She had no want to go wandering about. She was too upset. He wanted her to trust him, yet he did not trust her, though he said he did and thinking on it he had sounded sincere. Could his reason for not telling her about Rab be a vital one?
All these years, she had the unwavering support of her family while Rhys had suffered as a slave to an evil man. How could she expect him to trust her as easily as she trusted him?
A flame jumped and shot a spark out, the tiny ember dying slowly on the hearth stone. Had it been like that for Quinn, a slow death until Rhys was forced to be born? And what was it he had said.
I know only hate not love.
She could not imagine living without love. The love of her father, her sisters, friends, the clan, and even her mum’s love, though she had died those many years ago. So somewhere deep inside him, he must have remembered the love she had for him. Why else had he returned here and wed her?
She realized then that she was expecting him to be as he was before, and that man was no more. She had to be patient like she often warned her sister to be. It would take time and trust, whether he gave the same to her or not.
A light tap sounded at the door and Heather went and opened it to find Nessa standing there, looking upset.
“I am so sorry to bother you, my lady, but Fife is not feeling well. His wound is troubling him and though he told me I was not to bother you, it breaks my heart to see him suffer.”
“I will have a look at him,” Heather said, “though it does trouble me that his wound has not healed as it should.”
“It is because he does not follow what you tell him. He waits outside by the kitchen garden, thinking I am bringing him a special treat, which of course I will once you are done tending him.”
“And do I get a special treat for tending him?” Heather asked with a smile as they walked to the stairs.
“I am so sorry, my lady, I spoke out of turn, but there are times you seem more a friend than mistress of this keep.”
“I am glad of that. It reminds me more of home.”
“It was the same with your mum. I remember your mum visiting our cottage when I was very young. She sat and spoke with my mum as if they were great friends.” Nessa stopped when they reached the bottom of the stairs. “Word spreads about your dealing with the wolf. Some whisper that you are a witch, others who knew your mum say that you have a special touch with animals just as she once did.”
“It is nice to know I am like my mum.”
“You are in more ways than you know.”
Heather remarked on how delicious the kitchen smelled as she walked through it and outside to the garden along with Nessa.
Fife jumped up off the bench, an angry scowl on his face as she and Heather approached him. “You should not have disturbed Lady Heather.”
“You should have told me that your wound still troubles you,” Heather said as they drew closer.
The attack came fast, the warrior, his face smeared with dirt, lunging and barely catching Fife on the arm as he reached to draw a dagger from theattacker’s waist. It was a quick scuffle more than a fight, the two men falling to the ground one after the other.
Nessa screamed and ran to Fife.
Pitt seemed to come out of nowhere and grabbed her around the waist, pulling her away from Fife.
Nessa struggled to free herself. “No, no let me go to him.”
Heather, seeing Fife writhe in agony on the ground, went to help him when she was grabbed around the waist and flung away from him before her hands could touch him, her feet dangling above the ground as her husband held her against him.
Rhys moved a few feet away from the two writhing men and yelled out, “No one touch them.”
Fife never looked Nessa’s way. He kept his eyes on the Dragon and just before he took his last breath, he choked out, “Victory for Haidar.”
The other man said the same before he died.
Rhys called out again. “Do not touch their bodies; they have been poisoned and if you touch them you will die.”
Nessa looked up at Pitt, his arms still firm around her. “I do not understand.” She shook her head, growing more confused when she heard Rhys issue orders to his warriors that circled Fife’s body.
“Let no one, not even animals get near them. The poison will dissipate shortly, and then the bodies can be seen to.”
