‘I didn’t know. I swear it before Belenus.’
Silence.
‘He’ll do the right thing,’ Hadewaye said quietly.
Blake picked up the piece of fabric the physician had left, folding it into a sling for her sister. ‘Especially once I’m through with him.’
Eda rolled her eyes. ‘He only came to warn the king. I refuse to trap him into marrying me.’
‘It’s hardly a trap,’ Lyndal said. ‘He clearly loves you.’
‘Which is why he doesn’t want me living in the wastelands,’ Eda replied. ‘Away from all of you.’
Blake fitted the sling. ‘You do have to tell him. The child is his too. He deserves to know.’
He deserved so much more than that.
‘Or I could marry you,’ Hadewaye said from the other side of the room. ‘It might feel a bit like marrying my sister at first, but I think we’d get along.’
Eda smiled at him. ‘That’s incredibly chivalric, but I can’t drag you into this.’
The front door opened, and Thomas stepped inside, looking less agitated than earlier.
‘Message from Commander Wright,’ he said. ‘The defenders held the wall. England has retreated.’
The whole room exhaled.
‘Is Astin with him?’ Lyndal asked.
‘Yes. They are staying to help with repairs.’
Eda swung her legs over the side of the table. ‘And Thornton?’
Thomas’s gaze slid to her. ‘I did not ask.’ He looked in the direction of the kitchen and shouted, ‘We are leaving.’
The expression on the women’s faces when they entered made it clear that they had heard the news.
‘Ladies,’ Kendra said, not knowing where to look.
‘Do not dilly-dally,’ Thomas said, ushering them both towards the front door.
When they heard the carriage pull away, Blake placed a hand on Eda’s leg. ‘If something had happened to him, Harlan wouldn’t be staying behind to repair the wall. Roul will be with them.’
She knew Blake was right.
‘Can you walk?’ Lyndal asked. ‘Because I have something to show you that might cheer you up.’
Eda’s ribs ached and her shoulder throbbed, but she nodded anyway.
The three of them exited the back door, and Eda followed her sisters to the stables. ‘I don’t even think Basil can cheer me up right now.’
Lyndal looked over her shoulder with a mischievous smile. ‘No, but Basil’s new lady friend might.’
Eda peered into the stall and saw not one buttwodonkeys. It was the donkey Roul had brought with him, the one she had spied from atop the wall. A smile came and went on Eda’s face. ‘They make a very sweet couple.’
Lyndal nodded. ‘They really do.’
Basil came over to Eda while his lady friend eyed her cautiously from the other end of the stall.
