What shocked her even more was the older woman with only one leg who appeared to be teaching them. She had an odd contraption on one leg while a man stood behind her, catchingher and setting her to rights whenever she began to lose her balance.
The older woman said, “Merryn, watch me for a moment. Watch my hand movements. I arrange my arrows like this so I can grab them faster.” She fired five arrows pulled out of her quiver so quickly that Brynja covered her mouth to hide her gasp.
Then the poor woman teetered on her odd leg contraption, and the man behind her caught her, righting her at the same time she bellowed, “Logan!”
“I have you, love,” the man said. Then he shouted over his shoulder. “Dyna! We need you!”
Simone whispered, “Those are my adoptive parents, Logan and Gwyneth Ramsay. I’ll introduce you later, but first I’d like you to see exactly what you could have if you moved here with them. I promise they will accept you. They saved me and many others from the exact type of evil men who killed your mother, Brynja. We will help you.”
The red-haired lass shot again. “Was that better? It felt better.”
Simone tipped her head toward the archers. “That’s Merryn, married to Broc Grant. She’s just learning, as you are, and she lost her sister and her parents to some cruel bastards. Watch and see who you think the best is. And the other is my niece, Eli, married to Alaric Grant. She’s a feisty lass.”
Gwyneth said, “Try again, Eli. You were a wee bit slow.”
Eli did as instructed and hit the center of her target four times, but missed the fifth one.
Logan whistled. “Nice job, but what happened to the last one, granddaughter?”
The door of the keep opened and a nearly-white haired woman exited, hurrying over and grabbing a bow and quiver with ten arrows, her suppressed giggle erupting. “Mama has thelassies. My turn, please.” She stretched the last word out as long as she could.
Logan glanced at the blonde and drawled, “You need practice like Gwynie does, and you know it, Dyna.”
Brynja held her breath. She glanced over her shoulder at Simone, who nodded and whispered, “Aye. Hagen’s sister and the best in my opinion. I watch her moves verra carefully. She’s as graceful as she is powerful, something you don’t often see.”
Brynja had to hold it together because she couldn’t believe she could have the opportunity to learn from these women. These strong, powerful women who were allowed to be themselves and not forced to wear skirts and be delicate and dainty. No man stood near them barking orders except the one helping his wife supervise the training session.
Dyna set herself while the others stood back. She fired every arrow she had, pausing twice, every one hitting the center target. Gwyneth laughed and applauded. “Nice job, Dyna.”
Dyna let out an unladylike snarl as she ran over to the target. “I missed with this one.”
Eli shouted, “Hellfire, nay, you witchin’ bitch! You nailed every single one!”
Brynja whipped her head to look at Simone. Had she really heard that cursing in front of her own grandfather? “Truly?” she whispered.
“Da doesn’t care how she curses as long as she hits that target.”
Dyna picked up her arrows and began to take her stance again when the door to the keep opened and a woman stood in the doorway, waiting for two young lasses to join her.
The most regal woman Brynja had ever seen stepped out, a long, dark blue mantle flowing behind her, her nearly white hair braided so uniquely that Brynja was fascinated. She held the hands of two wee lasses, both carrying miniature bows andarrows. The tall, statuesque woman headed toward the archery field with the two girls, her smile brilliant. “Watch your Mama shoot, lassies.”
Brynja stepped back into the shadow of a nearby tree, not wishing to be seen. Was this her?
Was this the woman named the Ice Queen? The one who she and Hildi had heard about and idolized for years? The one who’d helped save hundreds of lasses and bairns by standing up against the cruel men of the land? Stopping a shipment of lasses tucked into crates to be carried across the waters and sold as if they were trinkets? The tale was that she teamed with a group of men known as the Band of Cousins to stop the most atrocious group ever.
Simone whispered, “Aye, that’s Sela Seton Grant, Norsewoman known as the Ice Queen, who caught the man no Scot could catch, so Grandda says. She married Connor Grant, whom you met. Parents of Dyna,” she tipped her head toward the archery field. “Also Hagen, Astra, and Morgan. She’s the reason Dyna is not just powerful but graceful, the power of a Grant with the grace and force of a Norsewoman.”
Then Simone stared at Brynja and tipped her head to her. “Dyna is exactly like you, part Scot, part Norse.”
Brynja couldn’t stop the tears from running down her face at seeing her inspiration, the one who motivated her to want to be more. More than a wife, more than a mother, a woman of her own strength and constitution.
A woman who mattered.
“Can I see Hildi now?” She mopped at her tears, looking away so she wouldn’t be moved to tear up again.
“Sure. We’ll go inside. We need to find something to eat. I’m starving.”
Simone led her across the courtyard and up the steps to the keep. As soon as the two stepped inside, the entire place quieted.It was still the midday meal for some, but the squeals of a wee laddie overpowered everyone.
