“Because he thinks me a savage,” said Halvard with a laugh that was half-bitter and half-amused. He had the nickname for a reason, after all. Everyone who had heard of him thought of him as a savage, and so it was no surprise that the king would think the same. The man surely feared what Halvard might do now that he had killed an earl, and so did those around him.
If he took a wrong step, they would take the first chance they could to keep him restrained.
“There’s more,” Halvard said, and continued to read the rest of the letter.
Your marriage to the Lady Elsie MacLeod has been noted and acknowledged. You have our blessings. You will both presentyourselves at court when summoned. Until such time, I expect no further disturbances from Raasay.
Halvard folded the letter slowly and silence fell around him as Sten and Elsie took in the information. Sooner or later, Halvard knew they would be summoned and they would have to show their faces at court, but until then, they were finally safe.
“He wants ye tae go tae court? Both o’ ye?” Sten said at last, crossing his arms. “He’s leavin’ ye standin’ on the edge o’ a knife.”
Halvard let out a soft chuckle, turning to look at Sten. “Dae ye think so? Surely, he cannae dae much tae us in his own court.”
“I’m afraid that is precisely the place where he might try,” said Sten.
“But he gave us his blessin’,” Halvard pointed out.
“Aye, well… a Sassenach’s blessin’ an’ a Sassenach’s promise are worth as much as a bucket o’ shite tae me,” said Sten, and then, after a moment of contemplation, his eyes widened as he turned to Elsie. “Nae offence. It is nae ye I’m talkin’ about.”
“I know you’re suspicious of the English,” said Elsie with a small shrug.
“Suspicious?” asked Halvard with a chuckle. “More like paranoid.”
“Aye, ye go around trustin’ Protestants an’ see what happens,” Sten grumbled as he turned on his heel and stormed off, leaving Halvard alone with Elsie by the door of the great hall. For a moment, they stared at his retreating back in silence, before Halvard glanced at her from the corner of his eye?—
And they both dissolved into laughter.
“A Catholic man, then?” Elsie asked, raising a curious eyebrow. “I thought you, too, were Protestants.”
“Nae the MacLeods o’ Raasay,” said Halvard. “Well, at least nae all o’ us. Some are more sympathetic tae the Protestants than others, though.”
“Is that so?” Elsie asked, a small smile dancing on her lips as she turned to him and placed a hand on his chest. “And you? Which way are you leaning?”
“Me?” Halvard asked, the corner of his mouth ticking up into an amused smirk. “Och, but I cannae stand them, can I?”
“Then perhaps I should leave your halls,” Elsie suggested, taking a few steps back as if to leave. But Halvard was quick to grab her hand, pulling her close again.
“I suppose me wife is the exception,” he said. “But only me wife.”
For a moment, neither of them spoke. But the more that silence stretched between them, the more Halvard’s mind kept drifting back to that letter, to the king, to Harcourt.
It must have shown on his face—some change in his expression, a darkening of his gaze—as Elsie frowned as she looked up at him, her hand moving up to cradle his cheek ever so gently.
“Harcourt chose his path. He chose to act outside the law. You defended your wife.”
Halvard looked at her then—at the woman who had changed the course of his life with courage alone.
“I would dae it again,” he said. “Without hesitation.”
Elsie nodded. “I know. The king knows it too. That’s why this letter smells of caution instead of threat.”
Halvard stared back toward the sea through the window. The calm still held, at least for now.
“The Crown will watch us,” he said. “They will look fer any excuse.”
“Then we give them none,” Elsie replied. “We rebuild. We rule well. We stay visible.”
Halvard smiled faintly. “A laird and his lady. The Isles could do worse.” He slipped the letter into the fire, watching the edges curl and blacken. “Let the king hope,” he said quietly. “We will endure.”
