“Aye,” she replied gravely. “More than you might ever come to realize.”
Her words confused Malcolm, but she had always been mysterious in her ways. Indeed, he had quite missed her enigmatic nature, her cryptic turns of phrase that always inspired him to look for deeper meanings.
And by God, he had missed the softness of her gray eyes and her knowing smile.
“How on Earth did you come to be in my chamber unannounced?” he asked.
She shrugged. “When we were children here together, we found many secret ways and hidden passages to play in, did we not? And later, when I was a healer within these walls, I found even more such shortcuts and corridors so that I might reach the wounded and the infirm more quickly than I might have by normal means. In fact, Laird, I believe it would be fair to say that at this point, I know more about your castle than you do yourself.”
Malcolm chuckled. “I have no doubt of it.” He paused, then added, “I cared deeply for Kenna, as you well know. And I mourned the loss of her bitterly. In some ways, I suppose I still do… and the loss of the child I might have had. But I hope you also know how dearly I loved you, Morna, in the days when we were free to be together. It was not within my power to break with tradition and wed a woman who was not born of noble blood.”
Morna nodded. “I did know that then, dear Malcolm, and I know it now as well. Indeed, it is the love and trust we once shared that has compelled me to seek your aid.”
He frowned. “Whatever you require of me, dear lady, you shall have it.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Do you swear this to me, Malcolm? I warn you, what I ask of you will not be easy.”
He took her hands in his. “Yes, I do so swear.”
Morna took a deep breath. “Then I ask you to hear what I must tell you, and to believe it, even if you do not wish to. You see, your niece Isla is about to be married to Brodie MacKenzie tomorrow under false pretenses. Your brother Seamus, through lies and manipulations, has wrongly made them both believe that Brodie took her maidenhead while both were inebriated. And worst of all, an innocent maid named Margaret has been called a slanderer for speaking the truth of it.”
Malcolm flopped back down into his chair, the wind thoroughly knocked out of him. “I believe you had best start at the beginning,” he answered slowly, “and omit nothing, not even the smallest detail.”
Morna told him everything that she knew. When she had finished, Malcolm rose from the chair again, poured a goblet of whiskey, drained it, then poured and drained another.
“Well?” Morna asked. “I know I have demanded much of your credulity, but—”
He held up a hand. “I do notdisbelieveyou, no. It is simply difficult to accept as the truth. Seamus has done so much for the good of our clan. I know he has always been a hot-tempered sort and given to an excess of pride and vanity. When Kenna was with child, I saw the way he looked at her when he believed I was not watching. It was as though he burned with envy, wishing that his offspring would be the scion of our clan rather than my own.” He chuckled humorlessly. “In that, I suppose, he had nothing to worry about in the end.”
Morna’s expression hardened momentarily at those words, but she said nothing to interrupt.
“I know my brother is burdened with dark impulses,” Malcolm went on. “The truth of the matter is, I have generally turned a blind eye to them. Perhaps I should not have. Perhaps I should not have allowed him so much control in the affairs of our clan. But once Kenna and the bairn were no more…honestly, I was grateful to him for accepting so much of the responsibility that, by rights, should have fallen to me. My grief was too deep.”
“Your actions were understandable, Malcolm,” Morna assured him. “None would blame you for them. But you now have a chance to right those wrongs, and I beseech you to do so.”
He nodded. “I shall investigate the matter for myself before the ceremony tomorrow. I will press Seamus for the truth, and if what you have told me is accurate, Iwillintervene.”
“That is all I ask,” she replied. “Thank you. I shall withdraw for the night now so that you may get some rest.”
“Wait!” he said. “Do not leave!”
She arched an eyebrow. “Why not? What did you have in mind?”
“We have not seen each other in eighteen years!” He grinned, gesturing for her to sit in the chair next to his. “Why not take this opportunity to catch up? Did you bring any of that mead you used to brew?”
Morna laughed, reaching into a hidden pocket within her dress and producing a bottle as she sat down. “As a matter of fact, I did.”
