She lingered a moment longer, resting her brow upon Hamish’s brow, between his long horns, inhaling his peaty odor.
Then she sniffed back her sorrow and explained, “I have to go now.But I’ll be back in a sennight.”She added in sober tones, “Maybe sooner.”
She rode away before Cainnech could return.Tomorrow was the Sabbath, his day off.That meant the cattle wouldn’t be driven to the stone close for at least a few more days.Hamish was safe enough till then.
Meanwhile, she needed to pry from her father what day he planned to move them.And what day he planned to cull them.Nay, she corrected, tokillthem.
It had been seven days since Hew had been in the company of a lass.Not since he’dswivedone.Since he’d evenlaid eyeson one.In his entire life, he’d never experienced such famine.
But it was a challenge he felt compelled to undertake.After all, in the end, women had brought him only heartache.Suffering.Enslavement.Humiliation.He needed to forget about them for a while.
That might have been more bearable if the monks hadn’t been such poor company.Though they weren’t sworn to silence, they did revere quiet contemplation.Hew couldn’t interest them in a game of draughts, a walk to the loch, or a hunt for coneys.Instead, they pored over religious tomes, prayed at all hours, and ate in silent reflection.
Chewing on a trencher of tough horsebread made of oats, rye, and peas, he regarded the somber faces around the table.The dull abbot.The stern prior.The boring monks.
He wished he’d been dropped into a convent rather than a monastery.Not that he would have tried to romance a nun.Even amorous Hew had his limits.Besides, he’d made that mistake once before.But after six days of staring at pasty-faced men, he would have been grateful for a glimpse of a rosy cheek, a pink mouth, a fluttering lash.
He swallowed, and the bread scraped down his throat, as if punishing him for his insufferable lust.He had to stop thinking about women.Stop dwelling on what he couldn’t have.
Adding to his frustration was the fact he was half-starved.He’d always heard monks ate well.The monastery near Rivenloch was full of paunchy old men and soft-bellied youths.But these monks, raised on portions sized for a child, were gaunt and gangly.
To make matters worse, he hardly knew where to begin with his investigation.There wasn’t much to go on.The monastery’s treasures had vanished without a trace.The only way to discover the guilty party was to either catch them in the act or find one of the missing items.But that was as likely as locating a particular flea on an ox.
On the other hand, if he set out to scour the neighboring village for evidence, something might turn up.
And he might find some real food.
And he might get a glimpse of a feminine creature.
“Any progress, Sir Hew?”the abbot suddenly intoned, startling him.
Hew choked down the last rough morsel of bread.“Not so far.I’ll venture to the village today to see what information I can acquire.”
“The village?”the prior groused, gathering his bushy gray brows into a frown.“What do ye hope to find there?”
The vision of a table groaning with food and a lass feeding him grapes popped into Hew’s head.He dismissed it at once.
“Clues,” he replied.
“What sort o’ clues?”the prior pressed.
The abbot placed a gentle silencing hand on the prying prior’s sleeve.“I suspect a warrior o’ Rivenloch knows what he’s doin’ and needs no help from us.”
The chided prior’s eyes frosted over briefly, but he said nothing, bowing his dutiful head.
“Still,” the abbot said to Hew, “I hope ye’ll be…discreet.”
“Of course,” Hew said.“Is there anything you need from the village?”
The prior frowned as if offended.“We have all we require.”
The abbot smiled.“That won’t be necessary.”
Hew disagreed, and he suspected some of the monks did as well.They seemed like they could use a hearty roast.A barrel of strong beer.Perhaps a roll in the hay.
It was a four mile walk to the village.Hew frowned as he trod down the knobby road beneath the gray sky, his axe slung across his shoulders.His belly growled despite the horsebread.So he distracted himself by focusing on the crime he’d been hired to solve.
Three questions came to mind about the missing treasures.
