* * *
‘What do you wish, my lady?’
‘We are going to do two things,’ Svanna said, settling Birdie on her hip. After her father had left, the little girl demanded to be near her Mor Svanna. But simply sitting around and playing with the little girl was not going to ease her mind. Someone was coming and Donaghmoyne needed to be ready. ‘First we prepare for a feast, including bringing all the animals in and making sure they are properly fed.’
‘Who might be attending the feast?’
‘The high king.’
The nurse’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. ‘Why do you think he might be coming here?’
‘A possibility, no more than that, but if a rumour reached me that my daughter had married, I would want to speak to her and discover what was truly going on.’
‘Why do you think the rumour has reached the King?’
‘We don’t know why Thorarinn and Rhiannon left and must plan for all eventualities. If I was Rhiannon and had gone against my father’s wishes, I’d make sure there was a spy who could tell me if my father was on the move,’ Svanna concluded.
The woman’s cheeks became entirely pink. ‘Oh, my, the King coming here! I hadn’t even considered it. Now it makes sense why Rhiannon was speaking about our Birdie going to court.’
Svanna held up two fingers. ‘But it also could be Turgeis and a small war band coming. Either could happen. Someone made Thorarinn and Rhiannon scamper. We don’t know who, as Thorarinn failed to leave a clue.’
She fancied a new respect in the woman’s eyes. ‘I see that. We should also prepare for siege.’
‘Preparing for a siege is much like preparing for a feast, in my experience.’
The nurse smiled. ‘I like you, my lady. You keep your head. More importantly, Birdie likes you.’
Svanna smiled back before pressing her nose into Birdie’s hair. Birdie put her arms about Svanna and hugged her tight.
‘You won’t leave me, will you, Mor Svanna? Everyone always leaves. Papa left. Auntie left. Why?’
‘I won’t leave, Birdie. You can go with me when I do, though. Your papa and I will have a little discussion about it first.’
The little girl gave a sigh. ‘I love my papa.’
Svanna rubbed her back and resisted the sudden urge to say that she did as well. He had not asked for the love, but her heart refused to listen.
‘I think she probably needs a nap, my lady,’ the nurse said, holding out her arms. ‘Always when she gets like this, I know she is tired. She needs to go to the round tower, where she can be quiet like. I’ll look after her there. The tower is the most secure place at Donaghmoyne.’
‘She isn’t a burden.’ Svanna rocked Birdie gently as the little girl snuggled down into the crook of her neck.
‘Even a cup of ale is a burden if you must hold it aloft for an entire feast.’
Svanna reluctantly handed the little girl over. ‘You do have a way of putting things.’
‘You are all right for a North woman,’ the nurse said. ‘I will ensure the high king knows that when he arrives.’
* * *
When Rand spotted a charcoal burner’s hut with a tumbledown roof, a short way from the clearing, he gritted his teeth. ‘Please tell me that someone bothered to check the hut.’
His men shook their heads. ‘The body distracted us. We found it and the cloak and scarpered.’
‘I didn’t realise my men were cowards.’ Rand marched over. His gaze swept around the hut. Little signs of recent occupation, like fresh ash and breadcrumbs on the swept floor, were evident. ‘Thorarinn, come out and face me.’
No answer, but he heard a faint scuffling noise. He motioned to his men to go around the back. In the gloom, he spied a small cave with artfully draped ferns.
He strode over. ‘How are you going to play this, Thorarinn and Rhiannon? You can come out with dignity, or we can come and drag you out. I want answers and I will get them one way or another.’
