ailith to see it.
Even Eoghan hadn’t seen it then.Not truly – he had been drinking and feasting, as his sister implied.Yet Betris had seen it.His worry for William stewed in his belly, churning into anger and fear.
He came to the slow realization that he had to save William from Ailith and her absolute control over him.He had to save the clans from her and her pagan ways, as his abbot claimed.Alba was no longer the druid, pagan land of the past, and even more importantly, Ailith must be held accountable for all she had done.
“Eoghan?”Betris’s voice wavered as she spoke, waiting for his answer.
“Ye are correct.She has bewitched him.What do ye want to do next?”
Betris breathed out as she rubbed her finger against her chin.“I had thought to meet with Abbot Graham at the kirk today.If he feels ‘tis a concern as well, then we should seek out Laird James.A chieftain would have more command over this.”
Eoghan shook his head slowly.His desire to protect his dearest friend and cousin overwhelmed all other thoughts.
“Mayhap, but James will never seek to harm the MacDougals,” Eoghan explained.“Their alliances are far too strong, and he has great affection and close ties to William’s family.Nay.Stick with the abbot, and if he believes in our claim, she can be tried under the banner of the Church.Then I’ll gather some men and retrieve her myself.”
The mid-sized wood-and-wattle church fell under the purview of Abbot Fergus Graham.Eoghan didn’t care for the man overmuch, as he spoke of nothing other than his Christian ways and the blessings of following the Christ figure.It made having a conversation with the abbot difficult.
Eoghan could not recall the man ever speaking about the fae or pagans or witchcraft in particular, but he had urged the Grants and other nearby clansmen and women to leave behind their false gods to follow the one true God, and that if they did not, they would burn in Hell.That place sounded like a darker, more horrible version of the pagan Otherworld, but Eoghan had decided against mentioning that to the holy man.The abbot might accusehimof not following God.
A dark interior enveloped them when they entered the wooden doors of the low-roofed church.Not the more magnificent kirks found in more populated parts of the Highlands or farther west and south, where St.Ninian had done his holy work, but large enough for the Grant clan.
