The sisters both had tears in their eyes as they held hands and nodded. Ivor was glad that, for this at least, he could be here for Eithne – for both of them.
* * *
A little while later, Ivor went to tend to Callum and give the sisters some privacy. Eithne was grateful; although she wanted to spend every moment with him, she had missed her sister dreadfully.
Myrna had immediately started to tease Eithne, as was her duty as a younger sister, about the handsome mercenary who had escorted her here. Eithne pretended to be annoyed, but in truth, she was so pleased to be here with her sister that she didn’t mind any teasing at all.
“Myrna!” a voice called as they walked along the corridor toward what would be Eithne’s new bedroom, and Eithne turned to see a young man running after her and her sister. “Wait!”
The boy was about fifteen or so, dark hair, blue eyes, and terribly familiar in a way that Eithne simply couldn’t place. What she did recognize, though, was the pretty pink blush that formed on her sister’s cheeks the second she heard the boy’s voice.
Ah. Now is me time to get revenge for her teasing me about Ivor!
“Jonah,” Myrna said, her whole face brightening. “Is something wrong?”
“Nay,” the boy, Jonah, replied. He had a friendly smile, one that reached his eyes. “Nay, I simply wanted to meet yer famous sister finally.”
“Famous?” Eithne asked, raising an eyebrow. “In what way am I famous?”
“In the way yer sister wouldnae stop talking about ye,” Jonah laughed.
Myrna stuck out her tongue. “Dinnae make me seem so sad, Jonah. It’s normal for a lass to miss her sister.”
Eithne chuckled. “Ye’re a member of me uncle’s guard, Jonah?”
He shook his head. “Nay, I belong to another clan. Me master has business with the Laird, and he brought me along. He’ll be back in a few days, but I decided to stay behind and learn a bit from the soldiers here. And of course, I’ve been blessed to befriend yer dear sister.”
“I can see that,” Eithne replied with a smile. “Ye neednae look so furtive, Myrna. I’m glad ye’ve had a friend to help ye through everything that’s been going on.”
Myrna smiled at her, obviously pleased that her older sister wasn’t harsh about the whole thing. Eithne wondered how serious it was. She could only have known this young soldier for a short time…but then again, Eithne had hardly known Ivor for very long.
Perhaps we’ve both been given someone by the gods to make up for the loss of our family.
Jonah shifted where he stood. “Anyway, Myrna, I just wanted to make sure that ye’re all right. Ye and yer sister are…different from what I expected.” He shrugged. “May I escort ye the rest of the way across the castle? I’d like to get to ken yer sister.”
“Only if Eithne doesn’t mind,” Myrna said quickly, though Eithne very much recognized that hopeful longing in her voice.
Eithne laughed. “Of course, I dinnae, ” she said. “Ivor will join us soon, I’m sure, and we can all get to ken each other.”
“Ivor is the mercenary?” Jonah asked while they started to walk.
“That’s right,” Myrna said with a smile. Eithne smiled too, glad there was at least one friendly face here in the castle of her severe uncle.
The rooms she’d been given were small but comfortable. There were one sitting room and a bedroom with a large, plain bed, big enough for three. A coarse but gentle shaggy carpet covered the floor, made of untreated sheep’s wool, the kind that would keep her warm even in the coldest winter.
She walked to the window, where a desk looked out over the forest in the background of the castle town. She could see the loch in the forest there, shining bright blue and silver in the sunlight.
It’s lovely. But it’s making me miss home all the more.
The three of them sat at the table in her sitting room, drinking a small beer and laughing about old times the sisters had shared. At some point, Ivor joined them, and all four of them got along famously. They didn’t leave until the sun was down and the forest owls were singing their nightly chorus.
That night was the first night that Eithne did not spend with Ivor. He was shown to a guest room, and though she wanted him beside her in general, tonight, she shared her bed with another. Just like they used to when they were small, she and Myrna curled up beside each other under the blankets, laughing and teasing and sometimes crying too, telling stories about everything and nothing.
Myrna fell asleep first, and Eithne lay on her back, staring up at the ceiling.
As night threatened to take her, it was only then that Eithne realized the problem that had been chewing at her stomach all night.
When did anyone tell Jonah that Ivor was a mercenary?
