After Mass, most people didn’t linger. She waited and thanked the priest for the service. Then she set off to Willa’s and as she approached, Ise-Olcan met her with enthusiastic barks.
“Good morn, Ise-Olcan, you beautiful dog.” She petted the scraggly mutt and rounded her to get to the door. Eva knocked and awaited someone to answer. Caden yanked the door open.
“Milady, ye are here,” he said with a big grin. “Conner is being a wee bairn this morn.”
She entered the cottage and glanced at Connor who sat on a chair with his leg elevated. “How are you, Connor? Feeling better?”
“Pfft,” he muttered. “Not bloody likely. I am not allowed out of my chair. Oh, I should not speak so, not in front of a lady… I apologize, Milady, for being surly.”
She smiled because she’d probably be in the same mood, being stuck in a chair, and most likely in pain. Eva found Willa mixing herbs at a small table near her kitchen area. “Can I help?”
“Oh, Milady… I did not hear ye come in. I was so focused on this mixture…” Willa waved her forward. “Ye can keep me company for a bit. The lads had their morning fare and want to go but Connor’s wound needs to be watched. ’Tis beginning to fester. I should probably keep him here for another day or two until I am certain he is out of danger.”
“Breckin has gone to the training field. I shall tell him if I see him but he said he would come by later near supper.” Eva motioned to a small bowl and nodded to her. “Shall I crush these leaves?”
“Aye, please.” Willa mixed water with the concoction she was mixing. “The day is a wee bit chilly. What are ye about?”
She pressed the pestle against the greenery in the bowl and crushed it until the leaves were unrecognizable. The scent of it was alluring and she wondered what it was. There were no flowers on the stems, and yet it smelled sweet. “What is this?
“’Tis just lemon balm, and aye, it has a wonderful scent, does it not?”
“Yes, it’s wonderful,” she agreed. And then she said, “I thought to walk about and take in the air. Is there a market nearby? I thought to perhaps bring Connor a treat, maybe some sweetened bread or jellied tarts.”
“Oh, aye, there’s a small marketplace beyond the kirk toward the east. ’Tis about a league or so toward the southeast. Just follow the lane and ye cannot miss it. Ye should be safe enough for the market is on Buchanan land and none would bother ye. I am afraid that I cannot leave the lad here without someone watching him. Are ye certain ye wish to go on your own?”
Eva doubted anyone would miss her. “I shall be well enough on my own. My thanks, Willa. I shall stop by on my return.”
She finished her task of mixing the herbs and handed the small bowl to Willa. After, she said farewell to the lads and exited the cottage. With Willa’s direction in mind, she headed south on the lane. Ise-Olcan followed and she shooed the dog but it heeled beside her as if it was intent to take the journey with her. “Go on, go home.” The dog ignored her and walked lively next to her. “Well then, I suppose I could use the company.”
Buchanan land differed from the land near her home. There was a beauty about the barren stretch between the lane and the market. Rolling green and brown hillsides swept away from the lane and the beginning of purple buds sprouted on the stems that reached her knees. Her home was mostly green shrubs and trees, and not asenthralling as the Highlands.
The walk to the small village where the market was held lay ahead, given the view of tents and stalls. Eva was as excited as Ise-Olcan whose tail wagged haphazardly. She hadn’t been able to attend a market since she’d been in Edinburgh. With the anticipation of what she would find, she hastened her steps and reached the stalls in a short time.
As she meandered along the lane, she stopped and pulled out her coin pouch which she always kept tied to the inside of her cloak. Ise-Olcan stayed near her. She purchased sweetened bread for the lads, one small meat pie for the dog, and two tarts for herself and Breckin. She had a soft spot for tarts and would enjoy them after supper. She wondered if Breckin liked sweets. There was so much she didn’t know about him and that saddened her a little.
The baker wrapped all but the dog’s item in a thin cloth. As she turned away from the stall, she tossed the dog’s treat to her and Ise-Olcan caught it in mid-air. Eva ruffled the hair on the dog’s head and smiled. Ise-Olcan whimpered for more treats.
A man whose oversized woolen cap fell to just above his brows stood nearby. With watchful eyes, he regarded her and she realized he was the stall’s owner.
The burly man bent his head. “Good day, Milady.”
“Sir.” She perused his goods, mostly furniture made of good quality wood, and various other items that were obviously previously used, given their wear. “You have a good amount of items.”
“Aye, Milady. We take on items for people and when we sell them, we take a portion of the profits and give the rest to them. If ye have anything ye would like to sell, I would be pleased to take it off your hands. Otherwise, be ye free to browse.”
She shook her head and eyed a chair that might be a good addition to the longhouse once it was completed and liveable—if that ever happened. “Good day.” With a snap of her fingers, she called to thedog and turned but the man stopped her.
“My name is Amos, Milady, if I can ever be of service to ye.”
“I shall remember, Amos. My thanks.” Eva walked away, ensured the dog followed, and carried her purchase of bread and tarts in her arms. She hurried to return and the walk heated her. By the time she reached Willa’s, she longed to take off her cloak. The day had warmed and even the sun shone between the thick white clouds.
At the cottage, the dog sprinted past her through the open door and flopped down near the cooking fire. Eva entered and found the lads grumpily teasing one another. “I brought you some sweet bread. Eat it, for it shall cheer you.”
“I detest being in this chair, Milady,” Conner said sullenly. “There is naught to do.”
She pressed her hands over his light blond strands of hair and nodded. “I would detest it too. Willa, can Conner be moved outside? He could at least see those about the lane and get some air.”
Willa wiped her hands on a cloth and nodded. “I do not see why he couldn’t. But we should have Laird Buchanan move him. The lad is too heavy for us to lift and we do not want to injure him further.”
