“All will be well, Finn. Do not speak of any of this. It must be our secret. I will take care of ye.”
His tears continued in a torrent, his sobs breaking her heart. When Malcolm got to them, his obvious anger immediately cleared up Finn’s tears.
“Why must ye two always dawdle?” Malcolm’s voice slurred slightly. “Get on my back, boy. We need to catch up to the others.”
She helped him to get on his father’s back. They hurried down the road until they caught up to the others. Domelch’s complaints could be heard before they were seen.
Malcolm said something under his breath that sounded a lot like “miserable woman,” but Ethne couldn’t be certain. She had too many other things to worry about. First and foremost was how to get back to the fair and find a way to escape. She didn’t need to worry about finding where the silver was in a fortnight. She was the only one who knew.
Chapter 11
Come morning, Malcolm’s offer to take Finn to gather wild berries was an unusual treat for the boy. It left her and Domelch alone in the cave. Ethne wouldn’t be surprised if it were Domelch’s incessant chatter that prompted the exit, but hoped Finn would remember not to say anything about the men who had accosted them.
She had kept Finn talking on the way back from the fair so that he wouldn’t be preoccupied with the earlier encounter. She needed to talk to him about it and had hoped for an opportunity when they’d arrived at their home, but by then it was too late and had to wait.
“We have much to celebrate this day,” Domelch said yet again.
Again, Ethne refused to rise to the bait; her curiosity would not be sparked. Instead, she concentrated on which herbs to add to the boiling water.
But Domelch’s reaction to being ignored was to be more demanding, which made it so much worse for Ethne. It almost made her want to ask the question Domelch was dying for her to ask. When she became suddenly quiet, Ethne’s entire body tensed. She prayed Malcolm and Finn would return this very moment.
“Is that what ye will wear?” Domelch finally asked, scowling when she perused Ethne’s one and onlyléine.
Ethne could not have been more surprised by the question. She frowned. “I do not understand.”
Domelch rolled her eyes and went to the chest that was kept beside their private sleeping area at the back of the cave. She grumbled as she went through her many items, finally pulling out a dark brown gown Ethne could not remember ever seeing before.
“Ye will wear this.” Domelch’s smile was nothing short of radiant when she tossed it to Ethne.
Ethne’s breath caught in her throat. She swallowed hard. “And why would I wear this?”
“Why not?”
Because Domelch never paid attention to anything about her, only that she kept Finn quiet.
“Why does it matter what I’m wearing? I cook the meal, clean up, and get Finn out of yer hair. No one will even notice me.”
“Today ye will be noticed.”
Ethne’s stomach clenched. “I do not wish to be noticed.”
Her sister-in-law had no idea how true that was. Aidan had always kept his eyes on her, but it wasn’t until she’d started her menses that it had become a more intimate attention. As leader, it was his duty to see her married, if that was what they had planned for her. But there had never been any mention of it so, she had always assumed it wouldn’t happen. She had nothing of value to be offered as an enticement for any type of advantageous marriage, advantageous to Aidan that was. Well, that was until the islanders had come.
She ripped the last remaining berries from the stems, dropping them with a loud plop into the steaming pot that sat snug against the fire. What was taking Malcolm so long since the berries were less than a stone’s throw away?
“Why are ye so irritable this morning?” Domelch asked.
Domelch? Inquiring about her feelings? This did not look good at all.
“I am overtired and didna sleep well.”
The pregnant woman’s quirked brow shot fear right through the center of Ethne’s heart, but she struggled to remain calm. “And why are ye suddenly so interested in me?”
“I am always interested in ye.”
Domelch lied and her honey-sweet smile did nothing to lessen Ethne’s trepidation. “Ye are only interested that I do as ye bid me to do.”
“When the men follow ye with their eyes instead of me?” Domelch shrugged. “Do not think I do not notice—”
