“He was too young,” Mairi continued, not unkindly. “Barely a man. But all he did was work harder. Sleep less. Train more. He kept the clan safe through drought and sickness and raiding. But none of that comes without cost.”
Ariella’s chest tightened, like someone had looped a cord around her ribs and pulled.
Mairi wasn’t gossiping. Her tone made that clear. This was explanation, not rumor. Context, not judgment.
Some scars don’t show.
Ariella swallowed. “Why are ye telling me this?”
“Because ye asked nothin’,” Mairi said simply. “Ye make nay assumptions. Ye daenae pry. But ye look at him like yer questions are eating ye alive.”
Ariella lowered her gaze. “I daenae pry because he told me nae to.”
“Aye,” Mairi said. “And he meant it. But that doesnae change what shaped him.”
Ariella finished stirring the stew, mind spinning with Mairi’s words.
Her chest ached for a boy she didn’t know. A boy who carried the burdens meant for grown men. A boy who was now very much a man, placing priority on those burdens all the same.
Isla swept in an hour later, arms full of kindling, cheeks pink from the cold. “Me lady, oh good yer here! I’ll be right back to ye, miss. Mrs. Macrae says the fires in the feast hall need checking again and Isobel is laid out ill.” She paused, eyeing Ariella’s somber expression. “Are ye well, me lady?”
Ariella forced a smile. “Just thinking.”
Isla dropped the wood into the basket with a thump, as if looking for an excuse to be distracted. “Anything I can help with?”
Ariella blinked. “Nay,” she said too quickly.
Isla shrugged sheepishly. “Me maither says ye think a lot. And usually when someone thinks that much, it’s aboutsomeone… or in me own case, about something I’ve said.”
Ariella coughed. “I… suppose it is about someone. A little.”
Isla glanced around, then leaned in. “If it makes ye feel any better… the laird scares everyone.”
Ariella’s brows rose, trying not to give anything away, but still curious. “The laird?”
“Oh aye,” Isla whispered. “He walks like thunder. And he has that glower that can cut glass, I swear it.”
Ariella laughed softly. “That is… nae entirely wrong.”
“But ye’re nae afraid of him,” Isla continued. “That’s why me maither says the keep needed ye.”
Ariella’s breath caught. “Why?”
“Because he needs someone who can stand beside him. Nae behind. He respects ye.”
Ariella’s heart tightened. “Oh?”
Isla nodded fiercely. “Aye. Anyone can see it. But he’s still… intimidating.”
Ariella bit her lip. “I daenae believe the laird is frightening, Isla. Nae at all really.”
Isla scoffed. “Nae frightening? He nearly made Ewan cry by looking at him.”
“That was because Ewan had stolen a whole pie.”
“He would’ve stolen two if he wasnae scared!”
Ariella’s laugh softened. “Isla… people who walk with heavy memories sometimes look heavier than they mean to.”
