CHAPTER 7
Three long days passed while Ella paced and fretted. Muireall was only a little better, worried for her husband Euan, but confident that he could take care of himself in a fight. Knowing Calum’s vision was not perfect, Ella couldn’t share her certainty, but took some comfort knowing that Euan would guard his left side if it came to a fight.
The lack of news worried all of them. At last, Muireall tired of her long face and dragged her outside, to where the lasses held their archery target practice against the inside of the keep’s outer curtain wall, something Muireall suggested several times, but Ella had refused to do in the year since she’d come to Brodie.
Ella was still reluctant, more interested in learning to heal than in injuring or killing. But she’d seen in July how it felt to have most of the fighting men away from the keep with Domhnall’s army, and how the women, trained as archers, kept watch on the wall walk and made everyone feel safer. If she needed more convincing, one look at Annie’s young lad and the idea of helping to keep the clan’s bairns safe soothed her qualms.
Had they lost many men at Harlaw, and thank they saints they had not, those women would have been even more important defending the clan until the younger lads andlasses grew older, stronger, and more skilled. Now that Brodie was again without a number of their warriors, refreshing her observations from July, she decided it was time for her to step up. Iain sent out all of their scouts and a third of their fighting men. He remained in the keep, as did Annie. She drilled the women who’d already become skilled archers, while bringing up other lasses who wanted to join their more experienced sisters in defending the clan.
Ella wanted to learn to defend the keep, while hoping she never actually had to. So, she went with Muireall to a sheltered corner of the bailey where targets were set up, nervous but determined.
“Ye need a distraction, and this one is useful,” Muireall said as she took Ella to a stack of bows of varying lengths and began having her try them for size and pull. “Ye’ll train with the newer lasses,” she added. “Ye canna place a value on learning to defend yerself.”
“How long will it take me to learn to do this?” Each bow Muireall gave her seemed too large, and pulling it required more strength than she possessed. But Muireall was undeterred and when one bow proved to be too much, handed her another.
“That depends on ye. A day or two for the basics, but longer to practice and become an expert.”
“That could take me?—”
“Sennights, or months, aye, but consider this, if ye get good at archery, Calum might respect ye more, since archery and fighting are things he understands and values.”
“That’s a good point. Helping Mhairi has no’ served me well with him.”
“Give him time, Ella. Yerself, too. Ye will find a way. And ye will want to spend some time with Iain’s lot as well.”
“I’ve watched them a wee when I passed nearby. This is hard, but what they’re doing looks harder. And more dangerous.”
Muireall hesitated, then said, “After what ye have been through, learning to protect yerself will make ye feel stronger and more confident.”
Ella nodded. She didn’t like to think about their time at Ross, but Muireall was right.
At her nod, Muireall continued, “The biggest danger in training is getting bruised. But every lass should ken how to protect herself. ’Tis easier than trying to shoot someone with an arrow when they’ve already got their hands around yer throat.”
“Ye have a point.”
Muireall nodded as Ella found a bow she could pull, then handed her a fistful of arrows. “Let’s do this first. Later, I can show ye some simple moves?—”
“Aye, show me.”
“But after, ye must promise me to also learn from Iain. Or Calum.” She grinned, then sobered. “Either of them will teach ye more than I can. Especially Calum.” Her grin came back.
Ella ignored what Muireall likely thought Calum could teach her. “If I agree to work with Iain, why no’ go with me? Surely there is more ye wish to learn.”
Muireall considered for a moment. “Ye have a point,” she said, echoing Ella’s earlier comment.
“I hope everyone is back soon,” Ella said as Muireall chose a target for her to use and set her in place. “Even though we went through this in July, it seems strange to have so many of the men out of the keep at once.”
“So many men out of the keep, or one particular one? I recall how ye worried over Calum while he was gone this summer.”
Muireall helped Ella line up a shot, then she pulled and let it fly. She grimaced as it fell short of the target by several feet. “With good reason, as it turned out,” she answered while picking up another arrow and nocking it. “I took yer advice. Did Euan tell ye before they left?”
“That he made certain ye had a chance to speak to Calum, aye. But he didna ken what happened, except that he thought Calum needed the time to get over whatever the two of ye said to each other. Does that mean it didna go well?”
Ella lowered her bow, suddenly unable to summon the strength to pull it. She was grateful to have a friend like Muireall. Someone she could talk to. Someone who knew first-hand what she’d been through at Ross. But with all of that, she wasn’t sure she could repeat what she and Calum said to each other. She’d break down before she got very far.
“I see,” Muireall said before Ella recovered enough to have a chance to answer. “Ye will tell me when ye are ready. When ye are able.”
“I…he said he forgave me.”
