“What do ye want to read, Elizabeth?”
The sound of Annabeth and Elizabeth approaching made the smile on Flora’s face widen even further. Already, she was charmed by the child, who was undemanding when she realized that Flora couldn’t speak, and Annabeth’s patience was mostcertainly part of the reason that Flora felt comfortable enough to communicate now.
“If ye pick a book, I’ll read it to ye,” Flora said, drawing both of their attention.
“Ye can talk!” Elizabeth squealed, jumping up and down before she darted to the shelf full of tales.
“Aye,” Flora said, watching as the girl ran the tip of her finger over the spines of her favorite books. “I’ve been practicin’ just so I could read to ye.”
Annabeth finally recovered from her shock and took the seat that Lucas had vacated a few moments ago. She dropped her voice low to keep from disturbing Elizabeth and said, “Ye’ve got a beautiful voice, Flora. I’m glad to hear it.”
“If it werenae for ye, I daenae think that I would be speakin’,” Flora admitted. “I feel… safe here for the first time in me life. Ye played an important role in makin’ that so.”
“Well, I’m proud to have played a hand,” Annabeth whispered, leaning in as she watched her daughter pull several books, “but ye’re the one that made everythin’ happen. If ye never spoke again after the ordeal those men put ye through, nay one would fault ye.”
Flora couldn’t do anything but sit with that information. She supposed that Annabeth was right. It wasn’t as if anyonemadeher speak, she’d done it all on her own. She wasn’t able to sit with that revelation for long before Elizabeth walked over with a stack of books that looked as if it weighed nearly as much as she did.
“Ach, Elizabeth, ye need to pick one,” Annabeth said though she was grinning at the girl’s enthusiasm. “We cannae possibly get through all of those in an afternoon.”
“I’ll read as many stories as she wants me to,” Flora assured, accepting the stack of stories from Elizabeth and thumbing through them. She smiled at the child and said, “Ye just have to promise me ye willnae get tired of the sound of me voice.”
“I willnae!” Elizabeth promised as she clambered onto her mother’s lap. “Maither, scoot over so I can see the pages, please.”
Flora waited until the two were positioned in a way that Elizabeth approved of before she began reading. The girl was enthralled by the stories, and Flora couldn’t help but push through the slight tiredness she felt at speaking for so long. She didn’t think she’d be able to deny Elizabeth anything, especially not when she was sure her time here was limited.
I daenae think I could deny anyone in this family somethin’ they wanted. They’ve been so good to me; it’s only right that I return the favor. I want to return the favor.
Chapter Nine
The past few days had been a whirlwind of reading stories to Elizabeth and chatting with Annabeth. Flora hadn’t realized how isolated she had been without her speech, mostly because everyone at Castle McGowan hadn’t let her feel that way. Now that she could communicate, she saw just how much information about her new friends she’d been missing.
She approached the great hall, excited for the training session. Her mind was so focused on what learning to defend herself may look like that she nearly didn’t catch Lucas’s name. It came from a maid whose voice she didn’t understand.
In an act of impulse, Flora tucked herself behind a corner. It wasn’t as if she had a goal, but she couldn’t deny that she was curious about the man who rescued her.
“Ye should ken ye cannae bring his niece there,” the maid said, her voice strained. “If he could fill in the loch, he would. After…”
“Aye, I ken,” answered another female voice. “But she was beggin’ to swim. It was such a nice day. I thought…”
“That ye could get away without Laird McGowan findin’ out?” the first maid said. “Ever since Leo…” There was a pause, and Flora imagined she was shaking her head. “Ye’re lucky ye still have yer job and that he dinnae throw ye in the dungeon. If it weren’t for how much Elizabeth likes ye, ye wouldnae be so lucky.”
“Aye,” the second said as the two began to move, jolting Flora from her position.
She rushed to the great hall, not wanting to be caught. Her heart was thudding in her ears as she tried to make sense of what she’d heard. Leo? And the loch?
It was somethin’ upsettin’ enough that he doesnae want anyone in that water. Upsettin’ enough that he would threaten to throw a maid in the dungeon.
Flora ran her hands through her hair, forcing herself to breathe. This man was violent, ruthless. Not even the people in his castle were safe from those threats. How long would it take until he turned that threat on her? She didn’t think she could go back to living like that, not after she was finally being allowed to experience comfort.
“Are ye all right?”
Flora jumped, her eyes wide, the racing thoughts coming to an abrupt halt. Annabeth was looking at her curiously, her head tilted to the side. The concern was both unsettling and comforting.
“Aye,” Flora said, forcing a smile. “I’m just thinkin’ about the session I have with Laird McGowan today.”
“A session?” Annabeth asked, easily believing the fib.
“He said he’ll be teachin’ me to defend meself.”
