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“So some say.”
“On your way then,” Ivy said. “I will tell you what he says.”
Not wanting to continue to let her brother tease her, Ivy stiffened her spine and walked down the corridor, heading for the physician's chambers. She wanted to show her brother she was not lurking or doing anything unseemly - even though she very well knew that she was. She was behaving like a besotted little girl, and she did not know why. That, too, was a curiosity to her.
The door to the physician’s chamber opened with a loud creak just as she was passing it, and she nearly ran headfirst into Fin as he stepped out into the corridor. Ivy pulled back just as Fin did, both of them narrowly avoiding a collision. He wore an expression of exasperation on his face, but when he saw it was Ivy, it faded and was replaced by a smile that was wide and warm.
“Oh, tis ye,” he said. “Good mornin’ tae ye.”
“Good morning, Fin,” she said, and silently kicked herself when a nervous giggle bubbled up and out of her throat.
“Good morning, Finlay,” Castor called from up the hallway as he waved. “Good to see you this morning. My sister has been hiding around the corner here, waiting to speak with you.”
Fin turned to her with a small smirk curling the corner of his mouth upward. Ivy had never felt more mortified in her life, and she tried to keep the redness and heat from returning to her face. To no avail, of course. She could feel her face warming and knew she was a deep shade of scarlet already. Ivy looked away, turning to her brother and giving him a fierce scowl.
“Go and do - something,” she hissed at him. “Like perhaps throw yourself off the parapet of the castle!”
Castor laughed. “That is my sister, always with the sharp wit.”
She watched her brother stalk off, laughing to himself as he went. Ivy turned back to Fin, doing her best to not die of humiliation then and there. As it was, she silently prayed for the ground to open up and swallow her whole.
“Yer braither seems tae be in a good mood today,” he said, his voice a low, deep rumble that sent chills up her spine.
She cleared her throat and tried to compose herself as quickly as she could, then favored him with a smile she hoped did not look too false or awkward.
“When it comes to embarrassing me, he is always in a good mood,” she said with a nervous chuckle. “He certainly never passes up the opportunity to do so.”
“Tis what big braithers dae,” Fin said.
“Do you have an older brother who tormented you?”
He shook his head. “Nay. But I used tae be the one tormentin’ Col when we was kids.”
Ivy laughed. “Oh, so you are like my brother in that way.”
He shrugged his massive shoulders. “Aye. I s’pose so.”
They stood together in awkward silence for a moment, exchanging strained smiles. Finally, Fin chuckled.
“So, what did ye want tae speak with me about then?”
Ivy dropped her gaze to the floor and shuffled her feet. Her stomach was churning wildly, and she felt her legs begin to tremble. She could not believe he had this effect on her. She gripped her skirts tightly and forced herself to look up at Fin, willing herself to be calm.
“I was just wondering if there was any change in the Duke’s condition?” she asked.
“Nay, nae yet,” he said, his voice grim. “The physician says it make take a little time tae know if he’ll fully recover for sure.”
Ivy pursed her lips and felt a needle of disappointment prick her. She had hoped the Duke would recover quickly from his attempted assassination. Just the idea that somebody tried to kill him, here in the hallowed halls of York, sent a cold shiver down her spine. She quickly gathered herself, though, unwilling to give in to the fear and despair that threatened to consume her if she thought about it all too long.
“And Gillian?” she asked. “Have you heard any news regarding her?”
“I havenae,” he said. “Nae yet. I’m hopin’ tae have a rider from Westmarch today.”
“Please, let me know when you do have news?”
He nodded. “Of course.”
Ivy looked at him for a long moment, once again struck by that keen intelligence she saw in his eyes. She knew it was not the sort of intelligence born of formal education, of having tutors who taught things like philosophy, ethics, or mathematics. Fin’s intelligence was more worldly. It was the sort of intelligence that can only be born of experience. Of getting down into the muck and mud and seeing how the world really worked.
