‘A virgin? But the gossip…’ Thorarinn turned his head away and retched. ‘Lied…’
‘Thanks to your wagging tongue, Svanna was attacked and abused in that garden the day we departed. Thanks to her dog, she wasn’t raped,’ Rand continued relentlessly.
Thorarinn went pale and scuttled backwards. ‘I didn’t know, Rand. Honestly, I didn’t. I mean she was beautiful. It made sense that she would have serious flirtations. Everyone did in Agthir. Virginity was not prized like it is here.’
‘Her virginity mattered to her.’ Rand bit out each word with care. ‘That is what counts. Don’t you think I knew the difference?’
Rhiannon grabbed Rand’s arm. He shook it off. ‘Can’t you see that Thorarinn is injured? You are upsetting him.’
‘Something that he must live with. His selfish actions caused this.’ Rand touched his scar. ‘He caused an innocent young woman to be sexually abused and forced her to live in fear.’
Rhiannon put her hand over her mouth. ‘You married this Svanna, the one who pretended to be Ingebord? Bridget used to say that you had unfinished business with a Svanna and until you had finished it, you were never going to be free.’
He stared at her in astonishment. ‘How would Bridget know her name?’
She put her hand on her hip. ‘You spoke her name several times in nightmares. My sister did confide in me, Rand.’
‘Bridget spoke a lot of nonsense,’ Thorarinn said, holding out a hand to Rhiannon. ‘Come here and assist me, wife, instead of repeating gossip. I congratulate you, cousin, on your marriage.’
Rhiannon chewed her bottom lip. ‘Where is your bride?’
‘At my hall with Birdie.’ He noticed the startled glances the pair gave each other. ‘Surely you don’t think Turgeis will go there. Tell me that Turgeis does not know the secret escape routes.’
‘He was expecting to find me on Islay,’ Rhiannon said to the ground. ‘I told him I’d go with you.’
Rand stared at her. Svanna was right. Turgeis’s salute had not simply been for her, but also for him. It signalled that the game was on. He thought Rand had been complicit in hiding Rhiannon. His mouth tasted of ash.
Thorarinn patted her hand. ‘He won’t know where you went, my dear.’
‘But his brother…greeted us on this back road to Dubh-Linn. He must have known. And he thought I’d go willingly with him. Not bloody likely.’
Rand went cold. ‘You left my daughter there to save your skins?’
Rhiannon shrank closer to Thorarinn. ‘Nurse wouldn’t budge. I knew enough not to waste my spit. Turgeis wouldn’t harm a child.’ Her voice became barely audible. ‘He paid attention to me, promising to drape me in gold, but he also bit me, hard.’
Rand stared at Rhiannon in astonishment. The full import of what she was saying hit him. Svanna, Turgeis’s longtime obsession, was there. ‘Svanna is at Donaghmoyne.’
‘Birdie and your Svanna will not be in any danger.’ Thorarinn gave one of his laughs, the sort Rand remembered from the early days, which Rand used to call laughing in the face of danger. ‘Turgeis only wants Rhiannon.’
Rand gritted his teeth. The fates were laughing at him. They had shown him what his life could be like if he could convince Svanna to alter their bargain, and now were going to dash it away. He tightened his grip on his sword. Not if he had any say. He would rescue Svanna and explain his growing feelings for her. He’d ask for the chance to begin again.
‘You’re no oracle, Thorarinn.’ He inclined his head. ‘You have decided your own fate.’
‘Leaving us?’ Rhiannon jabbed her finger at him. ‘Your cousin is injured. We require help.’
‘I will leave one horse and order two of my men to take you back to my hall. Then you will go to face your father, Rhiannon, and confess what you did and the trouble you have caused. You’d best bring that corpse with you as well. Something to bargain with, Thorarinn.’
Rhiannon put her hands on her hips. ‘Where are you going? Abandoning us like this! I am the high king’s daughter. I command you to stay!’
‘You command nothing, my lady. Be grateful your husband remains alive.’ Rand inclined his head and silently gave thanks for Svanna, her good heart and even better sense. His neck muscles were tense to breaking point, but one thing he knew was that others had failed Svanna in the past but this time he would be there for her. ‘I go to ensure my wife’s safety—a safety which you and Thorarinn, in your unique ways, have compromised.’
* * *
Doing little things helped to keep Svanna’s mind off whatever was coming next. The preparations for the feast were well in hand. The cattle and other livestock had been gathered inside the fort. She had made sure all the warriors had gathered their weapons and kept a proper watch. Little things kept her occupied and did not allow much time for speculation about the future or indeed her relationship with Rand. She’d freely entered the bargain, and she had to keep to it, even if her heart refused.
‘Noisy,’ Birdie said, covering her ears. Birdie had woken from her nap and insisted on seeing her Mor Svanna. Svanna suspected the nurse wanted to have a good nose around the preparations.
Svanna scooped her up and positioned her on her right hip. She touched Birdie’s nose. ‘Soon your papa will return. Your papa loves you.’
