Emma stepped into the corridor, where a young maid was dusting near the stairwell, her sleeves rolled up and her hair tied neatly beneath a cap.
“Has the Laird risen yet?” she asked.
The maid paused, lowering her cloth. “He left at dawn, me Lady, with his man-at-arms.”
Emma frowned. “Left? Where to?”
“Couldnae say, me Lady. Would ye like me to tell ye when he returns?”
She was about to nod when Ava appeared in the doorway, arms folded, a quiet look of amusement on her face. The silence between them stretched, and she could tell what Ava was thinking without even speaking a word.
“Nay,” she replied quickly. “Daenae worry. I daenae need to ken where he is at all times.”
The maid hesitated, sensing something unsaid, then curtsied and scurried away.
The sisters stood in silence for a moment.
Ava tilted her head. “That sounded a bit eager.”
“It didnae,” Emma scoffed, brushing an invisible speck from her sleeve.
“It did,” Ava insisted, her tone light but teasing. “Ye asked two questions with yer heart in yer throat.”
Emma drew in a slow breath. “It is only proper to know who is in the castle.”
“And yet ye’re nae its keeper,” Ava singsonged, stepping closer. “Ye’re getting attached to him.”
“I am nae.”
“Then why the long face when ye heard he was gone?”
“As much as ye would like to be right, I daenae think I am getting attached to him. I just need to ken where he went.”
“Of course,” Ava drawled, the amusement on her face growing with every second.
“If ye must ken, he still has a few more nights to prove himself to me. I havenae made me decision yet,” Emma said steadily.
“Whatever ye say, Sister.”
Emma turned away, pretending to straighten a vase on the side table. “Ye make too much of nothing.”
“I ken what I see,” Ava said. “And I see ye lookin’ out the window like a lass waiting for a ship that’s nae due to arrive.”
“That is nonsense.”
“Aye,” Ava relented. “Maybe. But ye’re thinking about him even now.”
Emma’s shoulders stiffened. “I’m thinking about peace and quiet, which ye’re nae giving me.”
Ava laughed softly. “Fair enough. I’ll find Ma.” She reached out, touched Emma’s sleeve, and spoke in a quieter tone, “Just be careful around him, aye?”
“I am always careful,” Emma declared.
Ava gave her a small nod and disappeared beyond the far archway. Her footsteps faded into the hum of servants and the sound of the loud bell, indicating that another hour had passed.
The silence that followed was heavier as Emma walked back inside the hall and to the window, her fingers grazing the edge of the stone frame. The courtyard below was still. A few stable boys moved about, carrying buckets or straw, but Jack and his horse were nowhere in sight.
She stood there for a while, watching the sunlight settle on the stones. It was too easy to picture him there, mounting his horse, shoulders squared, head bent in thought.
